St. John's rolls into Rutgers in search of 3-0 start

With Sedee Keita out after knee surgery, Marvin Clark becomes primary option for St. John's down low, beginning with Friday night's trip to Rutgers. (Photo by the New York Post)

In search of a 3-0 start for the second consecutive season, St. John's heads into its first road trip of the year -- a deceptive journey to Rutgers for the Red Storm's annual Gavitt Tipoff Games appearance -- bent, but not broken.

South Carolina transfer Sedee Keita, who had been counted on to provide stability and a formidable rim protection alongside Marvin Clark II, has been placed on the shelf, having undergone knee surgery in the wake of last Friday's win over Bowling Green that will cost him approximately four to six weeks. The loss has forced Clark to act as the interior anchor for a guard-oriented team that will likely place a greater emphasis on spacing the floor with junior college arrival LJ Figueroa at the four spot, but head coach Chris Mullin is unfazed by the look his lineup will possess, instead focused on the production of his remaining troops in what could be a hostile road environment.

"We've played Marvin at the five a lot," he said, drawing on the majority of last season's lineups where Clark was in a similar position alongside the now-departed Bashir Ahmed. "When we play with our versatile, small lineup, we have to rebound the ball and be active, get deflections, and play to our strengths. We have to go out there and dictate the tempo, play aggressive, and the biggest thing is rebounding the ball."

"We have guys capable of doing that. If they do, we'll be in good shape."

The St. John's backcourt of Shamorie Ponds, Mustapha Heron and Justin Simon, the first two in that trio having scored 20 or more points against Bowling Green last week -- Ponds has started his junior year with back-to-back 20-point games -- poses an advantage over a younger Rutgers guard stable, but the edge on paper is half the battle. The Scarlet Knights have steamrolled Fairleigh Dickinson and Drexel en route to starting 2-0, and a trademark of Steve Pikiell's teams over the years is the ability to remain in every game, something that his Stony Brook units gained national notoriety for doing. The key for the Red Storm, besides attacking the basket against the likes of seven-foot Shaq Doorson among others, is to play through mistakes and remain in the moment as a cohesive outfit.

"We've got a bunch of new guys, and the only way we're going to get better is playing," said Clark. "We can practice, but at the end of the day, when we step in between the lines is really when we have to get better."

"It's our first true road test, so it's definitely an opportunity. Every game is a statement game, especially for our program. It doesn't matter if it's Bowling Green or Rutgers. It's going to be a challenge, but I think we'll definitely be ready to accept that challenge."