Overview
- The 6-foot-11 junior Ruben Prey was named St. John’s starting center but struggled offensively in the exhibition with Texas and the season opener, shooting 0-for-5 and scoring two points with four rebounds in 25 minutes.
- Coach Rick Pitino publicly defended the decision to keep Prey in the lineup and said he trusts Prey because of his daily work in practice and belief that Prey will improve over the season.
- Prey said he was upset after the opener but maintained his confidence and identified rebounding and low-post finishing as his primary areas to improve.
- St. John’s has physical frontcourt alternatives in 6-11 freshman Theo Edema and 6-10 transfer Reed Bailey, and Pitino has begun mixing minutes to build Prey’s confidence while adding toughness on the glass.
- The team views the upcoming Players Era Festival in Las Vegas as a real test for the new frontcourt mix and a chance to see if Prey can translate practice gains into the physical play that defined Zuby Ejiofor’s role.