5 Things Duke Fans Need To Know About St. John’s

The 1-seed Duke Blue Devils are making their third straight appearance in the Sweet 16 under head coach Jon Scheyer, and will face 5-seed St. John's for a chance to etch their third straight Elite Eight appearance in the same span.

Duke defeated 9-seed TCU 81-58 to advance to the second weekend, and the Johnnies defeated 4-seed Kansas 67-65 in a thriller to reach their first Sweet 16 since 1999.

Mar 21, 2026; Greenville, SC, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Cameron Boozer (12) with the ball as Texas Christian University Horned Frogs forward David Punch (15) and guard Liutauras Lelevicius (3) defend in the second half during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Since the official bracket was released, St. John's became a trendy upset pick to take down the Blue Devils. Now, Scheyer's squad has a chance to shut that down.

Here are five things Duke fans should know about the Red Storm before the Sweet 16 matchup on Friday. Tip-off is slated for 7:10 pm ET at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

Mar 22, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; St. John's Red Storm forward Dillon Mitchell (1) reacts in the second half against the Kansas Jayhawks during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

St. John’s Is Elite Defensively

The Red Storm, over the course of the season, have turned into one of the best defensive clubs in college basketball. Rick Pitino's club ranks eighth nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency and 25th nationally in effective field goal percentage defense (47.2), according to KenPom.

St. John's hasn't allowed an opponent to score over 75 points since Feb. 9, when it defeated Xavier 87-82 in overtime.

Mar 22, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; St. John's Red Storm head coach Rick Pitino reacts in the first half against the Kansas Jayhawks during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

The Big East Was Extremely Weak

St. John's finished the regular season with an 18-2 league record, taking home the conference regular-season and tournament titles, but that came in an extremely weak Big East.

Only four out of the 11 teams in the league finished above .500 on the year, and it only earned three bids to the NCAA Tournament. In the non-con, the only Power Conference teams the Johnnies beat were Baylor and Ole Miss, neither of which made the Big Dance. They lost to Alabama, Auburn, Iowa State, and Kentucky.

Mar 22, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; St. John's Red Storm guard Dylan Darling (0) celebrates after defeating the Kansas Jayhawks in the second half during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

The Red Storm's only two losses in conference play came at home against Providence and on the road against UConn. St. John's has won 21 of its last 22 games heading into the Sweet 16, but its in-conference competition raises questions about how legitimate its resume is.

Mar 22, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; St. John's Red Storm guard Ian Jackson (11) controls the ball against the Kansas Jayhawks in the first half during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

St. John’s Has Lived by the Three in the Tournament

On the year, St. John's ranks 218th nationally in team three-point shooting percentage (33.2) and 302nd in percentage of total points from the three-point line (26.3). However, through its first two NCAA Tournament games, it has utilized the three much more.

Across both games combined in March Madness, the Johnnies have shot 21-of-64 (32.8%) from three. They have hit at least 10 in each game, which they hadn't done since Jan. 10. However, St. John's has also lost the paint battle by a combined margin of 70-60.

Mar 14, 2026; New York, NY, USA; St. John's Red Storm guard Oziyah Sellers (4) reacts after a made three point basket against the Connecticut Huskies during the first half of the men's Big East Conference Tournament Championship at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Duke is a team that lives inside, ranking seventh nationally in two-point field goal percentage (60.3) and 19th in average two-point attempt distance. This bodes well for a major advantage for the Blue Devils.

Mar 19, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; St. John's Red Storm head coach Rick Pitino speaks at a press conference ahead of the first round of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

Duke Has Defeated St. John’s Each Season It Has Won It All

Interestingly enough, in every season Duke has won a National Championship (1991, 1992, 2001, 2010, 2015), it has defeated the Red Storm at some point in each of those campaigns.

Pitino also has a rich history with the Blue Devils in the NCAA Tournament. When Pitino was the head coach at Louisville, the Cardinals defeated Duke in the 2013 Elite Eight. Additionally, when Pitino was the head coach at Kentucky, Duke took the Wildcats down in the 1992 Elite Eight off a Christian Laettner buzzer-beater.

Feb 5, 1992; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels center Eric Montross (00) defends as Duke Blue Devils center Christian Laettner (32) brings the ball up the court in the Tar Heels 75-73 victory against the Blue Devils at the Dean E. Smith Center. Montross is playing with a cut below his left eye. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

On both of those occasions, the winning team went on to win the national title.

Mar 22, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; St. John's Red Storm forward Zuby Ejiofor (24) controls the ball against Kansas Jayhawks forward Flory Bidunga (40) in the second half during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

St. John’s Doesn’t Have the Length To Match Up With Duke

Duke is the second-tallest team in college basketball, and utilizes its suffocating length at every position to make opponents' lives miserable on both sides of the ball. The Red Storm doesn't have the length to match the Blue Devils.

The Johnnies are the 59th-tallest squad in the nation, and their tallest heavy rotation piece is Zuby Ejiofor at 6'9". The Red Storm are extremely physical and aren't a small-ball team by any means, but Duke's advantage down low in that department bodes well for the Blue Devils.