15 hours after knocking off Georgetown in the first round of the Big East Tournament, St. John’s returned to Madison Square Garden for a noon tip-off against Xavier Thursday.
After a slow start that saw the Red Storm miss several shots early on, Justin Simon got the scoring started with a shot two minutes into the contest.
Two free throws from Marvin Clark II gave St. John’s its first lead of the game, 14-13, with over 12 minutes to play in the second half. Simon, who led St. John’s with 12 in the first 20 minutes, hit two consecutive three-pointers to keep the Red Storm within striking distance.