After securing a Big East regular season title, as well as Player and Coach of the Year honors for Rick Pitino and RJ Luis Jr., No. 6 St. John’s returned to Madison Square Garden for the conference tournament. Facing Butler — a team the Red Storm swept during the regular season — Pitino’s squad cruised to a 78-57 win.
Luis Jr. led St. John’s with 20 points and seven rebounds, while Kadary Richmond added 15 points, eight rebounds and nine assists in the quarterfinal victory.
“[The] energy was good,” Pitino said postgame. “Overall, it was a four-star performance, and we’ll take it.”
Following a star-studded campaign, the Johnnies found success through old-fashioned, smash-mouth basketball in the opening stretch. As expected, their perimeter defense was sensational, stifling the Bulldogs’ offense with tight man-to-man coverage.
Butler Head Coach Thad Matta took a more unique approach, opting for a 1-3-1 zone before transitioning into a 2-3. The strategy aimed to exploit the Red Storm’s weakness — the three-pointer — but yielded little success. Richmond, fresh off an All-Big East Second Team appearance, repeatedly attacked the heart of the Bulldog’s defense to open up jump shot opportunities.
Behind the veteran guard’s prowess, St. John’s orchestrated a 12-0 run early on, eventually leading by as much as 17. Regardless of the adjustments, Matta’s group always seemed a step slow. Despite shooting just 4-of-13 from deep in the first half, mid-range pull-ups and baseline jumpers from Lefteris Liotopolous and Sadiku Ibine Ayo kept Butler’s defense honest.
“We feel comfortable [at Madison Square Garden],” Richmond said postgame. “We just treat every game like we have in the past. Just staying humble, getting better day-by-day.”
Thanks to the unorthodox scheme, Zuby Ejiofor was free to feast off missed shots. The team captain owned three of the Johnnies’ nine first-half offensive rebounds, continuing the season-long trend of creating countless second chances.
With suffocating defense, an effortless scoring attack and dominant rebounding, St. John’s held an 11-point advantage over Butler through 20 minutes of play.
Out of the break, nearly nothing changed. The Red Storm’s defense was just as stout, as was the play of Luis Jr. and Richmond. Even when the Bulldogs trimmed the deficit to eight on a Finley Bizmack three, another crushing run loomed. Just as Butler seemed to settle in, St. John’s unleashed another 8-0 run, restoring their 18-point lead and regaining control.
As Richmond flirted with a triple-double while Aaron Scott snagged a career-high five steals — the most by a Red Storm player since Marcus Hatten in 2002 — the Johnnies continued to assert their dominance over a weaker rival.
“I feel like I impact winning, so I feel good about the minutes I had on the court,” Scott said postgame. “We didn’t want this game to be close at all.”
Come the final buzzer, Luis, Richmond and Scott had combined for 50 points, nearly matching the Bulldogs’ total themselves en route to the second semifinal game St. John’s has played in 25 years.
In a quick turnaround, the Red Storm will take on No. 25 Marquette tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. EST.
To access the final box score from the St. John’s win over Butler, click here.