Box Score | St. John's Quotes | Butler Quotes

By SEAN BRENNAN
Special to BIGEAST.com
 
To say that St. John’s is a storied program should not be considered hyperbole. The Johnnies’ program has been around since ancient times (well, since the 1907-08 season, actually), it’s won three BIG EAST Tournament championships, holds the record for most Postseason NIT appearances with 29 and has been selected to the Big Dance an additional 29 times.
 
It’s just that most of the good stories from the storied program have been few and far between in recent years. But in a season that has seen the Red Storm battle inconsistency on a, well, consistent basis, the one constant has been the steady play of Joel Soriano. The Storm’s senior big man came into Wednesday’s BIG EAST Tournament opener against Butler the proud owner of 23 double-doubles this season, tying him with Purdue’s Zach Edey for the Division I lead. And if the Johnnies hoped to stay alive for Thursday’s quarterfinals - and keep alive a dream of a miracle run through the tournament and a shot at a 30th NCAA dance invite - then a 24th double-double from Soriano sure wouldn’t hurt the Red Storm’s cause.
 
Well, Soriano did his part, scoring 19 points and grabbing 15 rebounds and as a result the No. 8 Red Storm lived to play another day as they knocked off the No. 9 Bulldogs, 76-63, at Madison Square Garden. St. John’s will now face top-seeded Marquette in Thursday’s quarterfinal opener at noon. Marquette swept the season series from the Johnnies this season.
 
“As a coach you always wonder how your team is going to come out,” St. John’s head coach Mike Anderson. “But our guys, I thought, came out with good energy and made some shots early and established inside and we did a good job getting to the glass. I thought that was going to be a big stat in this particular game. We’re coming into tournament play. It’s survive and advance. The first game is out of the way so now we got a chance to play a second game.”
 
The Johnnies were in control for most of the game and built their first double-digit lead with just over 5:00 to play before halftime when Soriano accidentally tipped in a high pass from Dylan Addae-Wusu for a 33-23 lead. St. John’s added to their lead in the waning moments of the half and went off at intermission with a 44-29 advantage.
 
The Johnnies’ grew their lead to 54-33 - their biggest cushion of the game - after a David Jones free throw early in the second half and their lead remained in double figures for most of the second half. But Butler wouldn’t throw in the towel just yet. The Bulldogs did manage to get as close as nine points at 70-61 after a three-pointer by Simas Lukosius with 3:40 to play as the Red Storm struggled through another bout of inconsistency. But you never got the feeling Butler could mount the epic comeback, and when Soriano threw down an emphatic slam with 2:24 to play for a 76-61 St. John’s cushion, the victory was secured and a third battle with Marquette was on tap.
 
But it wasn’t all Soriano in the Johnnies’ victory. Freshman A.J. Storr poured in 15 points in his first BIG EAST Tournament game, Posh Alexander added 13 and Dylan Addae-Wusu posted his own double-double with 10 points and 10 boards. Lukosius led Butler with 23 points and Jalen Thomas chipped in with 20 as the Bulldogs saw their season end at 14-18 in coach Thad Matta’s first season back at Butler.
 
Despite the win, it’s still a long shot that St. John’s will reach that 30th NCAA Tournament. That 30th NIT appearance being a far more likely scenario. The road to the Big Dance continues with Marquette and, in the event of a victory, would continue in the semifinals against either Providence or UConn. Toss in the fact that St. John’s hasn’t reached the semifinals in over two decades and, yes, it’s kind of a tall order for sure. But Soriano thinks if the Johnnies make some adjustments they just might be able to pull off the improbable.
 
“We have a great team coming in tomorrow and we know what’s at stake and what we have to do to perform,” said Soriano, the BIG EAST’s Most Improved Player this season. “We’ll go back to the hotel, rest up, watch film and see what we didn’t do last game against them when we played them at their place (a 96-94 Marquette victory) and try to come out with a win. We’ll see tomorrow.”