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Rick Pitino hugged Richard Pitino on the Madison Square Garden sideline and quickly engaged in pregame pleasantries on his way to the St. John’s bench.
From that point on, it all was business.
Rick Pitino emerged victorious in Sunday’s much-hyped coaching showdown between father and son, as No. 22 St. John’s used an uptempo attack to top Richard Pitino and New Mexico, 85-71, at Madison Square Garden.
Junior forward RJ Luis continued his red-hot start to what’s been a breakout season so far, leading St. John’s with 21 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.
Prized transfers Deivon Smith and Kadary Richmond, who largely function as facilitators though the Johnnies’ first three games, both took over offensively for spurts of Sunday’s win.
Smith scored a season-high 15 points, while Richmond added 14 along with eight rebounds and five assists.
The balanced attack helped St. John’s pass its first true test of the season to improve to 4-0, while Rick Pitino, 72, improved to 3-1 all time against his 42-year-old son.
The younger Pitino appeared to laugh as St. John’s fans chanted “Who’s Your Daddy?” late in the second half.
St. John’s jumped out to an early lead Sunday by repeatedly attacking the basket. The Johnnies went up 25-13 lead on the strength of an 11-0 run, which Luis punctuated with a 3-pointer.
Leading the Red Storm’s track meet in the first half was Smith, who made five layups before the break, including three in the final 4:26.
It was an aggressive first half for the point guard, whose nine field-goal attempts matched his full-game season high. At halftime, he had 12 points — one shy of his full-game season high to that point.
The 6-foot Smith, who transferred from Utah, took advantage of a New Mexico backcourt that appeared to tire as St. John’s pushed the pace.
The Johnnies took a 40-29 lead into the break. They scored 22 points in the paint in the first half, outrebounded New Mexico, 25-14, and corralled 10 offensive rebounds, leading to 10…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/rick-pitino-bests-son-richard-192200443.html
Author : NY Daily News
Publish date : 2024-11-17 19:22:00
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