Seton Hall at St. John's: 2023-24 college basketball game preview, TV schedule

Two Big East bubble teams go head-to-head when the St. John's Red Storm host the Seton Hall Pirates on Sunday.

TV Schedule: Sunday, February18, 5:00 PM ET, FS1

Location: UBS Arena in Elmont, NY

Sunday evening will see two proud Big East programs from the tri-state region face off at UBS Arena in Elmont. Both are fighting for their NCAA Tournament lives, one of whom probably needs to treat this as an elimination game.

The Seton Hall Pirates are 9-5 in conference play, respectable for the Big East. They've won three of four ahead of Sunday's game, though the lone loss was a blowout at the hands of Villanova. Still, behind Kadary Richmond and Dre Davis, Shaheen Holloway's team is exceeding expectations and continuity is a large factor, something its opponent largely lacks.

The shine has come off of the St. John's Red Storm in conference play, where Rick Pitino's team has struggled. They've lost seven of their last nine games, with one of its two victories in that stretch coming against lowly DePaul. The NCAA Tournament is slipping out of reach in Pitino's maiden voyage.

The desperation of the Red Storm is beginning to shine through. In the team's most recent game, a road loss to Providence, Joel Soriano was forced to come off the bench after his numbers tailed off from the team's first few games of Big East play, during which the big man averaged a double-double.

The rise of Isaiah Coleman is a significant development for Seton Hall. Against Xavier, the freshman had 14 points and three rebounds, continuing to carve out a critical role in short spurts for the Pirates.

These teams have already met once this season, a 15-point drubbing unleashed upon the Red Storm. It could've been worse, as the Pirates led 52-24 after starting the second half with a 14-0 run. Pitino missed that game with COVID, but his presence probably wouldn't have been worth a 15-point swing.

It's hard to imagine this game getting that out of hand again, but Seton Hall has the playbook to beat St. John's a second time.

Prediction: Seton Hall 70, St. John's 65