There are no excuses.

There should be no platitudes.

The Big East is teed up for St. John’s. The league is down. Two contenders — Creighton and Xavier — have lost key players, Pop Isaacs and Zach Freemantle, to serious injuries. Rick Pitino is the Johnnies coach, and his roster is at worst the third-best in the league behind ninth-ranked Marquette and No. 11 Connecticut.

Go out and win 14 or 15 league games. Finish no worse than third.