The No. 17 St. John's Red Storm and the Providence Friars met for the second time in the 2025-26 college basketball season on Saturday, and to say that the meeting was a heated one would be an understatement.
A total of six players were thrown out in the second half of the contest after a fight, stemming from a hard foul by Friars forward Duncan Powell on St. John's star (and former Providence star) Bryce Hopkins.
After the game, St. John's basketball forward Zuby Ejiofor was asked by a reporter about the fight, but the question did not sit well with Pitino.
“We're not going to address that; let the league address it,” the 7-year-old Pitino said (h/t ESPN).
“If you want to talk basketball, talk basketball. You write what you saw. Don't ask my players that.”
Pitino also took a shot at Providence fans inside the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island.
“The crowd lost objectivity of what they're here for,” Pitino said. “If they're just here to poke fun at Bryce Hopkins and not get a win for the Friars, that's not the Friars I remember in '87.”
At the end of the day, Pitino and the Red Storm can take heart from the fact that they have extended their winning streak to 11 games after topping the Friars to the tune of a 79-69 score.
Junior guard Dylan Darling came off the bench and fired 23 points to lead the way for St. John's, which improved to 20-5 overall and 13-1 in the Big East.
