The Red Storm played their first game ever on Dec. 6, 1907, losing 34-13 to New York University. In those 110 years, St. John’s men’s basketball has produced multiple Hall-of-Fame coaches and several All-Star and NBA champion players.
To commemorate the 110th anniversary of their first game, the Torch put together a list of the 10 greatest men’s players in program history.
1. Chris Mullin
A no-brainer. Mullin is St. John’s all-time leader in points with 2,440 and had a historic professional career, winning two Olympic gold medals and making five All-Star teams. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011. The current head coach is the most successful Red Storm player ever, both in college and in the pros.
2. Walter Berry
Berry played just two seasons at St. John’s, but scored over 1,400 points. He just barely missed out on averaging a double-double for his career, dropping 20.1 points and grabbing 9.9 rebounds per game. The University retired No. 21 three times; once in his honor.
3. Mark Jackson
The NBA’s fourth all-time leading assist man, Jackson dished out 738 dimes at St. John’s-including a program-high 328 in 1986–87 before a 17-year NBA career, winning the 1987–88 Rookie of the Year Award.
4. Mel Davis
Imagine if Mel Davis had played four years in Queens. In just half the time, Davis scored 1,130 points and grabbed 845 rebounds, finishing his career with averages of 20.9 points per game to go along with 17.4 boards.
5. Lloyd “Sonny” Dove
The seventh all-time scorer in program history, Dove played three years for St. John’s and is second on the rebounding list with 1,036.
6. Bob Zawoluk
Zawoluk was the program’s all-time leading scorer until Mullin surpassed his 1,826 points in 1984. He scored 65 points against St. Peter’s in 1950 and averaged 20.1 per game over his time at St. John’s.
7. Felipe Lopez
In 1998, Lopez was an All First-Team Big East selection and a Haggerty Award winner, given to the All-Metropolitan New York Division I men’s college basketball player of the year. He is fourth in program history with 1,927 points.
8. Malik Sealy
A pure scorer, Sealy scored 2,402 points, 38 behind Mullin for the program’s all-time lead. He also averaged close to seven rebounds per contest, good enough for 880 in his career, sixth in program history. No. 21 was also retired for him.
9. D’Angelo Harrison
Another pure scorer, Harrison played four years at St. John’s before beginning his professional career overseas. His 2,178 points are third in school history, and he’s first in career three-points field goals made and attempted, and first in three-point field goals made in a season.
10. Bill Schaeffer
Bill Schaeffer averaged the most points per game in a single season in program history, scoring 24.7 a contest as a senior in 1972–1973 to go along with 11 rebounds per contest.
