Game Thread: St. John's vs. Georgetown

St. John's vs. Georgetown

When: Monday, February 8, 2016 at 7 p.m. ET

Where: Verizon Center, Washington, D.C.

How to Watch: FOX Sports 1 or FOX Sports Go (online or mobile app)

How to Listen: 970 WNYM

The Red Storm were run out of their own gym on Saturday versus the Butler Bulldogs and now the team will have to refocus for tonight's game versus another Big East bubble team, the Georgetown Hoyas. Behind 33 points from D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera, John Thompson III's unit beat St. John's by 20 and dropped 93 points at The Garden in mid-January.

Smith-Rivera has been the leader of the Hoyas offense all season so if the Johnnies are going to have any chance at pulling off the massive upset, they will have to contain the senior guard. That task could be up to Felix Balamou, who has the length and on-ball defensive skills to challenge the Hoyas' best player.

Meanwhile, Yankuba Sima, Kassoum Yakwe and Christian Jones must be tough on the glass as Bradley Hayes, Isaac Copeland and Jessie Govan all bring a physical presence, similar to the Seton Hall Pirates, who pounded St. John's in the paint two weeks ago.

The Johnnies must get out to a good start, take care of the basketball and make shots at the Verizon Center or this could be a long night on the way to 15 straight losses.

Will Federico Mussini and Durand Johnson bounce back following poor outings on Saturday?

How does Sima look in his second game back? And will he receive an increase in minutes?

Will Balamou indeed be the player to guard Smith-Rivera? Or will Malik Ellison take the job?

Pre-game reading:

St. John's vs. Georgetown: Game Preview

Beacons of Hope: Recruiting holds big promise