NEW YORK — The good times haven’t rolled smoothly for St. John’s or Seton Hall this season.
Between them, the two Big East schools have now lost three players from their original 2014-15 rosters, punished various players for on- and off-the-court incidents and combined to go 10-13 in Big East play.
Yet despite all the defections, distractions and defeats, the Red Storm and the Pirates remain firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble. As of Thursday morning, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi had St. John’s among his “First Four In” and Seton Hall among his “First Four Out.”
Despite everything that’s happened, it’s possible that in this lost New York winter for the Knicks, Jets and Giants, both teams could be dancing next month.
“Naturally the kids are aware of the bubble talk, and who’s in and who’s out according to the various media outlets that speculate on what the NCAA Tournament field could be, but we really try to just stay on task, which is just to improve with each practice and each game opportunity,” Johnnies coach Steve Lavin said Thursday on a conference call.
“And then the runs and the breakthroughs are going to come from that approach. Kind of a pragmatic, old-school path that we stay on.”
Big men Keith Thomas and Adonis De La Rosa never suited up for the Red Storm (16-8, 5-6 Big East) this year due to academic issues, and while Thomas is no longer at the school, De La Rosa is still on the roster but hasn’t played.
Lavin recently removed St. John’s lone remaining big man, 6-9 junior Chris Obekpa, from the starting lineup following a flagrant 2 foul against Butler’s Tyler Wideman. He is now dealing with a sprained right ankle that kept him out of Wednesday’s win over DePaul, and has made him questionable for Saturday’s game at Xavier.
Without Obekpa, St. John’s can go small with multiple guards and 6-6 senior Sir’Dominic Pointer at the five. The Johnnies won this way against DePaul and have won two straight and three of four as they appear to be making another one of their patented second-half runs.
“It presents a challenge,” Xavier coach Chris Mack said of that lineup. “We have to be prepared for a unique style of play on Saturday.”
In addition to the Obekpa situation, sophomore guard Rysheed Jordan has been in and out of the lineup while dealing with personal issues, including the death of his grandmother, and transgressions such as a homophobic Tweet which he later deleted.
Still, Jordan has come on strong recently, pouring in a career-high 25 points in Saturday’s win over Creighton and going for 15 against DePaul. He’s averaging 14.2 points on the season, second only to senior D’Angelo Harrison (19.2), who went off for 33 on DePaul.
Over at Seton Hall, the Pirates (15-9, 5-7) appear to be careening out of control amid the announced transfer this week of sophomore guard Jaren Sina, a fractured and volatile locker room and a stretch that has seen them lose six of their last eight games after starting the season 3-1 in the Big East.
“The mood and the attitude of the team is pretty good,” coach Kevin Willard said on the call. “Everybody is just frustrated about losing.”
According to sources, Sina no longer “felt safe” around the team and simply had to get out now.
Multiple reports indicated Sina and freshman sensation Isaiah Whitehead butted heads, and Whitehead and junior guard Sterling Gibbs also had to be separated during the recent blowout loss to Georgetown.
Asked on the call what it says that Sina, who was averaging 32 minutes a game, would bolt this late in the season, Willard said: “I can’t speak for the fan base and the public.”
He went on to praise Sina, a local product out of Gill St. Bernard’s, who will now have to sit out next season as a transfer unless he obtains a waiver.
“We’d love to still have Jaren on the team, but most important, I’m excited for Jaren that he’ll have an opportunity to play basketball somewhere and have a great education,” Willard said. “He’s nothing but the best. I love the kid to death.”
As has been pointed out, Gibbs could also opt to transfer following this season and, as a graduate, would be eligible right away at his new spot.
This thing could go one of two ways.
Either the team will continue to fall apart and miss a golden chance at the NCAA Tournament, or Sina’s departure could prove to be addition by subtraction where the remaining players come together and Willard rights the ship.
“This team really never had to deal with adversity and we’re going through some adversity right now,” Willard said. “I think we’re all learning how to deal with it and what we need to do to get back to playing well. ”
With only a handful of regular-season games remaining for both teams — including a titanic Feb. 21 battle at Carnesecca — the upcoming weeks will be critical for both St. John’s and Seton Hall.
“If you get your share of victories or accumulate enough wins, then you have a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament,” Lavin said.
Despite all the defections, distractions and defeats, the future is still theirs to make.
Photo: New York Post
