St. John's basketball handled Quinnipiac with ease on Monday. Head coach Rick Pitino isn't satisfied, though, and has an even fiercer challenge soon in Alabama. Prompting Pitino to release a message to the fan base Wednesday.
The national champion winning head coach will return to Madison Square Garden with his team. Pitino took to the social media website X, formerly Twitter, to address the “Johnnies.”
“Let’s go Johnnies nation. Top 15 Alabama Crimson Tide coming to town with the No. 1 offensive tempo team in the nation. Noon game. Let’s rock the garden!” Pitino posted.
This early regular season showdown brings hefty intrigue outside of being a top 25 showdown.
St. John's, Alabama aspiring national title contenders
Pitino gets a rare coaching matchup with Alabama's Nate Oats.
The two last met during the 2021 NCAA Tournament. Oats' Crimson Tide team prevailed 68-55 against an Iona University team led by Pitino.
Oats since turned Alabama into a first-time Final Four program in 2024 — and pulled it off at a school known for collecting national titles on the football field. Alabama has turned into a college basketball recruiting hot bed while increasing the enthusiasm for roundball in Tuscaloosa.
Now Oats gets his second meeting against the two-time national champion head coach. His Alabama team faces a fierce gauntlet that includes St. John's as part of the non-conference slate.
Oats has admitted in the past that Pitino is someone he's long admired. That includes watching past coaching tapes in high school of Pitino. Now he'll aim to go 2-0 lifetime against the coaching legend.
Pitino, though, is now leading the nation's No. 5 ranked team. It's St. John's highest preseason ranking ever since the 1990-1991 season, when longtime head coach Lou Carnesecca led the Red Storm.
The New York native Pitino is now aiming to carve out his own resume for a program that endured multiple struggling seasons. But now there's momentum for Red Storm basketball and a large MSG crowd is imminent for Saturday.
