Rick Pitino guided his St. John's Red Storm to a thrilling 67-65 victory over the Kansas Jayhawks on Sunday night as March Madness continues.
The Red Storm blew a 14-point lead in the game, but they did enough to survive and reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1999. Of course, they have Dylan Darling to thank for that, as the fourth-year guard scored the buzzer-beating layup to give St. John's the win.
Forward Bryce Hopkins also stepped up big time. He was tied with Zuby Ejiofor in scoring with 18 points, but he shot 6-of-9 from deep and recorded seven rebounds and two steals.
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Naturally, the whole St. John's squad was in a celebratory mood after the game. The team shared photos of the players' celebration in the locker room, showing Pitino all smiles and Darling being hyped up by his teammates.
Pitino, however, had another celebration outside the locker room and away from his St. John's players. On X, the legendary coach revealed that his grandchildren went to San Diego to watch him and his team take on Kansas.
"Doesn’t get any better than celebrating the win with my grandkids!" Pitino wrote, along with a photo of himself with five of his grandchildren.
Pitino has 16 grandchildren so far. In fact, he announced the arrival of his 16th grandkid, a baby girl named Lily Madelyn, last January.
The Pitino family continues to be supportive of the iconic coach. When Pitino reached his 900th career coaching win during the college basketball season, his grandkids also made sure to celebrate it with him.
As St. John's moves on in the NCAA Tournament, it's safe to expect Pitino's kids and grandchildren to keep cheering for him.
The Red Storm will play the Duke Blue Devils next at Capital One Arena in Washington on Friday.
