Remembering Lou Carnesecca, John Thompson and the legendary ‘sweater game’

[ad_1]

Lou Carnesecca liked to wear sweaters. He had no idea what he was creating when he grabbed one before a basketball game in early 1985.

Carnesecca, who died Nov. 30 at 99, had 526 wins at St. John’s University. He will be remembered at his funeral Friday, and long thereafter, as a Hall of Fame coach and a loving husband, father, uncle, grandfather and friend.

To many sports fans, he will also be remembered, at least in part, for his “lucky sweater.” It was brown with “V” shapes across the front, a gift from an Italian Olympic team coach. It happened to be in his closet when he was leaving for an away game.

According to the New York Post, his wife, Mary, suggested he bring a sweater on a road trip to Pittsburgh; she was worried the arena would be drafty. Carnesecca had a bad cough.

He wore it during the game, despite needling from his players, and the team won. Carnesecca kept wearing it. He had it on when, behind clutch play from his star player, Chris Mullin, St. John’s upset top-ranked Georgetown on the road.

The win set up a No. 1 (St. John’s) vs. No. 2 (Georgetown) dream matchup on Feb. 27, 1985, in New York at the height of the Big East Conference’s power.

Lou Carnesecca, wearing a sweater, during a St. John’s game during the 1991-92 season.

St. John’s had a winning streak that had hit 19. Carnesecca was still wearing the sweater.

“That’s all I am is a sweater guy,” Carnesecca said in a documentary about the game. “I thought I was a great tactician, great strategist. You guys just think the sweater won all the games.”

John Thompson, Georgetown’s Hall of Fame coach, decided he would try and one-up his on-court rival (and close friend off of it) by donning the same sweater.

Or did he?

Thompson wanted a sweater just like Carnesecca’s. He said in the documentary he sent a former player who lived in New York by subway to St. John’s campus in Queens to find one.

A few days after Thompson died in August 2020, this is how Mike Riley, his longtime assistant coach, recalled…

[ad_2]
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/remembering-lou-carnesecca-john-thompson-125313930.html

Author : USA TODAY Sports

Publish date : 2024-12-05 12:53:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.