PIC: Legendary sportscaster Dick Vitale vows to bill John Calipari for rigatoni after Arkansas punches Sweet 16 ticket

ESPN broadcaster Dick Vitale found a unique way to celebrate John Calipari's Arkansas making it through to the Sweet 16 after defeating St. John's 75-66 on Saturday.

After the win, Vitale posted a photo of himself at a restaurant with pizza and rigatoni pasta as his order. In the caption, the analyst said he would pass the bill to Calipari, who is Italian-American.

"This was my RIGATONI dinner I had as a tribute to @coachcalark for getting to the SWEET SIXTEEN BABY ! I'm going to send him the bill ha ha."

After exiting the last two years' March Madness in the early rounds, it looks like John Calipari has finally broken his postseason curse. His Razorbacks will take on No. 3 seed Texas Tech in the West Region semifinals in San Francisco.

Dick Vitale's battle with cancer continues

Dick Vitale's battle with cancer began in 2021 when he was first diagnosed with melanoma. He underwent surgeries but a few months later, he was also diagnosed with lymphoma. Vitale took time away from his broadcasting duties to undergo radiation and other cancer treatments.

He was declared cancer-free in 2022. But a year later, Dick Vitale was re-diagnosed with cancer, this time in his vocal cords. With more surgery and radiation, he was set to return to calling games in 2024 but it got delayed after it was found that his lymph nodes had cancerous cells.

With more surgery, radiation and treatments, Vitale finally made a return to the arena on Feb. 8. He called Duke's ACC Tournament championship game earlier this month and revealed that it would be his last this year.

"It's my last game this year and I'm praying, hoping I can be back next year, maybe even be better, hope and pray my doctor helps me with my voice. I have to listen to my doctor. Right now, he told me voice rest right after this game for a week.

"It's been tough for years. Those four cancer battles, I don't wish on anybody. Cancer sucks, I'll tell you this, anybody battling cancer, please listen, 'Think positively, always, and have faith and believe.' And if there's a person who knows someone with cancer, send them a text message. Make a phone call. The bottom line, it means so much."

While he may not be available on the sidelines, Dick Vitale is still keeping up with the March Madness games and regularly shares his insights on his social media.