St. John’s will face off against USF on Wednesday at 4:00pm. Originally scheduled for Tuesday evening, the game was postponed because of Winter
Storm Nemo.
The Red Storm (11-10, 5-4) are coming off a 76-72 overtime victory over Georgetown on Saturday, while the Bulls (16-6, 5-4) have a two-game home stand
after consecutive victories on the road against Big East foes Pittsburgh and Providence.
Seniors Shenneika Smith and Nadirah McKenith will pilot their team against the Bulls. McKenith, who recently became St. John’s all-time leader in assists, nearly recorded a triple-double against Georgetown on Saturday. She has recorded 113 assists – 5.3 per game – in 20 games played and has an average of
12.8 points per game.
Smith was named to the weekly Big East Honor Roll after her 26-point performance against Georgetown. One of the two leaders of the team, she is ranked 18 in the nation in blocks with 2.47 per game. Having only sat out one game this season, she is also the leading scorer for the Red Storm, averaging 17.8 points per game and a field goal percentage of 37.6 percent.
Briana Brown will also be a major offensive factor for the Johnnies. She is the leading contributor from three-point range, as she went 4-for-8 against Georgetown. Two of those came in overtime to help the Johnnies pull away in the final minutes.
The Red Storm last played USF at home on Feb. 8 of last year. Led by now-graduate Da’Shena Stevens, the Red Storm won 67-57.
Although they don’t have a signature win so far this season, USF pushed No. 2 Notre Dame to overtime on January 8. Senior Andrea Smith tied a career
high with 33 points that game – adding 11 rebounds.
Andre is not the only Smith on this USF team, the other being her twin sister. Andrell played in all 35 games for the Bulls last year and scored in double digits 17 times. She has started all 22 games this year and is the second leading scorer on the team with 15.4 points per game, just behind her sister who’s averaging 17.4.
The Bulls are 9-3 playing at home this year, while the Johnnies are 3-5 on the road. Two of those road losses were to No. 2 Notre Dame, and then-No. 13 Louisville.