Rick Pitino Heaps Praise on St. John’s Students, Alumni After Clenching Big East Title

Soon after the confetti fell from the rafters of Madison Square Garden, someone asked Rick Pitino what it meant to lead the St. John’s Red Storm to its first outright regular-season championship since 1985.Always the recruiter, Mr. Pitino insisted the milestone wasn’t just about him or his players, but the St. John’s students, the alumni, and the future.“For our student body, it’s really special,” the 72-year-old coach said after St. John’s defeated Seton Hall, 71-61, at a sold out Madison Square Garden Saturday. “Our university has done a tremendous job getting them back involved. It’s going to pay huge dividends down the road. Kids are going to want to come to St. Johns now because they’re going to be part of our team again. We’re excited.”Of course, Mr. Pitino is the primary reason why the Red Storm (26-4 overall and 17-2 in the Big East) clinched the school’s first Big East regular-season title since Chris Mullin and coach Lou Carneseca went to the Final Four. In just his second year as the team’s head coach, Mr. Pitino has St. John’s ranked seventh in the nation and heading into March Madness as one of the hottest teams in the nation.The Red Storm’s success only adds to a Hall of Fame resume that includes national championships at Kentucky (1996) and Louisville (2013) and a Final Four appearance with Providence (1987), making him the first coach to lead three different schools to the Final Four and the only coach to win a national championship at two different schools.Instead of boasting about his personal accolades, Mr. Pitino is sharing the credit with a special fan base dear to his New York roots. The “World’s Most Famous Arena” is energized by St. John’s basketball again, he says.“This was a goal of ours,” Mr. Pitino said. “A lot of people shared in this dream at the beginning of the year. For me, looking behind the basket and seeing the students out in full force is very rewarding for me personally.”Later he added, “We wear these shirts that read PHD — passionate, hungry and driven. That’s what our student body is all about.”There are still games to play. The regular-season finale at 21st-ranked Marquette is Saturday, followed by the Big East Tournament at the Garden and then the NCAA Tournament. When that’s done, maybe Mr. Pitino, a National Coach of the Year candidate, will reflect on his personal journey.His career and legacy were jeopardized by an alleged “pay for play” scandal that cost him his head coaching job at Louisville. Embroiled in controversy in the United States, he coached in Greece for two seasons before returning to America to become the head coach at Iona for the 2020-2021 season. He led the Gaels to a remarkable run in the MAAC Tournament that year and became the first coach to lead five different programs to the NCAA Tournament.Now. St. John’s is the sixth.“I kept telling them about getting on Broadway,” Mr. Pitino said. “Once you get on Broadway there’s pressure there because your show can get canceled. I think the last two games they were under a lot of pressure. That was a great thing because now it really mounts. They see all the fans and they don’t want to disappoint them. They’ve never been in these situations before. You need it so they can learn it.”The Red Storm has been absorbing all they can from their legendary coach. A suffocating pressure defense has been the Red Storm’s staple, forcing opponents into poor shots and frequent turnovers. The grit and resilience that has defined this Red Storm team resonates with their against-all-odds approach.“We don’t have all the bells and whistles,” Mr. Pitino said. “We didn’t have a great weight room. We didn’t have a refueling room. We didn’t have a locker room. But everybody has stepped up and it’s truly a team effort where our alumni and fans are part of our team. St. John’s is a great university where sports can make it even greater. That’s what sports does for a university.”The Red Storm clinched the Big East regular-season title three months after Mr. Carneseca died just short of his 100th birthday. When Mr. Pitino was hired at St. John’s he vowed to return the program to the elite level it enjoyed in the 1980s under Mr. Carneseca, who compiled 526 wins over two different stints at St. John’s.“Lou means a lot to a lot of people,” Mr. Pitino said. “We’re proud of the fact that in the year that he passed we can honor him with this championship.”Then Mr. Pitino issued a warning to the rest of college basketball as March Madness approaches. “I think we’re just scratching the potential of St. John’s,” he said.

Rick Pitino Heaps Praise on St. John’s Students, Alumni After Clenching Big East Title

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