03/20/26 08:41:00
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03/20 20:39 CDT Zuby Ejiofor leads streaking St. John's past Northern Iowa
79-53 in strong NCAA Tournament opener
Zuby Ejiofor leads streaking St. John's past Northern Iowa 79-53 in strong NCAA
Tournament opener
By GREG BEACHAM
AP Sports Writer
SAN DIEGO (AP) --- Zuby Ejiofor had 14 points and 11 rebounds, Bryce Hopkins
added 13 points and fifth-seeded St. John's beat Northern Iowa 79-53 on Friday
night for its second NCAA Tournament victory since 2000.
Oziyah Sellers scored 11 points for Rick Pitino's gathering Red Storm (29-6),
who have won 20 of 21 since early January in increasingly impressive fashion.
With a fluid, balanced offensive effort against the nation's stingiest scoring
defense, St. John's jumped to a huge early lead at Viejas Arena and never
trailed the 12th-seeded Panthers (23-13).
The New York City program revitalized by Pitino ended its 25-year March Madness
victory drought last season. After rolling through the Big East tournament last
week, Pitino's current team is one win away from the Johnnies' first trip to
the Sweet Sixteen in the 21st century.
St. John's will return Sunday to face the winner of fourth-seeded Kansas'
meeting with Cal Baptist in the East Region bracket.
Trey Campbell scored 14 points and Leon Bond III added 12 for Northern Iowa,
which surprisingly snared its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2016 by
streaking through the Missouri Valley Conference tournament last week with four
wins in four days as the sixth seed.
The Panthers' stingy defense hung in against the Big East champions' vibrant
offense, but Ejiofor and the Johnnies have resembled a national title contender
since shortly after the calendar flipped to 2026.
St. John's made five straight shots while scoring the game's first 13 points
and taking an 18-point lead in the opening minutes. Northern Iowa missed nine
of its first 10 shots and didn't score 10 points until midway through the first
half, eventually trailing 47-28 at halftime.
The Johnnies slumped slightly from the field after halftime, but their lead
never dipped below 13 points.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and
coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
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