Rick Pitino gets 900th victory as St. John's rallies for 88-83 victory over Xavier and son, Richard

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Xavier head coach Richard Pitino, right. wearing a full suit like his father, Rick Pitino, left, embraces him before a college basketball game St. John's, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar)

Xavier's Jovan Milicevic scores at the basket as St. John's Joson Sanon defends during the first half of a college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar) — Xavier head coach Richard Pitino, right. wearing a full suit like his father, Rick Pitino, left, embraces him before a college basketball game St. John's, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar)

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4:04 PM on Saturday, January 24

By JOE REEDY

CINCINNATI (AP) — Dylan Darling hit a 3-pointer with 53.2 seconds left and Ruben Prey had a putback layup with 13 seconds left as St. John’s rallied from a 16-point deficit in the second half to defeat Xavier 88-83, giving Rick Pitino his 900th victory.

Pitino is the fourth coach in Division I to reach the milestone, joining Mike Krzyzewski (1,202), Jim Boeheim (1,116) and Roy Williams (903).

The milestone victory came at the expense of his son, Richard, who is in his first season coaching the Musketeers. The elder Pitino has won four of five meetings against his son, who previously coached at Florida International, Minnesota and New Mexico.

It is also the 20th time in 23 Division I matchups the father has defeated the son.

Bryce Hopkins led St. John's (15-5, 8-1 Big East), with 18 points. Dillon Mitchell added 17 and Ian Jackson 16 for the Red Storm, who have won six straight.

Xavier's Tre Carroll had a career-high 31 points, with 18 coming in the second half. It is the third straight game with at least 29 points for Carroll.

Malik Messina-Moore scored 17 points, including 15 in the first half, and Jovan Milicevic had 14 points before fouling out for the Musketeers (11-9, 3-6)

Xavier was up 49-37 at halftime and 55-39 early in the second half before the Red Storm countered with a 16-1 flurry.

St. John's jumped out to an early 20-11 lead before Xavier shifted momentum, scoring 17 of the next 22 points to grab a 28-25 lead midway through the first half.

A layup by Zuby Ejiofor got the Red Storm within one point before the Musketeers countered with a 19-6 run. Two straight 3-pointers by Messina-Moore gave Xavier a 47-33 advantage with 2:11 remaining in the first half.

Up next

St. John's: Hosts Butler on Wednesday.

Xavier: At Seton Hall of Wednesday.

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