John Fanta
College Basketball Broadcaster and Reporter
There will be a father and son in the Big East, and they’re both named Pitino!
Richard Pitino, the son of St. John’s head coach and Hall of Famer Rick Pitino, is leaving New Mexico to take the same position at Xavier, sources confirmed to Fox Sports on Tuesday night.
After the 42-year-old took New Mexico to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments, beating Marquette this year in the first round after a 27-7 record heading into the NCAA Tournament, Pitino increased his stock significantly and was in the mix for both the Villanova and Xavier positions.
Musketeers athletic director Greg Christopher was enamored by the upside of Pitino, who tried the high-major route at Minnesota but was let go in 2021 after eight seasons on the job. Going to Albuquerque led Pitino to reignite his career, going 88-49 over the last four seasons, winning the Mountain West Tournament in 2024 and charging the program to a regular-season title this year.
My reaction: this only adds to the family atmosphere and tradition of the Big East. The fact that we will see at least two (and perhaps three) showdowns between Rick and Richard Pitino is phenomenal for the league and its storylines. Father has outdone son in their four meetings with Rick earning a 3-1 record, including St. John’s beating the Lobos this past November.
But Richard was well in position for a high-major job in this cycle. After Villanova did not extend an offer to him despite being very much in the mix – with Maryland’s Kevin Willard and a mystery candidate out there for the Wildcats – Christopher extended the offer to Pitino. And now he’s heading to the state of Ohio to take over a Xavier program that has been a staple in the NCAA Tournament the majority of the last two decades.
John Fanta is a national college basketball broadcaster and writer for FOX Sports. He covers the sport in a variety of capacities, from calling games on FS1 to serving as lead host on the BIG EAST Digital Network to providing commentary on The Field of 68 Media Network. Follow him at @John_Fanta.
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