St. John’s men’s basketball to face Rutgers in a charity exhibition game on October 21

Red Storm fans will get their first look at their transformed team a little earlier than anticipated. On October 21st, St. John’s will face the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in a charity exhibition game at Carnesecca Arena, first reported by the New York Post’s Zach Braziller and later announced by the school. Proceeds will benefit the V Foundation for Cancer Research, which was created by late college basketball coaching legend and Rutgers alum Jim Valvano.

The last time St. John’s faced a Division I opponent in an open-doors exhibition game was also against Rutgers, who narrowly defeated the Red Storm by a score of 80-78 on November 5th, 2017 at the Rutgers Athletic Center. Proceeds from that game were donated to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief in the wake of a devastating hurricane season.

Other teams have also agreed to hold charity exhibition matchups, particularly in support of the Maui wildfire recovery cause. On October 29th, Kansas and Illinois will play in a televised exhibition with proceeds going to the Maui Strong fund, which benefits those affected by the ongoing Maui wildfires. That same day, Michigan State and Tennessee will also play in their own exhibition to benefit the Maui Strong fund.

In Steve Pikiell’s eighth season in New Brunswick, Rutgers are hoping to return to the NCAA tournament after finishing a tepid 19-15 and missing the field of 68 this past March. Returning for the Scarlet Knights are All-Big Ten honoree Cliff Omoruyi, Aundre Hyatt, and Mawot Mag. After losing Paul Mulcahy, Cam Spencer, and Caleb McConnell, Steve Pikiell reloaded by nabbing fifth-year UMass guard Noah Fernandes from the transfer portal and successfully recruiting top-30 recruit Gavin Griffiths.

Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00pm. Tickets are available to purchase on Fevo.com.