No. 9 St. John’s Looks to Extend Streak Against Villanova

When St. John’s and Villanova last faced off a month ago, the Red Storm were making a name for themselves as serious national championship contenders. Now ranked No. 9, St. John’s is riding a 10-game winning streak and climbing the AP rankings for the first time since March 2000.

Head coach Rick Pitino isn’t letting up as his team prepares for another Big East test on Wednesday night.

St. John’s Rolling, Eyes Season Sweep of Villanova

The Red Storm (21-3, 12-1 Big East) have been dominant, with their last loss coming in early January. That run includes an 80-68 home win over Villanova on Jan. 11, when RJ Luis Jr. dropped 30 points, and the team held Wildcats star Eric Dixon to 6-of-19 shooting.

St. John’s dominated the glass in that game, outrebounding Villanova 44-28, with Luis pulling down 10 boards and Zuby Ejiofor adding 11 points and nine rebounds.

More recently, St. John’s picked up back-to-back wins over ranked teams, defeating Marquette and No. 1 UConn. In Friday’s 68-62 win over the Huskies, Luis scored 21 points while Kadary Richmond added 13—all in the second half.

Luis, who went 16-of-20 from the free-throw line in the last Villanova matchup, is looking to stay aggressive. He has attempted only 27 free throws over the past seven games.

One area for improvement? His 3-point shooting. Luis has hit just 1-of-10 from deep in the last two games.

Villanova Aims to Continue Momentum

Villanova (14-10, 7-6 Big East) is trying to turn its season around after a rough 1-5 stretch. The Wildcats have won two straight, including a 90-78 win over Xavier on Sunday.

Dixon bounced back from a shooting slump, scoring 24 points on 50 percent shooting—his first efficient game in weeks. He’s hoping to stay hot after going just 4-of-16 from beyond the arc in his last three outings.

Villanova got a boost from its bench against Xavier, with Tyler Perkins scoring 20 points on 7-of-9 shooting and Wooga Poplar leading the team with 23 points.

“I’m just trying to do whatever I can to help the team, whether that’s talking, energy, bringing the juice,” Perkins said.

Villanova is 2-1 against ranked teams this season, securing wins over No. 14 Cincinnati and No. 1 UConn. However, they fell to Marquette in late January.

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Can Villanova Snap St. John’s Streak?

The Red Storm are looking for their 11th straight win and a season sweep of Villanova, but the Wildcats have a track record of stepping up in big games.

Will St. John’s continue its dominant run, or can Villanova pull off the upset at home? Expect a hard-fought battle in this Big East showdown.