The basketball world mourns the loss of Lou Carneseccalegendary college coach and Hall of Famer, died Saturday at the age of 99. St. John's University announced that he died in hospital surrounded by his family, just weeks shy of his 100th birthday.
A true icon of New York basketball, Lou Carnesecca had led St. John's for 24 seasons, for a largely positive record of 526 victories for 300 defeats. Under his leadership, St. John's won three Big East titles and reached the Final Four in 1985. The university's campus arena is named after him, and a statue in his likeness was inaugurated in 2021.
New York in the blood
Among the players he trained were Chris Mullin, Mark Jackson, Walter Berry and the late Malik Sealy. On Saturday, Mark Jackson paid tribute to the memory of his former coach by calling him a “game changer” on social networks. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1992, the year he retired, Carnesecca refused to highlight himself during his speech: “I never scored a basket. The players did everything. Without them, there is no game.”
Born January 5, 1925 in Manhattan, to a family of Italian immigrants, Luigi P. Carnesecca grew up in East Harlem, above the family grocery store. After serving in the Coast Guard during World War II, he began his coaching career at his old high school before joining St. John's as an assistant in 1958.
Courteous with the referees, while being very energetic on the bench, “Looie” was appreciated by all. “Even people who hate the Big East can't hate Looie. If you like basketball, you like Looie. If you like young people, you like Looie” summarizes Jim Calhoun, the former coach of UConn.
Photo credit: St. John's
