St. John’s turnaround under Rick Pitino is in full effect after program’s best January since Lou Carnesecca

The Rick Pitino origin is successful afloat effect.

The Hall of Fame coach’s 2nd play astatine St. John’s is disconnected to a red-hot start, with his Red Storm present 18-3, including 9-1 successful Big East play.

With Tuesday’s 66-41 triumph astatine Georgetown, the Johnnies improved to 7-0 since the calendar flipped to 2025. They completed their archetypal undefeated January since 1985, a twelvemonth successful which the late Lou Carnesecca led St. John’s to the Final Four.

“I truly don’t speech astir the ’80s,” Pitino, 72, said Tuesday night. “I ever toast Lou aft each crippled and accidental the aforesaid happening to everybody: ‘Lou would beryllium arrogant of this team.’ But I don’t bring it up excessively much. I don’t bring it up that they’re the astir wins successful January. … We truly conscionable absorption connected getting better. This squad is getting amended and better.”

Indeed it is.

St. John’s enters Saturday afternoon’s crippled against Providence astatine Madison Square Garden arsenic winners of 7 consecutive games — a streak that includes 2 wins implicit Xavier (13-9) and different against Villanova (12-9).

The Johnnies’ No. 15 ranking successful the AP canvass matches their champion since 2000.

They are 13-0 successful location games astatine Carnesecca Arena oregon the Garden.

And they’re doing it successful breathtaking fashion.

St. John’s is averaging 82.9 points per game, bully for second successful the conference down lone defending NCAA champion UConn’s 83.7.

The Red Storm fertile 2nd successful the Big East, besides to UConn, successful rebounding (37.5 per game) and 3-point percent (37.8%).

But they’re up of No. 25 UConn (15-6; 7-3) wherever it counts: successful the standings. St. John’s enters Saturday tied atop the Big East with No. 9 Marquette, whom it is acceptable to play Tuesday nighttime successful a heavyweight bout astatine the Garden.

“I’m arrogant of these guys,” Pitino said.

St. John’s hired Pitino, a two-time NCAA champion with Kentucky and Louisville, successful March 2023, hoping helium could crook astir a program that’s lone made 3 NCAA Tournament appearances since 2002 and nary since 2019.

His first play was a roller coaster. St. John’s started the twelvemonth 14-12 and 6-9 successful league play, and a Feb. 18 nonaccomplishment to Seton Hall prompted Pitino to knock his squad arsenic “unathletic” and “slow laterally.”

The candid comments prompted nationalist discussion, but his squad rallied from there, winning six consecutive games earlier a nonaccomplishment to UConn successful the Big East Tournament semifinal.

St. John’s finished 20-13, and 11-9 successful the Big East, but was near retired of the NCAA Tournament. Six of the program’s apical 7 scorers near successful the offseason, either owed to moving retired of eligibility oregon transferring.

With a afloat offseason to enlistee and enactment the portal, Pitino landed prized transfers Kadary Richmond from Seton Hall and Deivon Smith from Utah.

Both guards person been productive this season, but it’s been returning players who are making the biggest difference.

Junior defender RJ Luis Jr. ranks 4th successful the Big East with 17.4 points per crippled and sixth with 6.6 rebounds per game. Junior guardant Zuby Ejiofor, who came disconnected the seat past year, has excelled arsenic a starter, averaging 14.5 points and 8.2 rebounds, the second of which ranks 3rd successful the conference.

“I deliberation it’s mostly maine being healthy,” Luis, who dealt with nagging shin injuries past year, said aft a Nov. 17 triumph implicit New Mexico. “Just the idiosyncratic that I am, I enactment a batch of enactment into my craft. Now I’m stepping up arsenic 1 of the champion defenders. … I’m gonna play-make. I’m gonna score. I’m truly conscionable playing some sides of the ball.”

St. John’s inactive has plentifulness to prove.

It has not played Marquette oregon UConn. It mislaid its lone gathering with Creighton, 57-56, successful Omaha, connected Dec. 31.

But the Johnnies’ 3 losses — the others came against No. 13 Baylor and Georgia — are by a combined 5 points.

A long-awaited instrumentality to the NCAA Tournament is looking much and much likely.

“I deliberation the champion prime that we person is we’re humble,” Pitino said. “We conscionable support playing hard. We don’t deliberation we’re great. We aspire to beryllium great, but we don’t judge we’re great. We recognize that anybody tin bushed us.”