There were tears running down the face of a grown man in the stands. As the seconds ticked down on the clock Thursday afternoon at Madison Square Garden, it was a sea of red that collectively stood up and celebrated at the Big East Tournament as Rick Pitino moved to 15-7 all-time in the event.
RJ Luis scored a team-high 18 points and Joel Soriano added 14 points and 12 rebounds to lead St. John’s to a memorable 91-72 win over Seton Hall in the Big East Tournament quarterfinals.
The Red Storm finally did it. The hometown team, playing inside their home building, The World’s Most Famous Arena, advanced to the Big East Tournament semifinal round for the first time since 2000. The last time St. John’s University won the Big East Tournament, NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye” topped the music charts and “Erin Brockovich” premiered as the No. 1 movie.
So yes, on Thursday, the private Catholic university in Queens, New York, that has often been on the wrong end of jokes for the better part of the last two decades because of their inability to win the big game, had their moment.
“This is the biggest win in St. John’s Basketball history in 24 years – bar none,” said Tarik Turner, a Red Storm alum who played for the Johnnies from 1994-98
