SARATOGA SPRINGS — Rick Pitino acknowledges his team made progress in his first season at St. John’s, but says there’s still much work to be done to build a consistent Big East winner in Queens.
Sitting in his VIP box in the clubhouse at Saratoga Race Course — where he is spending the weekend rooting on friend, and St. John’s alumnus and booster, Mike Repole’s horses — Pitino laid out the challenges that lay ahead.
“We had a very good year,” Pitino said of the Red Storm’s 20-13 overall and 11-9 Big East records.
Though those numbers did not result in a bid to the NCAA Tournament, they were an improvement over the 18-15 and 7-13 marks from the final year of the Mike Anderson era.
“What’s difficult is building a culture,” Pitino said. “I don’t know if it’s impossible, but I think it’s not easy to do because of the turnover. Good or bad, it’s a new ballgame, and you can’t really build a culture. Your culture is a yearly thing.”
The Red Storm will have a new backcourt next season with former Seton Hall star Kadary Richmond and Utah transfer Deivon Smith along with ex-North Texas wing Aaron Scott.
But Pitino says there are a lot of alterations needed behind the scenes to get this house in order.
“Most of St. John’s work has to be done away from the court, not on the court,” the 71-year-old Hall of Fame coach said. “On the court, it’s like any other job. Off the court, you have to deal with major things which must improve.
“It’s almost a time warp that St. John’s was living in. Right now, we’ve got to build a first-class program in every phase — weight room, meeting rooms. Everything from a training standpoint is way behind the times, and we’re doing something about that right now.”
Pitino is clear that the financial support the team receives from Repole, the billionaire entrepreneur and now-renowned horse owner, is critical.
“Without Mike, we can’t do what we’re doing now,” he said. “It would be impossible. We don’t have that type of backing. Without Mike, we would be a low person on the totem pole, or in the bottom three.”
Repole spent much of his week visiting his horses and trainer Todd Pletcher in the barn area at Saratoga. Saturday, his horse Crupi made a dash from last to first to win the Grade 2 Suburban.
And later on this day, he would be sweating out the 156th Belmont Stakes, which featured two of his horses, Mindframe and Protective.
But his thoughts are never far from his beloved Johnnies, even here.
“What Rick and his staff have done is amazing. When Rick started last year putting together his staff and getting acclimated to St. John’s, over a year in now, it’s a different story,” he told The Post. “They played amazing at the end of last year, and he’s upgraded the team, and we could have the best backcourt in the country.
“We got a little taste at the end of last year what the Garden could be, and I think next year you’re going to feel it at another level.”
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