St. John's basketball head coach Rick Pitino has done a ton of winning in his legendary career, securing two national championships (one vacated) and accumulating 900-plus wins (778 officially recognized by NCAA) during his near-40 season run on the college scene. He has nothing left to prove, having led three different programs to the Final Four and six total schools to the NCAA Tournament. The 73-year-old still has a ravenous appetite for success, however. Just ask his players.
The Red Storm are extra motivated to extend their seven-game winning streak, and it is not just because they are hoping to strengthen their March Madness prospects. They do not want to share the locker room with Pitino after a loss. Idaho transfer and Big Sky Player of the Year Dylan Darling explained just how much his coach despises losing.
“After a loss [at St.John's] you would maybe think someone shot Coach P's dog or something,” he said, per Storm The Paint's Kevin Connelly. Needless to say, the 2025 AP Coach of the Year has been in a much better mood lately.
Rick Pitino and St. John's basketball are ripping through the Big East
St. John's (16-5, 9-1) has breezed through Big East play since dropping a home game to Providence on Jan. 3. Following early losses to Alabama, Iowa State, Auburn and Kentucky, conference dominance was the only way the squad could truly impress the NCAA Tournament selection committee. The Red Storm have forced their way into the projected 68-team field and are right behind the UConn Huskies for first place in the league standings.
Zuby Ejiofor is setting the tone, averaging 15.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.0 blocks per contest. Rick Pitino does not want to be overly reliant on his core guys to achieve excellence, however.
He remembers what happened last March when Big East Player of the Year RJ Luis Jr. went ice cold from the floor, causing him to bench the star wing in crunch time. While many fans skewered the decision — “why not dance with the one who brought you?” — the situation shined a light on a bigger issue.
St. John's basketball needs depth. Dylan Darling came to Jamaica, New York to help check off that box. He is doing his job so far, scoring 5.8 points in 18.3 minutes per game while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from 3-point land. If things get hairy in March once again, Pitino will ideally have more role players he can trust this time.
One can only imagine how he will react if his Red Storm fall to 12-10 DePaul in Tuesday's road matchup.
