The St. John’s Red Storm host the Marquette Golden Eagles at 6:30 p.m. ET at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Marquette has gotten off to a tough start this season, going 6-11 overall and 1-5 in the Big East. St. John’s is 11-5 and 4-1 in Big East play so far. Marquette is 29-19 against St. John’s in their all-time series, but the Red Storm have won the previous three contests.
Here is my best bet for tonight’s Marquette vs. St. John’s college basketball matchup. On DraftKings Sportsbook, St. John’s is a -14.5-point favorite with the over/under being 157.5 points.
Marquette vs. St. John’s (6:30 p.m ET)
After losing their first three matchups against ranked opponents, St. John’s has won back-to-back games against Butler and Creighton. Even though the Red Storm aren’t ranked in the current AP Poll, they are No. 18 on KenPom.
Zuby Ejofor and Bryce Hopkins have been St. John’s best two players this season. Ejofor averages 15.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3,1 assists, and 2,2 blocks per contest, while Hopkins scored 13.3 points along with 4.9 boards. The Red Storm’s top three guards are Ian Jackson, Oziyah Sellers, and Joson Sanon.
Marquette scores only 74.6 points per game as a team, which is 11 fewer than St. John’s. The Golden Eagles score the third fewest points per contest in the Big East while allowing the second most points (76.4) in the conference. Marquette has lost seven of their previous eight games and has only won two games in the last 10.
This is a massive mismatch, with Marquette 113th on KenPom while St. John’s 18th. Marquette has the 152nd offensive rating and 92nd defensive rating. During the last 10 games, Marquette has scored 76 or fewer points in each. Chase Ross is their leading scorer with 15.5 points per game and is one of three Golden Eagles avergaing double digit points.
Five of Marquette’s previous seven losses have come by at least 15 points. St. John’s has struggled at times on offense, but it still has more upside than Marquette does. The Red Storm has scored 90-plus points in two of its last three victories. If they can reach that mark again, it will likely be too difficult for Marquette to keep up. After beating Creighton by 17 points on the road on January 10, St. John’s returns home in an excellent position to pick up another big win against Marquette.
