Russ Smith scored 17 points to lead Louisville to a 73-58 win over St. John’s at Madison Square Garden.

Louisville (13-2) snapped a brief two-game skid and picked up its 10th win in 14 all-time meetings with the Red Storm.

St. John’s (7-7) has lost back-to-back outings and falls to 389-262 all-time inside Madison Square Garden.

Smith, who grabbed four rebounds and dished out seven assists, knocked down three 3-pointers and finished numerous fast breaks for a Cardinals offense that thrived on transition buckets. Louisville’s defense was the catalyst, blocking 10 shots and grabbing nine steals.

The Johnnies opened the game going 3 for 5 from the floor, but would knock down just two of their next 30 field goal attempts to trail 29-18 at the break.

The offensive struggle would continue in the second half, most notably from outside where they finished 2 for 16 from 3-point range. D'Angelo Harrison led the Red Storm with 24 points while Moe Harkless added 12 points in the loss.

Kyle Kuric finished a give-and-go alley-oop and buried a 3-pointer deep in the corner to put Louisville up 44-27 with just over 14 minutes remaining in the second half. Kuric finished with 15 points while center Gorgui Dieng chipped in with 12 points and seven blocks.

St. John’s was once again without head coach Steve Lavin, who is recovering from prostate surgery. Lavin was in the building, watching from a private suite at Madison Square Garden.