St. John’s Basketball Holds Steady in AP Poll Top 25

The St. John's Red Storm looked good in their first two games of the regular season.

Nov 8, 2026; New York, New York, USA; The St. John's Red Storm bench celebrates in the second half against the Iona Gaels at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The St. John’s Red Storm were the No. 13 team in the AP Poll Preseason Top 25, possessing as much upside as any squad in the country.

With some eligibility questions surrounding the roster, it is hard to project how the team will look down the road. But with the entire Red Storm roster available to play through the first two games of the season, they have shown plenty of promise.

In the season opener against the Monmouth Hawks, St. John’s won 78-63 at Carnesecca Arena. Their second game was even more impressive, blowing out the Iona Gaels at Madison Square Garden, 104-65.

Those performances weren’t enough to move the Red Storm up the AP Poll Top 25 this week, but they didn’t drop. St. John’s has remained at No. 13 heading into their next matchup with the Colgate Raiders.

St. John's remains at No. 13 in AP Poll Top 25

Nov 2, 2026; Queens, New York, USA; St. John's Red Storm head coach Rick Pitino yells out instructions in the first half against the Monmouth Hawks at Carnesecca Arena. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Red Storm are one of only two Big East teams who are ranked this week, with the UConn Huskies rising to No. 4 courtesy of their win over the reigning NCAA champion Michigan Wolverines. 

The Marquette Golden Eagles and Creighton Bluejays both landed on some voters’ ballots, receiving 10 and one point, respectively.

St. John’s has a long way to go before reaching their ceiling, but there have been flashes of excellence through their first two games. Keyshawn Hall led the way against Monmouth with 26 points and nine rebounds. Ian Jackson chipped in 15, and Tounde Yessoufou, who came off the bench after missing practice, had 12.

#13 in both polls after the opening week ‼️ pic.twitter.com/1UNS9bTjdf

— St. John's Men’s Basketball (@StJohnsBBall) November 9, 2026

Against Iona, seven different players scored at least seven points. Yessoufou led the way with 23 in his return to the starting five, while Jackson had 17. Hall scored 13 as the dynamic trio overwhelmed the Gaels. Off the bench, Zsombor Maronka had 12, and Lefteris Liotopoulos had 10, giving the Red Storm five players in double figures.

Quinn Ellis has been as good as advertised thus far as the starting point guard. He has 18 assists and only two turnovers thus far, adding 15 points, 10 rebounds and eight steals as well, making an impressive two-way impact.

In the early going of the non-conference season, the goal is to avoid upsets. St. John’s is 2-for-2 in that regard and will look to keep things rolling against Colgate, the Syracuse Orange and Siena Saints before heading off to Las Vegas for the Players Era Festival, with their first opponent there being the Oregon Ducks.