Rick Pitino is convinced that the struggles St. John’s faced in their three defeats are closely tied to the availability of point guard Dylan Darling. In those losses, Darling was either absent due to not playing against Alabama, fouled out with just over five minutes remaining against Iowa State, or hampered by an injury during the Auburn matchup.

Prior to the game against Auburn, Darling had proven to be a significant asset for the Red Storm, contributing to a plus-100 performance in his 111 minutes on the court.

“When Dylan is out there, he’s focused on elevating everyone’s game,” Pitino remarked. “The secret to our success lies in keeping Dylan Darling in peak condition.”

During the warm-ups before the Auburn game, the Idaho State transfer sustained an injury, limiting him to just seven minutes of play.

The injury affected the area where his knee and hamstring connect. Fortunately, Darling has participated fully in all practices since then and is expected to be ready for their upcoming game against Ole Miss on Saturday.

He has since taken part in every practice and is good to go for Saturday’s meeting with Ole Miss.

Darling is averaging 4.5 points, 3.0 assists and 1.8 steals in 19.8 minutes per game.

He has a 4.5 assist-to-turnover ratio, which is tied for 18th best in the country, but has struggled shooting the ball so far.

“I’m off to a little bit of a slower start than I would have liked, but I don’t feel like I’m playing horrible basketball,” he said. “I just feel like I’ve either been hurt or I’ve been in foul trouble. I feel like I was in foul trouble in Vegas the whole time, and I haven’t been able to shoot the ball great to start the season, but that’s something I’m confident will flip because every day in practice I feel like I’m getting better and more confident.”

After going with the same starting five of Darling, Zuby Ejiofor, Bryce Hopkins, Oziyah Sellers and Joson Sanon for the entire Las Vegas trip, Pitino is planning a tweak.

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Sanon will come off the bench.

The St. John’s coach said this has nothing to do with how Sanon has played or practiced over the past week.

The Red Storm may look to start a more defensive-minded player to guard former Johnnie AJ Storr, a high-scoring 6-foot-6 wing.

Pitino declined to name the new starter.

St. John’s is partnering with Stout and Anheuser-Busch to offer students $2 Bud Lights beginning at 6 p.m. Saturday night ahead of the Ole Miss game.

Students just need to show their St. John’s IDs and proof of age.