The Seton Hall Pirates take on the St. John's Red Storm in New York, NY. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.
St. John's is favored by 10.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -710. The total is set at 143.5 points.
Here’s my Seton Hall vs. St. John's predictions and college basketball picks for January 20, 2026.
Seton Hall vs St. John's Prediction
My Pick: Seton Hall +10.5
My Seton Hall vs St. John's best bet is on the Pirates to cover the spread. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Seton Hall vs. St. John's Odds
| Seton Hall Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+10.5 -110 | 143.5 -110 / -110 | +490 |
| St. John's Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-10.5 -105 | 143.5 -110 / -110 | -710 |
- Seton Hall vs St. John's spread: St. John's -10.5
- Seton Hall vs St. John's over/under: 143.5 points
- Seton Hall vs St. John's moneyline: Seton Hall +490, St. John's -710
Seton Hall vs St. John's College Basketball Betting Preview
Seton Hall Basketball
The constant battle of Seton Hall living on the edge finally caught up to it on Saturday. The Pirates lost as sizeable home favorites to Butler after losing a close one to UConn on Tuesday.
Here’s the tough thing in capping a Seton Hall game: Blowing the Pirates out isn’t easy, as only one of their four losses has been by double digits. Their defense is one of the best in America, as they're 10th in defensive efficiency.
They play an aggressive style of defense and hunt turnovers, leading to a stout 22% turnover rate. That’ll help keep the Pirates in games that look like a lost cause for most teams.
Offensively, Seton Hall is a bit of a train wreck. It ranks No. 142 in KenPom’s offensive efficiency, and those issues usually creep in when the Pirates can’t force turnovers to initiate offense.
In the half-court, things are messy. They rank No. 298 in effective field goal percentage and outside the top 280 nationally in 2-point and 3-point field goal percentage.
The one saving grace is the bigs' ability to work on the offensive glass. Stephon Payne and Najai Hines both have several double-digit rebound games this season and often bail out an otherwise brutal offense.
The inability to hit 3s at an even respectable clip is really an issue for the Pirates.
Most times, Shaheen Holloway deploys three non-shooters. Adam "Budd" Clark is a crafty point guard, but he’s a non-factor from deep. Neither Hines, nor Payne, can shoot and the same applies to four-men Josh Rivera and Elijah Fisher.
With the lack of non shooters, teams can pack the paint to cut off driving lanes for Clark and defend the two marksmen, AJ Staton-McCray and Tajuan Simpkins/Mike Williams.
St. John's Basketball
St. John’s has been on a tear since losing Providence, winning four straight games, three of which were of the double-digit variety.
The Red Storm have caught fire offensively, posting 1.18 PPP or more during that four-game winning streak.
The big man tandem of Bryce Hopkins and Zuby Ejiofor is becoming very dangerous. Hopkins has reached 12+ points in four straight, while Ejiofor surpassed his season average of 16 points per game in three of four.
On the defensive end, KenPom lists St. John’s as the 20th-best unit in the country. It holds opponents to 47% shooting from inside the arc. Scoring against the length of the Johnnies could be a pretty serious obstacle for Seton Hall.
Much to Rick Pitino’s chagrin, St. John’s allows offensive rebounds on 32% of misses. That’s a bit odd considering how dominant Ejiofor and Hopkins are, but look for Seton Hall's bigs to exploit that issue.
In this matchup, St. John’s backcourt issues could really stand out. Pitino didn’t recruit a true point guard besides Dylan Darling, which seems like a misstep.
Sure, the Johnnies rank No. 26 in offensive efficiency, but how does Ian Jackson and Oziyah Sellers play against heavy and frequent on-ball pressure? Call me skeptical, but Darling might have to play 25+ minutes in this one. However, he’s just not a threat to score at all.
Seton Hall vs. St. John's Betting Analysis
I’m rolling with the points with Seton Hall. I expect the intensity on the defensive end to keep the Pirates within a couple of possessions.
All season I’ve looked to fade St. John’s in spots where I think the guard issues could haunt it — this feels like the clearest example in league play.
The talent disparity is drastic. The talent gap between Seton Hall and UConn was also vast, but the Pirates kept it close enough. The same could apply here.
My Pick: Seton Hall +10.5
