St. John’s Basketball Keys To Watch for vs. Monmouth in Opener

There are several keys to watch for when the St. John's Red Storm begin their season against the Monmouth Hawks.

Oct 25, 2026; New York, NY, USA; St. John's Red Storm forward Keyshawn Hall (7) drives past Texas Longhorns forward David Punch (13) in the second half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The St. John’s Red Storm are set to tip off their 2026-27 men’s college basketball season, hosting the Monmouth Hawks at Carnesecca Arena.

After going 3-0 in the preseason, defeating the Drexel Dragons, Rutgers Scarlet Knights and Texas Longhorns, the Red Storm will look to keep the momentum going now that the games count.

St. John’s is a heavy favorite for the season opener against the CAA team voted to finish fifth in the conference by the coaches. Monmouth went 19-15 last season, a nice bounce back after suffering a 20-loss campaign before that.

What is in store for the Red Storm in this matchup? Here are some keys to the game for St. John’s in their season opener against the Hawks.

Setting Offensive Hierarchy

Oct 25, 2026; New York, NY, USA; St. John's Red Storm forward Keyshawn Hall (7) drives to the basket in the second half against the Texas Longhorns at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It is going to take more than one game, especially with some uncertainty about the eligibility of some players, but this will be the start of head coach Rick Pitino figuring out his pecking order on the offensive side of the ball.

Keyshawn Hall has drawn praise from Pitino for how easily he can score. In the three exhibitions, he led the team with 19 points per game. Against Rutgers and Texas, he started and scored 24 points in each.

Tounde Yessoufou averaged 17.8 points per game as a freshman with the Baylor Bears. Ian Jackson flashed his scoring prowess last season and will be even better in Year 2 under Pitino.

There is an abundance of scoring options for the Red Storm. Having Quinn Ellis able to run it all at point guard will make figuring out the hierarchy much easier.

Slowing Down Stefanos Spartalis

Monmouth was decimated in the transfer portal, losing four out of their top five scorers from last season, headlined by Jason Rivera-Torres and Justin Ray, who averaged 15.8 and 11.3 points per game and transferred to the High Point Panthers and Wake Forest Demon Deacons.

Ready to assume the go-to role is Stefanos Spartalis, who averaged 10.7 points, 5.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 23.5 minutes per game. He is poised for a breakout campaign, and isn’t going to be fazed playing against a Power Conference opponent.

Against the Seton Hall Pirates, Syracuse Orange and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, he scored 16, 18 and 14 points. He had a knack for drawing fouls, shooting 16-of-17 from the charity stripe.

Ruben Prey will be tasked with slowing him down for St. John’s.

Handle the Pressure

Oct 25, 2026; New York, NY, USA; St. John's Red Storm guard Quinn Ellis (4) brings the ball up court in the second half against the Texas Longhorns at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This is going to be a good early-season test for the Red Storm because Monmouth is going to make them work. St. John’s is the more talented team, but they are going to have to handle some hectic pressure from the Hawks.

Last season, Monmouth forced a turnover on 19.9% of possessions, which was 27th in the country. They also protect the rim with an 11.9% block rate and make opponents work, allowing only 49.6% on shots inside the arc.

The Hawks are going to make the Red Storm earn everything on the offensive end. St. John’s will have to protect the ball, something Ellis was elite at during the preseason.