Ian Jackson might come off the bench for St. John’s, but the guard made his presence felt on both sides of the court during the Red Storm’s win against Villanova on Saturday.
His instant impact caught the eye of FOX Sports’ play-by-play announcer, Gus Johnson, as Jackson earned a spot on his coveted “Got It” team.
“Ian, what a game tonight,” Johnson said.
Jackson starred in his role, scoring 19 points and grabbing five rebounds, but what impressed Johnson the most was his career-high five steals.
“The big thing for me is to try and figure things out on defense, get that going for me, get some steals, get some layups.” Jackson said.
Midway through the first half, Jackson intercepted a pass from Wildcats’ guard Acaden Lewis, drawing a trip to the free throw line on the other side. He stole guard Chris Jeffrey’s pass 20 seconds later and finished that fast-break with a thunderous dunk. That play helped St. John’s double up Villanova’s score, 28-14.
St. John’s Ian Jackson Rips the Steal and Throws Down a Thunderous Slam vs. Villanova
“Whether it’s scoring, or it’s defending, rebounding, and tonight, it was a little bit of defense and scoring, you know,” Jackson said. “Whatever I can do to impact the game, and win is what I’m going to do.”
Jackson transferred to St. John’s from North Carolina prior to the season. He hasn’t complained about his role — regardless of if he’s asked to score, facilitate or defend. That selflessness has been crucial to the Red Storm winning 14 of their last 15 games, and bouncing back from a 32-point loss to UConn on Wednesday to beat Villanova by 32.
