The Hall of Famer gave a fitting tribute to the late Carnesecca in Saturday’s game versus Kansas State
On a day with many tributes and remembrances to the memory of legendary St. John’s men’s basketball coach Lou Carnesecca, who died last Saturday at the age of 99, none were as memorable as head coach Rick Pitino wearing a replica of one of Carnesecca’s signature colorful sweaters for Saturday’s game versus Kansas State.
“The Sweater Game”… 40 seasons later pic.twitter.com/VgZtNwUcMV
— St. John’s Men’s Basketball (@StJohnsBBall) December 7, 2024
Pitino did not understate the importance of winning this game, as the Hall of Famer wanted to do right by the program legend.
“I don’t think I would have ever forgiven myself if we lost this game,” Pitino said in the postgame press conference. “It’s been an emotional week for me personally, not only with losing my two best friends, but with Lou [Carnesecca], and it was really, really important that we get a win for Lou.”
The brown-and-navy sweater with a red chevron stripe was one of many eye-popping numbers Lou Carnesecca wore during the Red Storm’s successful 1984-85 season in which they reached the Final Four.
Carnesecca’s wife, Mary, persuaded the coach to wear his eventual signature sweaters before a January road game against Pittsburgh as he was recovering from a cold. St. John’s would rout the Panthers by 31, then beat their next twelve opponents before ultimately falling to No. 2 Georgetown in February. During that nationally televised game, Hoyas head coach John Thompson took the court with his own replica of Carnesecca’s striped sweater, creating one of the most enduring photos in Big East basketball history.
Equipment manager Matt Bernstein helped create the replica in time for the game, as Pitino explained in Saturday’s postgame press conference.
“I looked online, I had five people look online and nobody could find that sweater. Rightfully so. Lou was a legendary person, legendary coach, but one of the five worst dressers in the history of the game,” Pitino joked, “We couldn’t find that sweater anywhere, so we found the pieces, cut out the pieces, and took it to a seamstress and put it together, and that sweater is going to rest in peace with Lou.”
Pitino said he was only going to wear the sweater for one game only. At the final buzzer, he took off the sweater and placed it over the St. John’s logo at mid-court.
Rick Pitino has taken his Lou Carnesecca sweater off and laid it at halfcourt in Looie’s honor. pic.twitter.com/rmmlTPUfHl
— John Fanta (@John_Fanta) December 7, 2024
Kansas State head coach Jerome Tang wore a purple-and-black sweater in ode to Carnesecca. In a press conference last Sunday, Tang fondly remembered Carnesecca and the old Big East and spoke about what Carnesecca meant to him. “A legend of our game, a guy who did a lot for the game of basketball, and the fact we get to go up there and play next week, I feel so honored.”