There will be a father and son in the Big East, and they’re both named Pitino!
Richard Pitino, the son of St. John’s head coach and Hall of Famer Rick Pitino, is leaving New Mexico to take the same position at Xavier, sources confirmed to Fox Sports on Tuesday night.
After the 42-year-old took New Mexico to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments, beating Marquette this year in the first round after a 26-7 regular season, Pitino increased his stock significantly and was in the mix for both the Villanova and Xavier positions.
Musketeers athletic director Greg Christopher was enamored by the upside of Pitino, who tried the high-major route at Minnesota but was let go in 2021 after eight seasons on the job. Going to Albuquerque led Pitino to reignite his career, going 88-49 over the last four seasons, winning the Mountain West Tournament in 2024 and charging the program to a regular-season title this year.
This move only adds to the family atmosphere and tradition of the Big East. The fact that we will see at least two (and perhaps three) showdowns between Rick and Richard Pitino is phenomenal for the league and its storylines. Father has outdone son in their four meetings, with Rick owning a 3-1 record, including St. John’s beating the Lobos this past November.
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But Richard was well in position for a high-major job in this cycle. After Villanova did not extend an offer to him despite being very much in the mix – with Maryland’s Kevin Willard and a mystery candidate out there for the Wildcats – Christopher extended the offer to Pitino. And now he’s heading to the state of Ohio to take over a Xavier program that has been a staple in the NCAA Tournament the majority of the last two decades.
John Fanta is a national college basketball broadcaster and writer for FOX Sports. He covers the sport in a variety of capacities, from calling games on FS1 to serving as lead host on the BIG EAST Digital Network to providing commentary on The Field of 68 Media Network. Follow him at @John_Fanta.
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The purchase of a New Mexico ranch nearing 1 million acres tipped the scales for Stan Kroenke, who is now the largest private landowner in America.
Kroenke, 78, topped Land Report’s annual list of the country’s 100 largest landowners, leading a pack of billionaires eager to beef up their rural portfolios.
Real estate investor and Missouri native Stan Kroenke was named America’s largest private landowner in 2026. Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn ImagesKroenke’s $26.8 billion net worth is tied to several sports franchises, including the LA Rams and Arsenal Football Club. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn ImagesKroenke quietly purchased nearly 1 million acres of New Mexico ranchland in December. Jim Ekstrand – stock.adobe.com
Kroenke is worth an estimated $26.8 billion, according to Bloomberg, largely thanks to his ownership of sport franchises like the Los Angeles Rams, the Denver Nuggets and the UK’s Arsenal Football Club — as well as several of the teams’ sports arenas.
Kroenke, a Missouri native, is married to Walmart heiress Ann Walton Kroenke.
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Kroenke recently acquired more than 937,000 acres of noncontiguous New Mexico ranchland, rounding out his total land holdings to more than 2.7 million acres across the American West and Canada.
Land Report confirmed the December deal, which spans four New Mexico counties. The off-market transaction is the largest single land purchase in the US since 2011.
SoFi Stadium, home of the LA Rams, is among the billionaire’s 60 million square feet of commercial holdings. REUTERSKroenke also owns Waggoner Ranch, the largest piece of unbroken ranchland in Texas. Facebook/Waggoner Ranch
The price of Kroenke’s New Mexico purchase remains under wraps, but Land Report estimated the former value of his ranch holdings at $3.9 billion.
Kroenke made headlines in 2016 when he snapped up Texas’ historic Waggoner Ranch — the 535,000-acre property is largest piece of unbroken ranchland in the Lone Star State. Other acquisitions include massive ranches in Montana and Nevada.
In addition to rolling rural plains, Kroenke owns an estimated 60 million square feet of commercial holdings, the New York Times reported, including sports venues in California and Denver.
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A scenic snapshot of Nevada’s Winecup Gamble Ranch, bought by Kroenke in 2019. Facebook/Winecup Gamble Ranch
The investor’s busy two decades of ranch acquisitions has set him far above other high-profile billionaires like Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates.
Bezos’ holdings ranked 21st in Land Report’s report, spanning close to half a million acres largely concentrated in Texas. Gates trailed behind in 44th place, whose prolific farmland purchases span roughly 275,000 acres.
An uptick in rural land grabs among billionaires over the past decade was hastened along in recent years by the lockdowns of the COVID-19 pandemic and the so-called “Yellowstone Effect.”
Timothy Busfield turned himself into police on Tuesday after authorities in New Mexico issued an arrest warrant for the director and Emmy Award-winning actor accused of child sex abuse.
A spokesperson for the Albuquerque Police Department confirmed to CBS News that Busfield had surrendered. He was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Bernalillo County on a child sex abuse charge. The arrest warrant, which was signed by a judge, said the charge was for two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor.
An investigator with the Albuquerque Police Department on Friday filed a criminal complaint which alleged a child reported that Busfield touched him inappropriately. The acts allegedly occurred on the set of “The Cleaning Lady,” a TV series that Busfield directed and acted in.
In a video provided to TMZ, Busfield said the allegations “are all lies.”
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“I did not do anything to those little boys,” the 68-year-old actor said in the video appearing to show him in Albuquerque. He said he arrived in the city after driving 2,000 miles. Busfield’s attorney did not immediately return a message seeking comment Tuesday.
Actor Timothy Busfield after being booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Bernalillo County, New Mexico. Jan. 13, 2026.
Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center
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The criminal complaint filed by an investigator with Albuquerque police says the boy reported that he was 7 years old when Busfield touched him three or four times on private areas over his clothing. Busfield allegedly touched him five or six times on another occasion when he was 8, the complaint said.
The child was reportedly afraid to tell anyone because Busfield was the director and he feared he would get mad at him, the complaint said.
The boy’s twin brother told authorities he was touched by Busfield but did not specify where. He said he didn’t say anything because he didn’t want to get in trouble.
When interviewed by authorities, Busfield suggested that the boys’ mother was seeking revenge for her children being replaced on the series. He also said he likely would have picked up and tickled the boys, saying the set was a playful environment.
The mother of the twins — who are identified only by their initials in court records — reported to Child Protective Services that the abuse occurred between November 2022 and spring 2024, the complaint said.
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“The Cleaning Lady” aired for four seasons on Fox, ending in 2025. It was produced by Warner Bros., which according to the complaint conducted its own investigation into the abuse allegations but was unable to corroborate them.
Busfield is known for appearances in “The West Wing,” “Field of Dreams” and “Thirtysomething,” the latter of which won him an Emmy for outstanding supporting actor in a drama series in 1991. He is married to actor Melissa Gilbert, who deactivated her Instagram account amid the allegations.
Gilbert indicated through a publicist that she won’t speak publicly at the request of attorneys for Busfield while the legal process unfolds.
“Her focus is on supporting and caring for their very large family,” publicist Ame Van Iden said in a statement. “Melissa stands with and supports her husband and will address the public at an appropriate time.”
The investigation began in November 2024, when the investigator responded to a call from a doctor at the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque. The boys’ parents had gone there at the recommendation of a law firm, the complaint said.
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According to the complaint, one of the boys has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety. A social worker documented him saying he has had nightmares about Busfield touching him.
