St. John's University Athletics
Saturday, December 6
New York, N.Y. (Madison Square Garden)
8 p.m.
St. John's University
5-3,0-0Big East
63
vs
58
Ole Miss
5-4,0-0SEC
1
2
F
Ole Miss
25
33
58
St. John's (NY)
33
30
63
No. 23/22 St. John’s Grinds Out Win Over Ole Miss, 63-58, at MSG
12/6/2025 11:42:00 PM | Men's Basketball
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Zuby Ejiofor becomes fourth-ever Red Storm player to record eight or more rejections in a single-game
NEW YORK – Led by an eight-block performance from Zuby Ejiofor, the No. 23/22 St. John's men's basketball team (5-3) pushed past NR/RV Ole Miss (5-4), 63-58, on Saturday at Madison Square Garden.
Ejiofor became just the fourth player in St. John's men's basketball history to record eight or more blocks in a single-game and the first since Tariq Owens recorded eight against Georgetown on Jan. 9, 2018. The senior captain also joins Chris Obekpa and Sir' Dominic Pointer as the only players to reach eight rejections. Ejiofor finished the night with a team-high 15 points, nine rebounds, three steals along with his eight blocks to became just the fifth player in NCAA Division I in the last decade to achieve that stat line.
The Red Storm fended off a late-run from Ole Miss and wreaked havoc with its defensive pressure forcing the Rebels into 20 turnovers. St. John's victory on Saturday marked the program's first over an SEC opponent since Nov. 29, 2012, when it defeated South Carolina, 89-65, at Carnesecca Arena, snapping a seven-game losing streak against the conference.
The Johnnies shot 25-for-35 (71.4%) from the charity stripe, marking the second time this season the Red Storm has made 25 or more free throws.
Dylan Darling added seven points, all in the final four minutes of action to close out the Rebels in Midtown Manhattan. Dillon Mitchell filled the box score with seven points, seven rebounds, and three steals.
Ole Miss' Malik Dia (18) and Ilias Kamardine (16) led all players in scoring each posting double figures.
In the early going, the Red Storm engineered a 13-4 run to take 17-11 advantage into the under-12 media timeout. Joson Sanon flushed a triple off a feed from Mitchell before the forward swiped a steal then took off for a wide-open slam to close the run.
St. John's deployed a full-court press, forcing the Rebels into 13 turnovers, converting the takeaways into 12 points in the first half. Midway through the opening stanza, the Johnnies continued to force the Rebels into six giveaways over a four-minute span as the Red Storm lead ballooned to 15, 33-18, with 3:31 remaining in the half. Ian Jackson knocked down a contested 3-pointer and drove down the lane for a crafty lay-up to cap off a 14-3 run.
The Red Storm's defense continued to lock it down as Ejiofor recorded his sixth block of the first half, setting a new personal best. However, Ole Miss rattled off a 7-0 run to end opening stanza as St. John's clung to an eight-point lead, 33-25, into the second half.
After Ole Miss cut its deficit to five, Mitchell rose above the rim and threw down a one-handed putback slam to ignite the St. John's crowd. As the clock dwindled under 10 minutes in the game, Ejiofor then barreled toward the rim twice getting two contested lay-in's to drop as the Johnnies' lead was brought back to 12, 48-35.
Sadiku Ibine Ayo rattled home a key corner triple off the dish from Darling to give St. John's its largest advantage of the half. Ole Miss refused to go down without a fight, sparking a 10-0 run to climb with four, 51-47.
After Ejiofor's eighth block of the night, Darling drove hard down the right side of the lane getting a spinning lay-up to fall as the Red Storm's cushion grew to eight, 55-47, with four minutes on the clock.
In the final minute, the Rebels cut it to a single-possession game after Malik Dia dropped a bucket to bring the St. John's edge to three, 56-53, with 58 seconds on the clock. Darling came up clutch down the stretch at the free throw line making five to secure the win for the Johnnies.
St. John's will return to The World's Most Famous Arena on Saturday to meet Iona at 12 p.m.
Ejiofor became just the fourth player in St. John's men's basketball history to record eight or more blocks in a single-game and the first since Tariq Owens recorded eight against Georgetown on Jan. 9, 2018. The senior captain also joins Chris Obekpa and Sir' Dominic Pointer as the only players to reach eight rejections. Ejiofor finished the night with a team-high 15 points, nine rebounds, three steals along with his eight blocks to became just the fifth player in NCAA Division I in the last decade to achieve that stat line.
The Red Storm fended off a late-run from Ole Miss and wreaked havoc with its defensive pressure forcing the Rebels into 20 turnovers. St. John's victory on Saturday marked the program's first over an SEC opponent since Nov. 29, 2012, when it defeated South Carolina, 89-65, at Carnesecca Arena, snapping a seven-game losing streak against the conference.
The Johnnies shot 25-for-35 (71.4%) from the charity stripe, marking the second time this season the Red Storm has made 25 or more free throws.
Dylan Darling added seven points, all in the final four minutes of action to close out the Rebels in Midtown Manhattan. Dillon Mitchell filled the box score with seven points, seven rebounds, and three steals.
Ole Miss' Malik Dia (18) and Ilias Kamardine (16) led all players in scoring each posting double figures.
In the early going, the Red Storm engineered a 13-4 run to take 17-11 advantage into the under-12 media timeout. Joson Sanon flushed a triple off a feed from Mitchell before the forward swiped a steal then took off for a wide-open slam to close the run.
St. John's deployed a full-court press, forcing the Rebels into 13 turnovers, converting the takeaways into 12 points in the first half. Midway through the opening stanza, the Johnnies continued to force the Rebels into six giveaways over a four-minute span as the Red Storm lead ballooned to 15, 33-18, with 3:31 remaining in the half. Ian Jackson knocked down a contested 3-pointer and drove down the lane for a crafty lay-up to cap off a 14-3 run.
The Red Storm's defense continued to lock it down as Ejiofor recorded his sixth block of the first half, setting a new personal best. However, Ole Miss rattled off a 7-0 run to end opening stanza as St. John's clung to an eight-point lead, 33-25, into the second half.
After Ole Miss cut its deficit to five, Mitchell rose above the rim and threw down a one-handed putback slam to ignite the St. John's crowd. As the clock dwindled under 10 minutes in the game, Ejiofor then barreled toward the rim twice getting two contested lay-in's to drop as the Johnnies' lead was brought back to 12, 48-35.
Sadiku Ibine Ayo rattled home a key corner triple off the dish from Darling to give St. John's its largest advantage of the half. Ole Miss refused to go down without a fight, sparking a 10-0 run to climb with four, 51-47.
After Ejiofor's eighth block of the night, Darling drove hard down the right side of the lane getting a spinning lay-up to fall as the Red Storm's cushion grew to eight, 55-47, with four minutes on the clock.
In the final minute, the Rebels cut it to a single-possession game after Malik Dia dropped a bucket to bring the St. John's edge to three, 56-53, with 58 seconds on the clock. Darling came up clutch down the stretch at the free throw line making five to secure the win for the Johnnies.
St. John's will return to The World's Most Famous Arena on Saturday to meet Iona at 12 p.m.
Team Stats
UM
SJU
FG%
.364
.340
3FG%
.125
.182
FT%
.800
.714
RB
36
38
TO
20
20
STL
11
13
Game Leaders
Pts
15
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
9
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
7
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's BasketballForward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's BasketballSt. John's MBB vs Iona Highlights 12.13.2025
Saturday, December 13
St. John's Men's Basketball vs Iona Postgame Press Conference 12.13.25
Saturday, December 13
Pre-Game Press Conference St. John's MBB vs Iona 12.11.2025
Thursday, December 11
St. John's MBB vs. Ole Miss Game Highlights 12.6.25
Saturday, December 06