You must remember how St. John’s erupted for 14 made 3-pointers in their win over Omaha in the opening round? Well, in the next game, when a Sweet 16 spot was at stake, they suddenly began to miss. And miss. And miss. Just one of the Red Storm’s 13 attempts from beyond the arc found the target during an already tough first half vs. Arkansas Razorbacks. And just like that, the greatest season of Red Storm basketball in 25 years ended. Head coach Rick Pitino, for the obvious reason, was visibly upset and…actually fiery in the postgame conference.
And he had every reason to be. By midseason, it was clear that St. John’s belonged in the conversation among the best teams in the country. But there was always that looming question: what would happen if the Red Storm found themselves in a game where their bad perimeter shooting turned worse? Well, we finally got our answer.
Against the 10th-seeded Razorbacks, they lost 66-75.
And amid the shooting woes there was a head-scratching coaching decision, too. Pitino benched his top player RJ Luis for the final 4:56. Luis had just hit two free throws to pull St. John’s within two, and then he was taken out of the game. Naturally, reporters in the postgame conference wanted answers.
More from Rick Pitino on why RJ Luis was benched for final 4:56 vs. Arkansas:
— “He played 30 minutes. That’s a long time.”
— Thanks leadership of Scott, Richmond, Smith after asked about Luis’ leadership
He repeatedly emphasized lack of passing but didn’t single Luis out. pic.twitter.com/2h4IVWtlS1
— Kyle Boone (@kyletheboone) March 22, 2025
When one asked if it was because Luis wasn’t making shots or if there was something more to it, Pitino snapped, “Played 30 minutes. A long time.” When the reporter pressed further—“So he was tired?”—the coach shut it down. “No, [he] played 30 minutes and I went with other people. You already know the answer. You’re asking leading questions. You already know it. So don’t ask leading questions.”
Another question about Luis, and the HC doubled down. “You know he was 0-for-3. So you’re answering your own question. I’m not going to knock one of my players.” And, well, we do know the answer. Luis had a season-low nine points on 3-for-17 shooting. It was a brutal night at the worst possible time.
And coach Pitino continued dodging questions about him. When asked about Luis’ leadership, he instead started appreciating players like Aaron Scott, Kadary Richmond and Deivon Smith. But he also pinpointed what he felt was the biggest issue. “They did not move the basketball enough, and that led to us shooting a very low percentage. We’re a team that has to get a high number of assists to win, and we didn’t tonight.”
And the stats back him up. A team that usually racks up almost 20 or more assists per game had just five. Combine that with their worst shooting performance of the season—28.0% from the field and a horrific 9% from three (2-of-22)—and they simply couldn’t overcome it, even with Arkansas shooting just 42.9% and 2-of-19 from deep themselves.
Playing three hours from campus in front of a pro-St. John’s crowd, the Johnnies missed their first eight 3-point attempts and trailed 22-14 with 8:40 to play in the first half. Their biggest lead was just FOUR points. Can you imagine? Arkansas, meanwhile, used their athleticism to tear apart the Red Storm’s usually sturdy paint defense.
Zuby Ejiofor and Deivon Smith did their best to stage a comeback—Ejiofor put up a 23-point, 12-rebound double-double, while Smith chipped in 13 off the bench—but the Red Storm’s magic had officially run out. Seems like, just like his pre-game comments, Coach Pitino downplayed this a bit too much.
And now, John Calipari is heading to the Sweet 16.
Rick Pitino’s opponent in Sweet 16 after six years
After looking downright hopeless earlier this year, Arkansas’ turnaround has been one of college basketball’s biggest surprises in 2025. We know that Coach Calipari had been drowning in doubt after years of underwhelming finishes at Kentucky. So he left, took a chance on Arkansas, and look who’s here finally.
To be fair, this was the expectation the moment Calipari arrived in Arkansas. But when Razorbacks men started 11-7 with an 0-5 conference record, people questioned if this was the right fit. Turns out, he just needed some time. The Razorbacks closed out the season with a 9-6 run, played their way into the tournament, and despite being a No. 10 seed always had the potential.
Calipari had his own demons to overcome. He only had one NCAA Tournament win in his last three appearances and hadn’t been to the Sweet 16 since 2019. But his squad delivered. Before facing Johnnies, Cal shared how he hyped up his squad.
Dec 21, 2024; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach John Calipari smiles during the second half against the North Carolina A&T Aggies at Bud Walton Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images
“I said prior to the game, ‘How about we give ourselves a chance to make some magic? Let’s go fight like heck, play free and loose, [and] whatever happens, happens,’” he said. And they did. Freshman forward Billy Richmond III led Arkansas with 16 points and nine rebounds, Karter Knox added 15 (including nine clutch free throws), and Johnell Davis chipped in 13.
Now, Arkansas faces No. 3 seed Texas Tech in San Francisco. Another battle awaits. But for now, Calipari is celebrating, and Arkansas is still dancing.
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