Pitino Magic Returns: St. John’s Buzzer-Beater Sends Red Storm Back To Sweet Sixteen For First Time Since 1999

What more could you have wanted from a Rick Pitino versus Bill Self showdown for a spot in the Sweet Sixteen? How about a buzzer-beater from St. John's to hold off a fierce rally from Kansas?

It's been eleven years since Rick Pitino could consider himself sweet enough in the NCAA Tournament for a championship run, and for the first time since 1999, the Red Storm are headed back to the Sweet Sixteen. 

So you thought the ending of Nebraska versus Vanderbilt was crazy? What we witnessed in San Diego was essentially the Basketball Gods telling us to hold their beer.

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Just as everything looked as if it was going wrong for St. John's, with Kansas going on an incredible 29-3 run up until the final possession, the Red Storm found itself with the ball as the clock sat at 2.9 seconds remaining in the game. 

There were no more fouls to give for Kansas, and Bill Self had to come up with something defensively to hold off a prayer by St. John's. 

Dylan Darling had not scored a single point up until the final possession of the game, but the Johnnies guard saved his best play for last. 

Rick Pitino had his St. John's team clear out the paint, where Darling came streaking through to hit the game-winning contested layup that sent his school back to the third round for the first time in over 25 years. 

Asked what his head coach was telling him in the final huddle before the game-winner, Darling proclaimed that it didn't have much to do about the upcoming play. 

"He was yelling at me, per usual," Darling jokingly recalled following his game-winning shot. 

Darling is also the first player in NCAA Tournament history to score his first points of a game on a last-second shot. 

Yep, that sounds about right for the St. John's coach who has revived a basketball program that had essentially been left for dead over the past two decades. 

First Sweet Sixteen Since 1999 For St. John's, Monster Showdown Awaits

Who will be awaiting this St. John's squad in the Sweet Sixteen? That would be the No. 1 seeded Duke Blue Devils, in Washington D.C. on Thursday night. 

What more could you ask for from the NCAA Tournament? Two programs led by hall-of-fame coaches searching for their next title. 

For Rick Pitino and Bill Self, this was only the second time in their careers that they had coached against each other, and my goodness this one will be remembered. 

Head coach Rick Pitino of the St. John's Red Storm speaks to the media after the game against the Kansas Jayhawks in the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Viejas Arena at San Diego State University on March 22, 2026, in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)

Now, the St. John's head coach is hunting for his second national championship, since his 2013 title was forced to be vacated at Louisville following NCAA recruiting violations. His last title that is recognized came in 1996 as head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats. 

For everything that the NCAA Tournament provides us on a yearly basis, seeing Pitino coaching for another national championship is a spectacle, and this year will be no different.

No stranger to the Final Four, thanks to multiple trips with Providence, Kentucky, Louisville and Iona, a return trip for Rick Pitino will take a massive effort from his St. John's team against Duke. 

But, as we've come to realize with the "Godfather" of college basketball, never doubt Pitino with a talented squad. 

This showdown with Duke has the potential to steal the show, just as his St. John's team did against Kansas on Sunday night.