As March Madness rapidly approaches, St. John’s looks like it could earn a top-two seed if it keeps up its play in the Big East, which is why Seton Hall is going to be in for a long afternoon against Rick Pitino’s squad.
The Red Storm lead the Big East with a devastating defense and three reliable scorers, while the Pirates are among the worst high-major programs in the country, and I think Pitino’s team will take advantage.
Join me as I explain my Seton Hall vs. St. John’s predictions and college basketball picks for Saturday, March 1.
Seton Hall vs St. John’s prediction
My best bet
St. John's -20 (-110 at bet365)
My analysis
In his second season at the helm, Rick Pitino has turned back the clock for the St. John's Red Storm and has this team looking like it did in the Lou Carnesecca and Chris Mullin days.
Since Nov. 30, St. John’s is 20-2 and has been hammering Big East opponents.
The program sits first in the conference with a 16-2 record, and the last time it played Seton Hall Pirates, it wasn’t pretty for the Pirates. St. John’s was a 9.5-point road favorite and beat Shaheen Holloway’s team 79-51 and held all but one player on Seton Hall to fewer than double-digit points.
It should be much of the same today, with this St. John’s defense sitting second in the country in adjusted efficiency and allowing the fewest points per game (64.0) and lowest field goal percentage (39%) in conference play.
That doesn’t bode well for a Seton Hall team that’s last in Big East play in PPG (63.5), field goal percentage (39.2%), APG (10.6), and RPG (27.0). This is about as lopsided as a matchup can get, even with St. John’s offense struggling at times this season.
Despite its inability to hit threes, the Red Storm still put up the fourth-most PPG in Big East games (74.4) and led the conference in 2-pointers made per game (22.8).
Part of the reason why is due to their ability to dominate the glass behind Zuby Ejiofor and RJ Luis, those two have St. John’s sitting first in the conference in RPG (35.4) and offensive rebounds per game (12.2).
They’re also two of Pitino’s three trusted scorers, with the other being Kadary Richmond. Those three combined for 46.3 PPG in the Big East and should shock a Pirates defense that allows the highest 2-point percentage in the conference.
Pitino’s team has covered in nine of its last 14 games, and should again against an overmatched Seton Hall team.
Seton Hall vs St. John’s same-game parlay (SGP)
St. John's -20
R.J. Luis Over 16.5 points
Isaiah Coleman Under 15.5 points
The reason St. John’s has the ability to win the NCAA Tournament is because it has a scorer capable of taking over games in R.J. Luis. He’s elevated his play in the second half of the season and is averaging 18.2 PPG against Big East opponents.
The UMass transfer has become a star in his second season with St. John’s and put up 24 points the last time he played Seton Hall. The last time Isaiah Coleman played St. John’s though, it didn’t go so well.
The Pirates leading scorer (15.4 PPG) had just 11 points against St. John’s in January, and it will likely be a similar outcome against one of the countries top defenses.
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Seton Hall vs St. John’s odds
Seton Hall vs St. John’s live odds
Seton Hall vs St. John’s opening odds
- Spread: Seton Hall +21.5 (-110) | St. John’s -21.5 (-110)
- Moneyline: Seton Hall (+2500) | St. John’s (-10000)
- Over/Under: Over 133.5 (-110) | Under 133.5 (-110)
Odds courtesy of bet365
Seton Hall vs St. John’s betting trend to know
St. John's has covered the Spread in 19 of their last 33 games (+4.55 Units / 12% ROI). Find more college basketball betting trends for Seton Hall vs. St. John’s.
How to watch Seton Hall vs St. John’s
| Location | Madison Square Garden, New York, NY |
| Date | Saturday, 3-1-2025 |
| Tip-off | 2:15 p.m. ET |
| TV | CBS |
Seton Hall vs St. John’s key injuries
Not intended for use in MA.
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