Amid the disappointment of what so far has been a lost sta♒rt to the conference season, there has been one shining light. A bright spot that has kept St. John’s in games even as the league losses have piled up.
From the jꦜump, Joel Soriano has been St. John’s best player, a🥂 double-double machine who significantly improved his body this summer and has become a two-way force.
That continued Tuesday night.
The big man from Yonkers was the best player on the floor, as St. John’s snapped a five-game losing streak with a commanding 77-61 victory over Butler at Carnesecca Arena. In what amounted to a must-win game against a team near the bottom of the league, the 6-foot-11 🔯Soriano was dominant. He posted team-highs of 20 points, 10 rebounds and two blocked shots, and his teammates followed in a mostly strong performance.
“It feels great, we finally got through that wall that was in front of⛄ us,” Soriano said after notching his 15th double-double of the season, the most in ꦇthe country. “We’re just trying to keep stacking good days.”
Freshman AJ Storr, in his second straight start, provided an offensive spark with 12 points. Andre Curbelo had 11 points and six assists, and Rafael Pinzon add🎶ed 10 as St. John’s shot a robust 52 percent from the field. Chuck Harris scored 17 points for Butler (10-8, 2-5) which was manhandled inside, outscored by 16 points in the paint and out-rebounded by five.
After nearly upsetting No. 19 Providence on Saturday, St. John’s (12-6, 2-5) is at least playing better of late, even if an NCAA Tournament run is unlikely. It will get a chance for its first signature win on Sunday, when it visits sixth-ranked Connecticut. Coach Mike Anderson harped on the importance of defensive improvements he has noticed of late. Butler was held to 41 percent shooting and committed 22 turnovers. St. John’s forced 16 tu🅠rnovers in the loss to Providence.
“It felt like when we played at Providence, we got a lot better,” said Posh Alexander, who had six steals in the win along with nine points. “We played a really good team; we hung our hats on defense that game. We came with the same mindset in today’s g🉐ame.”
It was a 10-point edge at halftime and increased to 16 after consecutive 3-pointers from David Jones and Curbelo with 8:13 left. The Johnnies couldn’t completely put the game away from there, in part due to four turnovers on as many possessions. 𝓰But Butler, which has now lost five of its last seven games, was ill-equipped to rally and St. John’s went on to win for the fi𒆙rst time since beating Florida State a week before Christmas.
Soriano set the tone, scoring eight of St. John’s first 1✤0 points. In the 33 minutes he was on the floor, the Red Storm outscored Butler by 20. W꧅hen he was on the bench, St. John’s was outscored by four.
“He’s as good [of a big man] as I’ve seen this year,” Butler co💟ach Thad Matta said.
Gradu🐻ate senior guard Montez Mathis (sprained toe) missed his second straight game. Anderson said he is out indefinitely.