UConn's Dan Hurley Praises St. John's Guard RJ Luis: 'He's An NBA Player'
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UConn head coach Dan Hurley praised St. John’s guard RJ Luis ahead of Sunday’s Big East showdown between the Huskies and the Red Storm.
“He’s an NBA player,” Hurley said of Luis during a pregame media availability session on Saturday. “When you put two six-foot-six players and two-way rebounders, him and Kadary (Richmond), at the guard spots with (Deivon) Smith or Sim (Wilcher), it’s an intimidating tandem. They’re both highly efficient scorers.”
Luis scored 21 points on 10-for-21 from the field to go along with seven rebounds versus UConn on February 7, a 68-62 statement victory for the Red Storm.
Luis was 0-for-6 from three in that game but still destroyed the Huskies — a testament to how dangerous he is in the midrange.
Luis is averaging 17.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists this season on 44.5 percent shooting in 26 games for Rick Pitino and St. John’s. This is Luis’s second season with the Red Storm. He started his career at Massachusets, where he was named to the All-Freshmen team in the A-10 for averaging 11.5 points and 4.6 rebounds in 22.7 minutes per game.
A native of Miami, Florida, Luis attended Christopher Columbus High School in Miami before transferring to Mt. Zion Prep in Seabrook, Maryland.
Luis is widely expected to test the NBA draft waters following the season. St. John’s enters Sunday’s contest with a 23-4 record and a 14-2 record in the Big East, good for first place in the Conference.
Luis is a huge reason why.
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Colin Keane is a contributing journalist for "UConn Huskies On SI." Born in Illinois, Colin grew up in Massachusetts as the third of four brothers. For his high school education, Colin attended St. Mark's School (Southborough, MA), where he played basketball and soccer and served as student body president. He went on to receive a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Villanova University. Colin currently resides in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "UConn Huskies On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org