Sunday, October 18
New York, N.Y.
12 PM
Rutgers
vs
St. John's
Men’s Basketball At Madison Square Garden Sunday for Exhibition Vs. St. John’s
Oct 14 | Men's Basketball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers men's basketball will have its second exhibition game of the preseason on Sunday. The Scarlet Knights head to New York City to play at "The Mecca of College Basketball", facing St. John's at 12 pm at Madison Square Garden.
The game will be live streamed on B1G+. Bob Brainerd will provide play-by-play while Brian Butch will be the color analyst.
The Scarlet Knights had their first exhibition game at Jersey Mike's Arena last Saturday, a tightly contested game against another BIG EAST foe in Villanova. The Wildcats came away with a 77-75 win after RU rallied from an 11-point deficit in the final minutes to make it a one-score game.
11 Scarlet Knights saw action in the exhibition contest, including six Scarlet Knights putting on the RU jersey for the first time. The team started the group of Jamichael Davis, Linor Mark, Darin Smith Jr., Darren Buchanan Jr. and Christian Gurdak, with Kaden Powers and RaSheed Jones also playing 20+ minutes off the bench. Darren Smith Jr. led the team with 20 points, shooting 7-of-12 from the field and adding five rebounds. Christian Gurdak posted 19 points and had eight rebounds, while Lino Mark added 12 points and five assists.
"It was encouraging to see our guys fight back in the second half," associate head coach Brandin Knight said. "The guys showed resilience. We were playing a lot of guys, just trying to figure out some rotations and see what guys are capable of doing early. I was pleased with some of our performances."
Rutgers will head to Madison Square Garden for the first time since a January 25, 2025 game against Michigan State. Rutgers has played 114 previous games at Madison Square Garden, with the most recent win there being a 61-55 victory over Michigan State on February 4, 2023.
Under Hall of Fame Head Coach Rick Pitino, St. John's has two consecutive BIG EAST regular season and tournament titles. The team advanced to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, earning a Sweet 16 birth. This will be the second exhibition game for St. John's, who also had an exhibition against Drexel on Wednesday.
Five players return from that Sweet 16 team. Returners are led by guard Ian Jackson, who averaged 9.4 points per game, and is one of two team captains alongside Babcar Sane, who averaged 9.9 points last year in the German Bundesliga after three years in the G League. The Red Storm bring in the nation's top transfer portal class according to 247 Sports, who lists Tounde Yessoufou (17.8 ppg at Baylor) and Keyshawn Hall (19.3 ppg at Auburn, Third Team All-SEC) among the top-five transfers nationally.
Formerly a conference rival in the BIG EAST, St. John's holds a 28-14 lead in the all-time series against RU. The last meeting between these two came in an exhibition game at Jersey Mike's Arena, a 91-85 win for St. John's ahead of the 2024-25 season, a game that raised money for the Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Fund of the Jimmy V Foundation. The last regular season meeting between the two squads was an 84-65 win for St. John's in Piscataway on November 16, 2018 as part of the Gavitt Games.
This will be the final exhibition tuneup prior to the season opener, which is Friday, November 6 against New Haven. Rutgers fans have four chances to see the team play at Jersey Mike's Arena in November, with future games against NJIT (Nov. 10), Bryant (Nov. 13) and Sacred Heart (Nov. 24). RU also travels again to Las Vegas for the Players Era Festival, opening against Houston on November 17, then facing two additional opponents on November 18-19.
The game will be live streamed on B1G+. Bob Brainerd will provide play-by-play while Brian Butch will be the color analyst.
| About Rutgers |
The Scarlet Knights had their first exhibition game at Jersey Mike's Arena last Saturday, a tightly contested game against another BIG EAST foe in Villanova. The Wildcats came away with a 77-75 win after RU rallied from an 11-point deficit in the final minutes to make it a one-score game.
11 Scarlet Knights saw action in the exhibition contest, including six Scarlet Knights putting on the RU jersey for the first time. The team started the group of Jamichael Davis, Linor Mark, Darin Smith Jr., Darren Buchanan Jr. and Christian Gurdak, with Kaden Powers and RaSheed Jones also playing 20+ minutes off the bench. Darren Smith Jr. led the team with 20 points, shooting 7-of-12 from the field and adding five rebounds. Christian Gurdak posted 19 points and had eight rebounds, while Lino Mark added 12 points and five assists.
"It was encouraging to see our guys fight back in the second half," associate head coach Brandin Knight said. "The guys showed resilience. We were playing a lot of guys, just trying to figure out some rotations and see what guys are capable of doing early. I was pleased with some of our performances."
Rutgers will head to Madison Square Garden for the first time since a January 25, 2025 game against Michigan State. Rutgers has played 114 previous games at Madison Square Garden, with the most recent win there being a 61-55 victory over Michigan State on February 4, 2023.
| About St. John's |
Under Hall of Fame Head Coach Rick Pitino, St. John's has two consecutive BIG EAST regular season and tournament titles. The team advanced to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, earning a Sweet 16 birth. This will be the second exhibition game for St. John's, who also had an exhibition against Drexel on Wednesday.
Five players return from that Sweet 16 team. Returners are led by guard Ian Jackson, who averaged 9.4 points per game, and is one of two team captains alongside Babcar Sane, who averaged 9.9 points last year in the German Bundesliga after three years in the G League. The Red Storm bring in the nation's top transfer portal class according to 247 Sports, who lists Tounde Yessoufou (17.8 ppg at Baylor) and Keyshawn Hall (19.3 ppg at Auburn, Third Team All-SEC) among the top-five transfers nationally.
| About the Series |
Formerly a conference rival in the BIG EAST, St. John's holds a 28-14 lead in the all-time series against RU. The last meeting between these two came in an exhibition game at Jersey Mike's Arena, a 91-85 win for St. John's ahead of the 2024-25 season, a game that raised money for the Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Fund of the Jimmy V Foundation. The last regular season meeting between the two squads was an 84-65 win for St. John's in Piscataway on November 16, 2018 as part of the Gavitt Games.
| Up Next |
This will be the final exhibition tuneup prior to the season opener, which is Friday, November 6 against New Haven. Rutgers fans have four chances to see the team play at Jersey Mike's Arena in November, with future games against NJIT (Nov. 10), Bryant (Nov. 13) and Sacred Heart (Nov. 24). RU also travels again to Las Vegas for the Players Era Festival, opening against Houston on November 17, then facing two additional opponents on November 18-19.
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