St. John's to play more home games at Madison Square Garden than on campus this season
St. John's Red Storm center Joel Soriano reacts against the Butler Bulldogs during a Big East Tournament first round men's basketball game at Madison Square Garden last March. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
So much has changed about St. John’s basketball since Rick Pitino was hired to coach the Red Storm in March. The program’s national profile is growing. Anticipation for a spot in the NCAA Tournament is high. St. John’s has a buzz about it.
It’s also time to stop thinking about Madison Square Garden as the Red Storm’s “home away from home.”
In the Pitino era, the Garden simply is home. That became clear on Friday when St. John’s released its 2023-24 schedule. It will play eight games at MSG and five on campus at Carnesecca Arena.
The first game at the Garden will be on Nov. 13 against Michigan in the Gavitt Tipoff Games. The Red Storm will play two Big East games — their first two conference home games — at Carnesecca on Dec. 20 against Xavier and Jan. 2 against Butler. Six of their final eight Big East home games will be at MSG and the other two at UBS Arena.
In a June interview with Newsday, Pitino was asked about venues for home games and replied, “What we’re building at St. John’s is only going to fit in places like the Garden.”
St. John’s fans will have two opportunities to glimpse Pitino’s Red Storm before the regular season kicks off on Nov. 7 against Stony Brook at Carnesecca Arena.
St. John's announced this week that it has received permission from the NCAA to open its doors at Carnesecca for what would normally have been a closed-door scrimmage against Rutgers on Oct. 21 and sell tickets as a fundraiser to fight childhood cancer. There also is an Oct. 29 exhibition against Division II Pace on campus.
St. John’s Big East games at the Garden will be against Providence (Jan. 10), Marquette (Jan. 20), Villanova (Jan. 24), Connecticut (Feb. 3), Creighton (Feb. 25) and Georgetown (March 9). At UBS Arena, it will host conference foes DePaul on Feb. 6 and Seton Hall on Feb. 18. It also will meet Hofstra for a non-conference game on Dec. 30 at UBS.
The Big East Tournament will be played at the Garden on March 12-15.
St. John’s also has a date at Barclays Center, a non-conference game against Boston College on Dec. 10 in the NABC Brooklyn Showcase.
The Big East is expected to release which television network will carry each St. John’s game as well as the game times before the end of the month.
ST. JOHN’S MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
(Big East game in Bold)
OCTOBER
21: Rutgers (Exhibition) at Carnesecca Arena
29: Pace (Exhibition) at Carnesecca Arena
NOVEMBER
7: Stony Brook (at Carnesecca Arena)
12: Michigan (at MSG)
16: vs. North Texas in Charleston Classic at TD Arena (Charleston, S.C.)
17: vs. LSU or Dayton in Charleston Classic at TD Arena (Charleston, S.C.)
19: Final or consolation in Charleston Classic at TD Arena (Charleston, S.C.)
25: Holy Cross (at Carnesecca Arena)
DECEMBER
1: at West Virginia
6: Sacred Heart (at Carnesecca Arena)
10: Boston College (at Barclays Center)
16: Fordham (at MSG)
20: Xavier (at Carnesecca Arena)*
23: at Connecticut (in Hartford)*
30: Hofstra (at UBS Arena)
JANUARY
2: Butler (at Carnesecca Arena)*
6: at Villanova*
10: Providence (at MSG)*
13: at Creighton*
16: at Seton Hall*
20: Marquette (at MSG)*
24: Villanova (at MSG)*
31: at Xavier*
FEBRUARY
3: Connecticut (at MSG)*
6: DePaul (at UBS Arena)*
10: at Marquette*
13: at Providence*
18: Seton Hall (at UBS Arena)*
21: at Georgetown*
25: Creighton (at MSG)*
28: at Butler*
MARCH
5: at DePaul*
9: Georgetown (at MSG)*
12-15: Big East Tournament (at MSG)
* Big East conference game
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
