February 23, 2011
Playing as a ranked team for the first time in more than
10 years, No. 23 St. John’s dominated DePaul with a 76-51 victory
on Feb. 23 before a sell-out crowd of 5,602 at Carnesseca
Arena.
The game was the Red Storm’s 500th at historic
Carnesecca Arena, on St. John’s Queens, NY, campus. With 10 BIG
EAST wins — its most since going 12-4 in the conference more
than ten years ago — St. John’s is headed for its first NCAA
Tournament appearance since 2002.
Senior guard
Dwight Hardy continued his scoring streak with a game-high 21
points. He is the only BIG EAST player to have won Player of the
Week three times this season.
The
win followed St. John’s breath-taking victory over No. 4
Pittsburgh at
Madison Square Garden on Saturday, February 19, that win
catapulted the Red Storm into the Top 25 national ranking for the
first time in 11 seasons.
With
St. John’s resurgence, Head Coach
Steve Lavin is in more demand to share his thoughts with
leading sports commentators. On Tuesday, Feb. 22, Coach Lavin
appeared on “Jim Rome is Burning,” ESPN’s popular half-hour of
sports discussion and opinion.
(See the video.)
With winners in the classroom as well as the playing courts and
fields, St. John’s 16 Division I, BIG EAST men’s and women’s
athletic teams reflect
St. John’s 141-year tradition
of excellence as a Catholic,
Vincentian university that prepares students for leadership in
their professions, communities and world.
The Red Storm’s next game is against Villanova on Saturday, Feb.
26, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA.