St. John’s basketball HC Rick Pitino not coaching vs. Seton Hall due to COVID-19

St. John’s basketball head coach Rick Pitino will not coach on Tuesday night against Seton Hall due to COVID, per Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. Rothstein also reports that associate head coach Steve Masiello will step in and replace Pitino as acting head coach Tuesday.

St. John’s basketball wants to win the game of course. However, they will surely have Pitino in their thoughts as he battles the illness. The Red Storm would love to earn a victory for their head coach.

Pitino, 71, was named the head coach for St. John’s in March of 2023. He had previously coached at Iona from 2020-2023.

Both St. John’s basketball and Seton Hall head into Tuesday’s affair with 12-5 records. It’s been a successful campaign for both programs, and their Tuesday night clash projects to be a competitive contest.

Rothstein previously shared some intriguing information about the game.

“Seton Hall has won EIGHT straight games against St. John’s in Newark. Will that theme continue tonight? Pirates have won seven of their last eight and are one of the hottest teams in the country,” Rothstein wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

As he mentioned, the Pirates have been incredible over the past few weeks. Following a mediocre start to the season, Seton Hall has clearly figured things out.

With that being said, St. John’s basketball has also impressed throughout the 2023-24 campaign. Earning a victory over Seton Hall will certainly prove to be a difficult task, especially since Rick Pitino will not be on the sidelines. Regardless, we can expect the Red Storm to play a competitive brand of basketball in an effort to upset the Pirates.