It had been more than a year of Murphy’s Law for Rafael Pinzon — whatever could go wrong, did go wrong.
As a St. John’s freshman, he dealt with a broken left ring finger and long COVID. This season was a sprained right ankle and another bout with the virus.
“It’s been one thing after another,” coach Mike Anderson said on Thursday, as the Red Storm prepared to host Villanova at the Garden on Friday night.
Finally healthy, Pinzon is getting a chance to show what he can do. He had logged extended minutes for three straight games and scored in double figures each time, providing offensive punch off the bench for St. John’s. In the Red Storm’s upset win over then-No. 6 Connecticut on Sunday, the 6-foot-6 guard from Long Island Lutheran scored 12 points and added three rebounds in a season-high 27 minutes.
This season has been frustrating, and last season was scary. Pinzon said on Thursday that doctors told him he had heart inflammation due to his battle with COVID-19. For nearly two months, he couldn’t exercise because of it.
“I couldn’t sweat,” he said. “Thank God I’m playing now, I’m healthy now. Last year, it set me back for almost all of the season.”
Still, Pinzon never thought his days of playing the sport he loved were in danger. It was just going to require patience. There was nothing he could do to change the situation. But his belief in himself through it all didn’t waver. He had strong support within the program, which included former high school teammates Drissa Traore and Andre Curbelo. He just needed his run of bad luck to end.
“It’s been a little tough, the beginning for me,” Pinzon said of his St. John’s career. “But my teammates give me confidence, my coaches give me confidence, and I keep working on my game.”
St. John’s (13-6, 3-5) has begun to turn a corner of late, following up a near-upset of No. 22 Providence with commanding wins over Butler and UConn. Its defense has improved and the increased minutes for Pinzon and freshman AJ Storr, two of the team’s top shooters, has created more spacing and balance on the offensive end. Their presence makes it tougher for the opposition to pack the paint, and has in turn opened things up for standout big man Joel Soriano and the team’s slashing guards, Curbelo, Posh Alexander and Dylan Addae-Wusu.
“With those guys on the floor, you have to really respect our jump shots,” said the 6-foot-11 Soriano, who was one of 50 players nationwide named Thursday to the Oscar Robertson Trophy Watch List for player of the year honors. “That really helps us a lot.”
The recent uptick in play has to continue for St. John’s to work its way into the NCAA Tournament picture. The Red Storm still only have one Quad 1 victory and are two games under .500 in the Big East. But they do appear to be trending in the right direction.
“We’re looking forward to building what has been taking place with our team,” Anderson said. “I think we’re moving in the right direction. … It was good to see us [play well] from start to finish in the Connecticut game.”
St. John’s is expecting a big crowd Friday night, possibly as many as 15,000, for its first game at the Garden this season. It will host signee Brandon Gardner, a four-star recruit from Christ the King, along with recruits Jaiden Glover, Jakai Sanders and Markell Alston.