Dylan Darling’s Path Through the Portal Powers St. John’s Sweet 16 Run

The St. John’s Red Storm are headed to the Sweet 16 for the first time in 27 years.

While it took a total team effort to get there, it was one man—described by St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino as having “balls as big as church bells”—who delivered the moment.

Redshirt junior guard Dylan Darling stunned Kansas with his game-winning off-hand layup Sunday evening, lifting St. John’s to a 67–65 win over the Jayhawks.

Although San Diego hosted the game, the atmosphere made it feel like Madison Square Garden. Viejas Arena erupted after the buzzer sounded with fans celebrating the win.

This moment was special for Darling due to his unparalleled college basketball journey.

While his March Madness moment put him on the map, Darling’s journey was anything but easy. Every stop along the way prepared him to knock off Kansas’ head coach Bill Self and the Jayhawks.

As a freshman for Washington State, Darling appeared in 25 games and made plays for the Cougars sporadically. Playing in the Pac-12 wasn’t easy but it allowed him to locate his strengths as a basketball player.

The NCAA granted him a medical redshirt after an injury ended his sophomore season. This also effectively ended his time in his home state of Washington.

After transferring to Idaho State, it became clear that Darling found his identity. He was a change of pace point guard with scoring capability and a strong defensive presence.

While he flew under the radar following his injury, Idaho State gave him an opportunity to shine—and the rest of the Big Sky paid for it.

Darling led the Bengals in points, assists and steals per game and he did it all in style. These efforts culminated in taking home Big Sky Player of the Year honors and from there, the rest was history.

When asked after St. John’s win what stood out about Dylan Darling during the recruiting process, head coach Rick Pitino noted, “Everybody said the most glowing things about him. He has no fear at all.”