Just over 24 hours earlier, Deivon Smith’s status was murky.

Rick Pitino, the head coach, was surprised that the point guard, who is considered the driving force behind St. John’s team, was able to participate in the Seton Hall game as he was still recovering from a shoulder injury.

The soreness was still there. Smith hadn’t been able to practice.

But there he was, participating in pregame warmups as usual.

There he was, checking in just over six minutes into the first half, helping St. John’s push the ball up court.

During the Johnnies’ 79-51 rout of Seton Hall on Saturday at Prudential Center, they had Smith back on the court, but he produced mixed results across his 16 minutes with an 0-for-6 line from the field and shots that didn’t seem normal.

“I wasn’t gonna play him because he said he couldn’t shoot, and he said, ‘Coach, I want to go,’ ” Pitino said. “He said that to me. And I was surprised. The trainer and I both made a decision he wouldn’t play, but I thought it’d be good for him to get out there and run because he hasn’t practiced and play little bit. It’ll set him up for Wednesday’s game.”

So Smith, averaging 10.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.4 assists in his first season after transferring from Utah, fought through any lingering pain and tried to get over any remaining hurdles with his injury — “it’s the mental part right now,” Pitino said.

Smith missed a jumper shortly after checking in, but he helped spark a tic-tac-toe burst in transition for a St. John’s basket and lobbed an alley-oop to RJ Luis.

But his shots kept bouncing off the rim — and some weren’t even close to becoming made baskets — and he wore what appeared to be a heating pack and a bag of ice on his right shoulder at different points in the game.

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Pitino’s comments postgame suggested that St. John’s, at the very least, will have Smith in the lineup again when it hosts Xavier.

That will add something on the court. But Saturday also demonstrated there could still be some growing pains as he attempts to get acclimated back into the lineup, too, especially with his offensive production.

“It bothers him a little bit when he shoots,” Pitino said, “especially when he misses.”