MarkRedman
Well-known member
If my faulty memory serves me correctly, we had about 4 "bunnies" inside the lane to tie the game just before the buzzer against Penn in the regional final and missed them all
SJU Trivia
- Thread starter MainMan
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If my faulty memory serves me correctly, we had about 4 "bunnies" inside the lane to tie the game just before the buzzer against Penn in the regional final and missed them all
MarkRedman
Well-known member
Bollinger: Backup big man
McKoy: A center who was supposed to be a big time recruit entering St John's. Never lived up to the hype.
Thomas: Serviceable reserve swingman from Bay Shore, LI
Gilroy: Starting forward with Ron Plair. Seemed to get the out of his ability. Went to Holy Cross HS in Queens. His son is a hockey player and played for the NY Rangers.
Calabrese: Backup guard
Wright: Decent big man.
Coach Abatemarco: Made the circuit during his career - many assistant coaching stops
Coach Kresse: After leaving St John's became legendary long time head coach at College of Charleston. Court named after him. His first wife, Vicki, was the head coach of the St John's women's basketball team at one time (when they were known as The Express)
Bernard Rencher, a transfer from Notre Dame, was Carter's backcourt mate. St. John's played itself into an early hole that it never got out of ... one which Bill Packer blamed on Rencher's lackadaisical play at the start of the game, which he saw as a sign that Rencher didn't take Penn as seriously as he should have. I always felt Gordie Thomas, who was a senior (Rencher was a junior), deserved to start that game based on his tournament play, but so it goes. Tony Price, out of Taft HS in the Bronx, was Penn's standout player. Penn went on to be flat-out crushed by Magic's Michigan State team in the Final Four ... as would have happened to us, had we reached that game. Still, it would've been nice to get to the FF.
Seniors Gordon Thomas and Rudy Wright were the starting forwards to begin the 78-79 season. Later in the season, Coach C replaced them in the starting line-up with sophs Frank Gilroy and Ron Plair. The team lost only one game in February, a close one at Syracuse. They then lost to Iona in the ECAC finals at the Nassau Col and everyone thought we were going to the NIT. But as said, we were the last (40th) team selected for the NCAA tournament. Rhode Island, who had beaten us in January at Alumni Hall by one and may have had 20 wins, was left out. Reggie Carter's shot to beat Duke was play 51. The same play was run at the end of the Rutgers game, but Carter missed it. However, Wayne McKoy tipped it in over Rutgers All-American center James Bailey to win it. After the game, Coach C called it play 51a. Gordon Thomas shot 60% from the field in the tournament. He was not a point guard, so he would not have started in place on Bernard Rencher. Tom Calabrese was the back-up point. Calabrese missed an open 15 footer at the end Penn game that would have tied it.
St John''s was in major foul trouble against James Bailey and Rutgers. Bollinger stepped in and it was his shining moment giving the Johnnies some needed minutes off the bench Kresse called the last play which was named 51, if I remember, McKoy put in a Carter miss and the Johnnie;s moved on. Penn should have been the easiest game but it was close throughout. 2 to 4 points down the stretch. Carter fouled out with about 4 mins to go on a flop type play and we were in trouble. Looie called the Penn shots Howitizers as they were all long range and would have been deep threes today. However as mentioned we had three good shots to tie the game at the end and nothing fell. Funny though after Iona and Jeff Ruland beat the Johnnie;s handily at the Nassau Coliseum for the ECAC automatic bid, most people felt the Johnnie;s were dead. They played well down the stretch but barely beat PJ Carlisemo's Wagner team at the buzzer to get to play Iona. After losing the team was down and felt it lost the bid. It came down to Rhode Island or the Johnnie;s. Rhode Island, led by Sly Williams, had beaten the Johnnie's at Alumni Hall and were a good team, coached by Jack Kraft. However they faltered at the end of the season and SJU got the bid. I often wonder what kind of team Providence would have been had Sly not reneged on his Scholly to Gavitt and the Friars, They had a good team then and he would have teamed with Soup Campbell for a really tough front line. Sly had a good run in the pros with the Knicks and other teams. Good pre Big East times.
Even though Penn was losing about 60 to 30 at the half to Michigan State with Magic in the Final Four game,I believe the Johnnie's would have been much more representative,.
Early the next season Michigan state, led by Jay Vincent, came in and played the Johnnie;s in the Lapchick tourney and St. John;s prevailed. It was a great win as
MSU was National Champ and highly ranked despite Magic having gone pro.
Quoting from the 1976-77 Street and Smith issue. A year ago McKoy was the glamour boy of HS BB. He was proclaimed the nation's finest scholastic player by this magazine and most other knowledgeable sources, even mentioned as a potential Kareem Abdul Jabbar level player. All before his junior year had even begun.
My thoughts are he stopped growing at 16 and put on some unneeded weight. At 6 ft 8 in he was too small to dominate at the college level . By the time he graduated HS his stock has dropped significantly but he did perform admirably for SJU but not near the expectations after his HS soph year.
My thoughts are he stopped growing at 16 and put on some unneeded weight. At 6 ft 8 in he was too small to dominate at the college level . By the time he graduated HS his stock has dropped significantly but he did perform admirably for SJU but not near the expectations after his HS soph year.
You're right about Thomas not being a PG, but he was playing so well that I was hoping he'd start. Rencher was talented, but he had a tendency to get a little "too cool" at times for my taste. And since I always had utter confidence in Reggie Carter's game, I would have liked to see a Thomas/Carter starting backcourt for that game. So it goes. Odd, but I have zero recollection of Rick Bollinger.
jerseyshorejohnny
Well-known member
The Lutheran team was a national powerhouse, althought they did lose to Gus Alfieri's St. Anthony's (Smithtown LI) team (led by Tommy Hicks) in The Big 8 Classic in 1974.
McCoy's teammates (he was a freshman at the time) included the late Reggie Carter, Kevin James (who went to Syracuse) and Al Eford (who went to Wyoming).
Remember that we won the recruiting battle for Wayne over South Carolina.
jerseyshorejohnny
Well-known member
Believe Calabrese's dad, Gerry, was the Captain of a St. John's squad in the 1950's.
Remember that Tommy was from NJ. Think he went to SJU Law school.
What game is this?
Bonus: Name two players in this photo....
National Championship game in '52. I know that much about our history. LOL
I believe the Kansas player is Dean Smith. Not sure about the players for the Johnnies.
The great Clyde Lovellette for Kansas -- very familiar face from the old NBA. (Boy, am I showing my years.) I know Bob Zowaluk was the star of the Johnnies, as well as the tallest, so I'm going with him as one of the Redmen.
beast of the east
Active member
What kind of company man are you? we would have stomped out both Magic and than Larry in the championship game!
Afterall, we did beat Michigan State in the Lapchick tournament shortly after.