St. John's Darling Secures Sweet Sixteen Spot

0:00On March 23rd, St. John's is heading to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1999, after a thrilling second round win over. Kansas. The fifth-seated Red Storm edged out the fourth-seated J-Hawks, 67-65 on Sunday in San Diego. Junior Guard Dylan Darling sealed it with a tough driving layup at the buzzer. His only points of the game. Darling grabbed the ball with seconds left, shook his defender, and finished with his right hand off the backboard just as time expired. The six-foot-one lefty had struggled all night, going one-for-five from the field with no threes, but he added four assists, two steals and a rebound. In 18 minutes off the bench, teammates mopped him on the court as the crowd went wild, and Coach Rick Patino praised the unexpected move, noting defenses weren't ready for Darling. Darling stayed humble afterward, crediting his teammates for carrying the load, and saying he just went for it when time ran short. This marks a big moment for Darling, a former greater Spokane League MVP from Central Valley High, who started his college career at Washington Stain.

1:06Then transferred to Idaho State for a big Sky MVP honor, before landing at St. John's. Now 30 wins and six losses, the red storm faced top-seated Duke on Friday in Washington DC, carrying momentum from Darling's first round. Contributions in their blowout over Northern Iowa.