St. John's Sharmorie Ponds
MBB Minute -- St. John's Tops Syracuse To Headline 4-0 Wednesday
BIG EAST teams compiled a 4-0 record on Wednesday, but St. John’s turned in the most head-turning result with a 93-60 victory at Syracuse.
The 4-0 mark improved the BIG EAST’s non-conference record to 93-25 (.788). The BIG EAST is 9-5 against AP ranked teams. In Thursday's NCAA RPI rankings, Villanova is No. 1, followed by Xavier (3), Butler (7) and Creighton (11).
St. John’s handed Syracuse its most lopsided loss in Carrier Dome history. Shamorie Ponds could not be stopped, finishing with 21 points, seven assists, six rebounds, four steals and no turnovers in 34 minutes of play. Bashir Ahmed helped with 20 points and five boards. The Johnnies outshot the Orange 53.1 percent to 32.8 percent from the field.
Top-ranked Villanova pushed its record to 12-0 with a 90-48 defeat of American. Josh Hart had 20 points, seven rebounds and three assists. The Wildcats are on an 18-game winning streak dating to last year’s NCAA Tournament. They have won 44 in a row at the Pavilion.
No. 13 Butler used the combo of Andrew Chrabascz and Kelan Martin to knock off Vermont 81-69. Chrabascz poured in 28 points on 12-of-18 shooting from the floor. Martin added 21 points and eight rebounds.
Marquette improved to 9-3 with a comfortable 89-56 victory over visiting SIU-Edwardsville. Haanif Cheatham paced five players in double figures with 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field. Sam Hauser finished with 11 points and nine rebounds. The Golden Eagles built a 45-27 lead by halftime.
Georgetown and DePaul are the only BIG EAST teams in action on Thursday and both games are on FS1. The Hoyas host UNC-Greensboro at 6:30 p.m. ET. Georgetown is riding a five-game winning streak. DePaul plays Wyoming in the Las Vegas Invitational. The Blue Demons, who won twice at home in the first two games of the tournament, will play USC or Missouri State on Friday.