St. John’s wins first Big East Tournament championship in 25 years with win over Creighton

Saturday night’s second half was this remarkable season neatly packed into 20 brilliant minutes.

A jam-packed Garden full of St. John’s fans on their feet, making the building sound like it was 1985. One defensive stop after another becoming one easy basket in transition after another.

A second-half deficit erased.

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There were RJ Luis Jr., Kadary Richmond and Zuby Ejiofor taking turns burying second-seeded Creighton, switching off like good and trusting teammates will in this thrilling 82-66 Big East Tournament championship game victory that saw No. 1 St. John’s outscore the Bluejays by 19 points over the final 12:53.

“I said to people [at halftime], ‘We got them right where we want them,’ ” recalled the Rev. Brian J. Shanley, the St. John’s president and man responsible for hiring Rick Pitino roughly two years ago. “We’re behind.”

Not for long, they weren’t.

Once that run started, the second-seeded Bluejays were cooked, much like Marquette the night before, much like so many opponents throughout this Red Storm (30-4) winter of joy.

It oddly began with a questionable Luis technical foul, after he sank a 3-pointer. The junior had flashed three fingers, and the official took it as him making a gun sign at an opponent. It was not his intention.

Steven Ashworth pulled Creighton (24-10) within two at the free-throw line.

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Then came the St. John’s avalanche.

An 18-5 burst that began with consecutive Richmond baskets inside and was capped by a Luis layup. The lead was now 15.

St. John’s was on its way to its first Big East Tournament title in 25 years, likely headed to a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

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“Like Coach P says, there’s not that many second chances in life, so when the opportunity presents itself, you’ve got to grab it by the neck,” Luis said.

He added: “This has by far been the most emotional, happiest week of my 22 years of existence, so this is great.”

Luis, the school’s first Big East Player of the Year since Walter Berry in 1986, poured in 29 points — 27 after halftime — en route to Most Outstanding Player honors of the tournament. A day after setting the St. John’s Big East Tournament record with 33 points, Ejiofor added 20 points and Richmond notched 12 points, 12 rebounds and four assists.

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In the second half, St. John’s exploded for 57 points on 71.9 percent shooting, hitting 14 consecutive shots in one dizzying stretch. Ryan Kalkbrenner, the four-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year, was a nonfactor over the final 20 minutes, St. John’s piling up 50 points in the paint despite the 7-foot-1 center’s presence.

“What we talked about at halftime was take it to the rim, use the rim as a shield,” Pitino said of Kalkbrenner. “He can’t cut through steel.”

St. John’s trailed at halftime by three and led by only one with 9:05 to go. That was all that remained in the Big East season. Its two best teams hadn’t decided anything, captivating a sold-out Garden.

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Out of a timeout, St. John’s finally turned it on. Luis sank a 3-pointer. Richmond scored on consecutive drives. Luis finished in the paint.

The lead was now eight, and Creighton called a timeout to try to quiet the building and shift momentum. It didn’t work.

Soon the lead would be into double figures. Soon, St. John’s would be celebrating another championship.

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Confetti fell from the roof as chants of “Let’s go Johnnies!” echoed throughout the arena. St. John’s cut down the nets.

When Pitino took over, he promised that St. John’s would get to this point. Nobody could’ve anticipated it happening so fast — except for Pitino.

“I said it at the press conference, we would be back,” he joked. “I didn’t lie to you, did I?”

The season isn’t done yet. Now comes the big tournament — the NCAA Tournament. St. John’s almost certainly will start in Providence as it chases its first trip to the Sweet 16 since 1999. For weeks, the Johnnies have talked about three different phases: Winning the Big East regular-season championship, conference tournament, and going as far as it can in the Big Dance.

“This is what we’ve been playing all year for, moments like these,” Ejiofor said. “I’m just so happy to be a part of history.

“We still got a lot more to prove and I’m [ready] for it.”