The clichés were cut short. St. John’s saw no point in pretending. Sunday afternoon was approaching and more than 19,000 reminders would fill Madison Square Garden, showing the Red Storm that their next game was unlike any other this season, that their next opponent was unlike any other opponent.
No. 5 Duke was arriving, as was St. John’s rare opportunity at a season-altering and perception-altering victory.
“The anticipation is palpable,” coach Steve Lavin said.
The circumstances surrounding St. John’s (13-5, 2-4) showdown with the superpower have turned a big game into a national event — 40 years in the making.
Already the winningest coach in NCAA Division I history, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski will look to reach 1,000 career victories (926 at Duke), with the Blue Devils (16-2, 4-2 ACC) having won two straight, following an unusual two-game slide.
Lavin, who once wrote letters to Krzyzewski asking for advice about how to pursue a coaching career, compared the legend to Halley’s Comet, something seen once in a lifetime, if at all.
D’Angelo Harrison was just hoping not to see himself in a highlight that could play for years.
“We just don’t want them to celebrate on our court,” said Harrison, who has shot 5-of-28 over the past two games while playing with a strained calf. “This is a huge game, sold-out already. We don’t want to be the team that he got it on.”
Duke freshman center Jahlil Okafor’s presence in the building he could call home in the fall, as the Knicks’ potential No. 1 pick in the next NBA Draft, only adds more intrigue.
Okafor, a frontrunner for National Player of the Year who averages 18.6 points and 8.9 rebounds, while shooting 67 percent from the field, will go up against St. John’s center Chris Obekpa, who ranks third in the nation with 3.6 blocks per game.
“He knows how much that little mini-battle during the game will play a part in a lot of things for him and his future,” Harrison said of Obekpa. “I know he’s gonna be amped up for the game. I know he wants to make Jahlil’s night one of the worst of his career. He’s been hyped up for a few days now … You could just tell he’s in a different [mindset] right now.”
Somewhere in the shadow of Duke’s Hall of Fame coach and Duke’s freshman phenom is Duke’s opponent, the home team with nothing to lose and so much to gain.
Four years ago, the Red Storm pulled a memorable upset over Duke at the Garden, when a struggling, senior-led St. John’s team had lost five of its previous six games, but beat the No. 3 team in the nation to begin a run of eight wins in nine games to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in nine years.
Now, another senior-led St. John’s squad has its shot.
“They have played against sold-out crowds, but none of them have played in a game like this. That will play a factor,” Harrison said of the younger Blue Devils. “Whoever wins is going to be who can go on a run or who can throw a knockout punch late. We have done that in a lot of big games this year.”