Latest news with #RichardPitino
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Rick Pitino's Son Makes Head-Turning Admission About Father's Legendary Coaching Career
Rick Pitino and the St. John's Red Storm put together an impressive all-around 2024-25 college basketball season. However, it did not end how they had hoped. Throughout the course of the year, St. John's compiled a 31-5 record. In the NCAA Tournament, they earned a No. 2 seed and knocked off Omaha in the first round by a final score of 83-53. Advertisement After that win, a matchup with John Calipari and the Arkansas Razorbacks awaited, which the Red Storm lost 75-66. That loss ended the St. John's season. Despite the loss, Pitino has the Red Storm on the right track. He is one of the best head coaches of all-time and will give St. John's a chance to win at a high level as long as he's in town. St. John's Red Storm head basketball coach Rick Pitino.© Brad Penner-Imagn Images Recently, Richard Pitino, the son of the coaching legend, spoke out about his father. He opened up about the success that Pitino has had throughout his career and the coaching tree that he has created. 'He puts the effort into molding us,' Richard said. 'Some coaches just hire assistant coaches and say, 'Hey, get me players. You're not a coach, you're a recruiter.' My dad is not that way. Anybody that works for my dad and his program, you are gonna be driven to succeed just as much as the best player. He's gonna be invested in you as a future leader.' Among coaches who have come from Pitino's coaching tree are Billy Donovan, Tubby Smith, Mick Cronin, and Kevin Keatts. Advertisement To this point in his career, Pitino has amassed a 761-308 record. That is good enough for a 71.2% win rate. During the upcoming 2025-26 college basketball season, the two Pitino's will likely face each other. St. John's and Xavier are both in the Big East. Richard Pitino became the head coach of the Musketeers this offseason. Related: Duke's Kon Knueppel Receives Major Prediction Before NBA Draft Related: Dan Hurley's Latest Recruiting Move Has UConn Fans Buzzing
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'I want guys who want to win.' How Richard Pitino plans to build Xavier basketball roster
While the NIL and transfer portal permits college basketball rosters to be built in a matter of weeks, new Xavier head coach Richard Pitino isn't rushing the process. It's not lost on Pitino that he doesn't have enough players for a game at the moment. After his former New Mexico Lobos' forward Filip Borovicanin committed Tuesday night, Xavier had three scholarship players on its roster. Advertisement That was until Thursday, when forward Lassina Traore, who missed all of last season because of injury, entered the transfer portal. "It's very challenging to build a whole roster," Pitino said. "It's way more do-able now in the current landscape than ever before. We're gonna be very patient. Not just a band-aid, not just a quick-fix." The roster construction process takes time, no matter how fast things move during the college basketball offseason as players flood into the portal searching for a new opportunity. Pitino and his staff have a certain type of recruit in mind with the portal in full swing, and how to find them. "You gotta ask the right questions. You gotta really get to know them because it's certainly becoming more transactional," Pitino said. "Although it's changed, I want guys who want to win, and they're coming here because they're gonna give their heart and soul to that. Advertisement "You gotta figure out that piece. You really have to do your homework. Everyone is doing that right now." 'It just fits you.': Why Rick Pitino encouraged his son to become Xavier's next head coach While it's rare for college basketball players to stay at one program, Pitino is still aiming at keeping players at Xavier. Could there be one-year Musketeers as early as next season? Sure, simply because there are a ton of scholarships still on the table. However, Xavier could be targeting players with multiple years of eligibility remaining that they can keep and develop. "Retention is going to be very important for us," Pitino said. "I think it's very important that my staff has clarity of what exactly I'm looking for. The goal is to win. The goal is to win championships." Advertisement 'This community deserves a winner.': The Richard Pitino era begins at Xavier University 'It's a fun way to play.' With the transfer portal commonly revolving around which program gives out the biggest paycheck, Pitino's style of play is an easy recruiting pitch. New Mexico ranked No. 7 in the country in tempo, according to KenPom, and Pitino is bringing his up-tempo approach to Cintas Center. Pace, conditioning and stamina will highlight Xavier next season, an approach Pitino got from Gonzaga and veteran head coach Mark Few. Richard Pitino on taking Xavier job: "Very fortunate to have tasted success at New Mexico. I love the taste of it. My goal is Big East Championships. If you win the Big East Championship, you're gonna get a good seed in the NCAA Tournament." "It's not very hard to sell a vision that we don't want to run a bunch of set plays and walk the ball up the court," Pitino said. "They gotta push through when they get tired. We have to practice it every single day. It's hard, but it's a fun way to play." Advertisement Defensively, Pitino's teams cause chaos. It's a style inspired by watching one of Kelvin Sampson's practices at Houston on his way back from recruiting in Beaumont, Texas, along with several years under the tutelage of his father, Rick Pitino. "We want disruption. We want you extremely uncomfortable," Pitino said. New Mexico was No. 23 in defensive efficiency in 2024 and No. 19 last season. Pitino's Lobos were No. 51 in turnover percentage and top 35 in the country in steals and blocks. Who is Xavier targeting in the transfer portal? Pitino and his staff were active in the transfer portal in the week between agreeing to terms to become Xavier's next coach and Tuesday's introduction. Advertisement Valparaiso guard All Wright, the MVC Freshman of the Year was on a visit to Xavier Tuesday along with Virginia forward Anthony Robinson, who played sparingly as a freshman for the Cavaliers. Xavier was linked to Summit League Player of the Year Marquel Sutton (Omaha), who just wrapped up a visit with Kansas State. Omaha transfer Marquel Sutton (10) averaged 18.9 points and 7.9 rebounds for the Mavericks last season. Xavier also reached out to Brian Moore Jr., who won Lou Henson Award as the nation's top mid-major player this season at Norfolk State and will have several suitors. Jamichael Stillwell listed Xavier in his final six schools along with Oklahoma, West Virginia, UCF, Memphis and Virginia. As a junior at Milwaukee, the 6-foot-8 forward averaged a double-double at 13 points and 10.7 rebounds (No. 7 in the nation) per game. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 'The goal is to win.' How Richard Pitino plans to build Xavier roster
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Xavier head coach Richard Pitino finalizes coaching staff with Musketeers
One week after he was formally introduced as Xavier's next head men's basketball coach, Richard Pitino has finalized his first coaching staff with the Musketeers, the school announced Tuesday afternoon. It's now official that the majority of Pitino's staff at New Mexico, which helped lead the Lobos to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances along with a Mountain West regular-season and conference tournament title, will be joining him at Xavier. Advertisement "I wanted to make sure the people who helped me get this dream job were taken care of," Pitino told reporters April 1. Richard Pitino speaks after being introduced as the new Xavier men's basketball head coach on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. The lone exception is assistant Dave Pilipovich, a coaching veteran of over three decades, who got a job closer to home on Ali Farokhmanesh's staff at Colorado State. Pitino's staff includes associate head coach Isaac Chew, assistant coaches Tarvish Felton and Aaron Katsuma, assistant coach/player development Daniel Walters, director of basketball operations Peyton Stephens and strength and conditioning coach Matthew Flores. "One of the most important things to do when starting a program is building a staff," Pitino said in a statement. "Isaac, Tarvish, Aaron, Danny, Peyton and Matt all were integral parts of our Mountain West Championships and back-to-back NCAA Tournament teams. They have hit the ground running right away and will be a huge part of our success." Advertisement More: Ranking Xavier basketball's history in NCAA's transfer portal The only coach retained from Sean Miller's staff is former Xavier guard Dante Jackson, who will remain with the Musketeers as an assistant. Xavier assistant coach Dante Jackson was a guard for the Musketeers from 2007-2011. "I don't care that he (Jackson) played at Xavier. I don't care that he's worked here before. I want to hire Dante because he's a phenomenal coach and he understands what we're trying to do," Pitino said April 1. "I wouldn't have hired him if I didn't think he was a terrific coach. Playing at Xavier, knowing this place, certainly is an added benefit, but it's not why I hired him." Chew will enter his fifth season on Pitino's staff and will serve in the associated head-coaching role he was promoted to in April 2024. He has previous assistant coaching experience at Murray State, Missouri, Marquette, Virginia Tech, Texas A&M and Grand Canyon, according to his coaching bio. New Xavier associate head coach Isaac Chew is entering his fifth season on Richard Pitino's staff and has coaching experience in four different power conferences. Felton had a 10-season run at Utah State before serving as the associate head coach at Fresno State for four years. He joined New Mexico in 2022. Advertisement Katsuma spent five seasons at Colorado State (four as director of basketball operations) before joining New Mexico as an assistant for back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. Katsuma was on Pitino's staff at Minnesota for four total seasons. Walters was a video coordinator and assistant coach at New Mexico last season and joined the Lobos in 2022. Stephens will enter her fifth season on Pitino's staff. She was an administrative assistant in her first three seasons with the Lobos before serving as the New Mexico Director of Basketball Operations last year. She had previously spent two seasons as an administrative assistant at her alma mater, Texas A&M. Advertisement Flores will also enter his fifth season as a strength and conditioning coach under Pitino. He was a graduate assistant under Pitino at Minnesota during the 2018-19 season, then had a two-year stint at Utah Valley before joining the New Mexico staff. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Richard Pitino finalizes full coaching staff for Xavier Musketeers
USA Today
08-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Final NCAA Tournament records by conference after Florida's title win over Houston
Final NCAA Tournament records by conference after Florida's title win over Houston The 2024-25 college basketball season came to an end on Monday night, as Florida edged Houston 65-63 in the NCAA Tournament national title game. The result was a fitting end to an entertaining season across the sport. The Final Four of Duke, Auburn, Houston and Florida were by far the best teams in the country from start to finish. Each was evenly matched, as seen in the three final games (two Final Four, one national title) being decided by a combined 11 points. The SEC wins the final argument for conference supremacy after capping a record season with a title win over the Big 12's Cougars. The Big 12 and Big Ten can argue for second-best. That discussion can be recycled annually, as the Big Ten boasts several of the sport's top teams, yet has little NCAA Tournament success to show for it. For more on how the Big Ten performed in this year's postseason and a full recap of the SEC's record year, here are the NCAA Tournament records for every conference that sent at least two teams to field: Mountain West -- 2-4 (.333) Tournament Teams, Results: South Region No. 10-seed New Mexico -- R64 win over Marquette, R32 loss to Michigan State West Region No. 12-seed Colorado State -- R64 win over Memphis, R32 loss to Maryland Midwest Region No. 10-seed Utah State -- R64 loss to UCLA South Region No. 11-seed San Diego State -- First Four loss to North Carolina Both New Mexico and Colorado State finished just outside KenPom's top 40 teams after reaching the tournament's second round. As can often be the case at this level of the sport, both coaches left for new jobs after their seasons concluded -- New Mexico's Richard Pitino to Xavier and Colorado State's Niko Medved to Minnesota. Big East -- 4-5 (.444) Tournament Teams, Results: West Region No. 2-seed St. John's -- R64 win over Omaha, R32 loss to Arkansas South Region No. 9-seed Creighton -- R64 win over Louisville, R32 loss to Auburn West Region No. 8-seed UConn -- R64 win over Oklahoma, R32 loss to Florida South Region No. 7-seed Marquette -- R64 loss to New Mexico Midwest Region No. 11-seed Xavier -- First Four win over Texas, R64 loss to Illinois The Big East's top teams disappointed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. While replicating consecutive national titles was a tall ask, none of St. John's, UConn, or Marquette got out of the second round. That result is far from what was expected from the conference entering the season. West Coast -- 2-2 (.500) Tournament Teams, Results: Midwest Region No. 8-seed Gonzaga -- R64 win over Georgia, R32 loss to Houston East Region No. 7-seed Saint Mary's -- R64 win over Vanderbilt, R32 loss to Alabama As noted in previous editions of this article, the West Coast Conference got a tough draw with Gonzaga, KenPom's No. 9 team in the sport, as a No. 8 seed and Saint Mary's as a No. 7, paired up with top-ranked Alabama. Neither team was expected to overcome tough second-round matchups. Big Ten -- 13-8 (.619) Tournament Teams, Results: South Region No. 2-seed Michigan State -- R64 win over Bryant, R32 win over New Mexico, S16 win over Ole Miss, E8 loss to Auburn West Region No. 4-seed Maryland -- R64 win over Grand Canyon, R32 win over Colorado State, S16 loss to Florida South Region No. 5-seed Michigan -- R64 win over UC San Diego, R32 win over Texas A&M, S16 loss to Auburn East Region No. 3-seed Wisconsin -- R64 win over Montana, R32 loss to BYU Midwest Region No. 7-seed UCLA -- R64 win over Utah State, R32 loss to Tennessee Midwest Region No. 4-seed Purdue -- R64 win over High Point, R32 win over McNeese State, S16 loss to Houston East Region No. 5-seed Oregon -- R64 win over Liberty, R32 loss to Arizona Midwest Region No. 6-seed Illinois -- R64 win over Xavier, R32 loss to Kentucky The Big Ten's NCAA Tournament wasn't a complete disaster. Michigan State reached the Elite Eight, while Maryland, Purdue and Michigan each fell to No. 1 seeds in the Sweet 16. Wisconsin was the group's biggest disappointment. It had a Final Four-caliber team, yet fell to No. 6-seed BYU in the second round. ACC -- 5-4 (.555) Tournament Teams, Results: East Region No. 1-seed Duke -- R64 win over Mount St. Mary's, R32 win over Baylor, S16 win over Arizona, E8 win over Alabama, F4 loss to Houston Midwest Region No. 5-seed Clemson -- R64 loss to McNeese State South Region No. 8-seed Louisville -- R64 loss to Creighton South Region No. 11-seed North Carolina -- First Four win over San Diego State, R64 loss to Ole Miss Duke's late-game collapse against Houston headlines the ACC's tournament performance. It will forever be a season of 'what-ifs,' as simple execution would have sent the Blue Devils to the title game. Duke was considered one of the best teams in recent memory, including by KenPom. But after that Final Four loss, the group is eliminated from any conversation with the sport's best. SEC -- 23-13 (.638) Tournament Teams, Results: West Region No. 1-seed Florida -- R64 win over Norfolk State, R32 win over UConn, S16 win over Maryland, E8 win over Texas Tech, F4 win over Auburn, national title win over Houston South Region No. 1-seed Auburn -- R64 win over Alabama State, R32 win over Creighton, S16 win over Michigan, E8 win over Michigan State, F4 loss to Florida East Region No. 2-seed Alabama -- R64 win over Robert Morris, R32 win over Saint Mary's, S16 win over BYU, E8 loss to Duke Midwest Region No. 2-seed Tennessee -- R64 win over Wofford, R32 win over UCLA, S16 win over Kentucky, E8 loss to Houston South Region No. 4-seed Texas A&M -- R64 win over Yale, R32 loss to Michigan Midwest Region No. 3-seed Kentucky -- R64 win over Troy, R32 win over Illinois, S16 loss to Tennessee South Region No. 6-seed Ole Miss -- R64 win over North Carolina, R32 win over Iowa State, S16 loss to Michigan State West Region No. 6-seed Missouri -- R64 loss to Drake East Region No. 8-seed Mississippi State -- R64 loss to Baylor West Region No. 10-seed Arkansas -- R64 win over Kansas, R32 win over St. John's, S16 loss to Texas Tech East Region No. 10-seed Vanderbilt -- R64 loss to Saint Mary's Midwest Region No. 9-seed Georgia -- R64 loss to Gonzaga West Region No. 9-seed Oklahoma -- R64 loss to UConn Midwest Region No. 11-seed Texas -- First Four loss to Xavier The long list of tournament entrants and wins accurately displays the SEC's postseason performance. On top of it all, Florida cut down the nets at the end of Monday's game. It was only fitting that an SEC team was the last standing after the conference delivered arguably the best overall season in history. Big 12 -- 14-7 (.667) Tournament Teams, Results: Midwest Region No. 1-seed Houston -- R64 win over SIUE, R32 win over Gonzaga, S16 win over Purdue, E8 win over Tennessee, F4 win over Duke, national title loss to Florida West Region No. 3-seed Texas Tech -- R64 win over UNC Wilmington, R32 win over Drake, S16 win over Arkansas, E8 loss to Florida East Region No. 6-seed BYU -- R64 win over VCU, R32 win over Wisconsin, S16 loss to Alabama East Region No. 4-seed Arizona -- R64 win over Akron, R32 win over Oregon, S16 loss to Duke South Region No. 3-seed Iowa State -- R64 win over Lipscomb, R32 loss to Ole Miss West Region No. 7-seed Kansas -- R64 loss to Arkansas East Region No. 9-seed Baylor -- R64 win over Mississippi State, R32 loss to Duke The Big 12 likely wins the argument for the second-best conference after Houston's national title run punctuated a strong overall tournament performance. Kansas was the No. 1 team in the AP Poll entering the season, yet didn't even need to factor into the postseason record for the Big 12 to near a .700 winning percentage. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Richard Pitino Takes New Job
Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images The Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball team has a new head coach — 'one of us' U of M alum, Niko Medved — who was officially announced on Tuesday, just two days after leading his former team, the Colorado State Rams, to a second round defeat in the NCAA Tournament, at the hands of a Maryland buzzer-beater. Advertisement Medved was hired to replace Ben Johnson, who was fired after his fourth season as head men's basketball coach at the University of Minnesota. In that time, Johnson accumulated a 56-71 overall record, which stands as the worst winning percentage (.441) of any men's basketball head coach to last more than one season since World War II, when Carl Nordly's Gophers went 17-23 between 1943 and 1944. Ben Johnson's predecessor found success in New Mexico But the University of Minnesota's men's basketball struggles predate Johnson's forgettable tenure as head coach. Prior to Ben taking over for the 2021-22 season, the Golden Gophers were coached for eight years by then 30-something, Richard Pitino, whose dad is known as one of the greatest basketball coaches in the sport's history. Pitino went 141-123 at Minnesota, but failed to make the NCAA tournament in his last two seasons at the helm. Just in case you're counting, that makes it six college basketball seasons since the Minnesota Gophers have made the dance. Credit: Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images Of course, the same cannot be said about Pitino. Since Richard left Dinkytown and landed in the Mountain West Conference, as head coach of the New Mexico Lobos, he's thrived, posting an overall record of 88-49 at New Mexico, including three-straight 20+ win seasons and two-straight NCAA Tournament appearances. Advertisement In 2024-25, Richard's Lobos went 27-8 and — much like his Mountain West rival Rams and now Gophers head coach Niko Medved — won their first round March Madness matchup 75-66 vs Marquette. New Mexico then fell to Michigan State in round two. Richard Pitino lands head coaching job at Xavier On Tuesday evening, Pitino was rewarded for his success down in the desert with the new head coaching job at Xavier University. Coincidentally, Xavier is where Ben Johnson was an assistant coach from 2018-2021, prior to being hired as Gophers head coach. Wanna go even further down the rabbit hole of weird basketball connections? Before landing at Xavier, Johnson was one Richard Pitino's Gophers staff from assistants on the Gophers staff. Basketball is a small world, after all… Advertisement Richard Pitino never got a fair shot at the University of Minnesota. Immediately upon being hired, and even after winning the NIT Tournament in his first season and making two NCAA Tournament appearances in three seasons from 2016-2019, Pitino was always seen by local media as an emergency Norwood Teague hire that was mostly based in nepotism. Related: New Gophers MBB Coach Supposedly Bringing Talent with Him to Minnesota Now, just four years after he left, those who chased him out of town are now clinging to hopes that another new coach can get this program back to where Richard Pitino had it, then hopefully beyond. Meanwhile, Pitino is now back in a traditional basketball power conference (Big East), ready to prove himself beyond his father's shadow, yet again.
