With an across the board effort, the Red Storm looked clearly better than Xavier and scored a significant 82-72 Big East victory at Cintas Center. St. John’s (13-3, 4-1) has won eight of its last nine games and it seems every time it takes the floor, there is a new positive development.

Rick Pitino has compared St. John’s to a football team that runs the ball, plays terrific defense and hits a big pass once in a while. It didn’t need the long ball Tuesday night at Cintas Center. Its stifling defense and relentless rebounding was enough for an impressive 82-72 road victory over Xavier.