NCAAB

Butler Bulldogs at St. John's Red Storm

· Big East Tournament - Quarterfinal
14-19, 2-9 Away
Final
57 - 78
28-4, 18-0 Home

RJ Luis Jr. scores 20 as No. 6 St. John's blows out Butler 78-57 to reach Big East semifinals

One game after posting the program's first triple-double this century, Kadary Richmond finished with 15 points, nine assists and eight rebounds for the Red Storm (28-4). Aaron Scott also scored 15 for St. John's, which has won seven straight games — and 17 of 18 since the new year.

Coming off the school's first outright Big East regular-season title in 40 years, the Johnnies hold the top seed at the conference tournament for the first time since 1986. They’ll play No. 25 Marquette in the first semifinal Friday night at Madison Square Garden, after the fifth-seeded Golden Eagles rallied for an 89-87 win over No. 4 seed Xavier.

After going 23 years without reaching the Big East semis, the Red Storm have made it twice in two seasons under 72-year-old Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino. The resurgent Johnnies are seeking their fourth Big East Tournament title and first since 2000.

Patrick McCaffery had 16 points to pace No. 9 seed Butler (14-19), a 75-69 winner over eighth-seeded Providence in the first round Wednesday. Finley Bizjack scored 10 before leaving early in the second half with an apparent ankle injury.

WNBA star Caitlin Clark, wearing a Butler baseball cap, sat just behind the scorers’ table near the team’s bench. Clark’s boyfriend is Bulldogs assistant coach Connor McCaffery, brother of Patrick.

Patrick McCaffery overcame thyroid cancer as a teenager and later took a leave of absence to address anxiety while playing for his father, Fran, at Iowa. After exiting his final college game, the redshirt senior forward cried on his brother's shoulder along the sideline.

Takeaways Butler: Since joining the Big East for the 2013-14 season, the only time the Bulldogs reached the conference semifinals was 2018.

St. John's: Improved to 19-0 at home, including 10-0 at MSG. The last time the Johnnies finished unbeaten at home was the 1931-32 season.

Key moment Luis, the Big East Player of the Year, scored all eight of his first-half points in 2 1/2 minutes, part of a 15-0 spurt that gave St. John's an 18-3 lead with 12:29 remaining before the break. Butler never got closer than eight the rest of the way.

Key stats St. John's, which never trailed, held the Bulldogs to 34.5% shooting and outscored them 44-18 in the paint along with 15-0 on fast breaks.

Up next St. John's swept Marquette during the regular season, including an 86-84 overtime victory last Saturday in Milwaukee on Zuby Ejiofor's buzzer-beater in the lane.

How can I watch Butler vs. St. John's?

  • TV Channel: Butler at St. John's 2021 College Basketball, week 19, is broadcasted on Peacock.
  • Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo Free trial.
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Recent Plays

2nd 0:00 End of Game 57 - 78
2nd 0:00 End of 2nd half 57 - 78
2nd 0:07 Ruben Prey Defensive Rebound. 57 - 78
2nd 0:09 Boden Kapke missed Three Point Jumper. 57 - 78
2nd 0:27 Vince Iwuchukwu made Dunk. Assisted by Deivon Smith. 57 - 78

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/2086.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originBUT https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/2599.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originSJU
19-55 FG 34-72
34.5 Field Goal % 47.2
9-30 3PT 7-20
30.0 Three Point % 35.0
10-16 FT 3-4
62.5 Free Throw % 75.0
34 Rebounds 44
9 Offensive Rebounds 14
25 Defensive Rebounds 30
11 Assists 18
5 Steals 9
3 Blocks 2
15 Turnovers 9
2 Team Turnovers 0
15 Total Turnovers 9
0 Technical Fouls 0
0 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
12 Points Off Turnovers 24
0 Fast Break Points 15
18 Points in Paint 44
11 Fouls 19
0 Largest Lead 23

Game Information

Venue: Madison Square Garden

Location: New York, NY
Attendance: 19,812 | Capacity:

2024-25 Big East Conference Standings

TEAM CONF GB OVER
St. John's 18-2 - 31-5
Creighton 15-5 3 25-11
UConn 14-6 4 24-11
Marquette 13-7 5 23-11
Xavier 13-7 5 22-12
Villanova 11-9 7 21-14
Georgetown 8-12 10 18-16
Butler 6-14 12 15-20
Providence 6-14 12 12-20
DePaul 4-16 14 14-20
Seton Hall 2-18 16 7-25
Full Standings