Saturday’s NCAA matchup between the St. John’s Red Storm and the Alabama Crimson Tide was billed as a clash between two of the best programs in college basketball. St. John’s came into the game ranked No. 5 in the country, while Alabama was ranked No. 15. Alabama emerged victorious, 103-96, and after the loss, St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino had high praise for the Crimson Tide, as per the New York Post.
“When it comes down to it, they were the better basketball team tonight. We played hard, we fought, it was exciting basketball, but they were better,” Pitino said. “They were the more locked in team offensively. They knew how to exploit, but they do it against everybody. And the only time they lose is when you turn them over more, and you commit yourself. . .they were the better defensive team tonight.”
But despite the loss, Rick Pitino wasn’t disappointing with his St. John’s team in the sense that he saw good things happening on the court. The Red Storm just weren’t able to pull off the win.
“All our guys played hard. I told them in the locker room, they were the better team tonight. Don’t hang your heads, they were the better team, Pitino said. “We played hard, we did a lot of good things. . .I think we have the potential to be an outstanding basketball team. As a head coach, I have to find out where our deficiencies lie, and I found out tonight. But I also found out that they’re a group of guys that want to win badly.”
In the loss, St. John’s was led by Zuby Ejiofor’s 27 points and ten rebounds. Bryce Hopkins added 19 points, and Oziyah Sellers and Ian Jackson contributed 14 points each.
This is the program’s third year with Pitino at the helm as head coach. After missing the NCAA Tournament in his first season, Pitino led the Red Storm to the round of 32 last year, while posting an overall record of 31-5 and 18-2 in the BIG EAST.
