It was supposed to be the perfect storm. The Big East was down and St. John\u2019s was up. Shamorie Ponds returned to school after flirting with the NBA. Mustapha Heron transferred from Auburn and received a waiver to be eligible immediately. So many of the league\u2019s top players were gone.<\/p>\n
This was going to be a breakthrough year for Chris Mullin, a throwback season in Queens.<\/p>\n
Instead, it has been a disappointment.<\/p>\n
The coaching staff has disappointed. The players have disappointed. Everyone has disappointed on one occasion or another.<\/p>\n
Only the fan base, which has filled up the Garden and Carnesecca Arena, has truly answered the bell on a consistent basis.<\/p>\n
It came to a head Sunday afternoon in Chicago, with another loss to another inferior opponent<\/a>, this time allowing DePaul to complete a season sweep, 92-83, by torching the Johnnies for 59 second-half points, handing them their third loss in four games. St. John\u2019s now sits 8-9 in the Big East, just a game in the loss column out of last place, still likely in the NCAA Tournament if the season ended today, though trending dangerously close to the bubble. The Johnnies have a NET rating of 58, and it will drop even further after this latest loss, their sixth non-Quadrant 1 defeat. They do own six Quadrant 1 wins, it should be noted.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s not what this year was about. It was about so much more. It was about challenging for the league crown. It was about making a March run. It was about maximizing this golden opportunity.<\/p>\n But it has so far been wasted, for a variety of reasons. Ponds, the Big East Preseason Player of the Year, has regressed, and has disappeared in far too many big moments. The lack of a quality big man has been a major issue, obvious in losses to teams such as Providence, Georgetown, DePaul and Xavier with quality size that have overwhelmed the Red Storm in the paint.<\/p>\n You can point a finger at Mullin, too, as plenty do after losses, some even too much. The team\u2019s lack of discipline at both ends of the floor is jarring. Inconsistent effort and focus is stunning for such a veteran team. Mullin didn\u2019t get freshmen Greg Williams and Josh Roberts nearly enough playing time in November and December so they could be valuable pieces by now. He waited until late February to start using his bench, when there were ample opportunities in the soft non-conference portion of the schedule to develop his reserves.<\/p>\n You can spread the blame around. Everyone deserves some of it. Leadership appears to be lacking. The best roster in the Big East, at least on paper, should not be scratching just to go dancing. This team has plateaued. It has not improved, failing to string together more than consecutive wins since the conference season began.<\/p>\n This year reminds me of the 2013-14 season, the Steve Lavin-coached team that included Orlando Sanchez, JaKarr Sampson, Rysheed Jordan, D\u2019Angelo Harrison and Phil Greene. That was a deep and balanced team some felt had Sweet 16 potential. But it never was able to be consistent, and wound up in the NIT after starting 0-5 in the league. This group could see a similar fate.<\/p>\n That\u2019s not to say all is lost. St. John\u2019s can still change the narrative. It can make a run in the Big East Tournament. If it gets in, it can win a NCAA Tournament game for the first time in 19 years. The talent is there. The potential remains. Wins over Marquette and Villanova prove it. But losses to so many of the Big East\u2019s mediocre teams show what is missing as well.<\/p>\n At this point, March magic would be a surprise. Nothing I\u2019ve seen would suggest it\u2019s coming.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not sure we\u2019ve ever seen an NCAA Tournament r\u00e9sum\u00e9 quite like Indiana\u2019s. The Hoosiers are 15-14, but they have seven Quadrant 1 victories, including two wins over Michigan State, and others over tournament teams Wisconsin, Marquette and Louisville. They also have a number of bad losses, defeats to non-tournament contenders Arkansas, Rutgers, Nebraska and Northwestern.<\/p>\n If Indiana can gets to 18 or 19 wins, and it finishes the regular season at home against Illinois and Rutgers, it will set up an interesting debate, especially considering the weak state of the bubble. What\u2019s more important: good wins or bad losses?<\/p>\n No. 3 Duke at No. 5 North Carolina, Saturday, 6 p.m.<\/strong> 1: Virginia, Tennessee, Gonzaga, Duke Up: Steve Pikiell<\/strong> Down: Iowa<\/strong> Down: Big East<\/strong>![\"Romeo](\"https:\/\/thenypost.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/03\/1130814979.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=300)
<\/a>Indiana\u2019s wild adventure<\/h3>\n
Game of the Week<\/h3>\n
Hopefully, we\u2019ll find out how different the first encounter, a 16-point Tar Heels victory, would have been if Zion Williamson didn\u2019t go down with that sprained right knee in the opening minute. But even if the projected top pick in June\u2019s NBA draft isn\u2019t back on the floor \u2014 he has missed the last three games \u2014 the stakes will be sky-high, a potential No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament at stake and maybe even the ACC regular-season crown.<\/p>\nSuper 16<\/h3>\n
2: North Carolina, Kentucky, Michigan, Michigan State
3: LSU, Texas Tech, Purdue, Houston
4: Florida State, Virginia Tech, Kansas, Marquette<\/p>\nStock Watch<\/h3>\n
Real expectations are coming to Piscataway. In his third season, Pikiell has begun to win, leading Rutgers to seven league victories \u2014 four more than it has had in any season since joining the Big Ten four years ago \u2014 and wins over likely tournament teams Iowa, Minnesota and Ohio State. The Scarlet Knights could finish with a winning record for the first time since 2006. And this entire team is returning, and will add quality recruit Paul Mulcahy and Texas sit-out transfer Jacob Young.<\/p>\n![\"Steve](\"https:\/\/thenypost.files.wordpress.com\/2019\/03\/1079934052.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=300)
<\/a>
UP: Utah State<\/strong>
Nevada might not be the best team in the Mountain West Conference. It sure didn\u2019t look like it Saturday night, when Utah State handed the Wolf Pack their second league loss, 81-76. The Aggies have more Quadrant 1 victories (2-1), and a slightly better non-conference schedule than Nevada. They just don\u2019t have the star power, though guard Sam Merrill could be a March star. The junior is a high-level shooter and playmaker averaging 20.5 points, 4.1 assists and 3.7 rebounds.<\/p>\n
Lost amid Iowa\u2019s dramatic victories, the back-to-back buzzer-beating wins over Rutgers and Northwestern, was how narrow the Hawkeyes\u2019 margin for error was. We saw that this week, in a pair of blowout losses to Ohio State and Rutgers, two games decided by a whopping 34 points that will drop them from the national rankings. Sometimes, it can be better to be lucky than good, but good fortune can only last so long.<\/p>\n
The league\u2019s best team, No. 10 Marquette, went 0-2 this week, losing at Villanova and at home to Creighton. St. John\u2019s, which was supposed to be No. 3, also went 0-2, falling to Xavier and DePaul. Seton Hall\u2019s at-large hopes are fading now that it has lost three straight games. There is a chance the conference gets just two teams \u2014 Marquette and Villanova \u2014 in the NCAA Tournament. Since the league was reconfigured five years ago, it has never received fewer than four bids.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n