St. John’s men’s basketball outworks New Mexico in clash of the Pitinos

All five starters scored in double-figures and crushed the Lobos on the glass en route to a 85-71 win at the Garden

In their first real test of the season, St. John’s proved they were ready for the challenge. Amidst the hype of the father-son coaching duel of Rick Pitino versus Richard Pitino, the 22nd-ranked Red Storm knocked off New Mexico inside Madison Square Garden on Sunday afternoon, 85-71, improving to a 4-0 record and entering the Baha Mar Bahamas Championship with plenty of momentum.

Entrusted by Rick Pitino with heavy minutes, each Red Storm starter executed and met the moment when they were asked. All five starters played at least 33 minutes and scored in double-figures.

R.J. Luis continued his impressive start with a team-high 21 points (8-of-18 shooting), 11 rebounds, and seven assists. Kadary Richmond asserted himself more, scoring 14 points while logging eight rebounds and five assists. Zuby Ejiofor is rounding into form after a sluggish start of his 2024-25 season, recording a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double.

Much of the Red Storm’s success was owed to their work on the boards. The Red Storm had a 49-32 edge in total rebounds, including 22 offensive rebounds, which resulted in 25 second-chance points.

The Red Storm first gained separation with an 11-0 run with ten minutes left in the first half, expanding their lead to as many as 16 points before entering the break with a 40-29 lead.

St. John’s responded whenever New Mexico tried to chip away in the second half. With eight minutes left in the second half, Nelly Junior Joseph made a layup to cut the Red Storm lead down to four. Donovan Dent blocked Deivon Smith on the next possession, but Smith cleaned up his miss and kicked the ball out to Aaron Scott for a critical second-chance triple.

After a Mustapha Amzil jumper soon after made it a 66-61 game, St. John’s pulled away late thanks to knifing drives to the basket from Kadary Richmond, Aaron Scott, and R.J. Luis, clinching the game on a 19-10 run.

St. John’s men’s basketball has a three-day break before they fly down to Nassau, Bahamas to compete in the Baha Mar Bahamas Championship to face the 12th-ranked Baylor Bears in the first round of the event on Thursday night (7:00 p.m., CBSSN). The Red Storm will face either Tennessee or Virginia on Friday night.