Bruce Pearl Had Very High Praise for St. John's Hall of Fame Coach Rick Pitino

Pearl has nothing but respect for the coaching legend.

Former Auburn coach Bruce Pearl has nothing but respect for St. John's coach Rick Pitino. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Former Auburn coach Bruce Pearl ended his career last season by taking the Tigers to the Final Four.

It was a dream season for the longtime coach in Pearl, who was honored at the end of the year by the Associated Press as the National Coach of the Year—an award that he shared with St. John's coach Rick Pitino.

Pearl stepped down this offseason and has since begun doing studio work for Turner Sports. The broadcast network had the television rights to St. John's game against William & Mary on Saturday night, and ahead of the contest, Pearl spoke about what an honor it was to share last year's Coach of the Year award with Pitino.

"At the end of my career, to stand there on the same stage as Coach Pitino, it was beyond special," Pearl said. "He's the best coach I've ever gone up against and I'll tell you why. He knew exactly what I wanted to do and how to stop it and he knew what he wanted to do, and how to stop it. He was in my head. And I've gone up against all of them! He was the best."

"He's the best coach I've ever gone up against." 🤝

Nothing but respect for Rick Pitino from @coachbrucepearl as he details the battles they faced over the years 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/A792R1XD90

— TNT Sports U.S. (@TNTSportsUS) November 15, 2025

It's unsurprising that Pearl believes that Pitino is one of the best coaches of all-time. Pitino, a Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer, has won two national titles and has seven Final Four appearances to his name.

But to say Pitino is the best coach he's ever gone up against? Consider that the highest form of respect from Pearl.

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