CINCINNATI — St. John’s leading scorer, Mustapha Heron, didn’t miss Sunday’s game against Xavier, returning after sitting out the past three contests with a sprained ankle.

The Red Storm missed pretty much everything in a 75-67 loss to the Musketeers.

St. John’s (11-4, 0-2 Big East) struggled to make shots despite the return of Heron, shooting only 35 percent from the field, 1 of 16 from beyond the arc and 62 percent from the free-throw line.

“When you don’t make shots, boy, it’s kind of disappointing,” St. John’s coach Mike Anderson said. “I know we’re much better at shooting the basketball.”

Naji Marshall scored 20 points, and freshman KyKy Tandy made four 3s in his best performance for Xavier (12-3, 1-1).

Tandy broke the game open with three consecutive 3s as Xavier pulled ahead 59-49 midway through the second half and was in control the rest of the way. Tandy went 4 of 6 from beyond the arc overall and finished with a career-high 12 points.

“You’re always going to have an unsung hero, and today it was KyKy,” Anderson said. “He hit some big shots for them, made some big momentum plays.”

Tyrique Jones added his eighth double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Heron finished with 11 points in 22 minutes. LJ Figueroa led the Red Storm with 17 points.

St. John’s got the better of it early with its pressure defense, which forced four turnovers during an 11-0 run.

Marshall hit a pair of 3s that got Xavier going, and Jones had a pair of baskets that put the Musketeers ahead 19-18. There were six lead changes in the first half, which ended with the Musketeers leading 34-32 despite 13 turnovers.

Both teams struggled with poor shooting in the first half. The Red Storm missed all nine shots from beyond the arc, while Xavier went only 4 of 11 on free throws.