D’Angelo Harrison is seeing things clearer now — including himself.
St. John’s mercurial and emotional combo guard revealed he began wearing contact lenses Dec. 15 for the Red Storm’s 77-60 win over St. Francis of Brooklyn.
Give his eye doctor a varsity letter. Harrison responded with a 25-point performance on 9-of-17 shooting, including 4-of-8 on 3-pointers.
“Everything’s in HD,’’ said Harrison. “I love it.’’
As spot on as those numbers were against St. Francis, the best insight Harrison exhibited recently came from within. When asked to grade himself on a 1-to-10 scale on how well he has learned to channel his emotions in a positive way, Harrison gave himself a “6.”
And he knows he’s going to have to flip that number to a “9” if the Red Storm (8-4), who open Big East Conference play tonight at Villanova (9-4), are going to make a run at an NCAA Tournament berth.
Harrison leads St. John’s with 20.9 points per game on 44.5-percent shooting from the field, 35-percent shooting on 3’s and 81.5 percent shooting from the line. As reported in The Post, he spent the summer at the John Lucas Skills Camp in Houston, where he worked on his game and channeling his focus on the court.
Harrison was named the team captain and coach Steve Lavin raved about his maturation. At times the 6-foot-3, 202-pound sophomore has been remarkably focused on the court and a solid leader off it. But he also has had some near meltdowns and he missed one start for being 10 minutes late to the team bus when the Red Storm played in the Charleston Classic.
“I think he’s growing,’’ Lavin said. “For a 19-year-old that’s not even halfway through his sophomore year, I think he’s having an exceptional career.’’
“I mean, I’d put his numbers up against anybody in the country that’s 19 years old and is less than halfway through their sophomore season. Is there room for him to improve? Absolutely. And that’s the good news, because I don’t think he’s even scratched the surface.’’
The surface is a good place to start with Harrison. Almost every inch of skin on his upper body is covered in tattoos.
This year he added eyebrow slits, which he had in high school. And when he’s not wearing his contacts on the court, Harrison wears the black plastic stylish glasses favored by many NBA stars.
When asked why he went back to the eyebrow slits, Harrison said, “Different,” which he acknowledged is a perfect word for him. Different how?
“A little bit of everything,’’ he said. “People assume I’m one way and then when they get to know me, they’re like, ‘You’re not the guy I thought you were going to be past all the tattoos and stuff.’ I’m not saying people are scared of me or nothing — you look at a guy full of tattoos, you second guess sometimes.’’
What would Harrison think of himself through an opponent’s eyes?
“They probably think I’m crazy,’’ he said. “I would think that. I would hate to play against myself. I would.’’
Why?
“I’m dedicated,’’ he said. “I work hard. I’m going to do everything I can to make your life miserable during the game. Everything.’’
Last season Harrison made life miserable on opponents, averaging 17 points and draining 76 3-pointers. But he also made life miserable on officials with his constant gestures, stares and chatter. The men in blue showed remarkable restraint, handing him just one technical foul.
As the Red Storm head into league play, Harrison must maintain his composure. With Moe Harkless having left after his freshman season for the NBA, Harrison will be the player opposing defenses key on. He said he knows when he’s starting to tick.
“I do now, I definitely do now,’’ he said. “I feel like I use my energy during games now.’’
It’s what Lavin and the Red Storm are hoping to see.