March Madness is known for marquee, heroic, and iconic moments, and fans just got another one. When Rick Pitino’s St. John’s and Bill Self’s Kansas won their first-round games of the NCAA Tournament and were set up to play each other, it was the game to look forward to.
Despite Kansas’ shaky season, the presence of No. 1 draft candidate Darryn Peterson always garnered a lot of attention. Peterson struggled with injuries throughout the season, but he was cleared for the NCAA tournament, and everyone was eager to see how he would perform.
It was a pretty close game on Sunday. Rick Pitino’s St. John’s emerged victorious because of a buzzer-beater. Peterson ended up with 21 points and 4 rebounds. Melvin Council Jr. got 15 points with 9 rebounds, but it was clearly not enough.
It was a team effort from St. John’s. Zuby Ejiofor and Bryce Hopkins scored 18 points each. But it was Dylan Darling’s buzzer-beater, his only bucket in the game, that gave them the win. Rick Pitino revealed the plan that led to the buzzer-beater.
“Here’s the amazing thing and the funniest thing I’ve ever been involved with,” Pitino said. “So we’re going to run a play, but they got fouls to give, and Bells comes up to me and says run power, which is a high back screen pick and roll. So I walk away. I said okay power. I walk away and said, ‘Wait a second. He hasn’t scored a bucket and he wants to run a play for himself.’ And I’m thinking as I’m walking, I said, ‘But he’s Bells.'”
“And not only did he do it, he went with his right hand. So, real proud of him because to want the ball when you haven’t made a shot is unbelievable. So, both of these guys had a major impact on us winning tonight. I’m so happy for St. John’s and the fans,” a jubilant Pitino shared.
Fans React to Dylan Darling’s Buzzer-Beater vs Kansas
Fans online were elated to see Dylan Darling’s buzzer-beater.
“Horrible clock management by Kansas,” one fan pointed out.
“Darryn Peterson is projected as the #1 pick in the draft, and Rick Pitino just called out his negative assist/turnover ratio on camera. Imagine being 19, worth millions, and a 73-year-old Hall of Famer is roasting your game on national TV. NIL money doesn’t buy you thick skin,” one fan accused.
“First Sweet 16 since 1999 and it came on a buzzer-beater against KANSAS Dylan Darling had ONE bucket all game and it was the only one that mattered. You literally cannot script March Madness,” one fan said.
“His first bucket of the game was the last bucket of the game. zero points until the only one that counted. Darling was just sitting there waiting for the exact right moment and then chose violence,” another commented.
“Pitino still got that March magic,” another replied.
Read more:
St. John’s Rick Pitino Seeks 34-Year-Old Revenge from Duke in Sweet 16 Showdown
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