St. John's Makes a Comeback to Reclaim First Place

In a thrilling overtime matchup, the St. John's Red Storm emerged victorious with a 79-71 win over the Xavier Musketeers, reclaiming sole possession of first place in the Big East conference.

The game was a back-and-forth affair, with both teams trading leads throughout. The Red Storm found themselves down by 16 points in the second half, but they refused to give up, mounting a furious comeback to tie the game and force overtime.

In overtime, St. John's was able to outscore Xavier 12-7, thanks in large part to the play of RJ Luis Jr., Zuby Ejiofor, and Kadary Richmond. Luis Jr. led the way with 22 points, while Ejiofor and Richmond added 19 and 17 points respectively.

The win was a crucial one for St. John's, as it improves their record to 17-3 overall and 8-1 in the Big East. The Red Storm are now in a three-way tie for first place in the conference, along with Marquette and Villanova.

With the win, St. John's has also extended their winning streak to six games, and they have now won 12 of their last 13 contests. The team's strong play has them back in the national rankings, as they are currently ranked 20th in the AP poll.

Looking ahead, the Red Storm will have a chance to solidify their position at the top of the Big East when they take on No. 10 Marquette and No. 19 UConn in the coming weeks. However, they will need to continue to play well if they hope to maintain their hold on first place.

For now, though, the focus is on celebrating this hard-fought victory and the team's return to the top of the conference standings. The players and coaches are understandably proud of their efforts, and they are looking forward to building on this success in the weeks and months ahead.