St. John's coach Rick Pitino defends sitting RJ Luis late in Arkansas loss

St. John's basketball star RJ Luis nailed a free-throw to make the Red Storm's deficit 64-62 with just under five minutes left against Arkansas in the men's NCAA Tournament on Saturday.

However, the 6-foot-7 Big East Player of the Year was nowhere to be found the remainder of the game, as the second-team All-American was subbed out and didn't return after making both of his free-throw attempts.

St. John's played without both Luis and guard Kadary Richmond down the stretch in its 75-66 loss to Arkansas in the second round, as Richmond fouled out with 6:28 left to play. Luis, who finished the game with one foul, was notably absent amid the Red Storm (31-5) fighting to keep their season alive without another of its top players in Richmond.

St. John's coach Rick Pitino was asked twice about Luis' omission from the floor late in the game.

"He played 30 minutes," Pitino told reporters after the game. "That's a long time."

"So he was tired?" the reporter asked.

"No, he played 30 minutes, and I went with other people," Pitino responded. "You already know the answer. You're asking leading questions. ... You already know why he didn't play."

"You already know why he didn't play." - Rick Pitino after being asked about the lack of RJ Luis Jr. down the stretch pic.twitter.com/22hFUUsens
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 22, 2025

Pitino clarified his answer on Luis when he was again asked about his star player.

"You know he was 3 for 17, you know he was 0 for 3 (from 3-point range)," Pitino said. "So, you're answering your own (question). I'm not gonna knock one of my players."

It was an interesting move for Pitino, as St. John's struggled to make shots in the game. The Red Storm shot a poor 21 of 75 (28%) as a team, making only two of 22 3-point attempts. Luis, St. John's leading scorer this season, averaged 18.5 points per game before Saturday, but shot 3 of 17 from the floor with nine points against the Razorbacks.

The scoring output was his lowest in 2025, as the last and only other time he scored under double-digits this season came on Dec. 31 in a one-point loss to Creighton. Luis blamed himself after the game, as well:

"I let my teammates down," he said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rick Pitino defends sitting RJ Luis late St. John's loss to Arkansas

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