4 Takeaways From UConn's Historic Blowout vs. Rick Pitino's St. John's

[ad_1] PeoplesBank Area (Hartford, Conn.) — Not for the primary time, an unmistakable voice minimize by way of the free-throw silence with a poignant message for St. John's head coach Rick Pitino, chief of the No. 15 group within the nation. This time, Pitino’s backup middle, Ruben Prey, had been dinged for a Flagrant 1 foul in opposition to No. 6 UConn level guard Silas Demary Jr., his reckless contest of an tried dunk, hacksawing his opponent to the bottom. And after the replay overview, as Demary stepped to the foul line, the phrases from this explicit Huskies fan pierced the air.

"Hey Pitino," the particular person wailed, "take your soiled f------ group dwelling!"

By then, Pitino had lengthy since waved the white flag in a sport that arrived with a lot hype — that’s at all times the case when these two heavyweights do battle within the Massive East’s fashionable period — and ended with a historic whimper. In pummeling and pounding the Pink Storm to this diploma, 72-40, the Huskies turned the primary program since Virginia on March 5, 2016, to restrict a Pitino-coached group to fewer than 50 factors, in keeping with FOX Sports activities Analysis.

St. John’s missed an unfathomable 24 consecutive pictures to finish the sport, failing to attach on a area purpose for the ultimate 17:28 of a night that devolved right into a rout. UConn scored extra factors within the paint (42) than the Pink Storm did in whole.

"That’s in all probability solely occurred to me two instances in my profession," stated Pitino, who spoke to the media for barely a minute outdoors the visiting locker room earlier than slicing off additional questions. "As soon as was my first 12 months at Kentucky once we went into Phog Allen [Fieldhouse] at Kansas, I used to be taking part in with very a lot an inferior group [back then], not like the sort of group. It’s all on me. I’m very upset in our efficiency."

Listed below are my takeaways from UConn's dominant win in opposition to St. John's:

1. Tarris Reed Jr. is the X-factor in UConn’s nationwide championship pursuit UConn's Tarris Reed Jr. in the course of the second half of the sport in opposition to St. John's at PeoplesBank Area on February 25, 2026. (Picture by Joe Buglewicz/Getty Pictures)

When UConn head coach Dan Hurley met with the media for his pregame information convention, he repeatedly swatted apart the concept a rematch between the Huskies and St. John’s could possibly be distilled right into a one-on-one matchup between Tarris Reed Jr. and Zuby Ejiofor, the beginning facilities for every groups. Hurley wouldn’t hear it. He assured these in attendance he solely cared about profitable the sport, which might preserve the Huskies afloat in a race for the Massive East common season title.

However as soon as the ball was tipped, as soon as Reed and Ejiofor started their bodily assault on one another within the low put up, grabbing and shoving and wrestling for each inch of house on each ends of the ground, a sure synchronicity developed. It was as if each Hurley and Pitino had been lastly acknowledging that the group whose middle may extra legally bludgeon the opposite would virtually actually go away the world with a win. The substitution patterns for each gamers mirrored one another throughout the opening half. And each entanglement beneath the basket was met with bated breath every time a referee’s whistle blew in maybe probably the most vital second of UConn’s season, a rematch with first-place St. John’s that carried vital seeding implications for each the Massive East Match and NCAA Match. With the Huskies' win, the 2 groups are tied atop the convention standings.

Reed marauded his solution to 14 factors, 4 rebounds and three assists within the opening half alone on Wednesday night time to catalyze a Huskies’ offense that produced almost as many factors within the paint (22) because the Pink Storm did in whole on the break (26).

There was a spinning layup in opposition to the undersized Dillon Mitchell. A transition dunk when he beat Ejiofor down the ground with ease. An emphatic block on guard Bryce Hopkins to ignite a quick break that ended with a conventional three-point play for level guard Malachi Smith. He backed down Ejiofor’s alternative, Ruben Prey, for a basket plus the foul. He rebounded his personal miss and kicked the ball out for a 3-pointer by Solo Ball. All of that throughout a primary half by which Ejiofor managed only a single level.

By the point Reed checked out with 5:56 remaining — at which era he’d scored 20 factors, snared 11 rebounds and tied a profession excessive with six blocked pictures — a rowdy crowd of greater than 15,000 gave him a standing ovation, to which he responded with a sequence of fist pumps. When Reed reached the bench, assistant coach Luke Murray stopped his main pupil and pointed a finger into his chest, successfully telling the Huskies’ star that a lot in regards to the night time’s end result was a results of his particular person efforts. It was a sentiment Hurley echoed again and again in his post-game remarks.

"If he needs to be a draft choose, if he needs to win championships, he’ll preserve displaying up like that," Hurley stated. "If he doesn’t, it hurts our possibilities, after which we’re letting one another down. We at all times wanted Tarris to play like an All-American for this to work. And he actually did at the moment, and he did versus 'Nova. I hate to place all of it on one participant, however I feel once we get that Tarris — and once more, that’s a repeatable factor. There’s nothing he did that was, like, fortunate or laborious pictures. He simply performed with an id tonight that was dominant."

2. UConn’s protection is harkening again to early season kind HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT - FEBRUARY 25: Bryce Hopkins #23 of the St. John's Pink Storm shoots in opposition to Alex Karaban #11 and Jayden Ross #23 of the Connecticut Huskies in the course of the first half of an NCAA males's basketball sport at PeoplesBank Area on February 25, 2026 in Hartford, Connecticut. (Picture by Joe Buglewicz/Getty Pictures)

Late within the second half, with the result already safe, a flurry of air balls from the Pink Storm verged on comedic. A spinning baseline floater from Hopkins landed a number of toes in need of the rim. A floater from Prey on the following possession missed the rim broad left, at which level Pitino berated his large man for such an ugly try. Guard Ian Jackson missed the whole lot on an tried 3-pointer that by no means had an opportunity. Then he whiffed once more on a deep 2-pointer a number of possessions later. None of them even got here shut.

Such a stretch of eyeball-burning futility mirrored each the offensive implosion by St. John’s, which prompted Pitino to say his group "did issues that we’ve by no means achieved." And a reincarnated UConn protection is as soon as once more trying like a legit power following an uncharacteristic lull for many of the month. Stunningly, the Pink Storm solely made two of 28 area purpose makes an attempt within the second half and failed to achieve the 40-point mark till reserve guard Dylan Darling made a meaningless set of free throws with 1:29 remaining.

"It was simply our night time, you realize?" Hurley stated. "It simply begins snowballing on you when you have got an evening like this. Clearly, we performed actually good protection on them. I assumed we demoralized them just a little bit, you realize, when the rating will get to the place the rating bought. I simply assume it was a type of nights the place the whole lot went nice for us and the whole lot went improper for them."

In blocking 9 pictures, dogging the 3-point line and defending the paint with waves of defenders, the Huskies turned in a efficiency harking back to the best way they performed early within the season, when superior metrics urged this group was among the many finest handful of groups within the nation at that finish of the ground. It rewrote and upended a pitiful four-game defensive stoop earlier this month by which UConn misplaced twice and surrendered 108.7 factors per 100 possessions, in keeping with Torvik, a quantity so dangerous it ranked one hundred and seventy fifth nationally for that individual stretch. It’s additionally greater than 15 factors worse than the Huskies’ season common of 93.5 factors per 100 possessions and near double the microscopic mark of 69 factors per 100 possessions in opposition to the Pink Storm on Wednesday.

"I feel it’s taking delight," UConn ahead Alex Karaban stated, "taking delight on the defensive finish. Simply particular person matchups. Simply actually guarding our yard. After which simply having belief in each other.

"Belief that we’re going to assist one another out. Belief that we’re going to be within the gaps. Belief that we’re going to assist Tarris or Eric after they hedge a ball display. Simply having belief. I feel we misplaced that belief for some moments, and we didn’t take as a lot delight in the course of the moments that we didn’t play nice protection. Now we’re getting again to that stage that we’ve bought to maintain the remainder of the 12 months."

3. Huskies lastly deal with the full-court strain UConn's Silas Demary Jr. drives to the rim in opposition to St. John's Ruben Prey in the course of the second half at PeoplesBank Area on February 25, 2026. (Picture by Joe Buglewicz/Getty Pictures)

When these two groups met at Madison Sq. Backyard on Feb. 6, a slightly snug St. John's win in a raucous environment, Pitino unleashed his trademark full-court press in a way that largely dismantled UConn’s offensive rhythm. Ninety-plus toes of strain from ball-hawking guards Oziyah Sellers and Dylan Darling drove the Huskies to commit 15 turnovers — 9 of which had been charged to Demary — and imbued the sport with a physicality that UConn couldn’t match. Hurley even joked earlier than Wednesday’s rematch that his group "missed the window" to do sufficient within the weight room to counter the Pink Storm’s uncooked power.

Such struggles in opposition to the press additionally perpetuated a story that has gnawed at UConn the final two seasons. For the Huskies to reply the best way they did on Wednesday night time by solely turning the ball over 5 instances, one among which was an intentional shot clock violation within the waning seconds, felt just like the psychological conquering of a multi-year bugaboo.

"We knew we needed to get stops to keep away from having to in-bound the ball in opposition to the strain and simply to attempt to play forward of their protection," Hurley stated. "We’re doing a greater job, I feel, of getting out in transition as a result of our protection is reinvigorated the final couple video games."

By remodeling one defensive cease after one other into transition possibilities, the Huskies successfully mitigated one among Pitino’s most potent weapons for big chunks of the sport. Every time UConn pressured a missed shot, Hurley waved his gamers up the court docket wildly, imploring them to assault the rim at any and each alternative earlier than the Pink Storm’s protection bought set. A 14-0 edge in fast-break factors mirrored the Huskies’ dedication to attacking St. John’s at tempo.

Demary, the Georgia switch who's now taking part in like among the best level guards within the nation, was the chief of all of it. He responded from the nightmarish effort at Madison Sq. Backyard with a wonderful ground sport that included seven factors, eight rebounds, 5 assists and a steal, content material to let the gamers round him deal with many of the scoring.

"Silas has bought plenty of weapons," Hurley stated. "This group is about stability. Silas did the proper factor at the moment. He took 5 pictures, he bought on the glass, he took care of the ball, he discovered his teammates. He quarterbacked the group at the moment."

4. The Pink Storm’s match résumé St. John's head coach Rick Pitino (Picture by Patrick McDermott/Getty Pictures)

Few groups in school basketball, if any, have improved as a lot as Pitino’s because the begin of the season — a blowout loss to UConn however. There was some extent in early January when St. John’s misplaced at dwelling to lowly Windfall and fell to simply 8-5 general, with prior defeats in opposition to each high-profile non-conference group. For Pitino to reply by reeling off 13 consecutive victories getting into Wednesday’s sport was merely the newest reminder of his unbelievable teaching prowess. St. John’s remains to be within the thick of this 12 months’s race for the Massive East common season title.

However how and the place the Pink Storm shall be seeded within the NCAA Match is sort of a bit trickier to undertaking, as a result of even Pitino’s prolonged win streak can’t undo his group’s unsavory begin. Losses to then-No. 15 Alabama, then-No. 15 Iowa State, then-No. 21 Auburn and then-unranked Kentucky have left St. John’s with a reasonably hole résumé as choice Sunday approaches. The truth is, the Pink Storm’s solely marquee victory was their win over then-No. 3 UConn earlier this month. And even that result's clouded, to a point, by the demolition that unfolded right here within the rematch.

Barring one other victory over UConn within the Massive East Match — assuming the league’s two finest groups are more likely to face one another within the championship sport — Pitino’s group will enter Choice Sunday having solely crushed one ranked foe. That’s not quite a bit for the choice committee to ponder.

"We’re nonetheless taking part in for a league championship," Pitino stated. "It doesn’t matter whether or not you lose by one or 40. The league championship remains to be at stake. Clearly, we now have to make our corrections and transfer on."

4½. What’s subsequent? St. John’s now embarks on what could possibly be a tough ending stretch that features another sport than the Huskies. A extremely winnable dwelling contest in opposition to Georgetown subsequent week is sandwiched by two troublesome matchups with Villanova (dwelling) and Seton Corridor (away) earlier than the convention match at Madison Sq. Backyard. Now tied for first place within the Massive East, any slip-up by the Pink Storm may squander the prospect to turn into the primary group to win consecutive, outright Massive East common season titles since Villanova in 2015-16 and 2016-17 underneath former coach Jay Wright.

The Huskies ought to now have an injection of motivation to complete their remaining video games in type with a path towards a possible No. 1 seed within the NCAA Match squarely in play. A house date with Seton Corridor this weekend will give solution to the highway finale at Marquette on March 7.

"I feel our ceiling has at all times been profitable a number of video games and profitable big-time video games and pushing for a Massive East Match and even a nationwide championship," Demary stated. "We simply sort of went by way of a stretch of letting issues slide, and 1772095172 we sort of locked again in [on] doing the issues we have to do."