Rick Pitino made sure Lou Carnesecca’s sweater magic worked one final time
This was deep in the best winter of St. John’s vast basketball history, which meant it was squarely in the middle of the most enjoyable season Lou Carnesecca ever had, which is saying something. It was Feb. 17, 1985. The Redmen were scheduled to play DePaul — still an independent, and still a formidable test under Joey Meyer.
It had been 22 days since the Johnnies had gone into Georgetown and beaten the mighty Hoyas, supplanting them as the No. 1 team in the nation. More important, it had been 35 days since Mary Carnesecca had slipped an ugly, scratchy sweater into her husband’s luggage for a road trip to Pittsburgh’s Fitzgerald Field House.
“It could get drafty in there,” Mary warned.
Looie did as he was told, and his team thrashed the Panthers by 31 points the next night. Now they would be at home, that home still called Alumni Hall, and every inch of space was occupied, as always. The official count was 6,597. The unofficial count was provided by Mark Jackson after the game.