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Rick Pitino Will Get His Own Barrel Of Jameson If St. John’s Makes It To The Elite Eight

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St. John's coach Rick Pitino

Brad Penner-Imagn Images


Rick Pitino’s second season at St. John’s saw him lead the team to a 30-4 record and a victory in the Big East tournament before pledging to drink a quart of Jameson to celebrate that win. Now, he has some extra incentive to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament now that the brand has offered to send him his own barrel if he can make it to the Elite Eight.

It’s been five years since Rick Pitino kicked off his college basketball redemption tour by taking over as the head coach at Iona in the wake of the recruiting scandal that brought his time at Louisville to an end in 2017.

The legendary coach posted a 64-22 record with the Gaels and had two one-and-done March Madness appearances during a three-year tenure that ended when he made his grand return to the Big East by taking the reins at St. John’s, which was hoping he’d help them escape from the four years of mediocrity it endured under Mike Anderson.

The Red Storm went 20-13 during his first year in Queens and declined an NIT invite after getting snubbed from the 2024 NCAA Tournament. There was zero doubt they were going to get the March Madness nod after going 30-4 this season, but they ensured they wouldn’t need to stress on Selection Sunday by landing the automatic bid that comes with winning the Big East conference tournament.

Pitino was more than happy to admit he was going to get his drink on after that victory, as he said “I’m gonna drink a court of Jameson” when asked how he was planning to celebrate.

St. John’s ultimately landed the second seed in the West Region and will kick off its quest for its NCAA title when they face off against Omaha on Thursday night.

According to John Fanta, Jameson caught wind of Pitino’s aforementioned postgame comment and sweetened the pot by offering to send him a custom barrel of whiskey if the Red Storm can earn a spot in the Elite Eight.

Pitino doesn’t need any additional motivation to check that box, but it certainly won’t hurt.