St. John's Crushes Villanova, Pitino's Methods Shine

0:00On March 1st, St. John's pulled off a huge win over Villanova, crushing them 89-57. Rick Petino's red storm improved to 23 wins and 6 losses overall, and 16-2 in Big East Play, that puts them just half a game behind Yukon for the top spot. Kevin Willard, Villanova's coach and Petino's former assistant, felt the sting after the lopsided loss. The game came right after St. John's got embarrassed by Yukon, losing 72-40. Petino called it the most important matchup in his three years there, using the defeat to fire up his squad. They jumped out to a 30-point half-time lead and never looked back, with strong play from Zubi EGO 4's triple-double in Ian Jackson's 19. Points off the bench. Willard joked about the brutal intensity of working under Petino, saying it caused him his full head of hair and made every day feel like a fight for. Survival. Still, he praised his old boss for unmatched energy that fuels 908 career wins and two national

1:02titles at Kentucky and Louisville. Petino and Willard go way back. Petino taught him basketball as a kid, then hired him for the Boston Celtics and Louisville staffs. No mercy on the court, though, as Petino's strict culture shone through in the dominant performance. St. John stays in the hunt for the Big East regular season crown, showing Petino's methods deliver when his team buys in fully. Fully. Fully. Fully. Fully. Fully. Fully. Fully. Fully. Fully. Fully.