A DREAM DENIED
Pitino's Gaels put scare into Alabama before falling short
ALABAMA 68 IONA 55
There weren’t any moral victories. No pats on the back for 30 strong minutes. Rick Pitino and Iona College stepped onto the Hinkle Fieldhouse floor intent on winning a college basketball game.
“I know we thought we could win tonight. We didn’t win,” the Hall of Fame coach said. “We’re very disappointed.”
Pitino could only do so much. He couldn’t overcome the massive chasm that was the talent gap between Iona and Alabama. Even- tually, the heavily favored Crimson Tide played like a Final Four contender and the 15th-seeded Gaels couldn’t sustain their elite level of play for two full halves in a closer-than-expected, 68-55 loss to No. 2 Alabama in a East Region opening round game in Indianapolis.
They made the SEC champion sweat. They were as prepared as expected — senior Isaiah Ross said the Gaels knew what plays Alabama was going to run ahead of time. Pitino’s team played with grit and toughness and poise. It just wasn’t enough to pull off a stunning upset.
Senior stars Asante Gist and Ross wore down after playing so well for 30 minutes. The Crimson Tide outscored Iona 28-13 over the final 11:17, holding them to just one made 3-pointer in the second half after hitting four in the first 20 minutes. The Gaels managed just 23 points in the second half, committing eight turnovers and shooting 38 percent from the field, while getting crushed, 42-26, on the glass.
“They gave me their heart the entire year, so I’m real proud of them,” Pitino said. “Unfortunately we didn’t have enough weapons to play against Alabama.”
It ended a bizarre season for Iona, which made the stunning hire of Pitino last March, brought in an almost completely new roster then dealt with a series of COVID-19 interruptions. That included a 51-day pause, the longest any team dealt with in this fractured season, and another pause prior to the MAAC Tournament.
Seeded ninth, the Gaels still won a fifth straight conference tournament, winning four times in five days, as Pitino became just the third coach to lead five different teams to the NCAA Tournament.
“Oh, man, I’m definitely proud,” Ross said. “It was an up-and-down season. We had a lot of adversity. We had a lot of pauses. Guys didn’t quit. I didn’t quit. We kept our heads high.”
Ross led Iona (12-6) with 19 points and Gist added 16, though the two shot a combined 14-of-34 from the field. Herb Jones scored 20 points and grabbed six rebounds for Alabama (25-6), which faces No. 10 Maryland, who beat UConn 63-54, in the second round on Sunday. Jahvon Quinerly had 11 points off the bench for the Crimson
Tide, frequently creating havoc with dribble penetration.
Alabama finally came alive at the midway point of the second half, putting together a 16-4 run that turned a two-point deficit into a 12-point lead. Alex Reese ignited the Crimson Tide with a pair of well-timed 3-pointers, Jones came up with a steal and slam, Juwan Gary threw down an alley-oop then sank two free throws, making it 58-46 with 6:36 left.
“If we didn’t give up two 3s by the five-man, this is anybody’s game,” Pitino said, referring to Reese. “It’ll probably haunt me for the summer.”
Pitino had often discussed what he wants Iona to become, talking about why he isn’t planning to coach anywhere else, saying he wants “no part of the so-called big-time anymore.” He believes he has building blocks in young forwards Nelly Junior Joseph — the MAAC Rookie of the Year — and Osborne Shema. He thinks he has replacements for Gist and Ross. He’s dead set on turning Iona into the Gonzaga of the northeast and planning to beef up his schedule. This season was only the beginning.
“It’s a good first step to building a culture, a winning culture, that can play against the Alabamas of the world and hold their own,” Pitino said. “They did it for a period of time [on Saturday].”