No one was expecting Quinnipiac to walk into Carnesecca Arena and take down No. 5 St. John’s, but in the 40 minutes of gametime, the contest wasn’t even close.
When the final buzzer sounded, the Bobcats walked back to the locker room with a daunting 108-74 loss looming large over their heads.
Quinnipiac’s start to the season was not what anyone on the blue and white bench had in mind. The Bobcats started the contest against St. John’s giving up a 7-0 run to the Red Storm, which ballooned to a 19-4 lead.
The Bobcats started the contest shooting one-sixth from the field, with the only points of the contest coming from sophomore guard Jaden Zimmerman. Zimmerman hit a tough mid-range shot and drew a foul to give Quinnipiac its first points of the game.
The struggles Quinnipiac faced were pretty simple, St. John’s size was just too much for the Bobcat defenders to handle. The shortest players on the Red Storm’s starting lineup are sophomore guard Ian Jackson and senior guard Oziyah Sellers, both are 6’5’’.
Following a timeout from head coach Tom Pecora, freshman guard Keith McKnight checked into the game for the first time and found his first collegiate points right at the rim, throwing down a two handed dunk.
McKnight would help to get the Bobcat offense rolling, scoring five early points to help stop the bleeding. But it just wasn’t enough. St. John’s started the game much more disciplined on defense, which transitioned to wide open threes on the other end that the Red Storm cashed in on. The Bobcats on the other hand started the contest 0-6 from beyond-the-arc.
Quinnipiac’s interior defense was simply lackluster, St. John’s could score at the rim whenever the team pleased. These factors saw the Red Storm take a commanding 22 point lead by the eight minute mark of the first half.
But it wasn’t all doom and gloom for the Bobcats. Two defensive stops in a row along with a pair of dunks from McKnight and sophomore forward Grant Randall and the Bobcats forced St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino to take a timeout.
The defensive effort took a noticeable jump and even more importantly, the team started to pass the ball more rather than trying to find isolation matchups on each possession.
Despite the better play from Quinnipiac, St. John’s managed to keep pace with a 20 point lead going into halftime.
Quinnipiac started the second half guns blazing, as back-to-back threes from senior forward Amarri Monroe and Zimmerman helped to creep open the door in a game that seemed to be over before it really began.
But the cracks in Quinnipiac’s interior defense began to show once again and the Red Storm took full advantage.
St. John’s senior forward Zulby Ejifor, in particular, bullied Quinnipiac on the interior, throwing down lays at the hoop and getting to the free throw line to take advantage of Bobcat mistakes.
By the 10 minute mark of the second half, St. John’s lead had ballooned to 30 points.
St. John’s ability to score off turnovers was a big reason for the massive lead, as the Red Storm managed to put up 29 points off of Quinnipiac turnovers.
The Bobcats actually played well on offense, it was one of the only bright spots of the night. McKnight and Zimmerman both scored 19 points as Quinnipiac showcased the potential this squad has when the right gears are clicking.
It’s just that the gears on defense were at a grinding halt all game long, and there was no recovering once St. John’s started to pull away.
Quinnipiac will return to Hamden for its home opener on Nov. 6 against CCSU. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
