No. 22/22 St. John’s Takes Down No. 3/3 UConn in Thriller, 81-72

Friday, February 6

New York, N.Y. (Madison Square Garden)

8 p.m.

St. John's University

18-5,11-1Big East

No. 3/3 Connecticut

22-2,12-1Big East

UConn

St. John's (NY)

No. 22/22 St. John’s Takes Down No. 3/3 UConn in Thriller, 81-72

2/7/2026 12:11:00 AM | Men's Basketball

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The Red Storm men’s basketball team earned its highest ranked win since Feb. 3, 2021

NEW YORK – The No. 22/22 St. John's men's basketball (18-5, 11-1 BIG EAST) team earned a marquee win on Friday taking down No. 3/3 Connecticut (22-2, 12-1 BIG EAST) in front of a sold-out Madison Square Garden crowd. The victory marked the Red Storm's ninth straight and was the program's highest ranked win since Feb. 3, 2021, when it defeated No. 3/3 Villanova at Carnesecca Arena.

The heavyweight battle between the top two teams in the BIG EAST featured eight lead changes, six ties and was tied at the break. In the final minutes up by two, Dylan Darling flushed a crucial 3-pointer to give the Red Storm a five-point edge with 3:13 remaining, as the Johnnies snapped the Huskies' 18-game winning streak.

Friday's victory marked St. John's highest ranked win at Madison Square Garden since it took down No. 3/3 Duke on Jan. 30, 2011. It was also the third straight victory over the Huskies after sweeping the regular season series last year, which is the longest streak over UConn since the 1999-2000 season.

With the win, Head Coach Rick Pitino moved into a tie with Roy Williams for third all-time in career victories in NCAA Division I with no. 903.

St. John's senior forward Zuby Ejiofor was dominant on Friday night, leading all players in scoring, rebounding, assists and blocks. The senior finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds, matched a career-high seven assists, three blocks and two steals. Ejiofor's double-double marked his fifth of the season and sixth 20-plus point performance on the year. The Garland, Texas native moved into ninth all-time on the Red Storm's career blocks list (132) surpassing George Johnson, who tallied 130 from 1974-78.

Dillon Mitchell posted 15 points on 7-of-9 (77.8 pct) shooting to go with six rebounds in 35 minutes of action. Bryce Hopkins logged his eighth double-digit scoring effort over the last nine games, tallying 13 points. The three frontcourt starters combined for 50 points on 65.4 percent shooting from the floor, 22 rebounds and 11 assists.

Coming into the game, UConn's Silas Demary Jr. ranked top-30 nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio but on Friday he was forced into nine turnovers.

In the early going, Mitchell netted six of St. John's first eight points, including a high-flying slam in the opening minutes. After UConn built a six-point edge to force a Johnnies timeout, the Red Storm responded with seven straight points as Joson Sanon's triple sprung St. John's back into the lead, 17-16. The run expanded to 13-1 as the Johnnies led by six at the halfway mark of the first stanza.

After the two teams stayed neck and neck, Sanon drilled a corner 3-pointer to retake the lead once again. Ian Jackson then made a key steal and finished at the other end to send the crowd into a roar, 32-29, with 3:05 remaining in the half. The two teams went to the locker room all square, 39-39.

St. John's shot 60.9 percent (14-23 FG) from the floor in the second half to pull away with its ninth straight victory. With the game tied at 45, the St. John's defense forced the Huskies into three turnovers that helps spur a decisive 10-0 run. Hopkins splashed a triple from the top of the key to cap off the stretch and force a Huskies timeout with 12:46 remaining, 55-45.

Five consecutive points from Ejiofor pushed the lead to as many as 11 at the 10:24 mark before the Huskies engineered a 14-4 run to climb within a point, 63-62. However, Mitchell answered with a steal and flew down the floor for a two-handed jam.

UConn remained within a single possession and were trailing by two before Darling knocked down a pivotal step-up triple to give the Red Storm 67-62 advantage with 3:13 left on the clock.

After the Huskies made it a four-point game, Mitchell soared for a tip-in to bring the cushion back to six, 76-70, with 1:36 to go. Oziyah Sellers came up with a crucial steal in the final minute as the Johnnies held on to move within a half of a game for the lead in the BIG EAST standings.

St. John's will be back in action on Monday night at Madison Square Garden as it welcomes Xavier for a 6:30 p.m. tip-off on FS1.