.jpg)
22 hours ago
3
The St. John's Red Storm added an iconic March Madness moment on their path to the Sweet 16.
For the first time in the 21st century, St. John's has advanced past the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Initially, Rick Pitino's strong defensive unit appeared it would run away with a win over the Kansas Jayhawks — but when Darryn Peterson and company came crawling back in the late second half, the Red Storm were in serious trouble.
That is, until Dylan Darling sprinted down the floor with 3.9 seconds remaining, downing a layup as the buzzer sounded for a 67-65 victory.
Darling, the seventh-leading scorer for St. John's, became a rather unlikely hero. Those were his only points vs. Kansas, but he can now be thanked for keeping title dreams alive for Pitino's squad.
Here's everything to know about Darling, his background and more.
MARCH MADNESS HQ: Live NCAA bracket | Full TV schedule | Printable bracket
Dylan Darling buzzer beater
St. John's led by as many as 14 points in Sunday's second-round game and had a nine-point lead with just over four minutes remaining. If it weren't for Darling, there's a chance the Red Storm may have blown their significant advantage.
With 3.9 seconds remaining and the game tied at 65, it was Darling who received the inbound pass around halfcourt. He didn't look to pass — instead, he drove to the basket with one defender on him and another converging near the rim.
Darling got a layup up off the glass, downing it just as the buzzer sounded for a St. John's win. It was his only bucket of the night.
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) March 22, 2026Here's another angle of the game-winner:
NOTHING LIKE THIS SPORT 🔥#MarchMadness https://t.co/fsz9U502ur pic.twitter.com/SvmVUiTw8U
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 22, 2026Immediately after, Darling said that Pitino had been "yelling" at him "per usual" in the timeout before the buzzer-beater.
— TNT Sports U.S. (@TNTSportsUS) March 22, 2026Postgame, Pitino said that Darling told him to run the play that resulted in his buzzer-beater.
"Wait a second, he hasn't scored a bucket and wants to run a play for himself," Pitino said he thought to himself.
Dylan Darling told Rick Pitino to run the play for him that resulted in the game-winning layup
Pitino quips: "Wait a second, he hasn't scored a bucket and wants to run a play for himself?!" pic.twitter.com/4LV8a62wl4
Darling also told reporters that he "was pretty bad all night long," but thanked his teammates for leading up to his moment.
"I probably don't deserve this, I was pretty bad all night long - but my teammates held it down tonight"
- Dylan Darling after his game-winning layup pic.twitter.com/DAA3W64TNY
Darling's buzzer-beater joined the likes of Derik Queen, Jordan Poole, Kris Jenkins and more as game-winning tournament shots in the last decade.
Here is every winner in the men's NCAA Tournament since 2016 with 0.00 on the clock when the ball was in the air.
Per CBS Sports research, Darling is the ONLY player to make an NCAAT game-winner at the horn with zero made FGs in the game prior to hitting a buzzer-beater 🤯🔔🔔 pic.twitter.com/jmLlCegzrr
MORE: How Darryn Peterson, Kansas failed to solve St. John's defense
Who is Dylan Darling?
Darling is a fourth-year guard for St. John's who is on his third collegiate team, as he began his NCAA career at Washington State, spending two seasons with the Cougars. In 2024-25, he was one of the best players on Idaho State's unit, averaging 19.8 points per game. But this season, he's taken a smaller role to contribute to one of the country's top teams.
A native of Spokane, Washington, Darling is a 6-foot-1, 175-pound guard. In high school, he averaged 33.2 points per game as a senior to break his league's scoring record, per St. John's.
At Washington State, Darling appeared in 25 games as a freshman, but used a medical redshirt as a sophomore after making just three game appearances. He transferred to Idaho State in 2024.
In 2024-25, Darling was named the Big Sky Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year for averaging 19.8 points (24th in country), 5.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game. Those numbers made Darling a top transfer target in the 2025 cycle — and Pitino landed him to come off the bench for St. John's.
Dylan Darling stats
Darling has mostly come off the bench for St. John's this season after transferring to the program in 2025. The guard has made 13 starts in his 33 games, averaging 7.0 points, 2.5 assists and 1.4 steals per game as a strong defensive contributor for Pitino.
Here's a look at Darling's career stats, including this season at St. John's:
| Season | Team | Games | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | FG% | 3PT% | FT% |
| 2022-23 | Washington State | 25 | 12.0 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 25.5% | 16.7% | 75.0% |
| 2023-24 | Washington State | 3 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 2024-25 | Idaho State | 28 | 34.3 | 19.8 | 3.4 | 5.7 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 44.1% | 35.6% | 81.0% |
| 2025-26 | St. John's | 33 | 21.3 | 7.0 | 2.6 | 2.5 | 1.4 | 0.1 | 40.2% | 28.3% | 71.8% |
| Career: | — | 89 | 22.2 | 9.3 | 2.5 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 41.4% | 31.3% | 78.1% |
SN AWARDS: All-America team | Boozer Player of the Year | Lloyd Coach of the Year
What is Rick Pitino's nickname for Dylan Darling?
Pitino, when talking about Darling's buzzer-beater to reporters, referred to the guard as "Bells." That's a nickname the coach gave Darling — and for quite the reason.
"Dylan Darling, he's got balls as big as church bells. I mean, unbelievable," Pitino said after a game in January.
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) January 24, 2026Dylan Darling parents
Darling's parents are James Darling and Kim Leavell.
His father, James, played 10 seasons in the NFL as a linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles (1997-2000), New York Jets (2001-02) and Arizona Cardinals (2003-07). James Darling also played college football for Washington State, which is where Dylan began his basketball career.
MORE: How have Rick Pitino and Bill Self fared head-to-head?
How old is Dylan Darling?
Dylan Darling is 23 years old, per Proballers. He will turn 24 in January 2027.
He has one year of collegiate eligibility remaining, as he used a medical redshirt in his second NCAA season.
English (US)