St. John’s men’s basketball batters Fordham in 92-60 opening night win

The Red Storm displayed their towering defensive ceiling in the first half, then poured it on with a 52-point second half

All of the pieces are aligned for a special season of St. John’s men’s basketball, with a Hall of Fame head coach and talent and athleticism everywhere you look on the roster.

This season’s end goal for St. John’s is to hear their name called on Selection Sunday and win a game in the NCAA tournament for the first time in over a quarter-century.

Kinks will get ironed out, and adjustments will be made, but St. John’s took their first step towards ending that dreaded tournament drought on Monday night with a 92-60 season-opening victory over local rival Fordham on Monday in a tale of two very great halves for the Red Storm: hounding defense in the first, then an unbridled offensive onslaught in the second.

The difference between last year’s St. John’s team and this year’s squad was apparent from tip-off, and that was the noticeable improvement in size and athleticism, with newest additions Kadary Richmond, Aaron Scott, and Deivon Smith flying up and down the court, forcing deflections and making life a living hell for the Rams. The Red Storm totalled 15 “stocks” today, four blocks and a whopping 11 steals.

Fordham struggled to find any rhythm against the rangier and quicker Red Storm players, starting 1-of-11 from the field. If it weren’t for Jackie Johnson III firing at will to the tune of 17 points in the first half, this game could’ve been finished well before halftime. The Rams ultimately finished with 36.4% shooting from the field.

St. John’s needed time to ignite their offense, starting 8-of-29 from the field (27.5%), then they began firing on all cylinders by finishing the half with eight consecutive made baskets.

On an opening night with plaudits to go all around the roster, four Red Storm players scored in double-figures.

Simeon Wilcher displayed a new air of confidence to begin his sophomore year. The New Jersey native set a new career-high with 17 points on a very efficient 7-of-9 shooting. Kadary Richmond was right behind him in his Red Storm debut with 16 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists, finishing a bulk of his makes from punishing dribble drives to the basket.

Starters Aaron Scott and R.J. Luis each scored a dozen and made a pair of threes, but both entered foul trouble. Scott was charged with four fouls, while R.J. Luis was disqualified with a rare six-foul night. After fouling out late in the second half, Luis picked up a technical for punting a basketball into the student section out of frustration.

The second half was an offensive explosion by the Red Storm, made even more impressive by the even spread of scoring.

No Red Storm player scored in double-figures in the second half, but every player, except freshman Jaiden Glover, entered the scoring column.

Zuby Ejiofor had a surprisingly quiet 5-point night in light of his offseason hype and St. John’s still found ways to dice up Fordham. Backup center Vince Iwuchukwu even outscored Ejiofor with six points, highlighted by an earthquaking dunk in the second half.

The Red Storm will return to action for a matinee matchup against the Quinnipiac Bobcats on Saturday, November 9 (2:00 p.m., FS2).