Iona falls to UConn as all eyes turn to Rick Pitino’s future
ALBANY — Let the Rick Pitino sweepstakes begin in earnest.
The Hall of Fame coach, who is expected to leave Iona University after leading the Gaels to the NCAA Tournament twice in three seasons, can speak with any interested parties now, after his 13th-seeded club was eliminated by No. 4 Connecticut, 87-63, on Friday in front of 14,010 at MVP Arena.
St. John’s and Texas Tech are the most active suitors, according to sources, but if longtime Providence coach Ed Cooley leaves for Georgetown, as is possible, Pitino’s old school (he coached the Friars from 1985-97) could become an option.
On Thursday, the 70-year-old Pitino said he could see himself coaching as many as 12 more years.
One thing feels like a safe assumption: Pitino will be headed back to the high-major level, even if was noncommittal after the loss Friday.
“I really don’t have an answer to it, to be honest with you,” Pitino said, when asked if Friday had been his last game at Iona. “I have no idea if it is or isn’t because I’ve focused everything on this game, trying to develop a plan to beat Connecticut.”
The industry-wide belief is that St. John’s is the favorite after the Red Storm parted ways with Mike Anderson two days following their elimination from the Big East Tournament.
Pitino has a lot of family in the area and has a home in Mamaroneck, N.Y., on Winged Foot Golf Club.
Pitino has raved about St. John’s president Rev. Brian Shanley, calling him a “superstar.”
Shanley nearly hired Pitino 12 years ago when he was the Providence president. A source close to Pitino described Shanley as “relentless” in his pursuit of Pitino.
St. John’s is expected to offer Pitino $5 million per year, multiple sources said.
Another source said of Pitino: “He’s not moving,” suggesting Pitino is going to stay in the area for his next job, more evidence that St. John’s is his likely destination.
There has been dialogue through third parties between Shanley and Pitino for quite some time, according to multiple sources.
Tellingly, not a single Johnnies player has entered the transfer portal yet, and St. John’s isn’t known to have spoken to any other candidates.
Current Red Storm players have been told through third parties to be patient and that there is optimism Pitino is coming to Queens, sources said.
At one point, as Pitino was peppered with questions about his plans, he said: “I know you’re alluding to St. John’s,” then proceeded to say he didn’t know anything about the current state of the school.
“You don’t buy houses without looking at the garage and the upstairs and the kitchen and everything,” he said. “You don’t just buy a house.”
Pitino spent time talking about Iona in the present, that this loss taught him he needs to get better up front, but then he also went off on a tangent when asked what it meant that the MAAC school hired him three years ago when nobody else would.
He was coaching in Greece after his dismissal from Louisville following that university’s involvement in the FBI investigation into corruption in college basketball.
In November, he was exonerated by the Independent Accountability Resolution Process, which reviews certain Division I cases for the NCAA.
“So for five years they put me in the outhouse because they couldn’t get their stuff together,” Pitino said.
Pitino’s Gaels (27-8) played 20 very impressive minutes in their West Region opening-round game Friday, taking a two-point lead into the break against the heavily favored Huskies (26-8). But they didn’t have nearly enough to pull off the upset.
Connecticut woke up at the break, and was really never in danger after ripping off a 17-4 run to start the second half.
The Huskies, who advanced to face fifth-seeded Saint Mary’s, were too deep, too strong up front, and too accurate from 3-point range, going 11-for-25 from distance.
They shot 60 percent in the second half as co-stars Jordan Hawkins and Adama Sanogo woke up, scoring 35 of their 41 combined points over the final 20 minutes.
Sanogo finished with 28 points, 10 of them in the first five minutes of the second half, and added 13 rebounds.
Hawkins finished with 13 points. Donovan Clingan had 12 points and nine boards off the bench for the Huskies and Andre Jackson Jr. scored 10 points.
Walter Clayton Jr. led Iona with 15 points and four assists, Daniss Jenkins added 14 points and five assists and Berrick JeanLouis had 13 points.
The loss was similar to Iona’s showing in the tournament two years ago, when it hung with second-seeded Alabama for 30 minutes before eventually losing by 13. The Gaels fell to 0-16 all-time in tournament history (their lone win, in 1980, was vacated due to NCAA violations).
Connecticut was dominant over the final 20 minutes, outscoring Iona by 26. “Let’s go Huskies,” blared throughout the arena for much of the second half. Pitino sat down at one point as the rout was on, perhaps pondering his future. He has decisions to make.
