Anthony Mason was a 6-foot-7, 250-pound muscle-bound junkyard dog who backed away from no one and believed pain didn’t hurt when he played for the Knicks.

He epitomized New York toughness. Mason’s son, Anthony Mason Jr., a junior swingman at St. John’s, looks little like his father in terms of physique.

At 6-7, 203 pounds, Mase Jr. moves like a skater on ice. He has electrifying hops and often is on the end of alley-oop passes from Eugene Lawrence that he throws down for dunks.

But Sunday in a 73-64 win at Cincinnati, St. John’s fans were thrilled to learn that when it comes to the Masons – like father, like son.

Early in the second half he got swiped across the left hand when he made a drop-step move in the post. The middle finger on his left hand was hyperextended, dislocating the middle knuckle. Coach Norm Roberts described it as a grotesque injury.

The middle finger on Mase’s left hand was taped to the ring finger and he returned to the court. Even yesterday, the swelling in the finger was noticeable, and Mason acknowledged he was in pain. But he didn’t come out of the win at Cincy and he certainly will be in the lineup tonight when the Red Storm (13-10, 4-6 Big East) host South Florida (12-11, 3-6) in a key Big East Conference game in Carnesecca Arena.

The Red Storm now control their destiny in terms of gaining their first berth in the Big East Conference tournament since 2003. Two more league wins should do the trick, and three almost will guarantee a place in the 12-team field.

It is gut-check time and the Red Storm already have one player who’s passed that test. An X-ray revealed a hairline fracture. Mason will play the rest of the season with the middle and ring fingers taped together.

“You don’t ever know how a kid is going to respond to an injury like that or any injury until it actually happens in the heat of battle,” said Roberts. “He responded very, very well.”

SO. FLORIDA at ST. JOHN’S Tonight7:30 – MSG ESPN-1050