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Villanova trudges and trudges along in 2016, building up a stout resume along the way with lone losses to highly touted Oklahoma, Virginia and the Providence Friars. Aside from those blemishes, 'Nova has found themselves with few challenges along the way and still stand as the kings of the BIG EAST Conference, even with mighty Xavier on their tail.
The Red Storm, meanwhile, are the exact opposite. The search for their first win marches on this Saturday but the task is unenviable. They'll have to pull off a shocker if they want to win their first game since a stunner over Syracuse way back on December 13. Yes, in the words of Kurt Angle, "It's true, it's true!": The Red Storm will go into this encounter having not tallied up a win in exactly two months.
Will Villanova keep rolling? Or is St. John's finally going to get off the schneid in a big way?
How to watch or listen
Game Time: 8 p.m. ET
TV: CBS Sports Network || Channel Finder
Radio: 570 WMCA AM (St. John's) || 610 WTEL AM (Villanova)
No stream is available via CBS Sports Network.
Gamblin' Info
Spread: Villanova opened as a 26-point favorite via OddsShark. The line bumped up to 27 and 27.5 in some locations.
Records ATS: St. John's (9-16) || Villanova (13-10)
O/U: The O/U stands at 139.5.
3 things to watch for
1. Josh 'Hitman' Hart: After going through a small, struggling spell, 'The Excellence of Efficiency' -- okay, so, we're gonna need to work on that -- Josh Hart posted back-to-back games with marks of over 50.0 percent from the field. He lit up DePaul for 18 points on a 6-for-11 mark from the field and a 3-for-6 effort from 3-point land. The Red Storm have struggled to defend the perimeter this season with a mark of 37.1 percent allowed from the perimeter, so Hart may be in for a big day again.
2. The Chef's Second Course: (See it's funny because this is the second thing to watch for, the second game Daniel Ochefu is playing in after being absent for a spell, and one of his nicknames is Chef and three course meals and... I'll see myself out)
Daniel Ochefu came back to the Villanova lineup this past week and put his stamp on the game against the DePaul Blue Demons. Logging 24 minutes, Ochefu scored 11, grabbed six rebounds, handed out four assists, had two blocks and two steals, pretty much playing at the spectacular level he had achieved before suffering a concussion a few short weeks ago.
If that kind of performance is looming again, another long night is in store for Villanova's opposition.
3. Is tonight the night?: Okay, so... it's probably not likely that St. John's wins. In fact, it's incredibly doubtful. The talent gap between the two clubs is a country mile wide and maybe even more. Something has to give eventually though. Right? It's been exactly two months. Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released and we found out Fi--whoaaaaaa. Slow down. Slow down.
Anyways, point is: It's been two long months. Lots has happened in the past two months. Except for a St. John's victory. Does it happen Saturday night? Maybe not... or maybe. Just maybe.