Nova now knows they will face St. John's tomorrow afternoon in their opening Big East Tournament game, as the Johnnies survived a hectic game with Georgetown.
The Cats hold two 13-point victories over the Red Storm this season. The first game was won with defense, as Nova held St. John's to just 57 points. St. John's shot just 40% and 32% from three, and committed 17 turnovers. The Cats did a great job of limiting the trio of Marcus LoVett, Shamorie Ponds, and Bashir Ahmed, holding them to 36 points. Nova was able to overcome 20 turnovers of their own, shooting 45% from the field and 33% from three. They also dominated the boards, 41-23. Donte DiVincenzo had 19 in the 70-57 win.
After using stiff defense to beat St.John's in the first meeting, the Cats sprinted to a 92-79 victory in the second matchup in a high scoring affair. Turnovers were again an issue for Nova, as they coughed it up 23 times. Turnovers developed as a disturbing trend against the Red Storm this season, and it will be interesting to see if they can reverse that trend tomorrow afternoon. The Cats shot 52% from the field and 36% from three this time around. They also held a 40-26 advantage on the glass. Josh Hart led the way with 26 points, and DiVincenzo had another stellar game, dropping 20 on the Johnnies. The LoVett-Ponds-Ahmed trio scored 53 combined points for St. John's.
LoVett was quiet in the Red Storm's win over Georgetown tonight with just four points, but was picked up by Ponds, Ahmed, and Malik Ellison. St. John's committed just eight turnovers.
The Cats will need to try to limit the trio mentioned above. Turnovers will be something else to watch. Nova averaged 21.5 turnovers in the two games with St. John's, while the Red Storm averaged 16.5. Nova will look to reduce their own turnovers while continuing to force St. John's into mistakes.
The Cats hold two 13-point victories over the Red Storm this season. The first game was won with defense, as Nova held St. John's to just 57 points. St. John's shot just 40% and 32% from three, and committed 17 turnovers. The Cats did a great job of limiting the trio of Marcus LoVett, Shamorie Ponds, and Bashir Ahmed, holding them to 36 points. Nova was able to overcome 20 turnovers of their own, shooting 45% from the field and 33% from three. They also dominated the boards, 41-23. Donte DiVincenzo had 19 in the 70-57 win.
After using stiff defense to beat St.John's in the first meeting, the Cats sprinted to a 92-79 victory in the second matchup in a high scoring affair. Turnovers were again an issue for Nova, as they coughed it up 23 times. Turnovers developed as a disturbing trend against the Red Storm this season, and it will be interesting to see if they can reverse that trend tomorrow afternoon. The Cats shot 52% from the field and 36% from three this time around. They also held a 40-26 advantage on the glass. Josh Hart led the way with 26 points, and DiVincenzo had another stellar game, dropping 20 on the Johnnies. The LoVett-Ponds-Ahmed trio scored 53 combined points for St. John's.
LoVett was quiet in the Red Storm's win over Georgetown tonight with just four points, but was picked up by Ponds, Ahmed, and Malik Ellison. St. John's committed just eight turnovers.
The Cats will need to try to limit the trio mentioned above. Turnovers will be something else to watch. Nova averaged 21.5 turnovers in the two games with St. John's, while the Red Storm averaged 16.5. Nova will look to reduce their own turnovers while continuing to force St. John's into mistakes.