St. John’s suffered its first road loss of the season on Wednesday, and it was a jarring one for head coach Rick Pitino. The 32-point loss to UConn snapped a 13-game winning streak and reminded Pitino that, despite a top-15 ranking, his team is far from finished. The offensive collapse produced an unwanted record, but the head coach placed the blame squarely on himself.

Speaking briefly to reporters afterward, Pitino took full responsibility for one of the worst offensive performances of his coaching career.

“That probably only happened to me 2 times in my career, once was my first year at Kentucky when we went into Phog Allen [Fieldhouse] at Kansas, but I was playing with very much an inferior team with walk-ons, not with this type of team,” Pitino said. “It’s all on me. I’m very disappointed in our performance offensively, especially. Sharing the ball, moving the ball. It’s all on me.

“But we will get ready for Villanova. We are still playing for a league championship. Doesn’t matter whether you lose by 1 or 40, league championship is still at stake. Obviously, we have to make our corrections and move on,” Pitino further added.

Pitino’s statement fits perfectly into the game’s box score. St. John’s shot just 11-for-56 from the field (20%) and 5-for-20 from three-point range. But a deeper look at the game shows that Pitino’s team missed their final 24 field-goal attempts. the longest game-ending drought by any Division I team in at least eight seasons. This contributed immensely to their 14-point second half, with nine of those points coming at the foul line.

Even individual performance adds up in this regard. Star forward Zuby Ejiofor finished 2-for-5 from the field in 23 minutes. Senior forward Dillon Mitchell was held scoreless in 37 minutes. The Red Storm recorded just eight assists, and the defense struggled at times as well.

But Pitino refused to put the loss on his players.”We did things that we haven’t done, and again that’s something I got to question about myself, and I will question it,” Pitino said.

Let’s not forget that despite the defeat, Rick Pitino’s St. John’s still has a March Madness ceiling and is a favorite for the conference tournament. Their offensive inconsistency is something they must fix quickly.

Rick Pitino’s St. John’s Faces a Tricky Last Stretch in the Regular Season

Following the blowout defeat to the UConn Huskies, St. John’s currently stands 22-6 and 15-2 in the season. The record shows just how consistent they’ve been in Big East play. But after the offensive showing, their position near the top of the conference suddenly looks less secure.

Rick Pitino’s side, next up, faces a resilient Villanova Wildcats, a team that currently sits just behind them in the conference and has suffered just one defeat in its last 8 games. The matchup at Madison Square Garden won’t be easy. They have the advantage going into the game, with a 75.6% chance of winning. But the matchup is far from predictable.

Even in their last meeting early in the season, the Wildcats posed a tough challenge throughout, ending in a seven-point game. At the end of the season, it’s safe to assume the Wildcats won’t give the Red Storm anything easy, and Pitino’s side will have to be constantly on their toes to down Villanova at their home. On a brighter note, this game gives St. John’s the perfect chance to test its offense before March.

Their Villanova game will be followed by an easy assignment against Georgetown, then an away game against Seton Hall. The Wildcats game is set to tip off at 8 p.m. ET. What are your thoughts on the game? Do let us know in the comments.