Finally, Chris Mullin claimed his first Big East win since 1985. And finally, St. John’s won its first game since what felt like 1985.
The longest losing streak in the nation and the worst stretch in school history came to an end Wednesday night at Carnesecca Arena, as the Red Storm won their first game in more than two months, 80-65, over DePaul to stop their 16-game slide.
With its first victory since Dec. 13, St. John’s (8-19, 1-13) avoided the potential infamy of a winless season in the Big East, earning a win that often seemed like it would be a season away.
“I’m happy for the guys in the locker room,” Mullin said. “They’ve worked really hard, and probably more importantly, their approach and attitude every day has been really impressive. From that standpoint, there’s somewhat of a relief.
“[As a coach], you can only do so much. They’ve gotta break through themselves. That was the next step. They’ve played well enough in segments of games, but it’s been a long time since we came out on the winning end.”
Facing the next closest team to them in the standings, the ninth-place Blue Devils, the Red Storm took advantage of their best opportunity, shooting more than 56 percent from the field in the second half to take an insurmountable 20-point lead, behind Federico Mussini’s 17 second-half points.
Freshman Kassoum Yakwe added 11 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks, while Durand Johnson scored a team-high 18 points.
“It was about damn time,” graduate forward Ron Mvouika said. “I knew we all had to stick together, have positive thoughts, positive spirits. We knew we were going to get one. Now, we have to build on it. The season isn’t over as far as we’re concerned.”
St. John’s led 31-24 at the end of an ugly first half for both sides, then committed three turnovers in the first two minutes of the second half to cough up the lead, starting what seemed as if would become a familiar ending.
Instead, the Red Storm quickly regained control before the shoulders in the seats could sag any further, keeping a double-digit lead until the final minutes to hold off DePaul (8-17, 2-11), which was led by Eli Cain’s 25 points.
“I didn’t want to give an explanation about how we didn’t get it done,” Johnson said. “We got it done. It’s a good feeling. It feels good to finally be on the winning side for a change. We’ll try to get a couple more wins.”
As the game ended, the near-sellout crowd rose to its feet in unison, appreciating a moment so often taken for granted, in appreciation of a team playing for so much more than this season.
Finally, the worst was over. Finally, the kids again looked like kids, smiling and slapping hands, looking like there was so much more ahead of them to enjoy.
“What we’ve been talking about as a group, it takes a lot to be a good player, it takes a lot to be a winning team,” Mullin said. “It doesn’t just happen. You can’t map out, what that road is, what that journey is. Things aren’t handed to you.
“If this is the toughest thing you go through you’re in pretty good shape.”