St. John's University Athletics
Saturday, October 25
New York, N.Y. (Madison Square Garden)
7 p.m.
St. John's University
vs
No. 7/7 Michigan (Exhibition)
No. 5/6 St. John’s to Meet No. 7/7 Michigan in Bad Boy Mowers Series - New York at Madison Square Garden
10/24/2025 5:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The Red Storm men’s basketball team will play its first-ever exhibition contest at “The World’s Most Famous Arena”
QUEENS, N.Y. – The No. 5/6 St. John's men's basketball team will play its first-ever exhibition contest at Madison Square Garden on Saturday when it faces No. 7/7 Michigan in the Bad Boy Mowers Series - New York at 7 p.m.
The Red Storm will make its first of 14 guaranteed appearances this season inside The World's Most Famous Arena in a preseason top-10 matchup between defending conference tournament champions. The 13 exhibition and regular season contests at "The Mecca" is the program's highest total since 1951-52, when St. John's advanced to the NCAA Tournament Championship game. Tickets for the matchup are still available.
The exhibition battle will be streamed on Big Ten+ with Bob Brainerd and Brian Butch on the call from Midtown Manhattan. Fans can watch Saturday's game pay-per-view for $8.99, which can be purchased online only by clicking the link here. Once purchased, Big Ten+ can be viewed on their website via their app on Roku, Firestick, Apple TV and more. The game broadcast will re-air on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. on MSG Network.
An audio broadcast will be available on the LEARFIELD St. John's Radio Network with John Minko and Vin Parise on the call from Madison Square Garden live on the VARSITY Network.
Earlier this week, St. John's was ranked No. 6 in the USA TODAY Coaches Top 25 poll, marking the highest preseason ranking in program history. In the Associated Press Top 25 poll, the Johnnies checked in at No. 5, marking another all-time program best for preseason rankings. At BIG EAST Media Day on Tuesday, the Red Storm were picked to repeat as regular season champions landing atop of the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches poll.
Five Johnnies earned preseason all-conference honors highlighted by predicted BIG EAST Player of the Year Zuby Ejiofor. Bryce Hopkins (First Team), Ian Jackson (Second Team), Joson Sanon (Third Team) and Dillon Mitchell (Third Team) garnered all-league recognition as St. John's five players on the Preseason All-BIG EAST teams is believed to be the most in conference history.
The Red Storm returns to MSG where it went 12-0 last season capped off by an illustrious run to its first BIG EAST Tournament Championship in 25 years this past March. The 12-game winning streak in the building marks the program's second longest in program history heading into the 2025-26 regular season. The Johnnies will make their regular season debut at The World's Most Famous Arena on Nov. 8 when they take on No. 15/16 Alabama.
In its first exhibition, the Red Storm rebounded from a slow start to down Towson, 73-63, on Oct. 18 inside Carnesecca Arena. St. John's scored 52 points over the final 20 minutes and engineered a 33-8 run during the middle of the stanza to down the CAA Preseason favorite in the Tigers. Hopkins paced the squad with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
The defending Big Ten Tournament Champions, Michigan enters the year ranked No. 7 in both the Associated Press and USA TODAY Coaches Top 25 polls. In the first year under the direction of Head Coach Dusty May, the Wolverines earned a 27-10 overall record and a Sweet 16 appearance.
In its first exhibition, the Wolverines rallied from a 20-point deficit but came up just short against Cincinnati, 100-98, in Ann Arbor. Yaxel Landeborg led the charge with 31 points and 12 rebounds. The UAB transfer was the top-rated prospect in the transfer portal and averaged a double-double with 15.8 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in two seasons with the Blazers.
St. John's and Michigan feature the two highest rated transfer portal recruiting classes, according to 247Sports.
Following Saturday's exhibition, St. John's will begin the 2025-26 regular season on Nov. 3 when it opens against Quinnipiac at 6:30 p.m. on FS1.
The Red Storm will make its first of 14 guaranteed appearances this season inside The World's Most Famous Arena in a preseason top-10 matchup between defending conference tournament champions. The 13 exhibition and regular season contests at "The Mecca" is the program's highest total since 1951-52, when St. John's advanced to the NCAA Tournament Championship game. Tickets for the matchup are still available.
The exhibition battle will be streamed on Big Ten+ with Bob Brainerd and Brian Butch on the call from Midtown Manhattan. Fans can watch Saturday's game pay-per-view for $8.99, which can be purchased online only by clicking the link here. Once purchased, Big Ten+ can be viewed on their website via their app on Roku, Firestick, Apple TV and more. The game broadcast will re-air on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. on MSG Network.
An audio broadcast will be available on the LEARFIELD St. John's Radio Network with John Minko and Vin Parise on the call from Madison Square Garden live on the VARSITY Network.
Earlier this week, St. John's was ranked No. 6 in the USA TODAY Coaches Top 25 poll, marking the highest preseason ranking in program history. In the Associated Press Top 25 poll, the Johnnies checked in at No. 5, marking another all-time program best for preseason rankings. At BIG EAST Media Day on Tuesday, the Red Storm were picked to repeat as regular season champions landing atop of the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches poll.
Five Johnnies earned preseason all-conference honors highlighted by predicted BIG EAST Player of the Year Zuby Ejiofor. Bryce Hopkins (First Team), Ian Jackson (Second Team), Joson Sanon (Third Team) and Dillon Mitchell (Third Team) garnered all-league recognition as St. John's five players on the Preseason All-BIG EAST teams is believed to be the most in conference history.
The Red Storm returns to MSG where it went 12-0 last season capped off by an illustrious run to its first BIG EAST Tournament Championship in 25 years this past March. The 12-game winning streak in the building marks the program's second longest in program history heading into the 2025-26 regular season. The Johnnies will make their regular season debut at The World's Most Famous Arena on Nov. 8 when they take on No. 15/16 Alabama.
In its first exhibition, the Red Storm rebounded from a slow start to down Towson, 73-63, on Oct. 18 inside Carnesecca Arena. St. John's scored 52 points over the final 20 minutes and engineered a 33-8 run during the middle of the stanza to down the CAA Preseason favorite in the Tigers. Hopkins paced the squad with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
The defending Big Ten Tournament Champions, Michigan enters the year ranked No. 7 in both the Associated Press and USA TODAY Coaches Top 25 polls. In the first year under the direction of Head Coach Dusty May, the Wolverines earned a 27-10 overall record and a Sweet 16 appearance.
In its first exhibition, the Wolverines rallied from a 20-point deficit but came up just short against Cincinnati, 100-98, in Ann Arbor. Yaxel Landeborg led the charge with 31 points and 12 rebounds. The UAB transfer was the top-rated prospect in the transfer portal and averaged a double-double with 15.8 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in two seasons with the Blazers.
St. John's and Michigan feature the two highest rated transfer portal recruiting classes, according to 247Sports.
Following Saturday's exhibition, St. John's will begin the 2025-26 regular season on Nov. 3 when it opens against Quinnipiac at 6:30 p.m. on FS1.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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