St. John’s freshman guard Rysheed Jordan returned to practice Thursday and will play Saturday against Columbia at the Barclays Center.
“He was back at practice [Thursday], and will be us with us tomorrow against Columbia,” Johnnies coach Steve Lavin said Friday.
Jordan missed Saturday’s game against Youngstown State due to the illness of his mother, Amina.
“It’s been a tough stretch with his family health issues,” Lavin said. “I’ve been impressed with how he’s been able to handle it.”
Lavin said the Columbia game “will prepare” his team for the upcoming Big East schedule in which the Johnnies open at Georgetown, at Xavier and against No. 8 Villanova.
Columbia pushed then-No. 2 Michigan State to the limit before losing 62-53, Nov. 15 in East Lansing.
“We’ll have our hands full tomorrow vs. Columbia,” Lavin said.
FREE THROWS
St. John’s will appear in the Preseason NIT in 2014 and the Maui Invitational in 2015, sources told SNY.tv.
