Physical, tense, and emotional are the only ways to describe how No. 17 St. John’s rematch with Providence went. The Red Storm snuck out of Amica Mutual Pavilion on Saturday with the 79-69 triumph thanks to Dylan Darling, but the focus was on the melee that occurred early in the second half.
At the 14:26 mark of the second half, Duncan Powell delivered a hard over-the-head foul to Bryce Hopkins, who left Providence to join St. John’s last spring. The two forwards engaged in a shoving match that eventually led to Jaylin Sellers getting into it with Oziyah Sellers.
Powell kept up his antics as he threw a punch at Dillon Mitchell. Nineteen minutes later, the officiating crew ejected Powell and Jaylin Sellers, taking an additional two players away from Kim English.
“There’s a time to have hard fouls. You never want to hit anyone in the head. I didn’t think that was a time for a hard foul,” English told reporters.
The Red Storm were dealt a blow as well with the ejections of Mitchell, Ruben Prey, Sadiku Ibine Ayo, and Kelvin Odih. Prey, Ayo, and Odih got off the bench, which is a clear violation of NCAA rules, and Mitchell received a flagrant two foul.
The conference is expected to hand out punishments as a result of this skirmish between the two longtime rivals. Powell, the senior forward, can be suspended for a game or longer for instigating the brawl. Mitchell can be suspended for shoving Jaylin Sellers, who was up to 13 points before the ejection.
“Everyone saw what happened. We play hard, they took away my whole frontcourt,” St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino said. “It was a hard-fought game, proud of my guys to come back with four guards is really special.”
With much of their rotation back in the locker room, Darling came to the rescue. He hit back-to-back shots from long range before stripping Jamier Jones and taking it to the opposite end for a layup.
The former Big Sky Player of the Year made an uplifting impact off the bench, scoring 23 points with eight defensive rebounds in the Red Storm’s 10th consecutive victory. Eighteen of his points came in the second half when tensions between the rival schools reached an alarming high.
His spark rubbed off on Zuby Ejiofor, who scored eight in the second half after ending the first half with four.
“Dylan does what Dylan’s been pretty much doing for a big stretch now,” Ejiofor said of his teammate’s heroic performance.
Ejiofor’s 14 points and four rebounds fueled the Red Storm for the rest of the ballgame. Additionally, their stifling defense, which recorded 11 steals and forced 14 turnovers, helped them exact revenge for their first loss to the Friars.
But the antics continued when Jones delivered a hard foul to Ejiofor on a drive to the basket. Officials immediately ejected Jones, only to hand Joson Sanon a technical foul not long after for taunting. Safe to say the referees were attempting to maintain order.
On a day where kisses, hugs, and cards are exchanged, neither team shook hands. St. John’s was escorted off the court in silence due to fears that Friars fans would throw trash at them, as multiple were ejected.
“We’re getting out of here before fans start beating up the team,” Pitino jokingly said during a postgame press conference.
Hopkins was given much of the criticism from the Providence crowd as he returned to the program he once led. The tension seemed to rattle the senior forward, who missed two deep three-pointers, one of which he airballed.
“I think the crowd lost objectivity of what they’re here for. If they’re just here to poke fun at Hopkins and not get a win for the Friars, that’s not the Friars I remember,” Pitino, who led Providence to a Final Four appearance in 1986-87, said.
