Rick Pitino on facing John Calipari in Round of 32: 'I don't go against coaches, we go against teams.'

Just like old times, it’ll be Cal vs. Rick once again. And for the first time since the Sweet 16 in 2014, they’ll meet in the NCAA Tournament.

John Calipari‘s 10-seeded Arkansas Razorbacks have locked in a Round of 32 matchup against Rick Pitino‘s 2-seeded St. John’s. The two Hall of Fame head coaches will clash on Saturday at 2:40 p.m. ET on CBS in Providence. Arkansas upset 7-seed Kansas during Friday’s first-round games while St. John’s cruised past 15-seed Omaha.

They might not admit it publicly (well, Rick might), but we all know this game will have some extra juice to it. But Pitino did attempt to downplay the matchup with some postgame press conference jokes.

“I don’t go against coaches, we go against teams,” Pitino told reporters after St. John’s beat Omaha. “He doesn’t have to worry about me. My jump shot is long gone. He’s got to prepare for our team. We’ve got to prepare for his players. He’s preparing for our players. John and I don’t play one on one anymore.”

You have to admit though, a Calipari-Pitino one-on-one would sell tickets — even at their current ages, maybe even more so.

"He doesn't have to worry about me, my jumpshot is long gone" 😅

Coach Pitino says he and Coach Cal don't play one-on-one anymore 😂#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/ucyweMS98R

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 21, 2025

Calipari and Pitino have been matched up 23 times throughout their college coaching careers (they also met several times as NBA head coaches, splitting six games 3-3), with Calipari leading the series 13-10, including an 8-2 record when the two were coaching against each other at Kentucky and Louisville, respectively.

Pitino made headlines earlier this week when he referred to former UConn head coach John Calhoun as the “one coach I really considered a rival my whole career.” Some wondered if that was actually a shot at Calipari by not mentioning his name. But Pitino did clarify that comment a bit, saying he straight up disliked Calhoun (which he also said isn’t the case now in present-day), while the discontent with Calipari was more centered around the rivalry between the two schools they coached, not Calipari as a person.

Do I buy it? Not really.

If anything, Pitino did make it sound like he has genuine respect for Calipari, especially with how Arkansas closed the season strong in a hellacious Southeastern Conference. St. John’s opened as a 6.5-point favorite over Arkansas, according to FanDuel.

“I’m talking about disliking-each-other (type of) rival (with Calhoun). John was at Kentucky, I was at Louisville. It’s normal,” Pitino said. “I have always had great respect for John. I told our team, we have not seen this type of size and this type of athleticism all year. We have not seen that. Creighton has a 7-foot-2 center but they have multiple guys, athleticism-wise, we haven’t seen this year.

“We know what we’re up against, obviously. They had a lot of injuries, that’s why they opened up 0-5 (in SEC). But they got it together right now. I don’t know where they finished in the SEC… eighth, ninth in the SEC. But if they finished eighth or ninth, what I watched today, I’m glad we’re not in the SEC. The talent level in that conference is amazing to me.”

Pitino will get his taste of the SEC this weekend. This was the matchup everyone hoped for when the bracket was first announced and now we’ve finally got it. A spot in the Sweet 16 is on the line with two of college basketball’s all-time greats going head-to-head. What could be better for a college basketball fan? Bring on the Madness…