Nova Report
The 9th ranked St.John’s Red Storm roll into the campus of Villanova for a 6:00 pm eastern matchup with Villanova on FS1. St John’s is -3/139.5.
The Red Storm (21-3) are 12-1 in the Big East Conference with its only loss being a 1 pointer to Creighton. St. John’s beat Nova a month ago 80-68. It was a one possession game with 2:35 to go when RJ Luis jr went wild and the Cats kept fouling him as St John’s went on a 14-3 run to close the game. Luis Jr scored 30 points with 16-20 from the free throw line. In the subsequent 7 games, Luis Jr shot a total of 25 free throws.
St.John’s is ranked in the top ten for the first time in decades. They are coming off a win vs UCONN and have won 10 straight. They have a #2 defense nationally, can block shots, like to run but don’t shoot 3’s well. They are led by Luis jr(17.6 ppg), Kadary Richmond (12.1 ppg), Ejiokofor (14.2 ppg), Simeon Wilcher (8.9 ppg) and Devion Smith (9.5 ppg). They only go 2 deep on the bench.
For the 14-10 Wildcats who come in with a win against Xavier, they played one of their smarter games of the year as Dixon was used as a decoy when he was double teamed in the first half which gave Longino and Poplar clear shots. In the second half, Xavier didn’t double team and Dixon scored 22. They also played one of their better games on defense. Nova can only make the Big Dance if they win the Big East Tournament. Beating the #1 team in the Conference will give them confidence to do so. Poplar and Longino continue to shoot the ball well. Perkins had his best game of the season vs Xavier so the Red Storm have 4 scorers to worry about.
I think this game sets up well for Villanova. The sell out crowd will be vocal and the ‘Cats want this one badly. Dixon was embarrassed by St.John’s in their last game. He’ll be ready to roll.
Nova Pick: Villanova +3
Nova Pick Record:10-14