With buzz building during banner season, No. 9 St. John's moves regular-season home finale to MSG

With buzz building during banner season, No. 9 St. John’s moves regular-season home finale to MSG

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St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino, left, talks with Kadary Richmond during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Marquette, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

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St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino yells on the court during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Xavier, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

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St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino yells on the court during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Providence Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

By MIKE FITZPATRICK

NEW YORK (AP) — Ninth-ranked St. John’s has moved its final home game of the regular season from cozy Carnesecca Arena to Madison Square Garden.

The school announced Wednesday its March 1 matchup against Big East rival Seton Hall will be played at “The World’s Most Famous Arena” rather than on campus in Queens, as originally scheduled.

St. John’s said the decision was made to accommodate more Red Storm fans “due to increased demand.” Carnesecca Arena holds 5,602, while MSG has a capacity of 19,812 for basketball.

Before the game, St. John’s will celebrate Senior Day.

Generating renewed interest during a banner season, the Red Storm (21-4, 12-2 Big East) drew a crowd of 16,521 for their most recent game at The Garden, a 70-64 victory over then-No. 11 Marquette on Feb. 4.

Three days earlier, 19,196 turned out to see St. John’s edge Providence 68-66 at MSG on a Saturday afternoon.

Chasing the program’s first Big East regular-season title since 1992, the Johnnies have their best record through 25 games since the 1985-86 season and their highest ranking in the AP Top 25 in a quarter-century.

In their second season under Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino, the Red Storm are 15-0 at home and lead the conference race by one game over No. 24 Creighton heading into Sunday’s showdown between the teams at Madison Square Garden.

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St. John’s hasn’t reached the NCAA Tournament in six years or won a game in the event since 2000.

“Seeing St. John’s come back is so much fun,” the 72-year-old Pitino said following the win over Marquette. “I’m having a blast seeing The Garden explode like this. I’m so happy for the fans and so appreciative of everybody coming out and being supportive of us.”

Wednesday night’s 73-71 setback at Villanova snapped the Red Storm’s 10-game winning streak and left them with four losses this season — by a combined seven points.

The matchup with Seton Hall will mark the ninth regular-season game at MSG for St. John’s, its most in a decade. The only Big East opponents to play at Carnesecca Arena this season were DePaul and Butler.

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