ELMONT, N.Y. — After his team blew a 19-point lead against Seton Hall at UBS Arena and lost for the eighth time in 10 games, St. John’s coach Rick Pitino went off.
The 71-year-old Naismith Hall of Famer spent about 15 minutes in his post-game press conference lamenting and lambasting the school’s ‘sh*tty’ facilities, his players’ lack of toughness and athleticism and his staff’s “lost” recruiting effort in the transfer portal.
“If I said I was disappointed, that would be the understatement of the year,” Pitino said to begin his press conference after the 68-62 loss which helped Seton Hall’s NCAA Tournament chances while dealing another blow to those of St. John’s.
Asked if he had second thoughts on taking the job last March after leaving Iona and then adding 12 new players at St. John’s, Pitino said, “It’s not St. John’s, it’s my team.”
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Pitino took a shot at St. John’s facilities but said they are not responsible for the team’s struggles this season.
“Do we have shi*tty facilities?” he asked rhetorically. “Yes, we do. But we’re doing something about that.”
He added: “But that’s not the reason we’re losing. Having sh*tty facilities has nothing to do with not guarding.”
His main complaint after this game and in the past has been his players’ lack of toughness and athleticism.
“We are so unathletic that we can’t guard anybody without fouling,” he said. “For me, I’ve always enjoyed the first year, and I’m not gonna lie to you: This is the most unenjoyable experience of my lifetime. This has been so disappointing.”
He specifically called out several players’ lack of athleticism.
“Look,” he said, “Joel [Soriano]’s slow laterally, he’s not fast on the court. Chris Ledlum is slow laterally, Sean Conway’s slow laterally. Brady [Dunlap’s] physically weak, Drissa [Traore] is slow laterally.”
Pitino called the Seton Hall players…
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