St. John’s gave away a 6-point lead to Villanova when the offense went cold late, dropping the first Madison Square Garden game of the season, 57-49.
Prior to the game, it was announced that Montez Mathis’s toe injury will keep him out of the lineup for the rest of the season. Mathis’s defensive pressure will likely be missed despite the backcourt rotation being much cleaner since his injury.
It’s weird to say that a matchup against a 9-10 and struggling Villanova team is the most important game of the season thus far. But it’s still Villanova, and it’s still Madison Square Garden.