Red Storm defense takes flight yet again, vaults Johnnies into Big East lead

RJ Luis (12) vaulted St. John’s into Big East lead with win at Seton Hall Saturday. While Red Storm offense commands attention, it is Johnnies’ Top 5 defense that has driven 16-3 start. (Photo by St. John’s Athletics)

Wherever Rick Pitino goes, defense travels.

The most prominent hallmark of the hall of fame coach’s career, which now spans close to five decades, has been his vigorous ball pressure and suffocating matchup zones in an historic run that remains the only tenure in the NCAA annals where he led two different programs to national championships.

Nine times in the past, Pitino has presided over a defense that has ranked among the five best in the nation per Ken Pomeroy’s metrics, which go as far back as the 2001-02 season. Three of those have ended with his team at No. 1 on the defensive end, including in 2012 and 2013 at Louisville, where the Cardinals won back-to-back Big East championships in those years and the national title in the latter. That was just part of a six-year stretch in which Louisville boasted a Top 5 defense by the numbers, and seven consecutive in the Top 10.

Now in his second year at St. John’s, Pitino has recaptured yet another part of his magic, turning the Johnnies into an outfit that now claims the fifth-best defense in the nation after their Saturday night rout of Seton Hall. Only Houston, Duke, Tennessee and Kansas have been more efficient on that side of the basketball than the Red Storm, who—as Pitino hinted Saturday—has drawn inspiration from a franchise at a higher level while transforming its own fabric.

“We study the Oklahoma City Thunder religiously right now, because they play the same defense we play,” the coach revealed. “It’s been a long, long time since I’ve seen a team play defense like they do. They play like a college team. They switch everything, they front everything, they give weak-side help, they trap the great players. It’s just a lot of fun watching them.”

“That’s really been our next level, our jump from last year’s team to this year’s team,” RJ Luis added. “I feel like we’ve got a nice group of guys. We can switch one through the five, and I want us to continue playing defense that aggressively.”

St. John’s dominated Seton Hall from the onset Saturday night, overshadowing the return of Kadary Richmond to the Prudential Center in his first game against his former school.

How did the Johnnies do it? By limiting Seton Hall to just 4-for-30 shooting in a first half where the Pirates amassed only 16 points. The sledding did not get much easier for Seton Hall after halftime, as leading scorer Isaiah Coleman missed all but one of his attempts from the floor while point guard Chaunce Jenkins missed six of seven himself on a night where Shaheen Holloway’s team was already shorthanded with Dylan Addae-Wusu and Yacine Toumi unavailable.

“That was a brilliant performance of team defense,” Pitino proclaimed. “We’ve been really, really working on that, and the guys covered each other’s backs. When you get people to shoot 13 percent from the field, 12 percent from three, you’re just playing remarkable defense. It was a terrific win.”

The win also, by virtue of UConn and Marquette having lost earlier in the day Saturday, moved St. John’s into sole possession of first place in the Big East with a 7-1 conference record. While the Red Storm’s long-suffering fan base is relishing the return to the top, those within the walls of the locker room are zeroed in firmly on the next test, which comes Wednesday night against a Xavier team that defeated Marquette on the road.

“It’s nice to be in first place, but the job’s not finished,” Luis declared. “We’re gonna continue to keep winning games, playing together and having fun as a group.”

“We just put all our emphasis and effort into the next game,” Pitino reiterated. “This was a great victory for us, but we’re just gonna concentrate on Xavier and not think about that. I’d rather take first place than last place, but I really don’t think about it. I’m just consumed with the next game. I think we’re playing great defense right now, I think we’re doing a lot of good things on the break. I’m just enjoying each practice, each game. I really don’t think too much of that. I’m proud for the St. John’s fans, I know it means something to them, but to me, it means very little.”

Pitino may downplay the significance now to prime his players for a greater stage in March, but one thing that cannot be diminished is the impact of St. John’s fans as a sixth man of sorts. With attendance at Madison Square Garden at its highest since Chris Mullin paced the sidelines at his alma mater, the energy has been matched away from home just as well. Red Storm fans traveled across the Hudson River Saturday stronger than at any point in the past several years, and according to the coach, had the largest contingent overseas at the Baha Mar Hoops Championship in November. It all adds up to a vow Pitino made upon his hire, one where he said he would eventually resurrect the dormant apathy within the fan base and build a product worth watching.

“St. John’s fans are coming back,” he gushed. “We’re trying to make them join our team one by one. We don’t care where they come from. One by one, we’re trying to cultivate our fan base because St. John’s lost a big fan base the last 20 years, a lot of subway alumni. We’re trying to get it back, and we’re doing it one by one.”