Saturday’s meeting with the Wildcats has been almost two years in the making. The seed was planted at Kentucky head coach Mark Pope’s introductory press conference in April of 2024, when the former National Champion proposed scheduling a game against his former college coach, Rick Pitino, and the St. John’s Red Storm to 20,000 attentive members of Big Blue Nation. While plans of a home-and-home fell through, both teams landed on a “neutral” floor contest as part of the CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta,
Georgia (or “Catlanta”, as nicknamed by Kentucky fans for their ability to take over the city whenever their team plays there).
While the shine of this matchup slightly faded as St. John’s so far failed to live up to its preseason-top-five billing and Kentucky almost entered crisis mode after a series of embarrassing performances in non-conference play, the anticipation of the battle between Pitino and Pope remains fervent.
Game information
Who: No. 22 St. John’s Red Storm (7-3) vs. Kentucky Wildcats (7-4)
When: Saturday, December 20, 2025, 12:30 p.m.
Where: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
TV: CBS
Radio: ESPN New York 880 / 1050
Series History: Kentucky leads, 11-5. St. John’s lost its last meeting with Kentucky in a 81-59 blowout at Rupp Arena on December 1, 2011. The Red Storm last defeated the Wildcats on November 9, 2000.
KenPom Predicted Score: St. John’s to win 78-77 (53 percent chance of win)
Injury news
There is no injury news to report for St. John’s entering Tuesday night’s game.
What to watch for in the Storm
Peach-Three Street – Since Ian Jackson won the starting point guard job back (and cut his trademark locks), St. John’s is unconscious from three. In their last two games, the team is shooting 20-of-48 from three-point range (41.7%). They’re taking a step-up in competition from Iona and DePaul, though, as Kentucky only allows opponents to shoot 28.6% from deep (23rd-best nationally).
S(t)an(k)onia – Joson Sanon is finding his scoring touch in recent games, averaging 12.8 points per game and firing 47.6% from three in his last four contests. Sanon is also leading the board-collecting effort from the backcourt. He logged five rebounds against Iona, then matched a career-high nine rebounds versus DePaul on Tuesday.
It Just Means More? – The Red Storm snapped a 13-year winless streak against SEC opponents in their December 6 victory over Ole Miss, though it certainly didn’t feel like one. That game was the fourth in which St. John’s shot 38% from the field or worse and 28% from three or worse against an SEC team in the Rick Pitino era. The offense is looking better of late, but can they avoid another day riding the struggle bus against Kentucky?
Scouting the Wildcats
St. John’s’ non-conference disappointment looks pretty tame in comparison to what Kentucky is dealing with through 11 games. The preseason-ninth-ranked team tailspun out of the top 25 in a month and lost almost all of their marquee non-conference games in concerning fashion.
The Wildcats were outgunned by bitter rival Louisville, outplayed by Michigan State for 40 minutes at Madison Square Garden, endured a 10-minute scoring drought while fumbling a winnable game against North Carolina at home, and were flat-out embarrassed by Gonzaga in their most lopsided defeat in 35 years. Kentucky salvaged one strong win from their nightmare start with a 12-point home victory over Indiana last week, but will that be enough to convince Big Blue Nation to lower their pitchforks? Probably not, as they desperately need a ranked win on Saturday to cool the temperature and carry some good vibes into conference play.
KenPom metrics paint a prettier picture of Kentucky than any headlines or social media posts read. The Wildcats are ranked 19th in KenPom, they shoot 59.2% from inside the arc (30th-best in the country), hold opponents to an effective shooting percentage of 44.7% (16th-best), are elite at protecting the ball with a 13.7% turnover percentage (18th-best), and limit second-chance opportunities by allowing to a 24.9% offensive rebound percentage (20th-best).
One of the Wildcats’ biggest weaknesses is their three-point shooting. One year ago, they ranked top-25 nationally with a 37.5% three-point percentage, but that has nosedived to a 229th-best rate of 32.2% this season. Earlier today, our sister blog A Sea of Blue wrote a breakdown of Kentucky’s shooting woes here.
A major source of the ‘Cats’ strife to begin the season is their health. Pittsburgh transfer and one-time All-ACC honoree Jaland Lowe was expected to be the opening night starting point guard, but he has already missed six games with a nagging shoulder injury and has yet to start a single game as he returns to game form. Lowe showed glimpses of his healthier self when he scored 13 points against Indiana last week.
At full strength, Lowe is a great playmaker who averaged 5.5 assists with Pitt last season, but he is a high-volume slasher with really poor efficiency. He is a career 37.6% field-goal shooter and a gaudy 29.1% from deep.
Another key transfer addition missing time is Arizona State transfer and former five-star recruit Jayden Quaintance, who made the Big 12 All-Defense and All-Freshman teams after averaging 9.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.6 blocks, and 1.1 steals one season ago. Quaintance is expected to make his season debut on Saturday after a nine-month recovery from ACL surgery.
On the court, the 6-foot-9 big man is a monster in the paint with a wiry wingspan and an explosive vertical. He is also a modern big, displaying an advanced handle for his size, emerging playmaking skills, and an ability to shoot off the dribble. If he is healthy the rest of the season and does not lose a step from his freshman year, there is no doubt he will be a first-round pick in the 2026 NBA draft.
The leader of the clubhouse is New Jersey native Otega Oweh, who enters his senior year and his second season in the Bluegrass State. At one point, receiving an offer from Mike Anderson to play at St. John’s out of high school, Oweh has developed into a dependable two-way threat for Kentucky. Similar to his brother Odafe, who plays linebacker in the NFL, grit and physicality are paramount in the 6-foot-4 combo guard’s game, and he’s earned the reputation as a tenacious defensive stopper and an imposing slasher who can back down his opponents.
This season, Oweh is averaging 14.0 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.6 steals while shooting 48.6% from the field, 37.5% from three, and a career-best 80% from the free throw line. He scored in double-figures in every game this season and was only held to single-digits in three games last season.
Senior guard Denzel Aberdeen is cut from the same cloth as Oweh and also carries National Championship pedigree after winning it all with Florida last season. Aberdeen stepped in for the ailing Jaland Lowe as the primary playmaker for the Wildcats, averaging 12.1 points, 3.2 assists to only 1.3 turnovers, and is also pulling down 3.5 rebounds per game. The Orlando native is shooting a career-best 46.7% from the field and is also hitting 34.1% from three.
While three-point shooting is a major concern for Kentucky, Collin Chandler is certainly not responsible for those struggles. The sophomore from Farmington, Utah is averaging 10.5 points and leads the team by shooting 41.1% from three on 5.1 attempts per game. Chandler is also not just an outside threat; he has serious hops, too.
Queens native and Alabama transfer Mouhamed Dioubate is a talented multi-positional defender. Dioubate is averaging career-highs in scoring (12.0 points per game), rebounding (6.8 per game), and steals (1.7 per game) while making the first five starts of his career this season, but he missed five games with a high-ankle sprain and returned last week against Indiana.
Other names to know are top-30 freshmen Malachi Moreno (9.5 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.4 blocks) and Jasper Johnson (7.8 points, 2.5 assists), sophomore forward Trent Noah (5.8 points, 42.9% from three), junior center Brandon Garrison (5.7 points, 4.3 rebounds), Croatian big man Andrija Jelavic (6.0 points, 4.3 rebounds), and Tulane transfer guard Kam Williams (4.6 points, 3.4 rebounds) — who is the brother of former St. John’s guard Greg Williams, Jr.
Prediction
This is basically a coin-flip game. In KenPom, St. John’s and Kentucky are ranked 18th and 19th, respectively. What will end up determining Saturday’s game is the play in the post and whether St. John’s can win the rebound battle. The tandem of Ejiofor, Mitchell, and Prey will rise to the challenge and get the better of the Wildcats’ frontcourt, which has been criticized for its lack of physicality in power-conference games.
St. John’s narrowly wins, 68-67.
