N.J. guard on St. John’s: ‘My mind is [NCAA] Tournament and winning big in the Tournament’

NEW YORK — Simeon Wilcher is accustomed to winning and it left a bad taste in his mouth when St. John’s failed to make the NCAA Tournament last season.

A very bad taste.

“We know how it felt last year sitting [there] trying to figure out where we going to get put [in the NCAA Tournament], if we even would get put into it and then sitting there not being put into it,” Wilcher told NJ Advance Media on Tuesday.

The former Roselle Catholic star doesn’t want his teammates to experience that heartache again “because that’s a feeling nobody wants.”

And so the goal is simple: get St. John’s into the Big Dance for the first time since 2000.

‘My mind is [NCAA] Tournament and winning big in the Tournament,” he said.

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Wilcher, who once turned down a high six-figure offer from Overtime Elite in order remain at Roselle Catholic, did a whole lot of winning in high school. In 2003, his squad won the New Jersey Non-Public B state title under coach Dave Boff and in 2002, the Lions won the state’s final Tournament of Champions title. He finished his high school career with a perfect 17-0 record in the state tournament.

His freshman season was an adjustment period as he learned the ropes behind veteran point guard Daniss Jenkins and under Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino. Wilcher averaged 2.8 points and 1.1 assists last season, but showed some flashes of bigger things. He went for 12 points in a win over DePaul in early March.

Heading into this season, Pitino is touting Wilcher as a likely starter in the backcourt along with former Seton Hall guard Kadary Richmond, and maybe Utah transfer Deivon Smith.

“Sim improved dramatically because he went against Daniss Jenkins every single day,” Pitino told NJ Advance Media. “And there’s no better way to get better than to go against a great guard, and right now Sim from the summertime to now, has been our most consistent, best basketball player, better than everybody on the team.

“He’s tremendous. The sky is the limit how good a year he can have. The only weakness he has right now is he still beats himself up when he misses a shot. He’s gotta stop doing that.”

Wilcher is also learning this year from Richmond, the former Seton Hall star who was named a co-captain by his teammates.

“For me, I try to steal stuff from the way he plays,” Wilcher said. “Big guard, he don’t really let anybody speed him up, so that’s just something I try to steal because it’s super hard to guard him when he’s in space or coming off a screen or using his body in any way.”

Richmond and Wilcher will be tested heavily in Thursday’s preseason exhibition against Dylan Harper, Ace Bailey and Rutgers. He expects his parents and other family and friends to be at Jersey Mike’s Arena.

“Just to have the opportunity for my grandma to come to a game, and my aunts, my uncles, just to have that there is going to be great,” Wilcher said.

Wilcher knows Harper from the New Jersey high school hoops scene, and believes Harper, a projected top-3 NBA Draft pick, is destined for big things.

“Dylan’s definitely tough, Ace is tough, too, it’s gonna be a great game,” Wilcher said. “I wish those guys nothing but the best.”

Wilcher himself is a future pro, per Pitino.

“One hundred percent,” the coach said.

But before he goes pro, whenever that is, Wilcher wants to go dancing and make a run.

“Not only just making it, we want to go there and actually dance and have a trip,” he said, “Have a series of winning. So that’s the team goal.”

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Adam Zagoria is a freelance reporter who covers Seton Hall and NJ college basketball for NJ Advance Media. You may follow him on Twitter @AdamZagoria and check out his Website at ZAGSBLOG.com.