Legends Rick Pitino and Dan Hurley; one is a veteran of the game, and the other is reaching his. They are two of the greatest coaches to ever lead a basketball team. Pitino has been a coach for over 50 years now. Hurley, on the other hand, has been a coach since 1996 and has won two championships at UConn.
They share a heated rivalry. Rick Pitino holds a 2-4 overall record against Dan Hurley. Last year, Pitino’s St John’s Red Storm won back-to-back games against Dan Hurley’s UConn. They are two elite teams that have been in intense competition for the Big East supremacy.
Pitino has revived the St. John’s program, and the matchups between the two teams have been intense. UConn lost two games in 2025 in the span of 17 days. St. John’s won 89-75 and 68-62. And now they are set to meet again on Friday. Rick Pitino shared his take on the rivalry with Dan Hurley’s UConn.
“You know, I don’t consider it a rival. I think they’re in a class by themselves. I think we’re just resurrecting our program, but I don’t consider that game more of a rivalry game than Villanova or Georgetown or Providence or anybody else because they’re in a class by themselves. They drive; they’re the engine that drives this league. They have the fan base like Kentucky. So, we’re trying to catch up certainly, and we’re working at it,” Rick Pitino heaped praise on Dan Hurley’s UConn.
Rick Pitino Previews Showdown Vs Dan Hurley
Pitino believes it is going to be a sure-shot sellout, and around 10,000 fans would be present at the Garden. He is excited for the game and said that it will be magical.
“Well, I’ve always said this, the three greatest resurrection jobs in my lifetime of 52 years of coaching was Jim Calhoun of Connecticut, a Yankee conference school,” Pitino showed respect for UConn.
The other two resurrections were Jerry Tarkanian at Las Vegas and John Calipari at UMass.
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