Richmond’s heroics overcome second-half swoon as Johnnies sweep Providence

Kadary Richmond’s 24 points included game-winner with three seconds left as St. John’s survived Providence Saturday. (Photo by St. John’s Athletics)

By Jason Dimaio (@Jaydimaio)

NEW YORK — “If you build it, they will come.”‬

Rick Pitino has said throughout the season that he and his St. John’s team are trying to resurrect the heyday of the Red Storm, bringing old fans back into the fold one at a time. And on a day when Madison Square Garden was nearly filled to capacity with a majority of its patrons dressed in red, Pitino’s pupils gave the raucous crowd much to cheer about, but more importantly, an instant classic ending after an auspicious beginning.

Kadary Richmond, whose resurgence continues to peak at the most opportune of times, took matters into his own hands in the final seconds, draining a jumper from the free throw line—his bread and butter throughout his career—with three ticks remaining on the clock to break a 66-all tie and send the announced attendance of 19,196‬ into delirium as the 15th-ranked Johnnies needed all 40 minutes to shake a Providence team that nearly capped off an 18-point comeback. Richmond’s game-winner was the final margin in a 68-66 victory over the Friars, whose 3-point attempt by Bensley Joseph missed the mark at the buzzer.

The win was the eighth straight for St. John’s (19-3, 10-1 Big East), who has not lost since December 31. During that stretch, the Red Storm has regained sole possession of the Big East lead for the time being, with Marquette—who visits the Garden Tuesday—in position to join the Johnnies atop the standings should the Golden Eagles defeat UConn.

“They don’t want to lose,” Richmond said of his teammates after he notched the last of his 24 points Saturday, a number that was complemented by eight rebounds and eight assists. “I’m a leader on this team. I’m one of the leaders and we have to go out there and play to win every night.”

“We were going to win it or lose it with Kadary’s shot or his pass,” Pitino added. “He made a terrific shot.”

‭The start of this game was anything but normal. The game started in a delay, and in just‬ the first two minutes, there were three separate shot clock malfunctions, causing a‬ disoriented flow to start. The first media timeout was called after just 74 seconds of game action had elapsed due to the delays, and in the first six minutes of game play, there were a combined‬ eight points scored by both teams, with the Johnnies taking a 6-2 advantage.‬

The odd start took much of the energy out of the crowd, and it was evident in the play on‬ the court. Over the next seven minutes, Providence went on a 15-4 run to take a 17-10‬ lead. The St. John’s offense was sleepwalking in the early stages of the first half, turning the ball over, which led to easy‬ transition baskets for the Friars.

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Following back-to-back threes from Richmond and Deivon Smith, who made his‬ return to action Saturday for the first time in two weeks, Zuby Ejiofor broke down the Friars‬’ zone defense going into the intermission, where the Red Storm, despite shooting‬ just 29 percent from the floor, brought a 25-21 lead into the locker room on the heels of a 15-4 spurt of its own.

‭As has been the theme all season with this team, a switch flipped out of the break. St.‬ John’s blitzed the Friars to a 17-7 run to start the half, riding the hot hand of Richmond, who got to the rim seemingly at will as the Johnnies stretched their advantage to as many as 19 points midway through the final stanza, forcing 20 Providence turnovers on the afternoon in the process.

But just when it looked as though St. John’s had iced the game, Providence would hit eight of its next nine shots, mainly off‬ the back of Jabri Abdur-Rahim, who the Johnnies had no answer for when the Georgia transfer feasted with Richmond on the bench. Abdur-Rahim was unconscious from three, shooting a blazing 8-for-11 clip and scoring a‬ game-high 27 points.‬

After the Friars drew within single digits, RJ Luis was sent to the line twice in the last three minutes of regulation with a chance to extend the lead‬ to a two-possession game both times, but could only hit one of two free throws on either occasion, keeping the Red Storm’s lead tenuous. The junior did hit a mid-range jumper inside the final minute to give the Johnnies a 66-63, but Providence would answer immediately, going the length of the floor as Joseph hit a contested three in the face of the St. John’s defense, knotting the game up at‬ 66 with 32 seconds left to play.‬

‭The ending of this game was eerily similar to the teams’ first matchup in‬ Providence on December 20, with Joseph hitting a clutch three with under a minute‬ left before St. John’s had the last possession and won at the buzzer on an Ejiofor putback. Following the Joseph three, the Red Storm held the ball for most of the possession, and with seven seconds remaining, Richmond made his move, crossing his defender to get the easy mid-range‬ look on which he has been most efficient all season. Richmond pulled up with time nearly‬ expiring on the shot clock, hitting the open jumper and dealing the Friars a second dose of heartbreak in a six-week span.

“We just had to win the game,” Pitino said after expressing disappointment in St. John’s defense down the stretch. “We didn’t do our job defensively. We have to focus on defense, because we could have lost the game today by not doing our defensive job. It’s always better to learn from winning than it is from losing. We learned a valuable lesson.”

Now furthering its best start to a Big East season since the storied Final Four run in 1985, St. John’s now prepares for a Marquette team that could very well maintain its Top 10 ranking when it comes to New York on Tuesday. The Red Storm has not faced an opponent ranked that high while also being a Top 15 team itself since 1998-99, but the numbers next to the names are irrelevant, says Richmond.

“There’s always room for improvement,” the senior point guard cautioned. “We’re not overlooking anybody, we’re not looking ahead. We’re just taking it a game at a time and whoever we got next is who we got next. We’re gonna prepare the same way.”