Hall-of-Fame collegiate coach Rick Pitino has taken his fourth basketball program to the NCAA Tournament "Sweet 16" after St. John's secured a spot in the regional semifinals on Sunday with a buzzer-beating victory over Kansas . Interestingly, the manner in which the win was achieved reminded him of one of the toughest losses he has had as a coach.
The Red Storm defeated the Jayhawks, 67-65, in their second-round matchup, with guard Dylan Darling providing the game-winning shot as time expired. It catapulted St. John's to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1999 and made the school the fourth team Pitino led to the regional semifinals, after Providence, Kentucky and Louisville .
St. John's will face top overall seed Duke in the Sweet 16 on Friday at the Capital One Arena in Washington. D.C.
In the post-game press conference following their win over Kansas, Pitino shared his excitement over their feat while also jokingly reliving the tough buzzer-beating defeat he had at the hands of Duke in the 1992 NCAA "Elite Eight" while coaching Kentucky.
It is something he said he would not mind redeeming himself from in their scheduled showdown with the Blue Devils this week.
"I've been on winning at the buzzer and losing at the buzzer. And tonight, you win some, you lose some. And I'm hoping we can get Duke at the buzzer next to make up for that Christian Laettner shot," Pitino said .
What Pitino was referring to was Laettner 's game-winning turnaround jumper in overtime that led the Blue Devils to the 104-103 win over the Wildcats. It is widely known as "The Shot" and is considered the most famous buzzer-beater in NCAA history.
Kentucky was looking to secure the win after Deron Feldhaus gave his team a 103-102 lead with 2.1 seconds remaining. Duke sued for time after.
When play resumed, Grant Hill threw a perfect 79-foot pass from the baseline to Laettner, who was on the opposing foul line. The big man caught the ball, took a dribble, then turned to hit the jumper at the buzzer to send Duke to the Final Four.
The shot completed a perfect shooting night for Laettner, who finished with 31 points, going 10-of-10 from the field, 10-of-10 from the free throw line and 1-of-1 from three.
Duke then proceeded to beat Indiana in the Final Four and dominated Michigan 's "Fab Five" in the national championship game to win its second straight NCAA title.
Pitino will now try to lead St. John's to an upset of Duke when they meet in the Sweet 16.
The Red Storm, the No. 5 seed in the East Region, has packed momentum in the NCAA Tournament, beating Northern Iowa in the opening round, 79-53, and then Kansas. On both occasions, senior forward Zuby Ejiofor led the way, averaging 16.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, three assists, 2.5 blocks and a steal.
Duke, for its part, struggled in its opening-round showdown with 16th seed Siena before winning, 71-65. It, however, bounced back in the second round, beating TCU, 81-59. ACC Player and Freshman of the Year Cameron Boozer continues to lead the charge for the Blue Devils in March Madness, with numbers of 20.5 points, 12.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.5 steals and a block.
Whether Pitino and St. John's will beat Duke via buzzer-beater at the Sweet 16 is up in the air. What is definite, though, is that they will take a victory in whatever form it comes to continue their spirited run.
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This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Mar 24, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
