2018–19 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team

The 2018–19 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team represented St. John's University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were coached by alumnus and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame member Chris Mullin, in his fourth year at the school. They played their home games at Carnesecca Arena and Madison Square Garden as members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 21–13, 8–10 in Big East Play to finish in seventh place. They defeated DePaul in the first round of the Big East tournament before losing Marquette in the quarter-finals. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as an 11th seed. However, they lost to fellow 11th seed Arizona State at the First Four.

2018–19 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball
Legends Classic champions
NCAA tournament, First Four
Conference	Big East Conference
Record	21–13 (8–10 Big East)
Head coach	Chris Mullin (4th season)
Assistant coaches	Mitch Richmond Matt Abdelmassih Greg St. Jean
Home arena	Carnesecca Arena Madison Square Garden
Seasons ← 2017–18 2019–20 →

2018–19 Big East men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 23 Villanova †	13	–	5		.722			26	–	10		.722
Marquette	12	–	6		.667			24	–	10		.706
Seton Hall	9	–	9		.500			20	–	14		.588
Xavier	9	–	9		.500			19	–	16		.543
Creighton	9	–	9		.500			20	–	15		.571
Georgetown	9	–	9		.500			19	–	14		.576
St. John's	8	–	10		.444			21	–	13		.618
Providence	7	–	11		.389			18	–	16		.529
Butler	7	–	11		.389			16	–	17		.485
DePaul	7	–	11		.389			19	–	17		.528
† 2019 Big East tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

On April 9, 2019, head coach Chris Mullin resigned after four seasons.^[1] On April 19, the school announced it had hired former Arkansas head coach Mike Anderson as the team's new coach.^[2]

Previous season

The Red Storm finished the 2017–18 season with a record of 16–17, 4–14 in Big East play to finish in ninth place in the conference. They defeated Georgetown in the first round of the Big East tournament before losing to Xavier in the quarterfinals.^[3][4]

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Bashir Ahmed	1	G/F	6'7"	210	Senior	Bronx, New York	Graduated
Mikey Dixon	3	G	6'2"	170	RS Sophomore	New Castle, DE	Transferred to Grand Canyon (mid-season)[5]
Amar Alibegović	10	F	6'9"	240	Senior	Rome, Italy	Graduated
Tariq Owens	11	F	6'11"	205	RS Junior	Odenton, MD	Graduated Transferred to Texas Tech.[6]
Kassoum Yakwe	14	F	6'7"	210	Junior	Bamako, Mali	Graduated Transferred to Connecticut.[7]
Marcus LoVett Jr.	20	G	6'0"	180	RS Sophomore	Fort Wayne, IN	Entered KLS
Boubacar Diakite	22	F	6'8"	185	Freshman	Bamako, Mali	Transferred to Iona[8]

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous school
David Caraher[9]	11	F	6'6"	220	Sophomore	Chapel Hill, North Carolina	Houston Baptist
Mustapha Heron[10]	14	G	6'5"	218	Junior	Waterbury, Connecticut	Auburn
Eli Wright[11]	40	G	6'4"	203	Junior	Owensboro, Kentucky	Mississippi State
L. J. Figueroa[12]	30	G/F	6'6"	185	Sophomore	Lawrence, Massachusetts	Odessa College
Ian Steere[13]	33	F	6'9"	260	Freshman	Sanford, North Carolina	NC State (mid-season)

2018 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Greg Williams Jr. SG	Lafayette, LA	Lafayette Christian Academy	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Nov 15, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 82
Josh Roberts SF	Troy, AL	Montverde Academy	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Sep 8, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 77
Marcellus Earlington PF	Ramsey, NJ	Don Bosco Prep	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	240 lb (110 kg)	Feb 28, 2018
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

2019 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Johnathan McGriff PG	District Heights, MD	Bishop McNamara	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	May 2, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 70
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster

2018–19 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown F 0 Sedee Keita 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) RS So 22ft Academy South Carolina Philadelphia, PA F 1 Josh Roberts 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Montverde Academy Troy, AL G 2 Shamorie Ponds 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Thomas Jefferson Brooklyn, NY G 4 Greg Williams Jr. 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Lafayette Christian Academy Lafayette, LA G 5 Justin Simon 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS Jr Brewster Academy Arizona Temecula, CA F 10 Marcellus Earlington 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Don Bosco Prep Ramsey, NJ F 11 David Caraher  6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So Wesleyan Christian Academy Houston Baptist Chapel Hill, NC G 12 Bryan Trimble Jr. 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So Sunrise Christian Academy Kansas City, MO F 13 Marvin Clark II 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Sr Sunrise Christian Academy Michigan State Kansas City, MO G 14 Mustapha Heron 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Sacred Heart Auburn Waterbury, CT G 23 Justin Cole (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Archbishop Molloy Rockville Centre, NY G 24 Brandon Lawrence (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jr Moreau Catholic Union City, CA G/F 30 L. J. Figueroa 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So West Oaks Academy Odessa College Lawrence, MA G 32 Jay Camus (W) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Sr Archbishop Molloy Manhattan Queens, NY F 33 Ian Steere 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Fr Northwood Temple NC State Sanford, NC G 40 Eli Wright  6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr 22ft Academy Mississippi State Owensboro, KY	Head coach Chris Mullin (St. John's) Assistant coach(es) Mitch Richmond (Kansas State) Matt Abdelmassih (St. John's) Greg St. Jean (Wesleyan) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
November 1, 2018* 6:30 pm, ESPN3		Maryville	W 71–57		15 – Figueroa	12 – Ponds	6 – Tied	Carnesecca Arena (4,262) Queens, NY
Regular season
November 6, 2018* 6:30 pm, FSN		Loyola (MD) Legends Classic campus-site game	W 76–55	1–0	20 – Ponds	8 – Figueroa	4 – Ponds	Carnesecca Arena (4,863) Queens, NY
November 9, 2018* 6:30 pm, FS2		Bowling Green Legends Classic campus-site game	W 84–80	2–0	26 – Heron	6 – Heron	6 – Simon	Carnesecca Arena (5,174) Queens, NY
November 16, 2018* 7:00 pm, BTN		at Rutgers Gavitt Tipoff Games	W 84–65	3–0	27 – Heron	11 – Figueroa	6 – Ponds	Louis Brown Athletic Center (7,102) Piscataway, NJ
November 19, 2018* 7:00 pm, ESPN2		vs. California Legends Classic semifinals	W 82–79	4–0	32 – Ponds	8 – Clark II	5 – Ponds	Barclays Center (5,967) Brooklyn, NY
November 20, 2018* 7:30 pm, ESPN2		vs. VCU Legends Classic championship	W 87–86 OT	5–0	35 – Ponds	9 – Figueroa	7 – Ponds	Barclays Center (5,453) Brooklyn, NY
November 27, 2018* 6:30 pm, FS1		Maryland Eastern Shore	W 85–64	6–0	25 – Figueroa	13 – Figueroa	6 – Ponds	Carnesecca Arena (4,727) Queens, NY
December 1, 2018* 12:00 pm, ESPNU		vs. Georgia Tech Hoophall Miami Invitational	W 76–73	7–0	37 – Ponds	7 – Simon	3 – Heron	American Airlines Arena (5,749) Miami, FL
December 5, 2018* 6:30 pm, FS2		Mount St. Mary's	W 85–71	8–0	21 – Clark II	11 – Figueroa	7 – Tied	Carnesecca Arena (4,928) Queens, NY
December 9, 2018* 1:00 pm, FS1		Princeton Madison Square Garden Holiday Festival	W 89–74	9–0	26 – Ponds	8 – Tied	5 – Ponds	Madison Square Garden (10,078) New York, NY
December 16, 2018* 4:30 pm, FS1		Wagner	W 73–58	10–0	19 – Figueroa	9 – Ponds	14 – Ponds	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
December 19, 2018* 6:30 pm, FS1		St. Francis Brooklyn	W 86–52	11–0	13 – Tied	9 – Figueroa	5 – Ponds	Carnesecca Arena (5,151) Queens, NY
December 22, 2018* 8:00 pm, FS1		Sacred Heart	W 104–82	12–0	23 – Tied	6 – Clark II	9 – Ponds	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
Big East regular season
December 29, 2018 8:30 pm, FSN		at Seton Hall	L 74–76	12–1 (0–1)	19 – Heron	7 – Figueroa	7 – Ponds	Prudential Center (10,481) Newark, NJ
January 1, 2019 7:00 pm, FS1		No. 16 Marquette	W 89–69	13–1 (1–1)	26 – Ponds	8 – Heron	5 – Ponds	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
January 5, 2019 1:08 pm, CBS		at Georgetown Rivalry	W 97–94 OT	14–1 (2–1)	37 – Ponds	9 – Tied	6 – Tied	Capital One Arena (11,115) Washington, D.C.
January 8, 2019 7:00 pm, FS1	No. 24	at Villanova	L 71–76	14–2 (2–2)	23 – Ponds	7 – Figueroa	9 – Simon	Finneran Pavilion (6,501) Villanova, PA
January 12, 2019 6:00 pm, CBSSN	No. 24	DePaul	L 71–79	14–3 (2–3)	23 – Figueroa	12 – Clark II	7 – Simon	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
January 16, 2019 6:30 pm, FS1		Creighton	W 81–66	15–3 (3–3)	22 – Ponds	13 – Figueroa	5 – Ponds	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
January 19, 2019 4:30 pm, FOX		at Butler	L 71–80	15–4 (3–4)	20 – Tied	8 – Tied	5 – Simon	Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,121) Indianapolis, IN
January 27, 2019 12:00 pm, FOX		Georgetown Rivalry	L 78–89	15–5 (3–5)	21 – Ponds	7 – Simon	3 – Tie	Madison Square Garden (17,801) New York, NY
January 30, 2019 8:30 pm, FS1		at Creighton	W 83–67	16–5 (4–5)	26 – Ponds	8 – Ponds	8 – Ponds	CHI Health Center (16,832) Omaha, NE
February 2, 2019* 12:00 pm, ESPN		at No. 2 Duke	L 61–91	16–6	14 – Figueroa	8 – Figueroa	4 – Ponds	Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC
February 5, 2019 8:00 pm, FS1		at No. 10 Marquette	W 70–69	17–6 (5–5)	28 – Ponds	7 – Ponds	3 – Simon	Fiserv Forum (14,030) Milwaukee, WI
February 9, 2019 12:00 pm, CBSSN		Providence	L 56–70	17–7 (5–6)	20 – Ponds	8 – Clark II	4 – Simon	Madison Square Garden (16,268) New York, NY
February 12, 2019 8:30 pm, CBSSN		Butler	W 77–73 OT	18–7 (6–6)	28 – Heron	7 – Tied	4 – Figueroa	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
February 17, 2019 5:00 pm, FS1		No. 13 Villanova	W 71–65	19–7 (7–6)	22 – Figueroa	12 – Figueroa	4 – Simon	Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY
February 20, 2019 8:30 pm, FS1		at Providence	L 59–78	19–8 (7–7)	16 – Figueroa	5 – Tied	5 – Ponds	Dunkin' Donuts Center (9,872) Providence, RI
February 23, 2019 8:00 pm, FS1		Seton Hall	W 78–70	20–8 (8–7)	27 – Ponds	6 – Clark II	5 – Ponds	Madison Square Garden (18,529) New York, NY
February 28, 2019 6:30 pm, FS1		Xavier	L 73–84	20–9 (8–8)	23 – Figueroa	7 – Simon	6 – Ponds	Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY
March 3, 2019 12:00 pm, FS1		at DePaul	L 83–92	20–10 (8–9)	29 – Ponds	5 – Figueroa	2 – Tied	Wintrust Arena (5,736) Chicago, IL
March 9, 2019 5:00 pm, FOX		at Xavier	L 68–81	20–11 (8–10)	20 – Figueroa	8 – Clark II	10 – Ponds	Cintas Center (10,391) Cincinnati, OH
Big East tournament
March 13, 2019 9:30 pm, FS1	(7)	vs. (10) DePaul First Round	W 82–74	21–11	18 – Tied	7 – Heron	7 – Ponds	Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY
March 14, 2019 7:00 pm, FS1	(7)	vs. (2) No. 23 Marquette Quarterfinals	L 54–86	21–12	14 – Simon	8 – Simon	2 – Tied	Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY
NCAA tournament
March 20, 2019* 9:10 pm, truTV	(11 W)	vs. (11 W) Arizona State First Four	L 65–74	21–13	25 – Ponds	10 – Figueroa	4 – Ponds	UD Arena (11,827) Dayton, OH
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West Region. All times are in Eastern Time.

References

1. "Chris Mullin steps down as St. John's coach". SI.com. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
2. "St. John's Hires Mike Anderson as New Men's Basketball Coach". The New York Times. Associated Press. April 19, 2019. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
3. "Top-seeded Xavier basketball trounces St. John's in Big East tournament". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
4. "St. John's falls to Xavier in Big East quarters". Newsday. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
5. "Guard Mikey Dixon transfers to GCU basketball from St. John's".
6. Markus, Don. "St. John's graduate transfer Tariq Owens (Pallotti) picks Texas Tech over Maryland". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
7. Amore, Dom. "UConn Men Fill Out Roster With Grad Transfer Kassoum Yakwe". courant.com. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
8. "Iona lands St. John's transfer Boubacar Diakite".
9. "St. John's News: David Caraher verbally commits to Red Storm". elitesportsny.com. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
10. "Mustapha Heron Commits to St. John's". Retrieved June 6, 2018.
11. "Soph. G Eli Wright transfers to St. John's from Mississippi State". Rumble In The Garden. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
12. "St. John's adds JUCO All-American LJ Figueroa (UPDATED) | Zagsblog". Zagsblog. April 20, 2018. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
13. "Ian Steere Commits to St. John's". Retrieved April 28, 2019.