St. John's University Athletics
St. John’s to Face Fordham in MSG Holiday Festival Tripleheader on Saturday
12/15/2023 11:21:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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The Red Storm men’s basketball team hosts the Rams at 3:30 p.m. on FS1
QUEENS, N.Y. – The St. John's men's basketball team returns to Madison Square Garden on Saturday to host Fordham in the MSG Holiday Festival tripleheader. The Red Storm and Rams will compete in the second of three games at "The World's Most Famous Arena" on Saturday with tip-off scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
Penn State and Georgia Tech will kick off the college basketball tripleheader at noon while the St. John's women's basketball team and Villanova will square off in the finale at 6 p.m.
Saturday's contest between St. John's (6-3) and Fordham (5-5) will be broadcast nationally on FS1 with John Fanta and Tarik Turner calling the action from Midtown. An audio broadcast of the game on the LEARFIELD Red Storm Sports Network with John Minko and Vin Parise will also be available on a variety of platforms including the Varsity Network App, TuneIn Radio, RedStormSports.com and the St. John's Red Storm mobile app. The radio broadcast can also be heard on SiriusXM channel 385 and the SiriusXM App.
St. John's has won four of its last five contests and looks to rebound from an 86-80 setback to Boston College in the NABC Brooklyn Showcase at Barclays Center on Sunday. Senior captain Joel Soriano registered his fourth 20-point performance and fifth double-double, posting 21 points and 11 rebounds against the Eagles. Over the last five games, the 6-foot-11 center has averaged 18.2 points shooting 68.6 percent (35-51 FG) from the field to go with 10.8 rebounds per contest.
Entering its matchup with the Rams, the Red Storm remains the top offensive rebounding team in Division I averaging 18.2 offensive boards per contest. Soriano has played a big part in the team's success on the offensive glass, as he ranks second in the nation with 4.7 offensive rebounds per contest. Front court mates Chris Ledlum (3.2) and Zuby Ejiofor (2.3) also rank among the BIG EAST leaders in the statistical category checking in fourth and 12th, respectively.
St. John's returns to The Garden for the first time since hosting Michigan on Nov. 13 in the Gavitt Tipoff Games. The Johnnies have won 439 contests on its home court in Midtown dating back to the 1930-31 campaign, including 76 victories in the MSG Holiday Festival. The Red Storm will look to extend its three-game winning streak in the Holiday Festival after earning consecutive wins against Iona (69-59 - Dec. 17, 2017), Princeton (89-74 - Dec. 9, 2018) and West Virginia (70-68 - Dec. 7, 2019).
St. John's and Fordham will meet for the 90th time in a series that dates back to 1909. The Red Storm boasts a 67-22 all-time record against the Rams with a 29-4 mark in home games. St. John's has won six of its last seven meetings with Fordham since 2011, including an 83-69 victory in the last contest on Dec. 5, 2021, at Carnesecca Arena. Former Red Storm standout and current San Antonio Spur Julian Champagnie recorded 16 points, eight rebounds and three steals in the victory.
On Saturday, the Johnnies and Rams will square off at the Holiday Festival for the ninth time, as St. John's is a perfect 8-0 against Fordham in the event. St. John's cruised to a 74-53 victory in its last meeting with Fordham in the Holiday Festival on Dec. 14, 2014. D'Angelo Harrison helped lead the charge for the Johnnies with 22 points (8-of-12 FG).
Fordham has gone 3-2 in its last five games and most recently earned a 60-59 victory over North Texas on Sunday in the NABC Brooklyn Showcase. Senior center Abdou Tsimbila slammed home the final bucket of the game as time expired to lift the Rams over the Mean Green inside Barclays Center.
Japhet Medor (11.2 ppg), Joshua Rivera (10.8 ppg) and Tsimbila (10.0 ppg) are the Rams' scoring leaders this season and each averaging double figures. Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Defensive Team selections Tsimbila (2.7 bpg) and Kyle Rose (1.8 spg) have led the team in blocks and steals, respectively.
The Rams rank 15th in Division I forcing 16.7 turnovers per contest. Fordham also leads the Atlantic 10 and stands 23rd in the nation with 25.2 free-throw attempts per game.
Penn State and Georgia Tech will kick off the college basketball tripleheader at noon while the St. John's women's basketball team and Villanova will square off in the finale at 6 p.m.
Saturday's contest between St. John's (6-3) and Fordham (5-5) will be broadcast nationally on FS1 with John Fanta and Tarik Turner calling the action from Midtown. An audio broadcast of the game on the LEARFIELD Red Storm Sports Network with John Minko and Vin Parise will also be available on a variety of platforms including the Varsity Network App, TuneIn Radio, RedStormSports.com and the St. John's Red Storm mobile app. The radio broadcast can also be heard on SiriusXM channel 385 and the SiriusXM App.
St. John's has won four of its last five contests and looks to rebound from an 86-80 setback to Boston College in the NABC Brooklyn Showcase at Barclays Center on Sunday. Senior captain Joel Soriano registered his fourth 20-point performance and fifth double-double, posting 21 points and 11 rebounds against the Eagles. Over the last five games, the 6-foot-11 center has averaged 18.2 points shooting 68.6 percent (35-51 FG) from the field to go with 10.8 rebounds per contest.
Entering its matchup with the Rams, the Red Storm remains the top offensive rebounding team in Division I averaging 18.2 offensive boards per contest. Soriano has played a big part in the team's success on the offensive glass, as he ranks second in the nation with 4.7 offensive rebounds per contest. Front court mates Chris Ledlum (3.2) and Zuby Ejiofor (2.3) also rank among the BIG EAST leaders in the statistical category checking in fourth and 12th, respectively.
St. John's returns to The Garden for the first time since hosting Michigan on Nov. 13 in the Gavitt Tipoff Games. The Johnnies have won 439 contests on its home court in Midtown dating back to the 1930-31 campaign, including 76 victories in the MSG Holiday Festival. The Red Storm will look to extend its three-game winning streak in the Holiday Festival after earning consecutive wins against Iona (69-59 - Dec. 17, 2017), Princeton (89-74 - Dec. 9, 2018) and West Virginia (70-68 - Dec. 7, 2019).
St. John's and Fordham will meet for the 90th time in a series that dates back to 1909. The Red Storm boasts a 67-22 all-time record against the Rams with a 29-4 mark in home games. St. John's has won six of its last seven meetings with Fordham since 2011, including an 83-69 victory in the last contest on Dec. 5, 2021, at Carnesecca Arena. Former Red Storm standout and current San Antonio Spur Julian Champagnie recorded 16 points, eight rebounds and three steals in the victory.
On Saturday, the Johnnies and Rams will square off at the Holiday Festival for the ninth time, as St. John's is a perfect 8-0 against Fordham in the event. St. John's cruised to a 74-53 victory in its last meeting with Fordham in the Holiday Festival on Dec. 14, 2014. D'Angelo Harrison helped lead the charge for the Johnnies with 22 points (8-of-12 FG).
Fordham has gone 3-2 in its last five games and most recently earned a 60-59 victory over North Texas on Sunday in the NABC Brooklyn Showcase. Senior center Abdou Tsimbila slammed home the final bucket of the game as time expired to lift the Rams over the Mean Green inside Barclays Center.
Japhet Medor (11.2 ppg), Joshua Rivera (10.8 ppg) and Tsimbila (10.0 ppg) are the Rams' scoring leaders this season and each averaging double figures. Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Defensive Team selections Tsimbila (2.7 bpg) and Kyle Rose (1.8 spg) have led the team in blocks and steals, respectively.
The Rams rank 15th in Division I forcing 16.7 turnovers per contest. Fordham also leads the Atlantic 10 and stands 23rd in the nation with 25.2 free-throw attempts per game.
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