SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — How good can St. John’s be? We may know after Friday night.
With a Big East-best four players earning preseason honors, Steve Lavin may have assembled the school’s most talented team in 15 years. And though the coach is preaching patience for a young team integrating new pieces, the Red Storm have a chance to find out how far their talent can take them when they play their season-opener on Friday against 20th-ranked Wisconsin at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
“I love it. I wish we were playing the No. 1 team in the country,” guard D’Angelo Harrison said about the early challenge. “We feel like with the pieces we have now, we can make a run. This group, we’re deep three players at each position. Having that, we think we are one of the top teams in the league, [but] we have to prove it now. Enough talking about it. Friday we’re going to know.”
After playing two exhibition games against Division-II teams — a lackluster two-point win over San Francisco State and a more appropriate 67-point shellacking of Humboldt State — St. John’s takes on a team that has made the NCAA Tournament for 15 consecutive seasons.
It is a huge leap, and an unusually early opportunity for a résumé building win, but it’s a test the team feels prepared for.
“Look at this team, we’re loaded,” guard Jamal Branch said. “At practice, we’re always battling against each other at a high level. I always [tell] the guys on our team how loaded and how deep our team is. It’s really no difference.”
Well, except the unfamiliarity with an exceedingly frustrating opponent.
Led by senior guard Ben Brust and sophomore forward Sam Dekker, coach Bo Ryan’s Badgers use the same ugly yet effective formula every season — whittling shot clocks down to a nub, shooting 3-pointers, drawing fouls and playing tough defense.
However, key personnel losses from last season have left the Badgers’ frontcourt thin, allowing the Red Storm’s athletic frontline of JaKarr Sampson (last season’s Big East Rookie of the Year), Orlando Sanchez and Chris Obekpa (the nation’s leader in blocks last season) an early opportunity to showcase the group’s diverse talents.
In the backcourt, Harrison could end up a contender for the conference player of the year, but Lavin ultimately believes that what will set this team apart is the arrival of highly touted point guard Rysheed Jordan.
“Rysheed is as good a passer as I’ve seen in my career in broadcasting and coaching at this stage,” Lavin said. “We’ve got to see how it develops, but at this point he’s the best. Jason Kidd would be the next one. I’d put those two in the passing part for this stage.”
The hype is high and the opponent is tough, but Lavin believes the freshman is ready for his debut.
“Not much seems to rattle him on the court,” Lavin said. “He’s a got a calm demeanor and a surgeon-like precision that he brings to the game. He brings a poise and a patience that most young players don’t exhibit at this stage of their career.”