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St. John’s Basketball: 2018-19 season preview for the Red Storm

By Brad Cavallaro

PHILADELPHIA, PA - FEBRUARY 7: Shamorie Ponds #2 of the St. John's Red Storm dribbles the ball against the Villanova Wildcats at the Wells Fargo Center on February 7, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - FEBRUARY 7: Shamorie Ponds #2 of the St. John's Red Storm dribbles the ball against the Villanova Wildcats at the Wells Fargo Center on February 7, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – FEBRUARY 7: Head coach Chris Mullin of the St. John’s Red Storm talks to Marvin Clark II #13 prior to the game against the Villanova Wildcats at the Wells Fargo Center on February 7, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – FEBRUARY 7: Head coach Chris Mullin of the St. John’s Red Storm talks to Marvin Clark II #13 prior to the game against the Villanova Wildcats at the Wells Fargo Center on February 7, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

St. John’s Basketball has a loaded roster after adding Auburn transfer Mustapha Heron. Is this finally the year that the Red Storm break through?

St. John’s was supposed to emerge as a nationally relevant team last season. The Red Storm had a pair of dynamic sophomore guards (Shamorie Ponds and Marcus Lovett) who had strong freshman seasons. They had two of the top sit out transfers in Marvin Clark from Michigan State and Justin Simon from Arizona and they had two starting caliber veterans (Bashir Ahmed and Tariq Owens).

The start of the season was promising until Marcus Lovett chose to sit out after his injury. At this point, things started to unravel. St. John’s lost its first 11 Big East games and the roster could not handle the loss of such a crucial piece for an extended period of time. The team was clearly missing that secondary scorer and offensive creator, even though their defense was exceptional.

Many people thought St. John’s could make a late-season push after two improbable wins against Duke and at Villanova. This late-season postseason dream turned out to be a mirage as the Red Storm finished with a 4-14 record in the Big East.

However, this could actually be the year that St. John’s returns to the top half of the Big East and punches a ticket to the NCAA Tournament. The Red Storm is loaded with talented veterans and they arguably have a better top seven players than any other Big East team.

With Big East player of the year candidate Shamorie Ponds and the addition of Auburn transfer Mustapha Heron, St. John’s could finally get over the hump. This article will analyze St. John’s starters, reserves, and non-conference schedule. It will conclude with a prediction of where the Red Storm will finish both nationally and in the Big East.