# Former St. John’s co-captain Sadiku Ibine Ayo earns warm reception in MSG return

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/former-st-johns-co-captain-sadiku-ibine-ayo-earns-warm-reception-in-msg-return/
- Published: 2026-11-08T23:01:17+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-08T23:22:01+00:00
- Original publisher: New York Post (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://nypost.com/2026/11/08/sports/sadiku-ibine-ayo-earns-warm-st-johns-reception-in-msg-return/
- Topics: World

## Key points

- Ibine Ayo received a warm Garden welcome from St John’s fans.
- Iona lost 104-65, with Ibine Ayo scoring 11 points.
- His father saw him play basketball for the first time.

## Summary

Former St John’s co-captain Sadiku Ibine Ayo received a tribute video and a loud ovation from fans on his return to Madison Square Garden, despite his Iona side losing heavily. The reception recognised his three seasons with the Red Storm and his close relationship with coach Rick Pitino.

Ibine Ayo began college at Iona with Pitino, followed him to St John’s and returned to Iona for his final season to play more minutes; he plans to play professionally overseas. He scored 11 points in Iona’s 104-65 defeat before 13,753 spectators, while his father watched him play basketball for the first time. St John’s forward Babacar Sane missed the game with an ankle injury that was not thought to be serious, and four-star recruit Godson Okokoh attended.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.