Villanova battles #9 St. John’s looking to win its third straight game | Villanova vs. St. John’s Preview
Written by David Szczepanski on February 12, 2025
VILLANOVA, PA—On Sunday, Villanova won back-to-back games for the first time since January 8th by defeating Xavier. As Eric Dixon continues to make history on Villanova’s all-time scoring list, the Wildcats look to upset #9 St. John’s at the Finneran Pavilion on Wednesday night.
Villanova defeated Xavier, 80-68, on Super Bowl Sunday at the Wells Fargo Center in South Philadelphia. Eric Dixon scored 24 points, including 22 in the second half. Wooga Poplar finished the game with 23 points, and Tyler Perkins added 20 points on four threes. The Wildcats made 50% of their 24 three-point attempts, and their defense limited Zach Freemantle and the Musketeers. They also forced 14 turnovers.
Villanova defeated Xavier on Sunday at the Wells Fargo Center.
Villanova’s head coach, Kyle Neptune, talked about Villanova’s solid defense against Xavier on Sunday.
“I thought we played a pretty complete defensive game, and then in the second half, we made some tough shots as well,” Neptune said. “But I thought either way, we were going to be in a good spot with the way we played defense.”
The Wildcats now hold sole possession of fifth place in the Big East conference standings. They have a one-game lead over Georgetown and Xavier. The top five seeds receive a first-round bye in the Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden in March.
First Matchup: January 11th
Villanova (14-10, 7-6 Big East) lost its first battle against St. John’s (21-3, 12-1), 80-68, at Madison Square Garden in New York City on January 11th. Poplar led Villanova with 22 points in 37 minutes. Dixon was six-for-19 from the field for 18 points. RJ Luis Jr. scored a season-high 30 points for the Red Storm. St. John’s outrebounded Villanova, 44-28.
Poplar made a layup and tied the game at 61 with 4:19 left. However, the Wildcats were outscored, 19-7, in those final four minutes. St. John’s made 29 of its 39 free throws, including some late in the contest.
After his 24-point performance against the Musketeers, Dixon moved into fifth place in Villanova program scoring history with 2,046 points. He is 48 points away from tying Bob Schafer for fourth place. Dixon also leads the country with 23.8 points per contest. He was named to the Wooden Award Late Midseason Top 20 Watch List on Tuesday.
Tyler Perkins, a sophomore guard from Lorton, VA, scored a season-high 20 points on Sunday. He made seven of his nine field goals, including four-for-five from behind the arc. He has scored 32 points in his last three contests.
“I’m just trying to do whatever I can to help the team, whether that’s energy, talking, bringing the juice,” Perkins said.
St. John’s Resurgence
St. John’s has been one of the best teams in college basketball this season. The Red Storm have only lost three games, and only one loss came in the United States. The Red Storm’s losses were to Baylor and Georgia in the Bahamas, and Creighton in Omaha on December 31st. They have won ten consecutive games, which is tied for the second-longest current winning streak in college basketball.
St. John’s most recently defeated UConn, 68-62, at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, CT on Friday. RJ Luis Jr. led all scorers with 21 points. The Red Storm forced 22 turnovers.
St. John’s resurgence has been fueled by the leadership of head coach Rick Pitino and the emergence of young stars like Luis Jr. Under Coach Pitino, the Red Storm are 41-16 (.719). They average 78 points per game and allow only 65 points per contest.
Luis Jr, a junior from Miami, FL, averages more than 17 points per game. He has scored at least ten points in 24 of his 25 games played this season. He has averaged 19.4 points per game in his last ten contests.
Zuby Ejiofor has also played well in his first season as a starter for St. John’s. The Garland, TX native averages 14.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per contest. He scored 11 points and grabbed five rebounds against UConn.
Kadary Richmond is the Red Storm’s third-leading scorer with 12.1 points per game. He converts 49% of his field goals in his first season with St. John’s after transferring from Seton Hall.
The Red Storm’s Physical Defense + Style of Play
In addition to the scoring of Luis Jr., Ejiofor, and Richmond, the Red Storm also play tremendous defense with physicality and tenacity. They limit their opponents to a 39% success rate from the field. They force 16 turnovers and nine steals per contest. St. John’s also accumulates 41 rebounds per game.
St. John’s lacks clear weaknesses, but its two biggest issues are three-point and free-throw shooting. The Red Storm convert only 29% of their three-point attempts and 69% of their free throws.
All-Time Series
St. John’s leads the all-time series against Villanova, 67-66. The Red Storm have won three consecutive games against the Wildcats.
Game Info + WXVU Coverage
Tonight’s battle starts at 6pm at the Finneran Pavilion. WXVU’s pregame coverage begins at 5:30pm.
