Banners On The Parkway - Xavier v. St. John's: Bubble ShowdownYour only remaining free source for Xavier Musketeers newshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47177/banners-fave.png2015-02-24T09:00:03-05:00http://www.bannersontheparkway.com/rss/stream/78552882015-02-24T09:00:03-05:002015-02-24T09:00:03-05:00Xavier 57-58 St. John's: Choose your own adventure
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<figcaption>Offensive foul! We're going the other way! | Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>It's time to choose your adventure as you battle through the myriad ways Xavier contrived to lose yet another close game!</p> <p>I like to think of myself as a pretty good writer, but I don't even know where to begin with this game. Horrendous officiating, 20 turnovers, tentative offense, and substitution patterns that didn't seem to make a lot of sense all played a part in Xavier coming up the very smallest of margins short. A win in this game that would have gone a long way in solidifying their standing in the NCAA field. Instead, Xavier probably still needs to find two more wins to be completely comfortable come Sunday the 15th, and it's because of a miasma of reasons.</p>
<p>To that end, if you think <u>horrendous officiating</u> cost Xavier this game, flip to paragraph A. If you think <u>turning the ball over 20 times</u> in a game is what did it, you'll enjoy paragraph B. If you think <u>playing timid in the first half</u> cost the Musketeers the game, flip to paragraph C. And if you think <u>this was the coach's fault,</u> paragraph D is the one for you. Have fun choosing your very own Xavier Loses Another Close One adventure!</p>
<h4>Paragraph A: It's the ref's fault!</h4>
<p>Well, you've peaked behind the door and seen the trusted trope of couch bound analysts worldwide. Well, it's hard to argue with them this time. The officiating in the Big East and, really, around college basketball this season has made subpar seem like a lofty goal. Last night's crew of Roger Ayers, Joe Lindsay, and Doug Shows (all of whom favor the home team by nearly three fouls per game) made somewhere around $2,000 a piece to put on the performance they did. Two nights ago, Ayers was in Virginia doing his 80th game, Lindsay was in Missouri doing his 60th, and Shows was travelling in from Louisiana, where he had just done his 62nd game.</p>
<p>This was back to back to back nights with a game for both Ayers and Lindsay, who had combined to travel 2,126 miles over that time. Add in Shows 1,360 mile jaunt from Baton Rouge, and you get three refs doing eight games over the past three days and traveling 3,486 miles to do so. Small wonder, then, that they were complete and utter garbage tonight. In the first half, violence abounded. The three men charged with preventing that were apparently lost in their thoughts and called a grand total of three fouls and awarded three free throws.</p>
<p>In the second half, the officiating crew showed great mental dexterity in adapting to be the polar opposite kind of embarrassingly horrid. Before four minutes came off the clock, they'd already called more fouls than in the entire first half. Before six minutes had elapsed, the free throw mark from the first half fell as well. The second half went on to see 27 fouls called and 30 free throws shot. If the goal of referees is to be consistent, these guys failed miserably. Actually, it doesn't matter what the goal of referees is, I'm quite certain this crew failed miserably at it. The hacksawing of Remy Abell's (11/7/3) arms after he beat Sir'Dominic Pointer off the dribble at the end of the game just seemed to be the capper, Continue to Paragraph E.</p>
<h4>Paragraph B: What if we passed to their team? Or no one?</h4>
<p>After Xavier's blistering 13 points in just over five minutes to start the game, they scored seven points the rest of the first half. That's in large part to some truly incredible dedication to turning the ball over. This wasn't new and unusual turnovers, it was pretty much just a steady stream of passes to guys wearing white. Xavier being completely at the other end of the color spectrum from their opponent didn't keep Musketeers from locating St. John's with pass after pass on their way to turning the ball over <i>15 times in a single half.</i></p>
<p>On three separate occasions in the first half, Xavier ended three or more straight possessions with a turnover. It got to the point where a missed shot was considered a positive outcome for a possession, because that at least meant someone in black had the ball long enough to consider an errant toss at something other than a St. John's player. Xavier would go on to turn the ball over 20 times in the game. That's 20 possessions in a 65 possession game in which they didn't even have a chance to score points. That's how you end up averaging .88 points per possession and losing. <span>Dee Davis</span> (3/3/4) led the way with five turnovers, but three other Musketeers had three a piece and every player except Larry Austin Jr (2/2/0) got in on the act. Continue to Paragraph E.</p>
<h4>Paragraph C: New York is loud and scary!</h4>
<p>Frightening things lurk in the shadows, or at least the shaded areas on the court, of Madison Square Garden. These things, which are actually just human beings, one of whom is terrifyingly called "Chris", appeared to cause great fear in many of the Musketeers. After the 13 quick points, Xavier suffered its first blocked shot at the hands of Sir'Dominic Pointer. After that, shots became a barrage of leaners, fadeaways, excuse me's, 15 footers, and generally whatever else didn't entail actually taking the ball up strong in the St. John's defensive end.</p>
<p>Some credit here does go to Obepka and Pointer. They combined to block ten shots and displayed excellent timing and, especially in the case of Obepka, freakish double jump ability. That said, Xavier made things easy by simply refusing to try a reasonable shot around them. It was obvious that just the scepter of the block was looming large throughout the first half. It's unusual to see <span>Jalen Reynolds</span> (9/7/0) look meek, but he did at times in the first half. <span>Matt Stainbrook</span> (6/10/3) deserves credit for taking the ball at the defense, less credit for not employing a deal of guile in doing so. One quick way to make only four shots inside the arc in half and only 13 for a game is to be scared to pound. For a long time, Xavier was. Continue to Paragraph E.</p>
<h4>Paragraph D: Coach Mack is clueless, fire the bum!</h4>
<p>You're here because you think coaches should be able to make adjustments on the fly, cajoling the best out of their squad every time. Tonight you may point to Xavier pounding the ball inside (or into Red Storm players) fruitlessly for large portions of the first half. Or, you might point out that Xavier was +9 in the five minutes that a very aggressive and active Larry Austin played before being banished back to the bench. Perhaps you think that both <span>Myles Davis</span> (5/3/1) and JP Macura (0/1/0) did very little to merit their 37 and nine minutes, respectively.</p>
<p>Maybe you think that a game this active and rough could have used some Sean O'Mara or a bit more time playing two bigs. It could be that you wanted to see some of the very effective 1-3-1 Xavier has played recently. Or maybe you just wonder how on earth it was that no adjustment had been made since Sir'Dominic Pointer dominated a game nine days ago. No matter which of those it was, you landed her because you know Coach Mack could have done more. Continue to Paragraph E.</p>
<h4>Paragraph E: Xavier needs two more wins</h4>
<p>This one would have been huge, but it didn't happen. If Xavier beats Villanova at home, they can start making plans to be in the tournament so long as Creighton doesn't trip them up again. A loss to 'Nova and a win against Creighton will require one more win in the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/big-east-basketball-tournament" class="sbn-auto-link">Big East tournament</a> to leave everyone feeling comfortable. Your adventure ends here though because, no matter what you chose above, there were four big reasons Xavier left a very valuable win on the court last night in New York.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/2/24/8098157/xavier-57-58-st-johns-choose-your-own-adventure-Big-East-bubbleBrad D2015-02-23T22:35:28-05:002015-02-23T22:35:28-05:00You make the call: was Remy fouled on his last drive against St. John's?<iframe src="https://vine.co/v/OQPXJz7jp2B/embed/simple" width="600" height="600"></iframe>
<div class="source source-img"><p><p>You've seen fouls called on those. Should one have been called here?</p></p></div>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/2/23/8097577/you-make-the-call-was-remy-fouled-on-his-last-drive-against-st-johnsJoel D2015-02-23T22:33:00-05:002015-02-23T22:33:00-05:00Xavier v. St. John's: Boxscore Breakdown
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<figcaption>Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>This one got away from Xavier early and that cost them late.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><b>What happened: St. John's 58 - Xavier 57</b></p>
<p>This game was lost in poor execution for Xavier. The Musketeers score 11 points in the first 3:45 and then 9 in the next 16:15. That scoring drought was courtesy of a staggering 15 turnovers by X in the first half, which led to way too many easy transition opportunities for a St. John's team that feasts on the run. Xavier tightened it up in the second half, turning the ball over just 5 times, but the previous points didn't come off the board because Xavier figured out what was causing them, and that ended up being the difference in the game.</p>
<p>His line doesn't show it, but Trevon Bluiett was the attacking hub for Xavier tonight. When X was going well, Trevon was standing at the free throw line to unsettle the St. John's zone, and he was attacking enough to get to the line 10 times in a game that was loosely officiated (to say the least). Bluiett ended up with 17/6/2 on 4-13/1-2/8-10 shooting. That rough mark from the field is partly because he was going at the rim against a tough shot-blocker, but the Muskies needed someone to attack the defense and Bluiett did just that.</p>
<p>Jalen Reynolds was Jalen Reynolds all night. He played hard and went for 9/7/0 on 4-7/0-0/1-1 shooting, but he also limited his own effectiveness with foul trouble. He is Xavier's most athletic and active big man and he can be effective in games that give Matt Stainbrook trouble, but he has to do better at keeping from picking up silly fouls that send him to the bench. Until Coach Mack can sub his strategically rather than for foul-related reasons, he's going to be in his own way.</p>
<p>Dee had trouble with fouls, turnovers, and being the victim of physical play; Larry Austin, Jr. was magical in getting 5 minutes off the pine to spell him. Austin came in early in the 17-2 run that got Xavier back into the game and he really changed the dynamic of play. When Xavier was looking passive and timid, Austin simply grabbed the ball and ran at the defense. The other nine guys on the floor were surprised, but his shift jolted Xavier into life and brought the game back into a competitive status. Good on you, Larry Austin, Jr.</p>
<p>Myles Davis has been Xavier's leading scorer in Big East play, but he was miserable tonight. He shot 2-10/1-6/0-0 on his way to 5/3/0 on the game. The ball fell to him for a tough look with five seconds left, and he put the capper on a rough night by not being able to convert the look. The less said about this night for Myles the better.</p>
<p>Perennial team engine Remy Abell was good for the quitest 11/5/1 you're ever likely to overlook. He shot 4-5/3-3/0-0, defended hard, and generally made himself useful all game. He stole the ball from D'Angelo Harrison on St. John's last possession and probably got fouled on his way to the rim, but the ball went out of bounds and Xavier was set up for their final possession, which ultimately came up short.</p>
<p>This loss really only damages Xavier's tournament resume in that it was a chance to pick up a very good win and Xavier couldn't convert it. The Musketeers will now have Nova at home and Creighton on the road before heading to MSG for the conference tournament. X probably needs two more wins before Selection Sunday to make things comfortable when the Committee reveals the bracket. Coming up a point short of getting one of them hurt tonight.</p>
<p>Odds and ends:<br>-Xavier clubbed St. John's on the boards, with a 76.9% DReb% and a 35.9% OReb%.</p>
<p>-James Farr had 4/4/0 on 2-5 shooting.</p>
<p>-Matt Stainbrook made one field goal all night.</p>
<p>That's it from me for now. Brad will be on in the morning with the narrative recap, and we'll roll into the Xavier Power Rankings tomorrow and KenPom Bracketology on Wednesday.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/2/23/8097569/xavier-v-st-johns-boxscore-breakdownJoel D2015-02-23T22:06:25-05:002015-02-23T22:06:25-05:00Xavier v. St. John's: Three Things We Learned
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<figcaption>I feel you, Coach. | Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>This one came down to the wire in a way that is not good for my health.</p> <h3>It's all about matchups</h3>
<p>As much as we fret about Xavier's eventual seed in the NCAA tournament, this game shows how much the real issue is with matchups. Obviously the allure of a high seed is better odds of getting a good matchup, but if Xavier draws a team with a lot of athleticism or a big man who can shoot, they're going to have real trouble winning a game in the NCAA Tournament. The can that St. John's opened on Xavier after Obekpa came into the game illustrated this truth all too brutally.</p>
<h3>Xavier has grown in toughness</h3>
<p>The Muskies started the game on an 11-0 run, but St. John's brought in Obekpa and promptly reeled off a 30-9 stretch of their own that spanned the half. On a hostile floor and looking like they were fading from the game, Xavier promptly went on a 17-2 snap. Part of this is down to Larry Austin, Jr., who grabbed the ball and ran at the defense, putting St. John's on their heels for the first time in 20 minutes. The road has been unfriendly to Xavier, but they showed a comforting level of resilience tonight.</p>
<h3>Execution is key</h3>
<p>Xavier left some points on the line today, especially with both Dee and Matt missing front ends of 1-and-1s in the second half. That couples with the nearly two dozen turnovers the team had to turn in a lot of fairly empty possessions for Xavier. Those would have been nice to have back as the game was coming down to the wire; even a couple of baskets instead of turnovers would have made this a completely different game down the stretch.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/2/23/8097393/xavier-v-st-johns-three-things-we-learnedJoel D2015-02-23T15:00:03-05:002015-02-23T15:00:03-05:00Pre-Duel Pleasantries: St. John's
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<img alt="Get ready to see a lot of Steve Lavin" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8AGQsRcg8UwxnIOwFPhUVu6usHA=/0x0:3293x2195/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/45749094/usa-today-8396095.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Get ready to see a lot of Steve Lavin | Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Where we talk to our good friends over at Rumble in the Garden about Monday's game.</p> <p>Our Xavier Musketeers are in a crucial spot right now. We are riding high from wins over Cincinnati and Butler and now the team faces St. John's inside the most famous basketball venue in the world. To get you ready for the game, we talked to Norman Rose over at <a target="_blank" href="http://www.rumbleinthegarden.com/">Rumble in the Garden</a> about his thoughts on the game. Let's get started.</p>
<p><b>1.) Last week when we played, Sir'Dominic Pointer was a beast with 24 points and playing an absurd number of minutes. How key has the senior been to St. John's success this year?</b></p>
<p>He's been huge. He's been set free and has gained confidence in his game, using his defense and quickness confidently... and he's found a way to become a matchup problem on offense, assaulting opponents who can't match up. It's not just the confidence - it's that, because of necessity, Steve Lavin has had to play him at power forward and let him play through mistakes, with a great benefit. His rebounding is very, very good for his size and he's been the catalyst for the team's brand of chaos.<br><br><b>2.) Madison Square Garden is the most famous basketball venue ever and that's where we are playing Monday night. This really is not a question, more of just jealously that you all get to play there on a consistent basis.</b></p>
<p>It's a pretty cool arena.<br><br><b>3.) Who do you think will make the biggest impact on the game for St. John's?</b></p>
<p>Sir`Dominic Pointer and Rysheed Jordan. Pointer will have to be as impactful as he was in the first meeting, and Jordan needs to play better, because Xavier will likely try to take advantage of his impetuous mistakes.<br><br><b>4.) A lot of bracket people have you all in the dance, but a lot of people are also saying that they are on the bubble and need a big win. In your opinion, what does the Red Storm need to do to make the dance?</b></p>
<p>Beat Xavier, Marquette, win at least one game in the Big East Tournament. Beating Georgetown would be really, really good - the team only has Xavier and Providence as resume wins... not yet all that impressive.<br><br><b>5.) If you could change the team name away from Red Storm and to something else (and new) what would it be and why?</b></p>
<p>I don't get too upset about the name change and unlike some who remember the Redmen name, I can understand why it was done. Hard to come up with the name (even if "Red Storm" is both forgettable and... fodder for jokes involving bleeding)... what would another name be, the St. John's Run-DMC's? The St. John's Melting Pot?<br><br><br><b>6.) Prediction on how this game will go?</b></p>
<p><br>I think St. John's handles Xavier's size again - only because Dee Davis' play against STt John's was fairly poor and I don't see that changing.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/2/23/8088891/pre-duel-pleasantries-st-johnsCaleb Childers2015-02-23T11:37:04-05:002015-02-23T11:37:04-05:00Xavier v. St. John's: Preview
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<figcaption>If this guy shoots 90% again, Xavier is in trouble. | Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Both teams are somewhere on the bubble, with this game going a long way toward determining exactly where. Xavier needs it, but St. John's will be tough at home.</p> <p>In the nine days since Xavier last played, and lost to, St. John's a lot has changed. The Red Storm were resurgent at that point, with the Musketeers marking their third win in a row and a rise back into <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/march-madness" class="sbn-auto-link">NCAA tournament</a> bubble consideration. That loss had the effect of leaving Xavier on the edge of desperate for at least two good wins down the stretch to solidify their own standing. The Musketeers had looked good coming into the game, and looked very bad coming out.</p>
<p>Since then, the teams have essentially flipped positions. St. John's got obliterated by Georgetown in a game that was effectively over at the half. A win over a Seton Hall team that it's possible that the Banners staff and some of the top Twitter contributors could beat right now hardly went any way in repairing the damage. Meanwhile, Xavier went to UC and came up with a great road win over a top 50 team and hated rival. The Musketeers followed that by stepping their game up even farther and destroying the media darlings from Indianapolis. Depending on who you ask, either team could either be a lock or just clinging on to the field.</p>
<p><b><u>Team fingerprint:</u></b></p>
<p>Nothing has really changed in terms of how St. John's plays since the last time these two teams met. The Johnnie's are still going to shoot well if not terribly frequently from deep, though they did put up 26 attempts against Seton Hall. They're still going to be efficient, shoot too many mid range jumpers, and rely on D'Angelo Jordan when times get tough.</p>
<p>Defensively, St. John's is not a good matchup for the Musketeers. They love to block shots and steal the ball, and they had six and eleven of those, respectively, the last time the teams met. One thing that has changed is the approach to St. John's perimeter defense. The Musketeers are 17-33 from deep in the two intervening games, and St. John's allowed 43 attempts from deep in their two games. With the Musketeers suddenly rediscovering their ability to shoot, the Red Storm will look much more susceptible to the three than they were in the first meeting.</p>
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<table width="100%" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tbody>
<tr bgcolor="#EDF1F3">
<th align="center"><span>Rysheed Jordan</span></th> <th align="center">POINT GUARD</th> <th align="center">DEE DAVIS</th>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">Sophomore</td>
<td align="center">Class</td>
<td align="center">Senior</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">6'4", 193</td>
<td align="center">Measurements</td>
<td align="center">6'0", 160</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">13.6/3.7/3.0</td>
<td align="center">Game Line</td>
<td align="center">8.7/2.3/6.2</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center">.427/.356/.656</td>
<td align="center">Shooting Line</td>
<td align="center">.394/.316/.708</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center"></td>
<td align="center">Jordan missed the first contest between these two teams, but is back now. He had 18/6/6 against Seton Hall in his last time out and remains the primary user of the ball for the Johnnies. He'll be facing the suddenly resurgent <span>Dee Davis</span>, who is 6-7 from deep since the last meeting.</td>
<td align="center"></td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center"><span>Phil Greene IV</span></td>
<td align="center">SHOOTING GUARD</td>
<td align="center">MYLES DAVIS</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center">Senior</td>
<td align="center">Class</td>
<td align="center">Sophomore</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">6'2", 187</td>
<td align="center">Measurements</td>
<td align="center">6'2", 195</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">13.1/2.9/1.7</td>
<td align="center">Game Line</td>
<td align="center">11.4/2.4/2.2</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">.429/.375/.744</td>
<td align="center">Shooting Line</td>
<td align="center">.431/.413/.872</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center"></td>
<td align="center">Greene went for 15/0/1 in the last meeting and took 14 shots to get it. Since then he's averaging 13.5 shots per game and doing his scoring more efficiently. He's going to be on the floor for most of the game.</td>
<td align="center"></td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">D'Angelo Harrison</td>
<td align="center">SMALL FORWARD</td>
<td align="center"><span>Remy Abell</span></td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">Senior</td>
<td align="center">Class</td>
<td align="center">Senior</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">6'4", 202</td>
<td align="center">Measurements</td>
<td align="center">6-4, 200</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">18.3/5.7/2.0</td>
<td align="center">Game Line</td>
<td align="center">8.7/2.0/1.4</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">.423/.373/.813</td>
<td align="center">Shooting Line</td>
<td align="center">.488/.403/.750</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center"></td>
<td align="center">Harrison scored 18 against Xavier and has scored 17 since, including an 0-9 from the floor in the loss to Georgetown. It's possible that carrying the load all season is starting to wear on Harrison, but he'll still draw Abell as a matchup.</td>
<td align="center"></td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">Sir'Dominic Porter</td>
<td align="center">POWER FORWARD</td>
<td align="center">TREVON BLUIETT</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">Senior</td>
<td align="center">Class</td>
<td align="center">Freshman</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">6'6", 192</td>
<td align="center">Measurements</td>
<td align="center">6'6", 215</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">13.4/7.5/2.9</td>
<td align="center">Game Line</td>
<td align="center">12.1/4.4/1.9</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">.536/.100/.757</td>
<td align="center">Shooting Line</td>
<td align="center">.456/.336/.752</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center"></td>
<td align="center">24/5/1 with with two blocks and four steals, 9-10 from the floor, 6-6 from the line, 40 minutes. That's what Pointer did in the first meeting between these teams. He also just went for 22/10/3 with three more blocks and two steals against Seton Hall. Yikes.</td>
<td align="center"></td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center"><span>Chris Obekpa</span></td>
<td align="center">CENTER</td>
<td align="center">MATT STAINBROOK</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center">Junior</td>
<td align="center">Class</td>
<td align="center">Senior</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">6'10", 236</td>
<td align="center">Measurements</td>
<td align="center">6'10", 270</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">6.1/7.1/0.5</td>
<td align="center">Game Line</td>
<td align="center">11.8/6.6/2.5</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'">
<td align="center">.472/.000/.534</td>
<td align="center">Shooting Line</td>
<td align="center">.613/.333/.769</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center"></td>
<td align="center">Obekpa blocks shots. I'm certain there must be other things he can do well (paint? play guitar?), but his lone basketball skill is shot blocking. He'll take Stainbrook one on one and also get free for weakside blocks on unwary drivers of the lane.</td>
<td align="center"></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p> </p>
<p><b><u>Reserves:</u></b></p>
<p>St. John's is incredibly not deep. Off the bench Coach Steve Lavin will use Amir Alibegovic or Joey de la Rosa to spell the bigs. Neither plays much and neither does much when they do play. Guard Jamal Branch is the only non-starter to play more than 20% of the possible minutes. His 21.8 minutes off the bench come with a 4.7/2.5/2.5 line and a respectable TO rate of only 19.2%. None of Lavin's starters will play less than 30 minutes unless someone gets injured or in serious foul trouble.</p>
<p><b><u>Three adjustments/keys:</u></b></p>
<p><b>- Defend the perimeter: </b>St. John's was just too athletic in the last meeting, and <span>James Farr</span> and <span>Matt Stainbrook</span> were particularly exposed. The 1-3-1 may allow too many three point looks, but Coach Mack can hardly just let Pointer run past a big every time down the floor again. Is Bluiett quick enough to take him one on one?</p>
<p><b>- Make threes: </b>In the first game between these teams, Xavier finished on a 3-16 stretch from deep. Since then, they are shooting 51% from behind the arc. If Xavier knocks down threes, Matt Stainbrook (17/9/4 in the first game) and <span>Jalen Reynolds</span> (12/7/0) will take advantage of their muscle advantage against the slender St. John's bigs inside. Dee Davis starting the game with a make or two will be vital.</p>
<p><b>- Turn the Johnnies over: </b>The ten turnovers Xavier first in the last game were roughly in line with the 15.7% TO rate that St. John's has averaged on the year. The Red Storm take care of the ball, but Xavier has to force more turnovers in order to avoid being matched up on the defensive end on a team that got them for 1.15 points per possession at the Cintas last time.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/2/23/8090199/xavier-v-st-johns-preview-Big-East-bubble-NCAABrad D2015-02-23T10:47:27-05:002015-02-23T10:47:27-05:00Rumble in the Garden's preview of Xavier v. St. John's<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.rumbleinthegarden.com/st-johns-red-storm-mens-basketball/2015/2/23/8090189/st-johns-vs-xavier-preview-johnnies-bubble-msg">Rumble in the Garden's preview of Xavier v. St.&nbsp;John's</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>"This week, St. John's has two home games at Madison Square Garden - two games that will likely determine their postseason fate. St. John's has won four of their last five, but has the team turned a corner in time to earn a winning Big East record?"</p></p></div>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/2/23/8090313/rumble-in-the-gardens-preview-of-xavier-v-st-johnsJoel D