RJ Luis Jr. stats tonight: How many points did St. John’s star rack up against Quinnipiac?
RJ Luis Jr. stole the show as St. John's Red Storm defeated the Quinnipiac Bobcats 96-73 on Saturday. The junior 6-foot-7 guard finished the contest with game-highs in points and rebounds, recording a 24 points and 13 rebound double-double. Luis Jr. went 8-17 from the field (47.1%) alongside three assists, two steals and one block.
Luis Jr. has showcased his potential as an offensive leader. In St. John’s exhibition game against Rutgers, the guard posted 22 points on 6-9 shooting. He also added six rebounds and three assists while coming off the bench for 27 minutes of action.
RJ Luis Jr’s scoring clinic as the sixth man helped St. John’s eliminate a 13-point deficit against a preseason top-25 program. Luis Jr’s performance also helped the Red Storm to tackle Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper’s solid outings. They are two of the top recruits in the nation and combined for 45 points in the contest.
With the win, St. John’s has now successfully opened their season on a 2-0 run. They opened the season against Fordham Rams, where they dominated for a 92-60 win. RJ Luis Jr. posted 12 points in the contest (4-7 shooting) in 13 minutes while garnering two rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Head coach Rick Pitino did not expect St. John's to win before RJ Luis Jr's outburst
The Red Storm trailed Quinnipiac 39-35 at the half. Luis Jr. had eight points at the time and Rick Pitino believed that his team was set to lose the contest until the Johnnies took over the second half.
"I think last year at this time we would have lost this game. But this team did the right things to win this game,” Pitino reflected back at the game (via sportingnews.com).
St. John opened the second half by taking a 40-39 lead, and trading leads on coming possessions. Nevertheless, RJ Luis Jr. poured in 16 points throughout the half, combining for 43 points with Brady Dunlap and Simeon Wilcher to avoid an upset.
“Sometimes you get what you deserve. We had two of the worst practices this week that we've had all season... but good teams come out and win in the second half, and they did that,” Pitino said in the postgame conference.
The Red Storm will now play Wagner on Wednesday at the Carnesecca Arena, hoping to replicate the start of their 2022-23 season.