Rick Pitino leads St. John's to 91-72 victory over Seton Hall in return to Big East Tournament
NEW YORK (AP) — Rick Pitino returned to the Big East Tournament for the first time in 11 years and led fifth-seeded St. John's to a 91-72 victory over fourth-seeded Seton Hall on Thursday.
The Red Storm (20-12) will face top-seeded and No. 2 UConn Friday at Madison Square Garden in their first Big East semifinal appearance since 2000 — which was also the last time St. John's won the tournament.
The traditional Big East matchup paired two teams still trying to secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament. St. John's is making a strong closing case. The Red Storm has won six straight since Pitino, in his first year with the program, went off on his team after it blew a 19-point lead against Seton Hall on Feb. 18.
“I’m not gonna lie to you: This is the most unenjoyable experience of my lifetime,” Pitino said then.
RJ Luis Jr. led the Johnnies with 18 points, Jordan Dingle had 14 and Joel Soriano added 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Al-Amir Dawes scored 22 points to keep Seton Hall (20-12) in the game, but St. John's mostly controlled the second half.
The 71-year-old Pitino, sharply dressed in a navy-blue suit with a white pocket square and red tie with white stripes, paced the sidelines, alternating between hands clasped behind his back and arms crossed. Every now and then, he took a knee to get a better view of his team.
He liked what he saw out of halftime. The Red Storm scored the first six points out of the break, with Glenn Taylor Jr.'s layup making it 51-40 and prompting Seton Hall coach Shaheen Holloway to call a timeout with 17:57 left.
The lead swelled to 71-56 when Dingle made a 3 from the wing with 9:10 left that drew another Seton Hall timeout and roar from the Red Storm fans who made up a good deal of the sellout crowd at the school's home away from home.
The Johnnies led 45-40 after a sharp-shooting first half. St. John’s made 60% from the floor, including a buzzer-beating jumper by Luis to close the half.
The Pirates stayed close by hitting 7 for 13 from 3-point range. Dawes led the way with 13 points and three 3s.
HE'S BACK
Pitino's star was launched in the Big East 27 years ago when he took Providence to the 1987 Final Four. Those Friars went 1-1 in the Big East Tournament, beating Lou Carnesecca and St. John's before losing to John Thompson and Georgetown in the semifinals.
Then it was off to Kentucky to win a national title, a return to New York City and The Garden with the Knicks, and then back to college basketball and the Big East with Louisville. That run included another national title — and some scandals.
After a three-year stint at Iona, Pitino was back in the Big East to take over St. John's last year and predictably he has the Red Storm in the running for their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2019.
Pitino would be the first head coach to lead six schools to the NCAA Tournament if St. John's gets in.
UP NEXT
St. John's lost its only meeting with UConn, 77-64 at MSG on Feb. 3.
The Pirates make a solid case for inclusion in the NCAA field of 68, with five Quad 1 victories — including one against UConn — but they'll sweat it out until Selection Sunday.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here.
___
AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
___