St. John’s suffered its first loss of the season this week: a season-ending injury to highly regarded Syracuse transfer Donnie Freeman. 

The expectation was that the 6-foot-9 rising junior would be the Johnnies’ starting power forward next season. Without him, that spot could belong to high-flying Senegalese forward Babacar Sane. 

“He was going to have a big role whether Donnie was healthy or not,” coach Rick Pitino told The Post in a phone interview Wednesday. “He is the best athlete on the team by far. He was going to have a big role anyway.” 

The 6-foot-8 Sane spent last season playing in the top professional league in Germany, averaging 10.1 points and 3.8 rebounds for Riesen Ludwigsburg. He previously spent two years with G-League Ignite, the developmental team for top prospects.