Butler @ St. John's preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 19, 2019 ) St. John's 71, Butler 80

The Big East has five teams tied for third at 5-6 in conference play, and two of them will meet Tuesday night when Butler visits St. John's. The quintet of squads looks up at Villanova (10-1) and Marquette (9-2) and all of them know that a strong stretch run will be crucial for their chances of making the NCAA Tournament.

"We're not hurting anybody but ourselves," Red Storm senior forward Marvin Clark II told reporters after a damaging 70-56 home loss to Providence on Saturday. "I need to look myself in the [mirror] and then when I talk to my teammates, we all need to look at each other in the eye and we got to string something together, or we're just going to be another talented St. John's team." The loss to the Friars came in the opener of a stretch that sees St. John's play five of six games at home, including a matchup with the first-place Wildcats on Sunday. The Bulldogs rebounded from a three-game losing streak by winning their last two contests by a combined six points. Junior guard Kamar Baldwin, who scored a season-high 30 points in a win over the Red Storm at home last month, had 18 points to help Butler to a 73-69 victory at Georgetown on Saturday.

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network

ABOUT BUTLER (14-10, 5-6 Big East): Sophomore forward Jordan Tucker scored 14 of his 15 points prior to the break in the win at Georgetown, and his team held off a late charge by the Hoyas despite shooting 39.3 percent from the floor in the second half. "It might not have been the prettiest performance, but the team had to fight for each other and find a way to grit it out at the end," coach LaVall Jordan told reporters. "Guys had to step up and hit big shots early and some big shots late. I thought our bench was tremendous with their energy and I'm just proud of this one." Senior guard Paul Jorgensen led the reserves with 12 points in 18 minutes and he ranks second on the team in scoring (11.8 points per game) to Baldwin (17.3).

ABOUT ST. JOHN'S (17-7, 5-6): Saturday's 56-point effort was the Red Storm's worst in Big East action since it was held to 45 in a loss at Butler last season, and the absence of second-leading scorer Mustapha Heron (knee) was a factor. Junior guard Shamorie Ponds scored 20 points and ranks third in the conference with 20.7 per game. Clark and junior guard Justin Simon, who average a combined 21.5 points, were held to a total of 10 on 4-of-14 shooting in the loss Saturday.

TIP-INS

1. Heron is expected to return to the lineup Tuesday.

2. Bulldogs G Aaron Thompson has made all four of his shot attempts while recording nine assists over the last two games.

3. Butler has won seven of the last nine meetings.

PREDICTION: St. John's 74, Butler 70