St. John’s passes tough test with huge win over rival Villanova

PHILADELPHIA — This time, it was more gradual. It had to be.

Villanova served as a step up for St. John’s, the type of Big East foe who wouldn’t surrender the 25-4 run that Creighton did last weekend or fall by 24 like Marquette did Tuesday.

Especially not here, in a packed Xfinity Mobile Arena buzzing for the Wildcats’ revival.

So it took nearly the full 40 minutes for the Johnnies to build the lead that eventually helped them pull away.

Missed free throws — 10 for the game, plenty at key moments in the second half — and key Villanova shots nearly allowed for Rick Pitino’s mentee, Kevin Willard, to orchestrate a comeback.

A 14-point lead had been whittled down to five with 90 seconds remaining.

But the mentor’s roster did enough to escape with an 86-79 win, with the Johnnies extending their winning streak to four games and now entering Tuesday’s showdown at the Garden against Seton Hall in sole possession of second place in the Big East.

Bryce Hopkins led St. John’s with 22 points, while Ian Jackson contributed 16 on a season-best seven field goals.

Tyler Perkins and Devin Askew led Villanova with 23 and 21, respectively, and helped the Wildcats overcome 14 turnovers with some tough shots down the stretch.

Just when it seemed as if St. John’s lead had reached an insurmountable point, the Wildcats found a way to chip away.

Askew hit a corner 3 with 90 seconds remaining to send the crowd in the South Philadelphia gym into a frenzy as St. John’s called timeout, needing another shot to bring its advantage back to a comfortable point.

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Joson Sanon missed a shot from behind the arc, but Askew couldn’t hit a layup at the other end, forward Matt Hodge fouled Hopkins on the rebound and his two free throws gave the Johnnies an 80-73 lead with just over a minute remaining.

That, finally, was enough for the Johnnies.

After three convincing wins, St. John’s only constructed a lead as large as seven in the first half, and even after they assembled that, Villanova pulled within 36-35 by halftime. St. John’s had only made one 3-pointer.

Oziyah Sellers, four days after pouring in 24 points, was held scoreless through the opening 20 minutes. Jackson became an unlikely source of offense.

Then, early in the second half, the Johnnies’ offense started to click.

Sellers finally scored for the first time four minutes into the second half to put St. John’s up eight, and after a Hopkins steal at the other end, Jackson banked a shot in while falling to the floor and converted a 3 after a timeout.

But after St. John’s went up 63-48 with 11:14 left, Villanova made its run. Bryce Lindsay saved the ball from going out of bounds, regained his footing and veered toward the corner for a return pass and a 3. Zuby Ejiofor missed key free throws.

Askew’s three-point play around a timeout pulled the Wildcats within seven with seven minutes remaining.

The Johnnies did enough down the stretch, though. Sanon, quiet for most of the night, hit a clutch 3-pointer entering the under-4 media timeout.

Pitino’s roster, starting to take shape as a conference contender after a slow start, hit enough baskets to help him improve to 7-1 against Willard — his former assistant — in their first matchup since 2020.

And in its first major conference test, the type that could have significant seeding implications once the Big East tournament arrives in March, St. John’s passed.

It showed its recent winning streak wasn’t a fluke — that it could be sustainable in a tough road environment.

There were still flaws.

But this was another conference statement it needed.