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NEW YORK (AP) — In their return to the national rankings, Rick Pitino and his St. John’s team didn’t exactly look ready for prime time.
Not to start, at least. The finish was pretty encouraging.
Deivon Smith drained a 3-pointer midway through the second half to spark an 18-0 spurt that propelled No. 22 St. John’s past Wagner 66-45 on Wednesday night for its first victory as a Top 25 team in almost 10 years.
“I’m impressed, even though we’re much more talented than Wagner,” said Pitino, the Hall of Fame coach in his second season with the Red Storm. “They turned up the heat and made shots, and they were very poised when it counted.”
St. John’s (3-0) jumped into the AP Top 25 poll this week for the first time since January 2019. It earned its first win as a ranked squad since topping Tulane on Dec. 28, 2014.
And for Pitino, it was his first game coaching a Top 25 team since 2017 at Louisville.