A pair of national-title contenders will square off when No. 14 St. John’s and No. 16 Iowa State meet Monday on the opening day of the loaded Players Era men’s championship at Las Vegas.
St. John’s’ (3-1) lone hiccup of the season came in a 103-96 setback against then-No. 15 Alabama on Nov. 8, a loss that slid the Red Storm down eight spots in the AP Top 25.
Since then, head coach Rick Pitino’s group has earned convincing wins over William & Mary and Bucknell. Monday’s game will prove a far greater challenge.
“I think Iowa State is as difficult to play against as any team in basketball,” Pitino said. “Their defensive rebounding is relentless, they’re very physical. It’s great for us to play against this type of competition. You have a who’s who of basketball (in Las Vegas).”
Of the tournament’s 18 teams, nine are ranked in the Top 25. St. John’s will face unranked Baylor on Tuesday, while Iowa State faces unranked Creighton, also on Tuesday.
Providence transfer Bryce Hopkins leads St. John’s with 15.5 points per game and is coming off a season-high 20 points Thursday against Bucknell. Hopkins had 19 points against Alabama, but Pitino will hold off praise for the fifth-year senior.
“I would judge that with the Iowa State game. Not (against Bucknell). I will judge his performance from Iowa State,” Pitino said of Hopkins, who drilled three 3-pointers on Thursday after beginning the season 1 of 8 from distance. ” … (Him making 3-pointers) is very important. He passed up about three wide-open (3-pointers). Sometimes guys don’t like being wide open.”
Zuby Ejiofor has averaged 15.0 points and 6.3 rebounds, while North Carolina transfer Ian Jackson adds 14.5 points.
Iowa State (4-0) is preparing for its first ranked opponent of the season and its second power conference foe. The Cyclones defeated Mississippi State 96-80 on Nov. 10.
“Certainly, they’re a very gifted team,” Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger said of St. John’s. “Ejiofor at the five is a tremendous matchup challenge as a guy that can play away from the goal, make plays and is a tremendous offensive rebounder. Bryce Hopkins is an elite scoring mismatch player and then they’ve got tremendous size at the guard positions. … Just a very high-quality program.”
The Cyclones’ attack is spearheaded by experienced returning players in Tamin Lipsey (19.0 points), Joshua Jefferson (18.8 points, 7.8 rebounds) and Milan Momcilovic (15.3 points).
Otzelberger makes his return to Las Vegas, where he was the UNLV head coach for two seasons before taking the Iowa State job in 2021.
“Even though I lived there for a few years, this is not, ‘Let’s catch up and yuck it up with friends,'” Otzelberger said. “We’re going there for very specific business, to play well, come out with the wins and do what’s best for our program. Great to be there, but the focus is on the games and that starts with St. John’s on Monday.”
