Steve Lavin One-on One
Check out St. John's coach Steve Lavin
Check out St. John's coach Steve Lavin
Big things were expected of Fab Melo when he first arrived at Syracuse last season.
He was named the Big East Preseason Rookie of the Year, and projected as a possible one-and-done.
But the 7-footer from Brazil collapsed under the weight of the hype and never lived up to expectations
Now as a slim-downed sophomore, he’s showing signs of promise.
In this video interview with Harrison Sanford
In this video with FiveStarBasketball.com, former St. John’s commit Ricardo Gathers talks St. John’s, Kentucky, Duke, Baylor, LSU and Florida.
The 6-foot-8 Gathers decommitted from St. John’s, but head coach Steve Lavin watched him several times at the recent City of Palms Classic. Lavin told SNY.tv he plans to sign five players in the spring signing period.
Gathers on St. John’s assistant Tony Chiles watching him at City of Palms: “That means a lot, man…They playing right now, to be exact. To see that he’s here, he’s still interested that’s pretty big.”
St. John’s freshmen Moe Harkless soared to the top of an exclusive club Tuesday.
The 6-foot-8 Harkless poured in a career-high 32 points as St. John’s opened Big East play with a 91-67 victory over Providence at Carnesecca Arena.
It was the most points scored in a Big East freshman debut ever — surpassing the 30 points scored by Notre Dame’s Troy Murphy and Georgetown’s Allen Iverson.
“I don’t even know what to say,” said Harkless, who went 14-of-17 from the field and added 13 rebounds. “It’s an honor to be mentioned with those guys. Being able to break the record is a great feeling.”
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist returned to the Kentucky Wildcats Tuesday after going home to New Jersey over the holiday break to visit his hospitalized mother.
Cindy Richardson was released after being admitted last week for an undisclosed illness.
The former Elizabeth (N.J.) St. Patrick star played in Kentucky’s 87-63 win last Wednesday against Loyola (Md.) after he learned his mother had been hospitalized. He finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Rick Pitino didn’t use the word “retire,” but he said Tuesday that 2016-17 will be his last season as a basketball coach.
“When you’re 59, you’re realistic that you don’t have a whole lot of years left,” Pitino said before the No. 4 Cardinals played No. 12 Georgetown on Wednesday. “My contract’s going to run out in 2017. I’m not coaching anymore after that.”
Pitino has led three programs — Providence, Kentucky and Louisville — to the Final Four, and has also coached the Knicks and Boston Celtics.
