CHICAGO — There isn’t a moment Glenn Taylor Jr. can point to.
There’s no turning point; nothing specifically happened that has led to his recent 180-degree turn from an afterthought to an integral two-way piece for St. John’s.
It’s more a few mindset. Nothing helpful, he told himself during down points within the season, would come out of being negative.
“I stayed within the gym when things weren’t going well, and I believe that helped me out loads,” Taylor recalled on Monday, as surging St. John’s prepared to face DePaul on Tuesday. “I feel like I discovered myself loads this 12 months, knowing I could undergo adversity and stay positive. The last two years, I wouldn’t have taken it this manner. I feel like I actually have grown as an individual here.”
The 6-foot-6 Taylor, an Oregon State transfer from Las Vegas, began the 12 months as a starter.
Once Big East play began and fellow wing RJ Luis got healthy, his role slowly decreased.
He didn’t get off the bench in a Jan. 2 win over Butler and averaged 10.3 minutes across a 12-game span from Jan. 12 to Feb. 21.
He was hesitant to shoot, not playing aggressively enough.
Taylor kept on working, kept on putting in late nights within the gym.
He had multiple talks with Rick Pitino about his role, conversations during which the Hall of Fame coach implored him to do more at each ends of the ground.
The team, Pitino said, needed his athleticism and defensive versatility. The potential was there.
In past years, Taylor would get down on himself when he struggled. He would mope.
That wasn’t an option this 12 months.
Teammates encouraged him. So did the coaching staff led by Pitino, who Taylor specifically credited with keeping his spirits high even when he wasn’t getting many minutes.
“He just brings this positive [energy] to the court,” the junior said. “Just playing for a man like that, you may’t get down.”
With every thing getting in the incorrect direction for St. John’s, Taylor finally emerged.
In a 14-point upset of No. 10 Creighton on Feb. 25, Taylor was pivotal, grabbing 10 rebounds, adding 4 assists and playing lockdown defense on Big East Player of the Yr candidate Baylor Scheierman.
Against Butler three days later, he sank five 3-pointers and scored a season-high 17 points. In those two wins, the Red Storm (18-12, 9-9) outscored the opposition by 46 points with Taylor on the ground.
Those two Quad 1 wins could have saved the Red Storm’s season.
Within the least, they halted a skid that had seen the Johnnies lose eight of 10 games.
Entering Tuesday’s game against league doormat DePaul, St. John’s is in position to go dancing for the primary time since 2019, firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble.
And Taylor has been a vital a part of this late-season awakening.
“I saw within the Creighton game that they weren’t really boxing out, so I used to be just attempting to attack the boards loads,” he said. “Against Butler, I just had open shots, and I took them. My teammates were finding me, and I knew that’s what we wanted: just coming into games, letting the sport come to me and seeing what is required of me at the moment to win.”
He added: “I’m just attempting to not let anybody down on my team. I are available there, I attempt to bring it on daily basis, bring it essentially the most I can, do whatever we’d like in that point.”
Taylor believes the important thing for him of late is that he began focusing all of his energy on the current, not worrying in regards to the past or the longer term.
That he stopped pondering an excessive amount of about being perfect and focused on making the straightforward, winning play.
It may very well be an additional pass or sprinting back to play help defense. It has translated into his role expanding significantly.
“[This season] has been a roller coaster, but that’s how life is,” Taylor said. “It’s not going to be high on a regular basis. The predominant thing is I used to be attempting to keep confidence in myself.”
CHICAGO — There isn’t a moment Glenn Taylor Jr. can point to.
There’s no turning point; nothing specifically happened that has led to his recent 180-degree turn from an afterthought to an integral two-way piece for St. John’s.
It’s more a few mindset. Nothing helpful, he told himself during down points within the season, would come out of being negative.
“I stayed within the gym when things weren’t going well, and I believe that helped me out loads,” Taylor recalled on Monday, as surging St. John’s prepared to face DePaul on Tuesday. “I feel like I discovered myself loads this 12 months, knowing I could undergo adversity and stay positive. The last two years, I wouldn’t have taken it this manner. I feel like I actually have grown as an individual here.”
The 6-foot-6 Taylor, an Oregon State transfer from Las Vegas, began the 12 months as a starter.
Once Big East play began and fellow wing RJ Luis got healthy, his role slowly decreased.
He didn’t get off the bench in a Jan. 2 win over Butler and averaged 10.3 minutes across a 12-game span from Jan. 12 to Feb. 21.
He was hesitant to shoot, not playing aggressively enough.
Taylor kept on working, kept on putting in late nights within the gym.
He had multiple talks with Rick Pitino about his role, conversations during which the Hall of Fame coach implored him to do more at each ends of the ground.
The team, Pitino said, needed his athleticism and defensive versatility. The potential was there.
In past years, Taylor would get down on himself when he struggled. He would mope.
That wasn’t an option this 12 months.
Teammates encouraged him. So did the coaching staff led by Pitino, who Taylor specifically credited with keeping his spirits high even when he wasn’t getting many minutes.
“He just brings this positive [energy] to the court,” the junior said. “Just playing for a man like that, you may’t get down.”
With every thing getting in the incorrect direction for St. John’s, Taylor finally emerged.
In a 14-point upset of No. 10 Creighton on Feb. 25, Taylor was pivotal, grabbing 10 rebounds, adding 4 assists and playing lockdown defense on Big East Player of the Yr candidate Baylor Scheierman.
Against Butler three days later, he sank five 3-pointers and scored a season-high 17 points. In those two wins, the Red Storm (18-12, 9-9) outscored the opposition by 46 points with Taylor on the ground.
Those two Quad 1 wins could have saved the Red Storm’s season.
Within the least, they halted a skid that had seen the Johnnies lose eight of 10 games.
Entering Tuesday’s game against league doormat DePaul, St. John’s is in position to go dancing for the primary time since 2019, firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble.
And Taylor has been a vital a part of this late-season awakening.
“I saw within the Creighton game that they weren’t really boxing out, so I used to be just attempting to attack the boards loads,” he said. “Against Butler, I just had open shots, and I took them. My teammates were finding me, and I knew that’s what we wanted: just coming into games, letting the sport come to me and seeing what is required of me at the moment to win.”
He added: “I’m just attempting to not let anybody down on my team. I are available there, I attempt to bring it on daily basis, bring it essentially the most I can, do whatever we’d like in that point.”
Taylor believes the important thing for him of late is that he began focusing all of his energy on the current, not worrying in regards to the past or the longer term.
That he stopped pondering an excessive amount of about being perfect and focused on making the straightforward, winning play.
It may very well be an additional pass or sprinting back to play help defense. It has translated into his role expanding significantly.
“[This season] has been a roller coaster, but that’s how life is,” Taylor said. “It’s not going to be high on a regular basis. The predominant thing is I used to be attempting to keep confidence in myself.”
