To kick off their latest Big East showdown, St. John’s fans were rallying around Deivon Smith.
The senior guard made three consecutive three-pointers with the first answering back an opening deep shot from the nation’s leading scorer and St. John’s main enemy Eric Dixon.
But, as quick as an excited jolt went through the rowdy 18,178 crowd at Madison Square Garden, a sense of worry spread just as wide and fast when the star fast break maestro went down with nearly two minutes left in the first half.
Smith collided with Villanova’s Wooga Poplar, hitting his right shoulder, while going after a pass, hoping to grab a steal. He was on the ground in the aftermath, holding his shoulder in pain, before walking off the court to the locker room.
Following St. John’s 80-68 win, head coach Rick Pitino said Smith’s shoulder “popped out and popped back in” but was not dislocated. X-rays came back negative and St. John’s doesn’t believe he will need an MRI exam.
“He won’t be out for a long time. Could miss Georgetown but I don’t think it will be after that. But he’s a pretty tough kid,” Pitino said.
Prior to going down, the Loganville, Ga., native was St. John’s leading scorer at the half with 12 points, shooting 4-for-6 from the field, including 3-for-5 from deep across 17 minutes.
His absence was quickly felt by his teammates.
“Yes, of course,” Simeon Wilcher said after the game. “Just knowing what kind of player he is and how much he means to the team. To have him hurting, it kinda hurt all of us. But, we knew we had to step up and it’s kinda like a next man up. … Of course, we felt it.”
Smith came back in the second half only for three minutes while wearing a wrap around his shoulder and torso to secure it in place.
was pulled again as he wasn’t eager to use his right arm. Robert Sabo for NY Post
In his first year in Queens after transferring from Utah, Smith has averaged 10.7 points on 43.8 percent shooting and is shooting 38 percent from deep.
“He wanted back in the game because he felt they had no subs,” Pitino said. “When I saw he couldn’t shoot it, I just took him right back out. He’ll be okay. He’s a warrior.”