St. John's University Athletics
St. John’s to Host Alabama at Madison Square Garden on November 8
5/13/2025 2:20:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The Red Storm men’s basketball team will battle the Crimson Tide at The World’s Most Famous Arena in marquee non-conference showdown
QUEENS, N.Y. - The St. John's men's basketball program has officially added another marquee showdown to its 2025-26 schedule as the Johnnies will host Alabama on Saturday, Nov. 8 for its season debut at Madison Square Garden.
The game time, ticket information and TV destination will be announced at a later date.
Both programs are coming off strong 2024-25 campaigns, earning No. 2 seeds in the NCAA Tournament and finished the year ranked top-11 in the final edition of the Associated Press Top-25 Poll.
St. John's and Alabama will meet for just the fifth time overall and for the first time in 43 years when the series renews at The World's Most Famous Arena. The all-time series is split evenly, 2-2, as all four previous meetings have been decided by eight points or less.
The Johnnies and Crimson Tide last met in the 1982 NCAA Tournament Second Round as the fourth-seeded Alabama outlasted the fifth-seeded Johnnies, 69-68, at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y. In the first meeting between the two and only at MSG, St. John's moved past the then-No. 5 Alabama, 87-79, on Dec. 17, 1955. The two squads also faced off in the 1981 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) at Alumni Hall and in 1974 at the Hartford Civic Center.
2024-25 National Coach of the Year Rick Pitino holds an 11-3 all-time mark against Alabama, including a 5-0 record at home. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer will coach against Alabama's signal-caller Nate Oats for the third time. In the last meeting, Pitino led Iona past then-No. 10 Alabama, 72-68, earning the Gaels' second-ever victory over a top-10 program at the ESPN Events Invitational in Florida on Nov. 25, 2021. The duo also met in the 2021 NCAA Tournament in Indianapolis where the No. 15-seeded Gaels fell to the second-seeded Crimson Tide, 68-55.
The Red Storm posted a perfect 12-0 record at Madison Square Garden this past season. St. John's 12-game win streak at The World's Most Famous Arena marks the second longest in program history. The Johnnies sold-out the building for their final six contests at The Garden and won the final five by double-digits on their way to a BIG EAST Regular Season and Tournament Championships.
The full non-conference schedule for the 2025-26 St. John's men's basketball season will be released at a later date.
The game time, ticket information and TV destination will be announced at a later date.
Both programs are coming off strong 2024-25 campaigns, earning No. 2 seeds in the NCAA Tournament and finished the year ranked top-11 in the final edition of the Associated Press Top-25 Poll.
St. John's and Alabama will meet for just the fifth time overall and for the first time in 43 years when the series renews at The World's Most Famous Arena. The all-time series is split evenly, 2-2, as all four previous meetings have been decided by eight points or less.
The Johnnies and Crimson Tide last met in the 1982 NCAA Tournament Second Round as the fourth-seeded Alabama outlasted the fifth-seeded Johnnies, 69-68, at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y. In the first meeting between the two and only at MSG, St. John's moved past the then-No. 5 Alabama, 87-79, on Dec. 17, 1955. The two squads also faced off in the 1981 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) at Alumni Hall and in 1974 at the Hartford Civic Center.
2024-25 National Coach of the Year Rick Pitino holds an 11-3 all-time mark against Alabama, including a 5-0 record at home. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer will coach against Alabama's signal-caller Nate Oats for the third time. In the last meeting, Pitino led Iona past then-No. 10 Alabama, 72-68, earning the Gaels' second-ever victory over a top-10 program at the ESPN Events Invitational in Florida on Nov. 25, 2021. The duo also met in the 2021 NCAA Tournament in Indianapolis where the No. 15-seeded Gaels fell to the second-seeded Crimson Tide, 68-55.
The Red Storm posted a perfect 12-0 record at Madison Square Garden this past season. St. John's 12-game win streak at The World's Most Famous Arena marks the second longest in program history. The Johnnies sold-out the building for their final six contests at The Garden and won the final five by double-digits on their way to a BIG EAST Regular Season and Tournament Championships.
The full non-conference schedule for the 2025-26 St. John's men's basketball season will be released at a later date.
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