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St. John’s fans, circle Nov. 9.
No, there isn’t a game that day. It may be more important, however.
That’s when Babacar Sane returns to Queens Supreme Court for his second injunction hearing in a suit against the NCAA. Initially ruled ineligible, Sane was granted a temporary restraining order.
In the Red Storm’s exhibition opener, the 6-foot-8 forward was impressive, showcasing both physicality and a soft touch from the perimeter.
He sank three 3-pointers and finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and two assists in the Johnnies’ 81-52 rout of Drexel inside Carnesecca Arena.
His most impressive play came midway through the second half, when he raced downcourt to swat away a layup attempt.
Sane, who never previously attended college, signed an Exhibit 10 contract in August 2024 with the Utah Jazz, which the NCAA contends negates his eligibility status. He was under contract for only six weeks and didn’t attend training camp with the Jazz.
His side has argued that the NCAA has cleared players with similar professional experience, some of whom have made more money in pro leagues, and he didn’t play or train under said contract.
That includes two of Sane’s former G-League teammates, London Johnson and Thierry Darlan.
There has been a lot of talk about Sane’s two-way ability. During a week in the summer when alums returned, they raved about Sane. In the first exhibition game, he looked worthy of the hype.
It was a quiet scoring debut for Quinn Ellis, the EuroLeague point guard who was cleared by the NCAA on Tuesday. He was impactful otherwise. Ellis thinks pass first and frequently attacks.
He finished with six rebounds, six assists, four steals and two blocks in 27 minutes. He scored three points, all at the free-throw line.
The early leader to serve as Ellis’ backup is … Ian Jackson.
Jackson is a natural shooting guard who was asked to play some point last year. The Bronx native is back off the ball, but when Ellis was out, Jackson was running the show.
Wing Keyshawn Hall also was used to initiate offense, in a similar way that coach Rick Pitino utilized Dillon Mitchell a season ago. Pitino has raved about Jackson in recent weeks, and while he didn’t shoot well — the junior was 0-for-5 from 3-point range — Jackson did finish with 10 points, three assists and two steals.
Turnovers were a problem, something Pitino mentioned was an issue in practice.
It shouldn’t be a surprise. This team is so new. Of the 19 turnovers St. John’s committed Wednesday, some were careless, a few were forced, but a lot of them were the result of guys getting accustomed to playing with one another.
It’s going to take time. Turnovers were an early-season issue last year, before the Johnnies got much better in that area. Defensive rebounding was also problematic. Drexel had 14 offensive rebounds.