St. John's basketball has made a remarkable turnaround under coach Rick Pitino, clinching its first outright regular-season title since 1985 and improving from previous seasons. The team showed resilience in a recent game against UConn, where they executed well under pressure after a significant lead. Pitino's coaching approach has evolved to emphasize toughness and fundamentals, contrasting with earlier setbacks. The Red Storm's current success, highlighted by their highest national ranking since the 1990s, has brought renewed hope and excitement to their fans and was demonstrated by their strong performance this season.
"We got in a huddle and Zuby said, 'Look, we've battled injuries. We don't wilt. We've been there before. We know what to do,'" Pitino said.
"It's a good group, they try hard, but they're just not very tough," Pitino went on to tell the media that day.
The Red Storm have tapped into their spirit of relentlessness to go from the middle of the Big East standings to winning their first outright regular-season title since 1985.
Much like the turnaround in that late-February win over UConn, this campaign has felt different, with St. John's achieving their highest national ranking since the late Lou Carnesecca.
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