St Johns Basketball and the ladder at the Garden: Zuby Ejiofor’s last snip in a title-night rout
St Johns Basketball felt less like a brand on Saturday night and more like a shared pulse inside Madison Square Garden, where a ladder was steadied under the rim and two generations climbed together. Rick Pitino, 73, wrapped an arm around Zuby Ejiofor, 21, as Ejiofor cut the final strand of net, spun it overhead, and took in an ovation that lingered.
“It was just bittersweet, ” Ejiofor said, describing the emotion of his final game at the Garden. The moment came after a 72-52 win over UConn that delivered a second straight Big East tournament championship for St. John’s, completing a three-game tournament run of double-digit victories.
How did St Johns Basketball turn a championship game into a rout?
The score settled at 72-52, but the game’s rhythm tilted early and never fully leveled out. St. John’s jumped out to start and controlled the arc of the night, while UConn’s attempts to reset were repeatedly met by stops and missed chances.
St. John’s lead expanded as the game unfolded, even as UConn showed more vigor coming out of halftime and closed the gap to seven points behind a hot start to the second half. That push did not last. The Red Storm rebuilt separation, and UConn’s offense stalled in sequences that became emblematic of the night: four missed scoring chances in one possession despite solid rebounding, followed by a prolonged stretch of empty trips. UConn missed nine straight field-goal attempts in the final eight minutes and went 1-for-15 down the final stretch.
Who carried St. John’s, and what did UConn’s coach say about him?
The night had a clear center of gravity: Zuby Ejiofor, the Big East player of the year, who was a force on both ends for top-seeded St. John’s (28-6). He finished with 18 points, nine rebounds, and seven blocks, and his timing at the rim repeatedly changed what UConn believed was available.
One sequence in the second half distilled his impact. With 4: 45 left, Ejiofor denied UConn big man Tarris Reed Jr. at the rim, punctuating the stop with a finger wag. Moments later, he hit a 3 to make it 72-49. Inside the arena, “M-V-P!” chants followed, and by the end of the night he had added the conference tournament most outstanding player award to his season’s hardware.
“We know what Zuby brings to the table and we just play off of that, ” said Bryce Hopkins, who matched Ejiofor with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting.
UConn coach Dan Hurley framed Ejiofor’s influence in a way coaches reserve for players who reshape a scouting report in real time. “He’s among the handful of best players I’ve ever coached against in college, ” Hurley said. “I mean, that guy is a true difference maker that elevates everyone around him. ”
What does this title mean for Rick Pitino’s promise—and the people in the building?
The win made St. John’s a repeat Big East tournament champion and marked the program’s fifth Big East tournament title in school history, as well as its first time winning the tournament in consecutive seasons. It also placed St. John’s in rare company within the league: the Red Storm joined UConn in 1998 and ’99 as the only Big East teams to win both the regular-season and tournament titles in consecutive seasons.
For Pitino, the scene fit the story he has been telling since he took over three seasons ago—one about returning St. John’s to an older kind of relevance, where wins are measured not only by score but by what they awaken in a city. “There’s so much history with St John’s, and we brought it all back in three years, ” Pitino said.
He spoke personally, too, anchoring the accomplishment in place and memory. “And for me personally, being a New Yorker and seeing the thrills of our fans and seeing the thrills of the team means a great deal to me to be a small part of this whole thing. I’m really, really proud. I know Louie (Carnesecca) is looking down on us with great pride. Joe Lapchick’s looking down on us with great pride. ”
In the seats at the sold-out Garden, the past was visible. Mark Jackson and Walter Berry—players from the Carnesecca era—were among the former St. John’s greats in attendance. Jackson, who was drafted by Pitino during Pitino’s time coaching the Knicks, watched with a kind of amused longing. “I watch Coach Pitino. He makes me want to still suit up, ” Jackson said.
Even the broader postseason stakes hovered at the edges of the celebration. The loss “might have cost” UConn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, a possibility made more acute after Florida lost to Vanderbilt in the SEC tournament semifinals earlier that day, opening the door further to a top seed.
What comes next after the Garden celebration?
St. John’s Big East tournament run ended with three double-digit wins, and its title game performance was defined by fast separation, defensive control, and composure when UConn threatened a second-half push. For UConn, the finish was defined by a prolonged shooting drought and a final stretch in which field goals became scarce.
In the quiet that arrives after confetti and cameras, the image that may last is the simplest: a player and a coach on a ladder, finishing the ritual with careful hands. The net came down thread by thread, and the ovation came up in waves—an arena reminding itself what it sounds like when a season’s promise becomes something you can hold.
Back on the floor where St Johns Basketball began the night with control and ended it with history, the last strand was already gone. What remains is the question every title raises: how long can a team keep that edge once everyone starts chasing it?
