The Independent Student Newspaper of St. John's University

The Torch

The Independent Student Newspaper of St. John's University

The Torch

The Independent Student Newspaper of St. John's University

The Torch

A Preview of the Women’s Basketball Schedule

St.+Johns+will+face+off+against+Marquette+at+home+on+Feb.+8+at+Carnesecca+Arena
TORCHPHOTO/NICK BELLO
St. John’s will face off against Marquette at home on Feb. 8 at Carnesecca Arena

With the 2018-19 season ending in the Women’s Basketball missing postseason play for the first time in 12 years, Head Coach Joe Tartamella is prepared to return his team to postseason play. This year’s team is full of returning talent that will allow them to compete in a stacked Big East conference. 

The Johnnies begin their season in Western New York on November 5th, taking on a vincible St. Bonaventure that finished 8-22 last year. In their home opener, they will take on Lafayette on November 13th, and they will host teams like Wake Forest and UMass at Carnesecca Arena in the following days, with all three of these teams finishing under .500 last year. They face a formidable opponent between those three home games, taking on the gritty James Madison Dukes, who allowed the third-fewest points-per-game in the nation and finished as Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) semifinalists.

During Thanksgiving weekend, they will fly out to the Las Vegas strip to participate in the Lady Rebel Round-Up tournament hosted by the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) Rebels. They will play IUPUI in the semifinal game, and they will play either Elon or UNLV depending on their result against IUPUI. 

They conclude their non-conference schedule with games against regional foes Army, Yale and Fairfield, as well as a tough matchup on the road against a battle-tested Florida State team that earned its seventh straight NCAA tournament invitation last year under the experienced tutelage of the now 23rd year coach, Sue Semrau. 

On the Dec. 29, the Johnnies finally begin Big East play against Xavier, a team that finished dead-last in the Big East last year with a 2-16 record in conference play. After a trio of games against WNIT participants Butler, Georgetown and Villanova, they have a golden opportunity to steal a couple of road wins against two potentially-ranked opponents as they play the respective Big East runner-ups and champions, Marquette and DePaul.

They will head home to play Providence and Creighton, then they will trickle down I-95 for a road trip that could make or break their season. First, they will play Seton Hall on January 26th on national television, hoping to exact some revenge on the Pirates after getting swept in regular season last year. Then, they will meet Villanova and Georgetown for the second time this year.

 By the end of the road trip, they face Marquette and DePaul, this time in the friendly confines of Carnesecca Arena. The last time Marquette came to New York, the Johnnies upset the No. 8/7 ranked Golden Eagles, 81-74, in a come-from-behind victory at home.

St. John’s gets one final road trip of the regular season, traveling all the way to the Cornhusker state to play Creighton, then heading back to the east coast to play Providence. Afterwards, it’s home cooking for the Johnnies, as they wrap up their regular season with games against Seton Hall, Butler, and Xavier. 

While you shouldn’t count your eggs before they hatch, the women’s basketball team has a healthy mixture of very promising underclassmen and reliable, veteran upperclassmen all led by a coach with a pedigree of success that can bring the Johnnies back to the postseason. 

 

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    Brian CosgroveSep 19, 2019 at 12:03 pm

    Great Article
    Go Jonnies

    Reply