Back on Feb. 6 at the Garden, all the pressure was on St. John’s.
The Johnnies trailed Connecticut, not just in the Big East standings, but in terms of pedigree. There was some uncertainty whether they were even on the Huskies’ level.
Nineteen days later, the roles are somewhat reversed.
The No. 15 Johnnies sit all alone atop the league and haven’t lost since Jan. 3, and that includes their impressive nine-point win over No. 6 UConn at MSG. Dan Hurley’s Huskies, meanwhile, fell to a Creighton team St. John’s beat by 29 on Saturday, and are precariously hanging on to the coveted last No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. There is some doubt if Connecticut is a true national championship contender, if it is on the same level as the likes of Michigan, Arizona, Duke, Florida, Iowa State and others.