Rick Pitino pinpoints area of growth for young players after St. John’s beats Marquette

St. John’s went on a hot start and never relented, as it cruised past Marquette, 92-68, at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday.

The Red Storm did not give any chance to the Golden Eagles to mount a comeback in the second half, improving to 12-5, including 5-1 in the Big East.

But while they looked impressive in their easy win, St. John’s coach Rick Pitino pointed out some areas of improvement, particularly with his young players.

“Our press was good. We need our young players to lock in on scouting, from Lefty (Liotopoulos) to Ian (Jackson),” said Pitino, as quoted by Rumble In The Garden, which covers St. John’s.

The 73-year-old Pitino is known to set high standards and go hard on his players. He has not changed his approach over the years, and many of his players have benefited from it, including Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell and former NBA studs Montrezl Harrell, Jamal Mashburn, and Antoine Walker, among others.

Pitino, meanwhile, also lauded his backcourt in their win over Marquette.

“Dylan Darling turned the game around for us with incredible hustle. Oziyah (Sellers) was great from beginning to end,” added Pitino, who has won two national titles.

Sellers led the scoring with 24 points, including four three-pointers, while Zuby Ejiofor added 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting and seven rebounds. Bryce Hopkins contributed 12 points and eight rebounds.

The Golden Eagles kept the score close at halftime, but the Red Storm went on a 13-0 run after the break to pull away for their straight win.

The post Rick Pitino pinpoints area of growth for young players after St. John’s beats Marquette appeared first on ClutchPoints.