St. John’s men’s basketball wins ugly over Butler despite continued three-point struggles

The Red Storm shot 1-of-21 (4.7 percent) from three and still managed to win by eight versus the Bulldogs

During Friday’s media availability, head coach Rick Pitino called on St. John’s to shoot more threes after going 2-of-9 from deep in their Tuesday afternoon loss to Creighton.

While the Johnnies answered their coach’s call on Saturday by more than doubling their three-point total from their last game, they managed to make even fewer triples. The Red Storm shot an ungodly 1-of-21 (4.7%) from three, with Sadiku Ibine Ayo’s first-half trey saving the Red Storm from an ignominious goose egg.

Yet, amid their worst single-game three-point shooting performance since they went 0-of-12 versus Iona on December 17, 2017, St. John’s found a way to win by forcing 21 turnovers and finishing strong in their 70-62 victory over Butler at Carnesecca Arena on Saturday afternoon.

St. John’s started well enough to open the game. The Johnnies went on an 8-0 run through the first four minutes and forced Butler into missing 15 of their first 16 shots, but they could have led by a lot more. The Red Storm’s offense then slowed to a standstill to miss twelve straight shots as the Bulldogs’ offense finally started humming. Butler finished the half shooting 10-of-16 from the field to take a 29-25 halftime lead.

Butler grew their lead to seven early in the second half, but St. John’s responded with a 16-2 run to take their own seven-point edge with 13:30 left in the second half after defensive plays by R.J. Luis and Zuby Ejiofor triggered fastbreak offense. Luis and Ejiofor paced the Red Storm in points and rebounds, with Luis leading St. John’s with a 20-point, 11-rebound double-double and Ejiofor recording 14 points and eight rebounds.

Butler retook the lead with a 10-2 run thanks to a second-chance Patrick McCaffery three with 10:11 left, then both teams traded baskets to knot the game up at 55 with 5:05 remaining. From this point, Kadary Richmond helped St. John’s pull away and close the game, posting five points, two steals, and an assist to a dunking R.J. Luis as the Red Storm finished the game on a 15-7 run. Richmond finished with 11 points, six rebounds, and six assists. It also helped St. John’s that they kept their composure at the free throw line in the second half, shooting 15-of-20 from the stripe.

There will be a short three-day turnaround before St. John’s retakes the floor. The Red Storm will travel to Cincinnati to face Xavier on Tuesday night (6:30 p.m., FS1), hoping to start 4-1 in Big East play in consecutive seasons for the first time since the 1999-00 and 2000-01 seasons.