No. 5 St. John's handles early hype, routs Quinnipiac in season-opening tuneup for No. 15 Alabama

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NEW YORK (AP) — It took two years for Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino to restore New York City pride and a winning tradition at St. John's.

Now, the task ahead for his revamped team is living up to lofty expectations and handling the national hype.

Pitino and the fifth-ranked Red Storm got off to a fast start in their season opener Monday night, overwhelming Quinnipiac from the outset in a 108-74 rout at Carnesecca Arena.

“The one thing that stood out from an ultra-positive standpoint was our mentality going into the game," Pitino said. “From when the ball was thrown up to the end, we had an intense, aggressive mindset. We made our mistakes, as you always do in a first game, but overall, I couldn’t be more pleased.”

On deck, a much tougher test against an up-tempo Southeastern Conference team that reached the Elite Eight last March.

St. John's hosts No. 15 Alabama at Madison Square Garden on Saturday in the first of 12 regular-season home games scheduled at MSG — most for the Johnnies since 1951-52.

“Now we’re going to play a completely different type of team, one that takes only about eight or nine seconds to shoot every possession,” said Pitino, in his third season at St. John's. "So we’ll need to be ready for that.”

During a pregame ceremony, St. John’s showed video highlights of last season and unveiled banners commemorating its Big East regular-season and tournament titles, along with Pitino’s national coach of the year award.

The four returning players received their conference championship rings at midcourt, and the 73-year-old Pitino addressed a crowd of 5,260 on campus in Queens.

“We’re so proud of what we accomplished,” he said, before turning to the upcoming season: “We’re going after the biggest prize of them all.”

Coming off a scintillating turnaround in 2024-25 that captivated Big Apple basketball fans and included the program’s first NCAA Tournament victory in 25 years, St. John's brought in the nation’s top-rated transfer class to complement senior forward Zuby Ejiofor, the Big East preseason player of the year.

All that hype earned the Johnnies the highest preseason ranking in school history and they showed off their newfound firepower right away by racing to a 19-4 lead 4:40 into the game after a steal and fast-break dunk by Cincinnati transfer Dillon Mitchell.

Nine players scored in the first 12 minutes, and the margin swelled to 45 with under 5 1/2 minutes remaining. St. John's had 25 assists on 39 baskets and never trailed while racking up its most points since beating Mississippi Valley State 119-61 in November 2021.

Mitchell scored 18 points and Ejiofor had 17. Ian Jackson added 15 on 6-for-6 shooting, and Joson Sanon, another touted transfer, provided 14 off the bench.

“My game always starts with defense. I don’t even think about offense,” Mitchell said. “We have so many guys that can score. For me, it’s about locking in on the scouting report, knowing what the other team does well and setting the tone on the defensive end. That’s where we’ll win games.”

Indeed, the Red Storm are looking to develop the defensive tenacity that characterized last season’s squad while boosting the offense with better shooters.

St. John’s went 8 for 19 (42%) from 3-point range, a good sign in an area that was a major weakness last season, and finished at 57% from the field overall after making 10 consecutive shots in the second half.

At the other end, the Johnnies limited Quinnipiac to one 3 in the first half and forced 22 turnovers that led to 32 points and a 44-16 advantage on fast breaks.

“Our first-half defense was outstanding,” Pitino said. “The second half wasn’t as sharp, but overall I thought our intensity and readiness to play were terrific.”

Some sloppy passes led to 14 turnovers. But it was a balanced, quality performance against a Bobcats team picked to win the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference after taking the past two regular-season titles.

“They came out and played like a top-10 team in the country,” Quinnipiac coach Tom Pecora said. “They did a great job defending us, not letting us get into our actions, and their effort on the glass was relentless. You can see how well-coached they are and how connected they play.”

Pitino in particular praised backup point guard Dylan Darling, the Big Sky player of the year last season at Idaho State.

Darling shot just 1 for 6, but had six points, six assists and four rebounds in 17:26 off the bench.

“Sometimes you look at a stat sheet and it doesn’t tell the story,” Pitino said, mentioning how Darling controlled the tempo. “He gave a dominating performance on both ends of the floor.”

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