"No panic in this stock market": Rick Pitino makes feelings known on St. John's squad ahead of Creighton matchup 

St. John’s coach Rick Pitino was full of praise for his Red Storm squad after they secured a place in the Big East Tournament final for the first time since 2000. Speaking to Kristina Pink after No. 6-ranked St. John’s 79-63 win over No. 25-ranked Marquette on Friday, Pitino was excited as he expressed his belief in the Red Storm squad.

Talking about the game Pitino emphasized that there was ‘no panic’ after the Red Storm came from 15 points down to win the game by 16 points.

“Well, we know why we were down and we obviously made the adjustments,” Pitino said. “The players did a great job of moving the basketball and there’s no panic in this stock market. We know what we’re doing.”

Speaking about what it meant to take St. John’s to the Tournament final and create history, Pitino expressed the significance of the accomplishment and the sense of pride.

“So many things have happened in 40 or 25 years,” Pitino said. “I'm a young guy, I wasn’t born during those times. So for me, it’s all new and it’s all great. I’m proud of St. John’s, I’m proud of the players and the great atmosphere.”

Rick Pitino coached the Red Storms to a 29-4, 18-2 Big East record this season, with Zuby Ejiofor putting up a career-high and St. John’s record 33 points in the Big East Tournament. RJ Luis Jr. put up 13 points as the Red Storm closed up an early deficit.

On Saturday, St. John’s get set to play No. 2 seed Creighton in the Big East Tournament final after the Bluejays defeated UConn in the other semifinal matchup. St. John’s and Creighton have matched up against each other twice this season (Dec. 31, Feb. 16) as St John’s won the last encounter on Feb. 16, (79-73).

Dan Hurley speaks about Rick Pitino and St. John’s chances after Big East defeat

On Friday, Rick Pitino made history with the Red Storm while Dan Hurley and the UConn Huskies crashed out to Creighton Bluejays. After the Huskies’ 71-62 defeat to the Bluejays, Dan Hurley spoke about St. John’s chances of success in the tournament and their impressive performances this season.

“I don’t want to speculate on what St. John’s season is going to be like,” Hurley said. “Maybe at some point, if my season ends before theirs in March, maybe I’ll pop up on TV and break down their credentials. But they’ve had an awesome season.”

This season, Rick Pitino and St. John’s have defeated the UConn Huskies twice with the latest being an 89-75 victory on Feb. 23 and the other on Feb. 7 (68-62). The Creighton Bluejays have eliminated any chances of a possible revenge after the semifinal victory over the Huskies. The Red Storm have averaged 78.6 points, 40.9 rebounds, 15.8 assists and allowed 65.9 points this season.