Sports Poets Society

March 30, 2010 By BILLY WITZ New York Times A little more than a month before Steve Lavin, with John Wooden as his best man, was to marry the actress Mary Jarou at an exclusive cliffside resort in Laguna Beach in 2007 , several hundred wedding guests received an e-mail message from the couple.  Sorry to inform them, it read, but too many guests had accepted their invitations to the wedding, far more than the resort could accommodate. Instead, the couple announced, they would be heading to Europe to marry.  The couple apologized for any inconvenience and assured guests that they would receive photographs of the wedding.  The story of Lavin’s nuptials should prove instructive for fans of St. John’s, which made its own commitment to Lavin, an ESPN analyst and former U.C.L.A. coach, on Tuesday when he agreed to a six-year contract worth at least $9 million. The Red Storm and its fans are about to be welcomed into Lav’s World, where wedding plans a...

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/24932234/st-johns-point-guard-rysheed-jordan-takes-leave-of-absence By Sam Vecenie | CBSSports.com January 2, 2015 9:07 pm ET St. John's point guard Rysheed Jordan is taking an indefinite leave of absence, according to a release from the school. St. John's head coach Steve Lavin announced that Rysheed Jordan is taking a leave of absence from the basketball program as he deals with personal and family matters in Philadelphia. Jordan, a 6-foot-4 sophomore guard, will not be with the team for Saturday's contest with Butler at Carnesecca Arena . "Rysheed will take an indefinite leave of absence from our basketball program and will not be with the team as he focuses his attention on personal and family circumstances ," said Lavin. ESPN's Jeff Goodman was first to report the news. It's unknown at this point what Jordan's personal matters pertain to. However, it is known tha...

• Xavier (#29) is among 5 BIG EAST teams in the top 30 of the NCAA official Daily RPI . St. John’s is at #44. • Xavier, 18-10 and 8-7 in the BIG EAST , is coming off an impressive 73-56 win over #19 Butler on Saturday. • Xavier is now 4-1 this season against AP Top 25 teams . • Xavier leads the BIG EA ST in offense (75.7 PPG.), assists (17.0 APG), AST-to-TO ratio (1.44) and FG% (.481). • Xavier sr. DEE DAVIS (#11) is 2nd in the BIG EAST & 11th in the nation in assists (6.2 APG.). • Xavier soph. Myles Davis, who is third on the team in scoring at 11.4 PPG, leads XU in scoring for BIG EAST games at 12.5 ppg. • Xavier fr. TREVON BLUIETT (#5) leads XU & is 2nd among BIG EAST freshmen at 12.1 PPG . • Xavier sr. Matt Stainbrook (#40), a BIG EAST leader in reb. (6th), scoring (17th) & FG% (4th), is a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award. • Xavier jr. JAMES FARR  (#2) tied for game-high rebounding honors vs. Butler with 11, his team-high fift...

A different, interesting situation has settled over Victory Parkway as Xavier heads into the 2014-15 season as one of only 13 teams that have advanced to the NCAA tournament 8 of the last 9 seasons . In one corner of Cintas Center stand 6 returning players off last year’s team that was picked to finish sixth in its first season in the Big East , then rocketed up the league standings to wind up tied for third . In another corner of the arena stand 6 freshmen , all of whom believe they can contribute right from the jump but who have to handle the highs and lows that come with a long season of college competition. And somewhere in the middle of both groups, say standing on the “X” at center court, is Indiana transfer Reby Abell , who was around the program every day last year but whose next basket for coach Chris Mack will be his first. Six old guys, 6 new guys and one new/old guy are ready to chase a conference crown for one of the country’s most consistent programs in an ultra...

by Mike Waters   In 2011, Steve Lavin’s first year at St. John’s , he guided the Red Storm to 21 wins and the school’s first NCAA tournament appearance in nine years . But that team was laden with seniors, players recruited by previous head coach Norm Roberts .  Lavin’s first-year success was nice, but it was temporary. And he knew it.  “We didn’t have any returning players in year two ,” Lavin said. “I’ve never experienced that before as a coach or even in my time in broadcasting. Sometimes you have two or three returning players. We had none.”  That year, Lavin put together a stellar recruiting class, his recruits were thrown into the fire, and St. John’s managed just 13 wins . The next year the win total improved to 17 , and last season the Red Storm won 20 games and made the NIT . Now, Lavin’s first recruits at St. John’s—five players out of his original class—are entering their senior year.  “They are battle-tested seniors, who have b...

Prior to the 1994–1995 school year, the university's nickname was the St. John's Redmen , which referenced the red uniforms worn by its teams in competition. The name was interpreted as a Native American reference in the 1960s , and the university did have a mascot (adorned in Native American dress), which eventually led to the team's name change to the Red Storm .  The change happened at a time when there was mounting pressure on colleges and universities to adopt names more sensitive to Native American culture . The Redmen name still remains popular among fans , however, as does " Johnnies ".  In spring 2009, St. John's allowed its students to vote on what the new official Red Storm mascot would be. At a soccer game in fall 2009 , members of the Athletics Department announced that a Thunderbird had received the majority of votes and would become the new mascot. After a vote, the new mascot was named Johnny Thunderbird . He can be seen at m...

Xavier is one of a handful of universities with two mascots . D'Artagnan, the Musketeer , is the university's official mascot and is the origin of the school's nickname , The Xavier Musketeers.  The Musketeer concept was suggested in 1925 by the late Reverend Francis J. Finn , S.J.  The Blue Blob is a furry creature that has made several television and magazine appearances over the years, including a controversial Playboy appearance. The Blue Blob has Bobble-Body dolls, Plush replicas, and T-shirts made in his likeness, and an annual Blue Blob Appreciation Night during the Musketeer's basketball season. He most recently appeared on two ESPN This is SportsCenter commercials with Pro Football Hall of Fame member Jim Kelly and Sports Center anchors Scott Van Pelt and John Anderson. The Blue Blob came about in 1985 when the spirit squad coordinators realized that a more audience- friendly mascot was needed as the musketeer mascot , who sported a handlebar must...

It's a game that both teams have to have to bolster their resume for the "big dance." St. John's. Xavier. Basketball. Madison Square Garden. Tonight. Let's do it. It seems like most "experts" agree that the Big East has 4 teams as locks for the NCAA Tournament, with a chance to have as many as 6. The two teams who could add those two spots for the Big East happen to do battle tonight from (I think it's mandatory to say this or else I get in trouble), "The World's Most Famous Arena." St. John's hosts Xavier tonight in the second meeting of the year, with each team sharing the national spotlight ( Tip off 8:00 p.m. on Fox Sports 1 nationally ) for a chance to show the committee that they are the more deserving team to make the tournament. These teams met 9 days ago at the Cintas Center in Ohio, with the Red Storm coming away with a 78-70 victory over the Musketeers . Sir'Dominic Pointer notched 24 points for the Johnnies...