St. John’s defense put the squeeze on standout Seton Hall wing Isaiah Coleman, who tallied 11 points and six boards but shot just 1-of-12 from the field. A bad game for the Hall got worse when starting guard Chaunce Jenkins (11.3 ppg) limped off the court shortly before halftime and did not return due to a hamstring injury.

RJ Luis went for 22 points and 8 rebounds and Zuby Ejiofor had 15 and 9 for St. John’s (16-3, 7-1 Big East), which has won five straight and is poised for the program’s first NCAA Tournament main-draw bid since 2015.

After the first one, coach Shaheen Holloway threw his hands into the air as Luis lobbed the ball to Smith in transition, Smith returned an alley-oop back across the paint and Luis finished the dunk. “Let’s go Johnnies” chants even broke out inside The Rock.