# 2015–16 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team

The 2015–16 St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team represented St. John's University during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were coached by alumni and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame member Chris Mullin in his first year at the school. St. John's home games were played at Carnesecca Arena and Madison Square Garden and was a member of the Big East Conference.
They finished the season with a record of 8–24, 1–17 in Big East play to finish in last place in conference. They lost to Marquette in the first round of the Big East tournament.

## Previous season

The Red Storm finished the 2014–15 season with a record of 21–12, 10–8 in Big East play to finish in fifth place in conference. They lost in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament to Providence. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the second round to San Diego State.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Jamal Branch | 0 | G | 6'3" | 169 | Senior | Kansas City, Missouri | Graduated |
| Phil Greene | 1 | G | 6'2" | 187 | Senior | Chicago, Illinois | Graduated |
| Myles Stewart | 2 | G | 6'5" | 180 | Freshman | Los Angeles, California | Transferred to Arizona State |
| D'Angelo Harrison | 11 | G | 6'4" | 202 | Senior | Missouri City, Texas | Graduated |
| Chris Obekpa | 12 | F/C | 6'10" | 236 | Junior | Makurdi, Nigeria | Transferred to UNLV |
| Sir'Dominic Pointer | 15 | G/F | 6'5" | 192 | Senior | Detroit, Michigan | Graduated Drafted in 2015 NBA draft |
| Jay Henderson | 22 | G | 6'5" | 180 | Freshman | Orlando, Florida | Transferred to Louisville |
| Rysheed Jordan | 23 | G | 6'4" | 193 | Sophomore | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Drafted in 2015 NBA Development League Draft |
| Adonis De La Rosa | 31 | C | 7'0" | 322 | Freshman | Bronx, New York | Transferred to Williston State |
| Joey De La Rosa | 34 | C | 6'11" | 249 | Senior | Bronx, New York | Transferred to LU–Belleville |
| Khadim Ndiaye | 35 | F | 6'6" | 195 | Senior | Queens, New York | Graduated |

### 2015 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Marcus LoVett Jr. PG | Fort Wayne, ID | Morgan Park High School | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | May 21, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Kassoum Yakwe PF | Bamako, Mali | Our Savior New American (N.Y) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Aug 23, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Yankuba Sima C | Girona, Spain | Elev8 Sports Institute | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Apr 13, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 79 ||||||
| Malik Ellison SG | Voorhees, NJ | Life Center Academy | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | May 1, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 77 ||||||
| Federico Mussini PG | Reggio Emilia, Italy | Liceo Scientifico Aldo Moro | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Jun 29, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

### Transfer additions

| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Durand Johnson | G/F | 6'6" | 210 | Graduate student | Baltimore, Maryland | grad student transfer from Pittsburgh (1 yr immediate eligibility) |
| Ron Mvouika | G | 6'6" | 210 | Graduate student | Paris, France | grad student transfer from Missouri State (1 yr immediate eligibility) |
| Tariq Owens | F | 6'11" | 190 | Sophomore | Odenton, MD | transfer from Tennessee (3 yr eligibility remaining) |
| Darien Williams | F | 6'8" | 225 | Junior | Cerritos, California | junior college transfer from City College of San Francisco (2 yrs immediate eligibility) |

### 2016 Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2016 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Shamorie Ponds PG | Brooklyn, NY | Thomas Jefferson High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Sep 29, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 88 |||||||
| Richard Freudenberg SF | Munich, Germany | Bayern Munich | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Feb 4, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. |||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| Nov 4, 2015* 7:00 pm | St. Thomas Aquinas | L 58–90 | | 16 – Mussini | 11 – Jones | 3 – Tied | Carnesecca Arena (4,058) Queens, NY |
| Nov 7, 2015* 4:00 pm | Sonoma State | W 64–46 | | 16 – Sima | 16 – Sima | 1 – Tied | Carnesecca Arena (3,902) Queens, NY |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| Nov 13, 2015* 6:00 pm, FS1 | Wagner | W 66–57 | 1–0 | 18 – Mussini | 8 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Carnesecca Arena (4,677) Queens, NY |
| Nov 16, 2015* 7:00 pm, FS1 | UMBC Maui Invitational opening round | W 75–53 | 2–0 | 18 – Mussini | 9 – Sima | 6 – Mussini | Carnesecca Arena (4,098) Queens, NY |
| Nov 19, 2015* 7:00 pm, FS1 | Rutgers Gavitt Tipoff Games | W 61–59 | 3–0 | 13 – Tied | 11 – Balamou | 7 – Balamou | Carnesecca Arena (4,540) Queens, NY |
| Nov 23, 2015* 2:30 pm, ESPN2 | vs. No. 19 Vanderbilt Maui Invitational quarterfinals | L 55–92 | 3–1 | 14 – Mussini | 5 – Jones | 2 – Mussini | Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI |
| Nov 24, 2015* 2:00 pm, ESPN2 | vs. No. 13 Indiana Maui Invitational consolation second round | L 73–83 | 3–2 | 17 – Tied | 7 – Sima | 4 – Balamou | Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI |
| Nov 25, 2015* 2:30 pm, ESPNU | vs. Chaminade Maui Invitational 7th place game | W 100–93 | 4–2 | 24 – Mussini | 11 – Jones | 6 – Mussini | Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI |
| Dec 2, 2015* 7:00 pm | at Fordham | L 57–73 | 4–3 | 14 – Balamou | 5 – Tied | 5 – Balamou | Rose Hill Gymnasium (3,068) Bronx, NY |
| Dec 6, 2015* 11 am, FS1 | St. Francis Brooklyn Madison Square Garden Holiday Festival | W 63–56 | 5–3 | 19 – Johnson | 10 – Sima | 6 – Mussini | Madison Square Garden (7,196) New York City, NY |
| Dec 9, 2015* 5:00 pm, FS1 | Niagara | W 48–44 | 6–3 | 11 – Mussini | 8 – Mvouika | 4 – Balamou | Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY |
| Dec 13, 2015* 12:00 pm, FS1 | Syracuse | W 84–72 | 7–3 | 17 – Mussini | 9 – Alibegovic | 5 – Mvouika | Madison Square Garden (13,473) New York City, NY |
| Dec 18, 2015* 7:00 pm, FS1 | Incarnate Word | L 51–73 | 7–4 | 15 – Johnson | 6 – Johnson | 3 – Tied | Carnesecca Arena (4,120) Queens, NY |
| Dec 20, 2015* 12:00 pm, FS1 | NJIT | L 74–83 | 7–5 | 20 – Mussini | 14 – Sima | 4 – Mvouika | Carnesecca Arena (4,414) Queens, NY |
| Dec 22, 2015* 9:00 pm, CBSSN | vs. No. 25 South Carolina Hall of Fame Shootout | L 61–75 | 7–6 | 16 – Johnson | 5 – Johnson | 3 – Mussini | Mohegan Sun Arena (2,355) Uncasville, CT |
| Big East regular season |||||||||
| Dec 31, 2015 2:00 pm, FS1 | Creighton | L 70–80 | 7–7 (0–1) | 17 – Ellison | 9 – Jones | 5 – Balamou | Carnesecca Arena (4,633) Queens, NY |
| Jan 2, 2016 3:30 pm, FS1 | at No. 12 Providence Big East New Year's Marathon | L 65–83 | 7–8 (0–2) | 14 – Sima | 8 – Sima | 3 – Balamou | Dunkin' Donuts Center (12,410) Providence, RI |
| Jan 6, 2016 9:00 pm, FS1 | No. 10 Xavier | L 66–74 | 7–9 (0–3) | 19 – Tied | 5 – Tied | 3 – Johnson | Carnesecca Arena (4,168) Queens, NY |
| Jan 9, 2016 2:00 pm, FSN | at Marquette | L 75–81 | 7–10 (0–4) | 18 – Johnson | 11 – Yakwe | 5 – Mvouika | BMO Harris Bradley Center (13,468) Milwaukee, WI |
| Jan 13, 2016 6:30 pm, FS1 | Georgetown | L 73–93 | 7–11 (0–5) | 15 – Mvouika | 8 – Yakwe | 4 – Mussini | Madison Square Garden (7,837) New York City, NY |
| Jan 16, 2016 12:00 pm, FS1 | at No. 23 Butler | L 58–78 | 7–12 (0–6) | 14 – Mussini | 8 – Yakwe | 2 – Tied | Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,144) Indianapolis, IN |
| Jan 24, 2016 3:45 pm, CBSSN | Marquette | L 73–78 | 7–13 (0–7) | 20 – Johnson | 8 – Yakwe | 3 – Tied | Carnesecca Arena (1,032) Queens, NY |
| Jan 27, 2016 7:00 pm, FS1 | at Seton Hall | L 60–79 | 7–14 (0–8) | 15 – Jones | 10 – Yakwe | 6 – Ellison | Prudential Center (6,767) Newark, NJ |
| Jan 31, 2016 12:00 pm, FOX | No. 6 Villanova | L 53–68 | 7–15 (0–9) | 13 – Johnson | 10 – Mvouika | 6 – Mvouika | Madison Square Garden (12,713) New York City, NY |
| Feb 3, 2016 6:30 pm, FS1 | at No. 6 Xavier | L 83–90 | 7–16 (0–10) | 20 – Balamou | 7 – Yakwe | 3 – Tied | Cintas Center (10,250) Cincinnati, OH |
| Feb 6, 2016 4:30 pm, FSN | Butler | L 56–89 | 7–17 (0–11) | 11 – Yakwe | 5 – Sima | 3 – Sima | Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY |
| Feb 8, 2016 7:00 pm, FS1 | at Georgetown | L 67–92 | 7–18 (0–12) | 14 – Jones | 9 – Jones | 3 – Ellison | Verizon Center (5,369) Washington, D.C. |
| Feb 13, 2016 8:00 pm, CBSSN | at No. 1 Villanova | L 63–73 | 7–19 (0–13) | 18 – Alibegovic | 6 – Alibegovic | 5 – Ellison | Wells Fargo Center (18,052) Philadelphia, PA |
| Feb 17, 2016 8:00 pm, CBSSN | DePaul | W 80–65 | 8–19 (1–13) | 18 – Johnson | 11 – Yakwe | 5 – Balamou | Carnesecca Arena (5,010) Queens, NY |
| Feb 21, 2016 12:00 pm, FS1 | Seton Hall | L 61–62 | 8–20 (1–14) | 16 – Yakwe | 15 – Yakwe | 3 – Ellison | Madison Square Garden (13,204) New York City, NY |
| Feb 25, 2016 9:00 pm, FS1 | at DePaul | L 75–83 | 8–21 (1–15) | 20 – Mvouika | 6 – Tied | 7 – Balamou | Allstate Arena (4,817) Rosemont, IL |
| Feb 28, 2016 2:30 pm, FS1 | at Creighton | L 59–100 | 8–22 (1–16) | 17 – Jones | 6 – Johnson | 4 – Tied | CenturyLink Center (17,351) Omaha, NE |
| Mar 5, 2016 12:30 pm, FS1 | Providence | L 76–90 | 8–23 (1–17) | 15 – Johnson | 12 – Jones | 5 – Tied | Madison Square Garden (10,079) New York City, NY |
| Big East tournament |||||||||
| Mar 9, 2016 9:30 pm, FS1 | vs. Marquette First round | L 93–101 | 8–24 | 29 – Jones | 7 – Jones | 5 – Ellison | Madison Square Garden (12,604) New York City, NY |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||