The St. John’s Red Storm defeated the Marquette Golden Eagles after an action-packed overtime period ended with a buzzer-beating floater. This victory vaulted the Red Storm to a road victory and strengthened their belief that they can make a deep run through the NCAA Tournament.
St. John’s Defeats Marquette In Thrilling Big East Matchup
Head coach Rick Pitino’s St. John’s squad has had a terrific season with multiple big wins — but none may top the regular-season finale in which they defeated Marquette, 86-84 in overtime after a Zuby Ejiofor floater swished through the hoop as time ran out.
The basket stunned the Golden Eagles crowd as Ejiofor and his Red Storm teammates ran around the court in celebration. For a split-second, Ejiofor even flashed NBA superstar Stephen Curry’s signature “night night” celebration, putting his hands together on the right side of his head, signaling that it was time to put the kids to bed.
ST. JOHN’S WINS IT AT THE BUZZER IN OVERTIME 🤯pic.twitter.com/R1Vcs9PlAb
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) March 8, 2025
It was an earned celebration following an extremely hard-fought victory for St. John’s.
Following the game, Pitino could only muster up a few words.
“There’s not a whole lot to say, but wow,” he remarked.
The sixth-ranked Red Storm (27-4, 18-2) went into halftime with a one-point lead over the 20th-ranked Golden Eagles (22-9, 13-7). The second half was back and forth, with no team leading by more than five points.
A layup by St. Johns’ R.J. Luis Jr. with ten seconds left in regulation tied the game — two of his team-high 28 points. Marquette missed a shot on the other end, sending the game to overtime.
Led by two Luis Jr. buckets, the Red Storm jumped out to a four-point lead with two minutes remaining in the first overtime period. The Golden Eagles quickly responded with two made free throws and a three-pointer by guard Chase Ross, taking a one-point lead.
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A mere 15 seconds passed before Luis Jr. nailed a three-pointer of his own from the wing, reclaiming an 84-82 lead for his team. A couple possessions passed before Marquette star guard Cam Jones weaved his way to the hoop and converted a layup, tying the game and leaving 26 seconds on the game clock for St. John’s.
Holding for the final possession, Luis Jr. took a three-pointer with six seconds left. The shot clanked off the rim’s right side and fell into Ross’s hands, who promptly had the ball poked out of his hands by St. John’s star guard Kadary Richmond, his fourth steal of the afternoon.
Fellow St. John’s guard Simeon Wilcher ended up with the loose ball and, after taking a dribble towards into the paint, flipped a pass to Ejiofor who floated the ball towards the hoop as the buzzer sounded.
The last-second victory put a stamp on an extremely impressive regular season for the Red Storm, notching their 18th conference win and 27th win overall prior to the Big East Tournament, in which they’ll assume the top seed.
“We’re going to get ready for the Big East Tournament because we want to win that, too,” Luis Jr. said after the game.
The Golden Eagles have also impressed this season, mainly due to the star power of Jones. His game-high 32 points weren’t enough against St. John’s, although he left it all on the floor. Along with that scoring output, the senior guard also totaled nine rebounds and seven assists — both team-highs.
It was one of the season’s best games on the final action-packed regular-season Saturday of hoops for the 2024-25.
But it’s not the end for either of these teams, who showed they have the ability to make a deep NCAA Tournament run—in particular, the Red Storm, who have positioned themselves squarely in the conversation to earn a No. 1 seed in the tournament.
St. John’s Tournament Outlook
Simply put, the Red Storm have a complete team and coach to make a deep tournament run.
Pitino has reached six Final Fours and claimed two national championships in this way, establishing himself as one of the best coaches in college basketball history. His work with this team —which finished with an 11-9 conference record and missed the NCAA Tournament last season —has been some of his best work.
He’s turned them into one of the best defensive squads in the nation. They give up the 26th-fewest points per game and allow only 40% shooting from opposing teams—the 13th-best mark.
Along with coaching and defense —which both travel extremely well, a needed trait in the tournament —the Red Storm also has potential Big East Player of the Year in Luis Jr., who’s averaging a team-high 17.8 ppg while grabbing 6.9 rpg.
Beyond him, Richmond has been one of the best guards in the conference. The Seton Hall transfer fills up the stat sheet with averages of 12.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg, and a team-leading 5.1 apg. In fact, he had a triple-double on Saturday afternoon — the first in the program since 1999. At 6’6″, his positional size at the point guard position raises the ceiling for St. John’s.
At 6’9″ and 240 pounds, Ejiofor can match up with nearly every big man in the country with his sheer strength. He can be counted on for a consistent 14 points and eight rebounds a night.
Three more guards provide depth and scoring, averaging between eight and nine points per game.
The one hole to poke for the Red Storm is their three-point shooting. They rank 330th in the country — out of 364 teams — in terms of threes made per game, with only six shots being made from deep per game.
That mark is concerning, but Pitino has repeatedly said the three-point shooting will come in due time.
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In the meantime, the physicality and in-your-face nature of this St. John’s squad fit exactly the mold of Pitino’s best teams—with the ceiling of a national championship.
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