Xavier basketball plays St. John’s in Big East showdown

QUEENS, N.Y. ‒ Whenever St. John's appears on the calendar, it's usually a game for Xavier where whichever team dictates the pace and style of play, walks away with a win.

That's the key on Wednesday night at Carnesecca Arena. St. John's (11-2, 1-1) wants to speed Xavier up, force turnovers, and turn those takeaways into transition points.

Xavier (10-3, 2-0) wants to control the ball and force St. John's into a halfcourt contest where the Musketeers should have an advantage.

St. John's has beaten Xavier in three straight games, and in all three, the Red Storm executed their style and Xavier couldn't keep up.

"To St. John's credit they truly have an identity and their identity is really through their style of play which is pressure basketball, full-court pressure, a lot of quickness on the court," Xavier head coach Sean Miller told The Enquirer. "Statistically, if you look at them, they're also one of the best offensive rebounding teams we've played. They force turnovers, they play at a fast pace, they have a ton of quickness and skill on the court and they get second shots.