Even as the wins have piled up and St. John’s has soared to the top of the Big East, notching its best record through 21 games since the 1985-86 season, there has been a but and a question mark.

Doubts about the legitimacy of the 15th-ranked Johnnies persist.

Wait until Rick Pitino’s team plays an elite team. Wait until February when the schedule ramps up.

We’ve arrived at that point. No. 9 Marquette comes to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday. No. 25 Connecticut, the back-to-back national champions, will be waiting for first-place St. John’s (19-3, 10-1) Friday night in Storrs, Conn., coming off an impressive win at Marquette.