University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
St. John's
UConn Hosts St. John's In MLK Day Matinee
1/17/2021 1:02:00 PM | Men's Basketball
UConn Athletic Communications / Jan. 17, 2021
STORRS, Conn. – Renewing a rivalry that began in 1951 and continued throughout 34 seasons in the BIG EAST Conference, the UConn men's basketball team welcomes St. John's to Gampel Pavilion in a special Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day matinee on Monday, Jan. 18.
The first contest between No. 25 UConn and St. John's in eight years is scheduled to tipoff at 2:30 p.m. and will be televised nationally on FOX, which for local cable outlets means FOX 61 (Hartford).
UConn (7-1 overall, 4-1 BIG EAST) comes into the game riding a four-game winning streak, the last three on the road, but missing its leading scorer. Sophomore James Bouknight (Brooklyn, N.Y.), averaging 20.3 ppg, will miss his third straight game after undergoing elbow surgery. The Huskies still have two double-figure scorers in junior Tyrese Martin (10.6 ppg, 7.9 rpg) and senior Tyler Polley (10.4).
Starting point guard, junior R.J. Cole, averaging 9.6 ppg and 3.8 assists, and senior forward Isaiah Whaley (9.1 ppg, 2.4 blocks), and junior guard Brendan Adams (5.5 ppg, 2.1 rpg) are also part of the starting lineup.
The Huskies lead the BIG EAST in scoring defense, allowing just 60.8 ppg in conference play, and they are second in field goal percentage defense (.414) and first in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.283). UConn also tops the league in offensive rebounds with 13.0 per game.
St. John's (7-7, 2-6) has struggled away from home, so far posting an 0-4 mark in road games. The Red Storm boast the league's top scorer, however, in sophomore Julian Champagnie (20.7), who also leads the team in rebounding (7.3). Greg Williams Jr. is also a double-figure scorer (11.6) and freshman Posh Alexander leads in assists (4.5). The Red Storm averages a league-high 10.2 steals per game.   Â
