St. John’s shows flaw while rolling into March Madness 2026

St. John’s shouldn’t be attempting to play itself into the NCAA Tournament this week at MSG, so there isn’t any motive to get too nitpicky over Thursday’s win over No. 9 Providence within the top-seeded Red Storm’s first sport at this yr’s Big East match.

At this level, Selection Sunday will likely be crucial day for Rick Pitino and his rolling squad, after they discover out which area they’re headed to and the way excessive of a seed they are going to be after bowing out within the Round of 32 because the No. 2 workforce within the West one yr in the past.

(It will likely be a monumental day, too, for 2 different hoops applications which are additionally geographically positioned on Long Island — LIU out of Brooklyn and Hofstra from Hempstead. The faculties lastly ended lengthy droughts with out NCAA participation below native merchandise Rod Strickland and Speedy Claxton, respectively.)

The Johnnies (26-6) have been 9-5 total following a loss to Providence on Jan. 3, however Thursday’s thrashing of the Friars on the Garden marked their seventeenth win in 18 video games thereafter with an opportunity so as to add yet one more Friday evening against Seton Hall in the semis.