Dan Hurley’s UConn vs. Rick Pitino’s St. John’s, the blockbuster matchup is upon us this weekend. The two teams have been battling for the supremacy of the Big East ever since Pitino took over the Red Storm. Hurley has already shown why his UConn Huskies are rated so highly. His back-to-back championships with UConn in 2023 and 2024 were a testament to his legacy and his Hall of Fame caliber.
Pitino, on the other hand, has already been inducted into the Hall of Fame. He is a legend of the sport and has been one for some years now. He has coached multiple great teams in the last 50 years. Pitino, along with Hurley and Bill Self, is one of the only three active college basketball coaches who have won multiple NCAA championships. So when such powerhouse programs meet, it is obviously one of the biggest spectacles in college basketball.
Rick Pitino and Dan Hurley’s regular-season record is tied at 2-2. For the post-season record, Hurley is 2-0 up. Now they meet again when both teams have been playing some of their best basketball.
Recently, Pitino downplayed the rivalry with Hurley and instead complimented the Huskies. However, college basketball analyst Matt Norlander dismissed Pitino’s comments.
“It’s something there. Pitino actually tried to downplay going into this game, and he was actually complimentary of UConn when he was doing it. Everyone knows the deal here. This is the premier game for the league. The league needs this game. He needs these coaches. It is a rivalry. He can downplay it all he wants. He and that coaching staff desperately want to kick the crap out of UCOnn,” Norlander said.
“There you go. The Huskies have won 18 straight. They’ve been incredible. The Johnny’s have won eight straight, and yeah, some of it is the byproduct of a weak Big East, not presenting serious challenges too often. I mean, half the league is ranked outside of the top 80 of the net. And so this is the first time either of these teams has played a team like this in a while. So that’s part of why it’s so compelling,” Gary Parrish added.
Norlander picked Dan Hurley’s UConn Huskies for the win, while Parrish picked Rick Pitino’s St. John’s Red Storm.
What Did Rick Pitino Say About Rivalry With Dan Hurley and UConn?
When asked to comment on the rivalry with Hurley, Pitino took a humble approach and downplayed any competition. He said that ever since he came to St. John’s, the Huskies have been superior. According to Pitino, there is no rivalry because the Huskies are in a league of their own.
Pitino also compared the back-to-back Huskies championship team to their current squad. He believes that this year’s team is not as good as the previous two, but it still has the caliber to go deep into the NCAA tournament.
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