Best loss in SJU history?

MarkRedman post=448586 said:
Section3 post=448585 said:
Las Vegan post=448582 said:
The Indiana and Duke games were memorable, heroic efforts. I remember another classic loss. The early 70s game, at Alumni Hall, vs Providence, a team that went to the final four and might have beaten UCLA for the national championship, if Marvin Barnes didn't get hurt in the semis vs Memphis St.
Ernie De Gregorio was amazing, as was our Bill Schaeffer. It took them overtime to put us away. One of the best games i can remember being at, on campus.
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Televised games were not common in those days but that one was on TV. As you said, Schaeffer was amazing. Was gone by the time I started in 74 but from what I’ve heard and recall from the few TV games I saw, he is another under appreciated star.



Schaeffer from the corner was money in the bank
Billy averaged 24.7 points per game in his senior year (1972-73)
That record still stands today in St John's history
Very underrated player IMO


 
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Great shooter and funny guy when out in public.
 
Boo Harvey post=448531 said:
I was born in ‘76 so that’s a little before my time.  For me, the best loss has to be the game at the garden against Duke where Bootsy went off for 40 points.  I was at that game and it was incredible.  We lost in overtime, but for me, it cemented the belief  that we were as good as any team in the country.
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This is the one for me too. I was about 14 years old. I still watch that game on youtube sometimes
 
gonzalo post=448614 said:
The loss against #3 Kentucky in the 1992 ECAC Holiday Festival.

[URL]https://www.nytimes.com/1992/1...s-an-ambush-but-kentucky-avoids-the-trap.html[/URL]

Before the game we were 5-3, with a loss at Fordham and a 2 points win against Hofstra.

Since the Kentucky game SJU won 12 Big East games, finishing 2nd after being projected 9th. We played the NCAA Tournament.
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Great answer.
It was Mahoney’s first year after Malik, Wedann, Buchanan, Sproling graduated. The cupboard was bare. David Cain and Shawnelle Scott were the only players with experience. We were already blown out at Indiana and lost to Fordham.
And then out of the blue we went toe to toe with a top 5 Kentucky team lead by Pitino and Jamal Mashburn.
It was the biggest confidence boost I’ve ever seen, and the team became the most surprising SJU squad I’d ever seen.
 
 
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truckie post=448587 said:
Niagara loss in the beginning of the 84-85 season.  I think it woke the team up.
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Was a close second on my list losing out to the OT loss to Duke in January of 1999 (Thornton's 40 pt game)
 
Losing by 2 to #3 Stanford early 1998-1999 season showed that the team could really hang with/be one of the big boys.
 
Boo Harvey post=448589 said:
truckie post=448587 said:
Niagara loss in the beginning of the 84-85 season.  I think it woke the team up.

The loss at Fordham during Lav’s first year turned out to be a productive loss.  I think the coaching staff learned from that game that Dwight Hardy and not Malik Booth should be the starting PG

 
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I was at this game, first row behind the SJU bench.  I was forced onto the court as my friends and the rest of the stadium rushed the court after the final buzzer, getting me a sad cameo on tv.  I was also at Mullin's worse loss at Rose Hill.  After the game, Mullin wouldn't let go of Fordham's coach's hand during the post-game handshake and cursed him out for taking a timeout in the final minutes of the game when Fordham was up double digits.  The revenge match at Alumni Hall had us running up the score and not even dribbling out in the final 30 seconds.   A last second 3 pointer cost me a pool bet on the total score of the game, but I didn't care - great revenge win.

This year's loss at Indiana, which I attended (daughter goes to IU), was a pretty good loss.
 
Section9 post=448625 said:
It's a tie between Norm and jarvii
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Norm did not disgrace the school.  And left the program a lot better than when he took over.  That is 2 things one cannot say about the Jarvii
 
mjmaherjr post=448590 said:
Sooooo many losses to think about. The Fordham Lavin one was a good one.

Norm Roberts had no good losses. I dont recall Mullin with many either just plenty of bad ones

ST John's is the only school in the country that keeps track of "BEST LOSSES".  OK...here's a Norm Roberts "BEST LOSS"...a 77-76 Loss to a Kevin Durant/D.J. Augustin Texas team.  OK, not good.  Roberts had time to draw up a play with a few seconds left.  He calls for a three point shot by Anthony Mason Jr...who couldn't hit threes.  Avery Patterson could hit threes...but he was a forgotten man here.  For the record, he was 6-11 from three with a team leading 22 points at this juncture. Down by one, Norm might have tried getting the ball to the paint for a two point shot...or maybe drawing a foul.  Anyway, given Mason Jr's inability to hit threes, or propensity to miss them, the result was predictible.   Also for the record, Augustin had 17 points and seven assists while Durant stuck his oversized shoe up Norm's large intestine with 29 points and 10 rebounds.  
 
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BrooklynRed post=448685 said:
Section9 post=448625 said:
It's a tie between Norm and jarvii
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Norm did not disgrace the school.  And left the program a lot better than when he took over.  That is 2 things one cannot say about the Jarvii

I get what Norm did in bringing dignity back to the program and I appreciate it.  But Norm as a coach/recruiter left a lot to be desired.
 
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