Tounde Yessoufou’s first game with St. John’s after leaving Baylor was underwhelming.
His second, which came on Sunday against the Iona Gaels, was a statement.
If anyone was wondering if the transfer from Baylor could shine for the Johnnies, that has all gone out the window. It’s clear Yessoufou has some of the country’s best talent.
Yessoufou was a guy who many thought would be a one-and-done at Baylor last year to go straight to the NBA.
Instead, he didn’t have quite the season hoped for, and he chose in the offseason to come and play for Rick Pitino.
If he has more days like Sunday, it’ll turn out to be a great choice.
Tounde Yessoufou St. John’s Stats After Leaving Baylor
Tounde Yessoufou has now played two games with St. John’s after leaving Baylor, and the Red Storm is 2-0.
The first came on college basketball opening night, which was Monday, Nov. 2.
St. John’s beat Monmouth that night 78-63, and Yessoufou had 12 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block on inefficient shooting.
On Sunday the Johnnies were back on the court against Pitino’s former Iona program, and they won 104-65.
Yessoufou needed just 21 minutes to score 23 points on 9-for-14 shooting, including 4-for-7 from 3-point range. The athletic guard also had seven rebounds, three steals, two blocks and an assist.
Maybe the only negative was a 1-for-3 showing at the foul line. Other than that, Yessoufou looked like the stud who so many have expected him to be.
There will be tougher games for St. John’s, but it had to be encouraging to see Yessoufou look this good.
Baylor is surely missing his talent, and the Johnnies must be glad to have him.
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One Other Yessoufou Fun Fact
Many made the case when Yessoufou was a high school recruit that he was a lookalike to the Minnesota Timberwolves‘ superstar Anthony Edwards.
He’s got a similar style of play, too, which is a fun thing to think about for St. John’s fans.
Yessoufou looks less in his appearance like Edwards now, but he’s still got a lot of the positive basketball traits. That’s the thing that the Red Storm will be concerned with, and that the Baylor Bears might be missing.
St. John’s Tounde Yessoufou Dominates After Leaving Baylor