St. John's University Athletics
St. John’s to Visit No. 25 Rutgers in Charity Exhibition for Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Research Fund on Thursday
10/16/2024 4:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The Red Storm and Rutgers meet for second-straight preseason with proceeds supporting the V Foundation
QUEENS, N.Y. – The St. John's men's basketball team will visit No. 25 Rutgers on Thursday in a charity exhibition supporting the Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Research Fund and the V Foundation.
Tip-off from Jersey Mike's Arena is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Big Ten Network will carry the preseason matchup with Andy Katz and Austin Johnson on the call from Piscataway, N.J.
Fresh off a 20-win season, St. John's Head Coach Rick Pitino, who enters his 37th season at the helm of a Division I program, will look to build on a successful 2023-24 campaign that saw that Johnnies reach the BIG EAST Tournament semifinals for the first time since 2000. The winningest active coach in Division I, Pitino led the Red Storm to 11 victories in BIG EAST play, marking the program's most since the 2010-11 season.
For the second time in as many years, St. John's received votes in the Associated Press (AP) Preseason Top 25 poll. The Johnnies logged 91 votes which were the second-most by teams outside the Top 25. St. John's was also one of six teams from the BIG EAST to receive votes.
St. John's checks in at No. 19 in the KenPom.com ratings entering the 2024-25 campaign, the second-highest mark for the program since the rankings were created before the 1997 season. Only the 1999-2000 team had a higher rating to entering the season at No. 7 prior to making a run to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.
St. John's will compete in a charity exhibition game with the Scarlet Knights for the second-straight season. Last season, the Johnnies edged Rutgers in a double-overtime thriller during the preseason that raised significant funds for the Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Research Fund at the V Foundation. Nahiem Alleyne, who buried a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to force the second extra period, led the Red Storm with 19 points en route to an 89-78 victory on Oct. 21, 2023 in Queens.
The Red Storm welcomes back Zuby Ejiofor, RJ Luis Jr., Simeon Wilcher, Brady Dunlap and Sadiku Ibine Ayo. Ejiofor, who named the team's co-captain for the upcoming season, enters his second season with the Red Storm after coming to Queens from Kansas. Ejiofor appeared in all 33 games last season, averaging 4.3 points and 3.1 rebounds in 11.2 minutes per contest.
Luis is the top returning scorer and rebounder from a season ago, posting 10.9 points, 4.6 boards to go with just over one steal per contest. The Miami, Fla., native scored a season-best 20 points against then-No. 17/18 Marquette. Wilcher also enters his second campaign with the Johnnies, as the New Jersey product managed 2.8 points and just over an assist in 9.1 minutes per game. Dunlap made 25 appearances as a freshman last season playing 12.4 minutes per contest while Ibine Ayo missed the majority of the year due to injury.
With five players – Joel Soriano (14.9 ppg), Daniss Jenkins (13.8 ppg), Jordan Dingle (11.6 ppg), Chris Ledlum (9.5 ppg) and Naheim Alleyne (6.4 ppg) – graduating and accounting for 69.4 percent of the Red Storm scoring last year, St. John's reloaded with the 11th-best transfer class in 2024 offseason, according to On3.com.
Former Seton Hall standout and 2024 All-BIG EAST First Team selection Kadary Richmond headlines the incoming transfer class. Averaging career highs 15.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game, the Brooklyn native led the Pirates to a 2024 NIT Championship. Richmond paced the team during its title run with 13.8 points, 9.4 boards and 6.4 assists en route to NIT All-Tournament Team honors.
The Johnnies added another NIT Champion to its roster with Aaron Scott, who played the last three seasons at North Texas. A defensive-minded wing, the Spring, Texas, native swatted the final shot against Wisconsin in the 2023 NIT semifinals before scoring 14 points in the title game to knock off UAB. Scott also faced the Red Storm last season during the Charleston Classic, scoring 13 points and pulling down seven boards in a loss to St. John's on Nov. 16, 2023
Much like Scott and Richmond, senior guard Deivon Smith also traded his opposition colors to join the Red Storm this season. Despite missing the third-place game with St. John's at the Charleston Classic, the Utah transfer produced a near historic season with five triple-doubles, falling one shy of tying the NCAA record. The Decatur, Ga., product finished his run with the Utes by logging a pair of triple-doubles in the 2024 NIT Tournament before posting a career-best 28 points on 10-of-16 shooting in the semifinal against Indiana State.
Former USC big man Vince Iwuchukwu rounds out the Johnnies' transfer class. A 7-foot-1 center, the Lagos, Nigeria native played two seasons with the Trojans, averaging 5.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.
The Red Storm's roster also features talented freshmen in Jaiden Glover, Lefteris Liotopoulos, Khaman Maker and Ruben Prey. Glover, a consensus four-star standout, helped the Patrick School to an 11-0 record, posting 13.1 points, 4.4 boards and 2.2 assists per contest over the final 10 games. A 7-foot-1 center, Maker also shined nationally at the Nike EYBL Peach Jam with 2.7 blocks per game while averaging 8.4 boards and 6.3 points with the Oakland Soldiers.
Liotopoulos, who hails from Thessaloniki, Greece, and Prey, from Lisbon, Portugal, have traveled a combined 8,300 miles to play for St. John's this season. The duo excelled at the international level, both playing for their national teams. Liotopoulos appeared in seven contests for the U18 Greek National Team, averaging 14.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. Prey made 18 international appearances in total for Team Portugal. The 6-foot-10 forward shined at the U20 FIBA European Championships in 2022 with 16.3 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per contest over seven games.
Rutgers posted a 15-17 overall record during the 2023-24 campaign. However, the Scarlet Knights enter the upcoming season with the sixth-best recruiting class, according to On3.com. With five top 150 recruits, McDonald's All-Americans Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper headline the class and will look to make an immediate impact for the Scarlet Knights. The duo was ranked the No. 2 and No. 3 incoming freshmen in the nation, respectively. Harper was also selected to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team.
Following Thursday's contest, St. John's will return to Carnesecca Arena for its final tune-up, taking on Towson in a charity exhibition supporting Autism Speaks on Saturday, Oct. 26. The preseason contest will tip at 12 p.m. Click here to purchase tickets.
Tip-off from Jersey Mike's Arena is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Big Ten Network will carry the preseason matchup with Andy Katz and Austin Johnson on the call from Piscataway, N.J.
Fresh off a 20-win season, St. John's Head Coach Rick Pitino, who enters his 37th season at the helm of a Division I program, will look to build on a successful 2023-24 campaign that saw that Johnnies reach the BIG EAST Tournament semifinals for the first time since 2000. The winningest active coach in Division I, Pitino led the Red Storm to 11 victories in BIG EAST play, marking the program's most since the 2010-11 season.
For the second time in as many years, St. John's received votes in the Associated Press (AP) Preseason Top 25 poll. The Johnnies logged 91 votes which were the second-most by teams outside the Top 25. St. John's was also one of six teams from the BIG EAST to receive votes.
St. John's checks in at No. 19 in the KenPom.com ratings entering the 2024-25 campaign, the second-highest mark for the program since the rankings were created before the 1997 season. Only the 1999-2000 team had a higher rating to entering the season at No. 7 prior to making a run to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.
St. John's will compete in a charity exhibition game with the Scarlet Knights for the second-straight season. Last season, the Johnnies edged Rutgers in a double-overtime thriller during the preseason that raised significant funds for the Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Research Fund at the V Foundation. Nahiem Alleyne, who buried a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to force the second extra period, led the Red Storm with 19 points en route to an 89-78 victory on Oct. 21, 2023 in Queens.
The Red Storm welcomes back Zuby Ejiofor, RJ Luis Jr., Simeon Wilcher, Brady Dunlap and Sadiku Ibine Ayo. Ejiofor, who named the team's co-captain for the upcoming season, enters his second season with the Red Storm after coming to Queens from Kansas. Ejiofor appeared in all 33 games last season, averaging 4.3 points and 3.1 rebounds in 11.2 minutes per contest.
Luis is the top returning scorer and rebounder from a season ago, posting 10.9 points, 4.6 boards to go with just over one steal per contest. The Miami, Fla., native scored a season-best 20 points against then-No. 17/18 Marquette. Wilcher also enters his second campaign with the Johnnies, as the New Jersey product managed 2.8 points and just over an assist in 9.1 minutes per game. Dunlap made 25 appearances as a freshman last season playing 12.4 minutes per contest while Ibine Ayo missed the majority of the year due to injury.
With five players – Joel Soriano (14.9 ppg), Daniss Jenkins (13.8 ppg), Jordan Dingle (11.6 ppg), Chris Ledlum (9.5 ppg) and Naheim Alleyne (6.4 ppg) – graduating and accounting for 69.4 percent of the Red Storm scoring last year, St. John's reloaded with the 11th-best transfer class in 2024 offseason, according to On3.com.
Former Seton Hall standout and 2024 All-BIG EAST First Team selection Kadary Richmond headlines the incoming transfer class. Averaging career highs 15.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game, the Brooklyn native led the Pirates to a 2024 NIT Championship. Richmond paced the team during its title run with 13.8 points, 9.4 boards and 6.4 assists en route to NIT All-Tournament Team honors.
The Johnnies added another NIT Champion to its roster with Aaron Scott, who played the last three seasons at North Texas. A defensive-minded wing, the Spring, Texas, native swatted the final shot against Wisconsin in the 2023 NIT semifinals before scoring 14 points in the title game to knock off UAB. Scott also faced the Red Storm last season during the Charleston Classic, scoring 13 points and pulling down seven boards in a loss to St. John's on Nov. 16, 2023
Much like Scott and Richmond, senior guard Deivon Smith also traded his opposition colors to join the Red Storm this season. Despite missing the third-place game with St. John's at the Charleston Classic, the Utah transfer produced a near historic season with five triple-doubles, falling one shy of tying the NCAA record. The Decatur, Ga., product finished his run with the Utes by logging a pair of triple-doubles in the 2024 NIT Tournament before posting a career-best 28 points on 10-of-16 shooting in the semifinal against Indiana State.
Former USC big man Vince Iwuchukwu rounds out the Johnnies' transfer class. A 7-foot-1 center, the Lagos, Nigeria native played two seasons with the Trojans, averaging 5.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.
The Red Storm's roster also features talented freshmen in Jaiden Glover, Lefteris Liotopoulos, Khaman Maker and Ruben Prey. Glover, a consensus four-star standout, helped the Patrick School to an 11-0 record, posting 13.1 points, 4.4 boards and 2.2 assists per contest over the final 10 games. A 7-foot-1 center, Maker also shined nationally at the Nike EYBL Peach Jam with 2.7 blocks per game while averaging 8.4 boards and 6.3 points with the Oakland Soldiers.
Liotopoulos, who hails from Thessaloniki, Greece, and Prey, from Lisbon, Portugal, have traveled a combined 8,300 miles to play for St. John's this season. The duo excelled at the international level, both playing for their national teams. Liotopoulos appeared in seven contests for the U18 Greek National Team, averaging 14.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. Prey made 18 international appearances in total for Team Portugal. The 6-foot-10 forward shined at the U20 FIBA European Championships in 2022 with 16.3 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per contest over seven games.
Rutgers posted a 15-17 overall record during the 2023-24 campaign. However, the Scarlet Knights enter the upcoming season with the sixth-best recruiting class, according to On3.com. With five top 150 recruits, McDonald's All-Americans Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper headline the class and will look to make an immediate impact for the Scarlet Knights. The duo was ranked the No. 2 and No. 3 incoming freshmen in the nation, respectively. Harper was also selected to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team.
Following Thursday's contest, St. John's will return to Carnesecca Arena for its final tune-up, taking on Towson in a charity exhibition supporting Autism Speaks on Saturday, Oct. 26. The preseason contest will tip at 12 p.m. Click here to purchase tickets.
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