The St. John’s vs. Seton Hall game on Sunday night seems to have shattered Rick Pitino.
After blowing a lead and falling for the eighth time in ten games, St. John’s was defeated by Seton Hall. With their current record of 14-12, the Red Storm are definitely eliminated from the NCAA Tournament.
Pitino is upset with his squad, but in his postgame press conference, he went too far.
We are unable to guard anyone without drawing a foul because we lack athleticism. I’ve always loved the first year, and I’ll tell you straight: this is the least fun thing I’ve ever done in my life. It’s been really disheartening, he told the press.
Pitino had not finished.
Do we own subpar facilities? Indeed, we do. However, that isn’t the cause of our defeat. Lack of guarding has nothing to do with having (poor) facilities.”
It’s very uncommon to hear a head coach criticize his players in such a direct and personal way, let alone one as successful as Pitino.
“Didn’t you recruit most of the guys you mentioned?” A fan wrote.
“Rick Pitino throwing players HE RECRUITED (and a guy who made an all-Big East team last year) under the bus is not the best idea in the world,” a fan commented.
“He’s losing it,” another admirer said.
“Again, every day I wake up thankful not to have to place my basketball hopes on Rick Pitino,” a different supporter said.
Pitino is only a first-year student at St. John’s. But judging by his tone tonight, perhaps he’s not interested in a Year 2…
