St. John’s forward Bryce Hopkins heard boos throughout Saturday afternoon’s game at Madison Square Garden.
Not from the St. John’s faithful, but rather from a sizable contingent of Providence fans who made their feelings known toward their team’s former star.
Saturday afternoon’s 77-71 loss to Providence marked Hopkins’ first time facing the Friars since he transferred to St. John’s last offseason.
Hopkins finished with nine points on 3-of-13 shooting and 10 rebounds in 27 minutes.
“I took my matchup personal, and I feel like I did great,” said Friars freshman forward Jamier Jones, who guarded Hopkins on Saturday.
Hopkins spent the previous three seasons at Providence, and he was named to the All-Big East first team in 2022-23.
But Hopkins tore the ACL in his left knee in January 2024, which ended his junior season after 14 games. He then appeared in only three games last season before he was shut down with a bone bruise in the same knee.
Hopkins’ departure for a Big East rival became a sore spot for Providence fans, while Jones has been part of the Friars’ solution for replacing his production.
Jones finished 15 points and 10 rebounds in Saturday’s win.
Asked why he took the Hopkins defensive assignment personally, Jones replied, “Him being here last year, and I feel like if he was here this year, I should still play over him.”
Hopkins is averaging 13.1 points and 5.1 rebounds per game this season. St. John’s is set to visit Providence on Feb. 14.
IN-HOUSE SOLUTION
St. John’s will not make an in-season addition to its roster to solve its point guard problem.
“I won’t revisit it,” head coach Rick Pitino said after Saturday’s loss. “We’ll shoulder it. And by the way, the guys I was looking at, I didn’t think were that good. … We’ll stick with what we have and hopefully get better.”
Pitino’s comments follow Baylor’s controversial recent signing of center James Nnaji, an international player whom the Detroit Pistons selected with the No. 31 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
Nnaji’s draft rights were later sent to the Charlotte Hornets, and then to the Knicks in the three-team Karl-Anthony Towns trade. But Nnaji has never appeared in an NBA game, maintaining his NCAA eligibility.
