RJ Luis Jr. Tabbed Naismith Trophy National Player of the Week

QUEENS, N.Y. – St. John's men's basketball standout RJ Luis Jr. has been named the Naismith Trophy National Player of the Week on Monday.

The junior wing becomes the first St. John's player to earn the national recognition since Joel Soriano on Jan. 16, 2023 and just the third since 2019.

Last week in a pair of pivotal wins over No. 11/11 Marquette and at No. 19/18 UConn, Luis averaged 19.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game.

In Tuesday's 70-64 victory over No. 11/11 Marquette, the Miami native finished with his seventh double-double of the season, putting up a 17-point and 11-rebound performance. Additionally, the wing was stout defensively against the Golden Eagles, tallying a career-high three blocks and matching a season-best four steals in 40 minutes of action.

On Friday night in Storrs, Conn., Luis delivered his seventh 20-plus point performance of the season to guide St. John's past No. 19/18 UConn, 68-62. He finished with team-highs of 21 points and seven rebounds as the Johnnies won their first game at Gampel Pavilion with fans in attendance since 2000. The dynamic scorer proved clutch down the stretch, scoring eight points over the final 2:16, including a crucial baseline jumper with 10.1 remaining to put the Red Storm up four and seal a pivotal victory.

Luis is averaging 17.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game as the Red Storm is off to a 21-3 overall record and a 12-1 mark in BIG EAST play, both marks mark program bests since the 1984-85 season. The Johnnies have won 10 games in a row, which marks the second longest winning streak in NCAA Division I.

Earlier today, Luis was named the BIG EAST and NCAA March Madness Player of the Week.

The Red Storm will return to action against Villanova on Wednesday at 6 p.m. inside Finneran Pavilion on FS1.

St. John's University Athletics

RJ Luis Jr. Tabbed Naismith Trophy National Player of the Week

Players Mentioned

RJ Luis Jr.

Joel Soriano

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