Red Storm defense, depth provide Thanksgiving blessing in rout of La Salle

Mike Anderson’s emphasis on creating energy was heeded by St. John’s Thursday as Red Storm powered past La Salle. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

NEW YORK — There’s a love that’s divine

And it’s yours and it’s mine, like the sun

And at the end of the day, we should give thanks and pray

To the one

— Van Morrison, “Have I Told You Lately”

On this Thanksgiving night, chances are that the most avid of St. John’s fans are giving thanks to Mike Anderson for not only being there when athletic director Mike Cragg looked his way 19 months ago to fill the Red Storm’s head coaching vacancy, but also for changing the culture and establishing a definitive style of play in such a time span that has those festooned in red and white grateful for more hope than anguished ambivalence.

Thursday afternoon, with essentially 14 hours between leaving Carnesecca Arena following an unintended raising of the stress levels in a one-point win over Saint Peter’s and a clash with La Salle, the Johnnies confronted their first acid test of the young and surreal 2020-21 season. And after a slog of a first half that could be attributed to early fatigue, St. John’s passed with flying colors on the way to an 82-65 takedown of La Salle inside Carnesecca Arena.

Following Wednesday’s opener, in which heroics from a debuting Vince Cole were essential in surviving a scrappy and fearless Saint Peter’s team, Anderson vehemently stressed the need for his squad to create its own energy after noting the lethargic tenor to multiple pockets of the game. Against La Salle, whose 26 turnovers were converted into 33 Red Storm points to fuel the transition game and relentless pressure that characterizes the coach’s 40 Minutes of Hell brand, one could gather that the message was heeded, relayed and executed to a T.

“What I said to them last night, I said today, too,” Anderson reiterated as St. John’s (2-0) complemented its transition game by doubling up the Explorers in fast break points, 34-17, and outmuscling them to the tune of a 40-22 margin in the paint. “We have to get second, third, fourth efforts, we have to create our own energy. And I thought that’s what you saw.”

“You saw guys going out and deflecting a lot of passes and getting out to the shooters to make them drivers, we did a much better job of protecting the lane, and came up with a lot of loose balls. I thought we did the things we normally do, and so from that standpoint, we took our practice to the game.”

St. John’s also forced 16 steals in the victorious turn, four of which were amassed by Josh Roberts and three more by freshman Posh Alexander, underscoring the depth that revealed itself in the form of a 10-man rotation that was missing two after Rasheem Dunn suffered a concussion Wednesday while Julian Champagnie continues to rehab an injured ankle.

“Josh played limited minutes yesterday, and today, he comes in and I thought his presence out there was big for us,” said Anderson of Roberts. “Whether it be offensive rebounds or protecting the paint, I thought he played with that passion you’ve got to have.”

“Next man up,” Marcellus Earlington echoed, supporting the contributions of John McGriff and Dylan Wusu, the latter of whom was instrumental in defending multiple positions and scoring 10 points in the most productive outing of his young career to date. “That’s what Coach preaches. We all practice hard, we all put a lot of time in, and we all have faith in each other. We know if we play together and play the way Coach wants us to play, we can beat anybody.”

The balance on the scoreboard may reflect a collective effort, but for the second time in as many nights, Cole was the star of the show for the Red Storm. Getting the start Thursday after being responsible for Wednesday’s victory, Cole posted a team-high 19 points, and supplemented his offense to offset misses on six of his seven 3-point attempts with five rebounds and four assists.

“We all knew he was a scorer,” Earlington said. “He was made for this, and we fed off him. He picked us up, he was doing everything right. I just hope he keeps playing like that, because he’s been doing great.”

The scene now shifts to a neutral-site contest Monday night at Mohegan Sun Arena against a Boston College team that pushed national championship contender Villanova to the limit Wednesday. Dunn will likely not be available despite Anderson being diplomatic with regard to his status, and Champagnie is a gametime decision. Regardless, the work in progress rages on, and should yield yet another improved effort regardless of result.

“We just need to continue to get better,” a candid Anderson stated. “We have to continue to move forward and get guys ready to play. When you have two guys that started for you all of last year out, you’re asking a lot of the newcomers, and some of those guys are responding the right way.”