St. John’s Upsets No. 13 Butler in Big East Opener
By MIKE McCURRY Eight days after beating Syracuse
By MIKE McCURRY Eight days after beating Syracuse
BY: MIKE McCURRY Jahmal McMurray, one of the
By CHRIS BARCA
NEW YORK –– St. John’s freshman Shamorie Ponds wasn’t about to let fellow guard Marcus LoVett hog all the attention.
After LoVett went for 19 points and seven assists in last Friday’s season opener against Bethune-Cookman, it was Ponds who opened eyes on Monday. The Brooklyn product dropped 21 points to go along with a game-high 10 rebounds and four assists, leading St. John’s to a 77-61 win over Binghamton at Carnesecca Arena. The Johnnies are now 2-0 heading into Friday’s matchup at Minnesota in the Gavitt Tip-Off Games.
“We bring the best out in each other,” said Ponds, the former Brooklyn Thomas Jefferson star. “We’re the smallest guys on the floor but we have the biggest heart and the biggest voice.”
After a solid but uninspiring eight-point performance against Bethune-Cookman, Ponds came out of the gate firing on Monday, scoring seven of the Red Storm’s first 15 points through 10 minutes.
BY CHRIS BARCA
NEW YORK — St. John’s has a keeper on its hands.
Dynamic redshirt freshman Marcus LoVett was as good as advertised in Friday’s season opener, as the point guard dominated on both sides of the ball to lead the Red Storm (1-0) past Bethune-Cookman, 100-53.
“It was fun playing with my brothers out there,” LoVett said. “It was great. It felt so good to be out there and able to play.”
Despite ceding the start at point guard to sophomore Malik Ellison, LoVett was the brightest star in a young but impressive backcourt on Friday at Carnesecca Arena.
NEW YORK — One year after winning just one Big East game, St. John’s was picked to finish eighth in the league this season.
Still, there are some bright spots as head coach Chris Mullin enters his second year at the helm of the Red Storm. Brooklyn point guard Shamorie Ponds – ranked 36th in his class by ESPN – was named Big East Preseason Freshman of the Year..
“He’s been good,” Mullin said Tuesday at Big East Media Day at Madison Square Garden, where he played with St. John’s in the mid-1980s. “He’s a talented kid. He’s very smart on the court. Got good feel, and he’s got a natural instinct for the game. I think he has the type of game and type of personality where he just knows how to fit in with any group. He really has a good feel.”
On the recruiting front, Mullin believes Ponds can help St. John’s lands other New York-area stars.
“He is the type of kid we want,” he said. “A kid who wants to stay home, play in front of his family and friends, and play here at ‘The World’s Most Famous Arena.'”
