St. John’s on Same Seed Line but New Region in Bracketology

The recent NCAA Men's Bracketology update has the St. John's Red Storm in a new region.

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 have gotten off to an expected start in the 2026-27 men’s college basketball season, winning their first two games of the campaign.

In their opener against the Monmouth Hawks, the Red Storm won 78-63. It wasn’t a perfect game by any means, but a win is a win. Their second game, against the Iona Gaels, was a near-perfect performance.

St. John’s blew them out 104-65 in their first game of the season at Madison Square Garden. It was a dominant performance in every facet of the game, getting out to a commanding lead early and never relinquishing it.

Given the start to the campaign, it comes as no surprise that the Red Storm haven’t moved seed lines in the recent NCAA Men’s Bracketology update provided by Joe Lunardi of ESPN. They remain a No. 4 seed, but their region has changed from the previous update.

St. John's remains No. 4 seed in NCAA Men's Bracketology update

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

Instead of residing in the Midwest Region, which is held in Kansas City, St. John’s is now the No. 4 seed in the South Region. Their second weekend is being held in San Antonio, which presents tougher travel than the Midwest Region or East Region, which is being held in New York City at Madison Square Garden.

In this edition of the NCAA Men’s Bracketology, the Red Storm match up with the No. 13 seed Murray State Racers, the projected automatic qualifier from the Missouri Valley Conference, who have moved up one seed line from the previous update.

In that pod, St. John’s could end up facing off against a familiar opponent, with the Creighton Bluejays projected to be in the Opening Round game as a No. 12 seed against the North Carolina State Wolfpack. The No. 5 seed is the Tennessee Volunteers, an at-large team from the SEC that has dropped a seed. There is a chance the Red Storm will see the Volunteers at the Players Era Festival during Feast Week in Las Vegas.

The teams seeded above St. John’s in the South Region of this update are the Illinois Fighting Illini as the No. 1 seed out of the Big Ten; the Houston Cougars as the No. 2 seed out of the Big 12; and the Louisville Cardinals, the No. 3 seed out of the ACC, whom the Red Storm could also match up with during the Players Era Festival.

Earning that No. 4 seed will be a little more challenging this season for St. John’s, given how much deeper the Big East is. Five teams are projected in the field along with the Red Storm: the UConn Huskies, Marquette Golden Eagles, Villanova Wildcats and Creighton.