Rick Pitino sounded the alarm for the future of college basketball, and St. John’s in particular, after Saturday’s loss to No. 1 Connecticut, raising concerns about how difficult it is now in the Name, Image & Likeness and transfer portal era to build a program.
“It’s our first year. Every first year I’ve had, I’ve never had a great team. But I will tell you, I am worried about it,” Pitino said after the 77-64 setback. “It’s very tough to build. So many football coaches are getting out, so many basketball coaches are getting out. It’s tough to build a program.
“You have to really innovate, get creative and understand these rules right now — or lack of rules.”
Upon taking over for Mike Anderson last March, Pitino remade the roster, keeping only Joel Soriano and Drissa Traore. He brought in five fifth-year players who will need to be replaced this offseason.
“It’s a very difficult time in college basketball because it’s free agency and now I think what’s going to happen is [the NCAA is] going to say everybody can transfer,” Pitino said. “If they don’t like it, they’re going to take them to court. I think the NCAA enforcement staff should be disbanded, not because I dislike them, but they’re of no value at all.
St. John’s coach Rick Pitino spoke on how tough it is to build a college basketball program. Robert Sabo for NY Post
“The enforcement staff needs to go away. We need to stop all the hypocrisy of NIL. Need to stop it because they can’t stop it. Whether I’m for or against it, it doesn’t matter.
“For us, we can’t really build programs and culture because everybody leaves. We did it with five fifth-year guys. They’re all going to leave and we need to replace them with new free agents.”
Saturday’s game was a sellout, St. John’s first since beating Villanova on Feb. 17, 2019.
Connecticut was without standout forward Alex Karaban (ankle).
St. John’s 3-point shooting continues to underwhelm.
It sank 4 of 14 attempts Saturday and has made 27.7 percent from long distance over the last six games.
Joel Soriano didn’t like what he saw of himself on film.
“Lack of energy, low motor, no intensity,” St. John’s center said. “No grit, no fight.”
Soriano has not been at his best of late and really struggled in Tuesday’s blowout loss at Seton Hall, managing just six points and four rebounds in 18 minutes along with a minus-31 rating.
“I am going to be better tomorrow,” the Johnnies’ leading scorer and rebounder promised. “I’m coming with a better mindset. … Just come out of the gate with a lot of energy, high intensity. Just be a dog, that’s one thing I want to see from myself tomorrow.”
Coach Rick Pitino, who wasn’t on the sideline for the game because of a bout with COVID-19, said he feels Soriano has received too much blame when things go wrong for St. John’s and too much credit when it does.
Joel Soriano said he saw “lack of energy” from himself during St.John’s game against Seton Hall. Robert Sabo for NY Post
He was far from the only Johnnie to struggle against Seton Hall.
“I think Joel’s getting too much of this,” said Pitino, who will return on Saturday against No. 17 Marquette.
“I can look at [Chris] Ledlum and say it even more so than Joel. Ledlum’s got to bring it more, [Jordan] Dingle’s got to bring it more. Nahiem [Alleyne’s] got to do it. They all got to do it. My point being, Joel doesn’t deserve all the praise he’s been getting for all of his double-doubles, and he shouldn’t be getting [all the criticism] for the Seton Hall game. He didn’t play well, but everybody else didn’t play well.”
Pitino spent a good portion of the press conference harping on the need for all of his players to give the daily effort he sees from starting point guard Daniss Jenkins and reserve forward Zuby Ejiofor.
Those two are constants in how hard they play in practice and games.
“If they want to be a great basketball team down the road come March, then they all have to play like Daniss and Zuby,” Pitino said. “I don’t want Joel to take the brunt of our loss, because it was all of them.”
St. John’s will be without Dingle due to COVID-19.
St. John’s guard Jordan Dingle (3) drives to the net during the first half against the Butler at Carnesecca Arena, Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. Corey Sipkinfor the NY POST
The graduate transfer from Penn, who missed the Seton Hall game, is still not feeling well.
Pitino said he is unsure if the guard will be back for Wednesday’s game against Villanova.
Assistant coaches Van Macon, Ricky Johns and Taliek Brown will also be out because of the virus.
Sophomore Cruz Davis is back with the team, but St. John’s is planning to get a medical redshirt for the Iona transfer.
Davis suffered a broken left hand early in the season and it never fully recovered.
He still has numbness in his fingers on the left hand. Davis has only appeared in four games.
Fland is the seventh-ranked player in the 2024 class and No. 2 player in New York, according to the 247Sports recruiting composite.
Pitino and assistant coach Steve Masiello watched practice and are looking to get involved with Fland, a junior who has numerous high-major suitors.
Masiello spoke to Fland’s father, John on Wednesday morning.
“Just the fact that Rick Pitino after one day of having his press conference, to go out there and visit him, it just shows he really wants Boogie,” the elder Fland told The Post. “It shows his mindset. And Boogie is one of his priorities at the moment.”
Kentucky, Alabama, Seton Hall, Michigan, Kansas State and Virginia Tech are heavily involved with the dynamic guard from The Bronx, according to his father.
Rick Pitino is looking to add between 6-8 new players to the St. John’s roster for next season.Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Fland and Stepinac won the highly competitive Catholic League championship at, ironically, Carnesecca Arena, and will play in this weekend’s State Federation tournament in Albany.
“It was great to have Coach Pitino and his assistant, Coach Masiello, in the gym on their first day-and-a-half on the job,” Stepinac coach Pat Massaraoni said. “The message to Boogie was he’s a big priority for them — him and other top guys in the tristate area are what they are going to be focused on.”
John Fland said his son is keeping his options open and hasn’t begun to narrow down his list of suitors. St. John’s has time to make an impression.
“Everyone knows who Pitino is and what he does,” John Fland said. “He produces pros. He’s a Hall of Famer. His résumé speaks for itself.”
Pitino will be busy in the coming weeks.
He said during his Tuesday press conference he is expecting to add six-to-eight new players to the roster, which means several Johnnies won’t be returning.
The new coaching staff is still in the process of evaluating the holdovers and will begin meeting with those players at the end of the week.
Walter Clayton Jr., who was the MAAC player of the Year under Rick Pitino at Iona and entered the transfer portal on Tuesday, is on St. John’s radar. USA TODAY Sports
One of them, sophomore Rafael Pinzon, already entered the transfer portal on Wednesday afternoon.
Pinzon finished the season on an indefinite suspension.
St. John’s has already expressed interest in Iona guard Walter Clayton Jr., the MAAC Player of the Year who entered the transfer portal on Tuesday, and skilled Harvard forward Chris Ledlum of Brooklyn.
Pitino also extended an offer to top junior Carter Bryant, who is ranked fourth nationally by 247Sports and was down to Louisville and Arizona, and highly regarded four-star, top-50 junior Ahmad Nowell.
Senior Garwey Dual, another top-100 prospect, decommitted from Providence after Ed Cooley left for Georgetown and is being targeted by the staff.
The mother of signed four-star recruit Brandon Gardner, Tameka Gordon, told The Post her son planned to remain committed to St. John’s until meeting with Pitino.
Another recruit, junior college All-American Yaxel Lendeborg, made similar comments. Pitino and Co. have yet to decide if those players are a part of their plans.
“There’s certain players that are going to fit in with me, certain players that won’t fit in,” Pitino said on Tuesday. “I know Joel fits into what I’m all about, I know [Drissa Traore] fits into the style of play and the character I need. Certain players won’t fit in and should not play for me. They should go to a different place and fit in.”
Additionally, Van Macon, the associate head coach under fired head coach Mike Anderson who recruited most of the roster, is going to stay on with Pitino, according to a source.
As Rick Pitino discussed with St. John’s administrators how they could build a winner together, his priority wasn’t Name, Image and Likeness or improving facilities. It wasn’t talent, either.
“The most important thing I told them is what you don’t have, and what you have to have, is culture,” Pitino told The Post shortly after he accepted the head-coaching job at the Queens school Monday. “You don’t have culture, and that’s what has to happen first. You have to develop a culture with your basketball program.”
Pitino wasn’t saying that means the Johnnies’ roster has to be completely altered, but he didn’t say it will stay the same either.
The expectation is there will be major changes after a second consecutive poor season led to Mike Anderson’s ouster, although keeping standout center Joel Soriano is a priority.
Rick PitinoGetty Images
Two players — Rafael Pinzon and Andre Curbelo — were suspended at points this past season, and Dylan Addae-Wusu was held out of a loss to Iowa State for disciplinary reasons.
There hasn’t been any player movement since the end of the season, but that may not last long.
Pitino is planning to meet or speak with players and advisers over the next few days, and begin to formulate plans for his roster.
“If kids are not willing to go to class, if kids are not willing to be totally respectful, then they need to move on,” Pitino said. “If they are totally bought into going to class and getting an education and they’re totally on board with being respectful to everybody involved, they’ll get serious consideration to being part of the team. Anybody who is not respectful and doesn’t have what I call St. John’s dignity, they won’t be part of the team.”
Pitino told his returning players at Iona he hopes they stay together and play for whomever is the next coach.
He isn’t familiar with St. John’s three incoming recruits, four-star forward Brandon Gardner of Christ the King, junior college All-American Yaxel Lendeborg and unranked high school guard Harrison Reede.
Pitino plans to learn about them in the coming days.
“I’ve got to speak to them, I’ve got to watch film [of them],” he said. “I want to make sure they can play in the style of play I coach, I want to make sure they understand the style of play, understand the commitment.”
NEW YORK — A grieving David Jones scored 16 points, AJ Storr added 15 and St. John’s beat No. 20 Providence 73-68 on Saturday, handing the Friars a costly defeat in their pursuit of a second consecutive regular-season conference title.
Joel Soriano had 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Red Storm (15-11, 5-10 Big East), who had lost three straight and five of six. It was his 20th double-double this season — he entered the game second in the nation in that category.
Posh Alexander added 10 points and a season-high nine assists, and Dylan Addae-Wusu scored 13 for St. John’s, which built a big early lead at Madison Square Garden and led nearly the entire way.
AJ Storr dunks during St. John’s win over Providence on Feb. 11. Robert Sabo for NY Post David Jones shoots during St. John’s win over Providence on Feb. 11. Robert Sabo for NY Post
Bryce Hopkins equaled a career best with 29 points for the Friars (18-7, 10-4), who had won four of five. The only loss during that stretch was in overtime at then-No. 16 Xavier.
Hopkins also grabbed nine rebounds, but Providence shot just 33% from the field. Devin Carter had 12 points and seven rebounds for the Friars, who are in a crowded race with three other teams atop the Big East standings.
Jones came off the bench after missing two games to go back home to the Dominican Republic following his father’s death. The junior forward entered averaging 12.7 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.
AJ Storr (2), high-fives Posh Alexander during the first half. Robert Sabo for NY Post Mike Anderson reacts during St. John’s win over Providence on Feb. 11. Robert Sabo for NY Post
St. John’s jumped out to a 25-9 lead after 9 1/2 minutes behind Alexander and Jones, but the Friars closed the first half with a strong push and trailed 37-35 at the break.
They tied it 39-all early in the second half before consecutive baskets from Soriano, a 3-point play from Storr and three buckets by Jones put the Red Storm in front by six.
Different positives emerge depending on the game, but the established weaknesses — shot selection, defensive discipline and shot-making — continue to get exposed. The inability to absorb a body blow and respond in a timely manner remains out of St. John’s grasp.
And so continued yet another dismal start to the league season on Tuesday night, the Johnnies now looking like a long shot to reach the postseason for the first time in the Mike Anderson era. They outplayed Marquette for most of the first half, but after the Golden Eagles adjusted at intermission, St. John’s didn’t have the needed response in a dismal 96-85 setback at Carnesecca Arena in front of a small crowd.
St. John’s is now 0-5 in Quad 1 and 2 games, and not even in the top 100 of the NET rankings.
St. John’s Red Storm guard Posh Alexander goes for a loose ball with Marquette Golden Eagles forward Olivier-Maxence on Tuesday night. Corey Sipkin
Defense is supposed to be this program’s calling card under Anderson, but it hasn’t stopped anyone since conference play began. After getting torched by Seton Hall on New Year’s Eve, Marquette erupted for 96 points on 53.2 percent shooting. In the second half, it hit 7 of 12 3-point attempts and rung up 55 points.
As has been the case all season, Joel Soriano was St. John’s (11-5, 1-4) best player, producing a double-double of 22 points and 13 rebounds. Dylan Addae-Wusu added 21 points and five assists, but did have three turnovers. Olivier-Maxence Prosper led Marquette with 29 points and Kam Jones had 16.
The night began ominously, with the school announcing Andre Curbelo was unavailable for not adhering to team standards and the other point guard, Posh Alexander, oddly not starting. Curbelo wasn’t on the bench, but he was spotted in the area wearing a hooded sweatshirt.
David Jones tried to attack the basket for St. John’s against Marquette on Tuesday night.Corey Sipkin
St. John’s did play its best first half in weeks, and arguably its best of the season. It shot a robust 66 percent from the field, hit 19 of its first 28 shots, forced eight turnovers and got 19 of its 48 points from the bench.
Ten came from Alexander, who didn’t start but hit as many 3-pointers in the first half — two — as he had hit in his last seven games. Soriano was a force, producing 16 points, five rebounds and a plus-10 rating. It was an opening 20 minutes full of positive vibes, St. John’s leading most of the first half, finally putting together a strong stretch of basketball.
Marquette emerged out of the break a different team, ripping off a 16-2 run to take the lead. The Golden Eagles hit six of their first eight shots of the second half, including three 3-pointers, and suddenly a nine-point St. John’s lead was a seven-point deficit. Marquette scored 32 of the first 46 points of the second half and was dominant across the board. It led by 11 after a Prosper 3-pointer with 9:25 left.
St. John’s got as close as four with 3:14 to go, but it failed to get back following a Jones dunk, and Prosper converted a three-point play to push the lead back to seven.
Jack Nunge had 23 points and 11 rebounds, and No. 22 Xavier won its seventh straight game by holding off St. John’s 84-79 at Carnesecca Arena on Wednesday night.
The Musketeers (11-3, 3-0 Big East) built an 18-point cushion midway through the second half before fending off a late comeback attempt to set up a showdown at home against No. 2 UConn on Saturday. Souley Boum had 17 points and six assists, and Zach Freemantle added 14 points and nine rebounds.
David Jones had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Red Storm (11-3, 1-2), who lost for the first time in nine games this season at Carnesecca Arena on campus.
Joel Soriano, who leads the nation with 11 double-doubles, added 14 points and eight rebounds. Montez Mathis also scored 14 for St. John’s, which won the previous three meetings with Xavier after dropping 12 in a row.
Andre Curbelo of St. John’s drives to the basket between Desmond Claude #1 and Cesare Edwards on Wednesday. Corey Sipkin
O’Mar Stanley dunks the ball for St. John’s against Xavier on Wednesday night Corey Sipkin
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St. John’s coach Mike Anderson Corey Sipkin
Jack Nunge of the Xavier Musketeers fouls Joel Soriano of St. John’s as he goes up for a shot in the first half on Wednesday. Corey Sipkin
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St. John’s twice trimmed the deficit to six late in the second half and then to five on a 3-pointer by Jones with 26 seconds left. After a Xavier turnover, the Red Storm had a chance to make it interesting at the end, but Jones and Posh Alexander missed 3s before the buzzer.
After moving into the AP Top 25 this week for the first time this season, Xavier consistently beat St. John’s to loose balls in a fast-paced game. The Musketeers went on a 16-0 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Boum, to open a 27-12 lead 7:01 into the game and went into halftime ahead 48-37.
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