It seems that St. John's and Rutgers have no idea how to play a normal scrimmage. In recent years, the old Big East rivals battled in a double-overtime thriller
and a shootout
with future NBA talent all over the floor. Sunday's exhibition was even more feverishly chaotic than their last two preseason encounters, and it ended the same way, with the Johnnies surviving in dramatic fashion.
St. John's rebounded from a disastrous first twenty minutes, erased a huge deficit in an energetic second half, and then endured an extra half to defeat Rutgers at Madison Square Garden, 104-99. The four-overtime gauntlet was the first such preseason or regular-season game in Red Storm men's basketball history.
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Surprisingly, the team picked second-to-last in the Big Ten preseason poll commanded the game over the two-time defending Big East champions through the first half. Rutgers took a substantial 46-28 lead at halftime, carving up a disjointed St. John's defense with 56.7% shooting from the field (17-of-30) and controlling the glass by 22-14.
Tariq Francis and Christian Gurdak found their rhythm early, scoring 13 and 12 points, respectively, before the break, while the Red Storm missed bunnies at an alarming rate, whiffing on their last six first-half layup attempts in which they went 11-of-30 from the field.
Whatever Rick Pitino told his team in the locker room would likely be too vulgar to transcribe, but it certainly woke St. John's up. The Red Storm exploded out to a 30-6 run to open the second half, coming back from a 20-point deficit to take a 58-52 lead. Ian Jackson and Keyshawn Hall were instrumental in getting Johnnies back into the game during this span, each scoring 10 points in the second half and doing most of their damage in this rally. Both finished with a team-high 24 points by the end of the game, and Hall also recorded a double-double with 14 rebounds. Collectively, St. John's shot 53.6% from the floor in the second half and won the rebounding battle by five boards.
Ruben Prey stole the ball and went coast-to-coast for a dunk, giving the Red Storm their first lead of the half with a little over 11 minutes left in regulation. The Portuguese center finished with eight points, two rebounds, and four assists before fouling out in 27 minutes played.
St. John's let the lead slip away, then found themselves on the brink of a sour defeat after Darin Smith, Jr. buried a corner three to tie the game with 57 seconds remaining, and Christian Gurdak made the go-ahead free throws following a Scarlet Knights stop to give Rutgers a 71-69 lead with 38 seconds to go. Quinn Ellis tied the game with a driving layup on the next Red Storm possession, yet Darren Buchanan, Jr. couldn't respond with his own finger-roll on the next possession, sending the game to overtime.
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Ellis again had the chance to be the hero in the dying seconds of the first overtime when he got the ball on the fast break after a Tounde Yessoufou steal, but he clanked a wide-open three as time expired, with the game locked at 76.
The Johnnies' point guard made up for that miss with tireless play in the remaining three overtime periods, as energy became a premium for both teams. The senior point guard scored nine of his 13 points and dished four of his nine assists after regulation, all while logging a stunning 56 minutes by game's end and almost recording a triple-double. Despite nearly playing a full hour of basketball in Sunday's exhibition, Ellis turned the ball over only once.
St. John's ultimately shut the door in the fourth overtime by going a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line.
The Red Storm get a week off before they play their preseason finale against Texas on Sunday, October 25th, at Madison Square Garden. Tip-off against the Longhorns is scheduled for 12 p.m., and the game can be streamed on ESPN+.
