The Viejas Arena crowd in San Diego didn’t even get the opportunity to entertain the thought of a 5-12 seed upset before St. John’s ran away with their first-round game on Friday night. Picking up where they left off from their Big East Tournament title, the fifth-seed Red Storm began their road to Indianapolis with a 79-53 thrashing of 12-seed Northern Iowa to advance to the Big Dance’s Round of 32.
St. John’s took Northern Iowa out of their comfort zone of slow-tempo, grind-it-out basketball from
the opening tip-off, jumping out to a 13-0 run and never relenting. Friday’s game marked the Red Storm’s fourth consecutive contest in which they had an 8-0 start or better. The Johnnies led by double-digits for 37 minutes and 45 seconds and never let their lead fall within a baker’s dozen after Dillon Mitchell’s old-fashioned three-point play, sparked by a steal and breakaway dunk at the 17:15 mark.
Northern Iowa’s 24th-ranked KenPom defense was diced up by St. John’s inside and outside in the first half. The Red Storm went 16-of-29 from the floor (55.2%) and 7-of-15 from three (46.7%), tying an NCAA Tournament program record for most first-half points when the 1992-93 Johnnies put up 47 against Arkansas. California native Oziyah Sellers was in a zone, scoring 11 points on 3-of-7 from deep. Bryce Hopkins matched him in the scoring column, going a perfect 4-of-4 from the field and 2-of-2 from beyond the arc before the break.
The second half was by no means an offensive work of art for St. John’s, but it didn’t have to be, because they did not let the Panthers generate momentum at any point. The Red Storm held their opponents to 38.6% shooting and 21.4% from deep, and steamrolled them on the boards with a 45-29 rebounding advantage.
Zuby Ejiofor carried the torch on defense, recording four blocks and a steal in the win. Even though it wasn’t Ejiofor’s best scoring night, he still recorded his eighth double-double of the season with a team-high 14 points and eleven rebounds.
As the starters cooled down, the bench unit put the finishing touches on the 26-point win. Ian Jackson (nine points, 3-of-5 shooting) and Joson Sanon (6 points, 2-of-4 from three) combined to score 15 points in the final ten minutes of action. Ruben Prey gave productive minutes in relief of Zuby Ejiofor, putting up eight points and four rebounds in 12 total minutes of action.
St. John’s await either the 13-seed Cal Baptist Lancers (25-8) or 4-seed Kansas Jayhawks (23-10) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, March 22nd, when the Red Storm look to reach the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 1999. Tip-off and broadcast information are to be announced.
