The Saint Joseph's Hawks men's basketball team represents Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I, and the team competes in the Atlantic 10 Conference. Saint Joseph's competes as well as part of the Philadelphia Big 5. Their home court is the Hagan Arena. The team is led by head coach Steve Donahue.
Through the years they have produced a number of NBA players. Saint Joseph's primary rivalry is with the Villanova Wildcats. Other rivals include the Temple Owls, the La Salle Explorers, the Penn Quakers, who make up the rest of the Big 5. Saint Joseph's basketball program was ranked 43rd best of all time by Smith & Street's magazine in 2005.
Contents
History
Men's basketball is the most popular sport at Saint Joseph's University. The Hawks have competed in 21 NCAA Tournaments and 16 NIT Tournaments. Throughout the school's history, 29 different players have been drafted into the NBA. The Hawks have been ranked 77 times in their history, 51 of which have been in the top 10.
The Hawks appeared in 11 NCAA Tournaments between 1959 and 1974. They were coached by Hall of Fame coach "Dr. Jack" Ramsay from 1955 to 1966. Ramsay compiled a 234–72 record in his 11 years at Saint Joseph's. They reached the Final Four in 1961 (although their 1961 third-place finish was later revoked by the NCAA). Ramsay went on to coach several NBA teams and won the 1977 NBA Championship.
Jack McKinney took over after Ramsay left and led the Hawks to four more NCAA tournaments between 1969 and 1974.
Following the 1974 season, the Hawks, with 11 fellow larger schools from the Middle Atlantic Conference, formed the new East Coast Conference.
In 1980–81, the Hawks, led by coach Jim Lynam, finished in second place in ECC play and won the ECC Tournament to receive a bid to the NCAA tournament. As a #9 seed, the Hawks defeated Creighton in the first round and upset the #1 seeded and #1 ranked DePaul to reach the Sweet Sixteen. The Hawks defeated Boston College to advance to the Elite Eight before losing to eventual national champion Indiana. Lynam also left the Hawks to enjoy a long career as a coach and executive in the NBA.
Saint Joseph's joined the Atlantic 10 Conference prior to the 1982–83 season.
The Hawks' basketball program has also produced several NBA coaches. The first St. Joseph's player to become a professional team coach was George Senesky, who led the Philadelphia Warriors from 1955 to 1958. When Jack Ramsay left Saint Joseph's in 1968 he became the head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers. Ramsey then coached the Buffalo Braves from 1972 to 1976 before moving to the Portland Trail Blazers where he won the NBA championship in 1977. This victory upset the favored 76ers who featured Julius Erving and George McGinnis. From Portland he moved on to coach the Indiana Pacers from 1986 to 1988, after which he retired.
Perfect regular season
The 2003–2004 Saint Joseph's University Hawks were the last Division I college basketball team to finish the regular season undefeated before the Wichita State Shockers did so in 2013–14 . Saint Joseph's ended the regular season with a 27–0 record and secured a #1 national ranking and a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament. The Hawks were led by a backcourt of Jameer Nelson and Delonte West, both of whom were drafted in the 1st round of the 2004 NBA draft. The Hawks advanced to the Elite Eight with wins over Liberty, Texas Tech, and #17 Wake Forest. In the Elite Eight, they lost to Oklahoma State 64–62.
Nelson was named National Player of the Year while coach Phil Martelli was named Coach of the Year.
In 2009, the 2004 Hawks were named the best single-season team of the decade by Sports Illustrated.
Current era
The 2004–05 team attempted to repeat the prior year's success without its two star players. The Hawks again won the A-10, but lost the A-10 tournament championship to George Washington and failed to receive a bid to the NCAA tournament. However, they did receive a bid to the NIT and advanced to the Championship game before losing to South Carolina, 60–57.
The Hawks were able to repeat their trip to the NIT in 2006, but the Hawks lost in the second round to Hofstra.
The 2007–08 team finished in 4th place in A-10 play with a 21–13 record. They lost to Temple in the A-10 tournament and received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. There, they lost to Oklahoma in the First Round.
The Hawks made trips to the NIT in 2012 and 2013, losing in the first round both years.
The 2013–14 Hawks finished the season with a 24–10 record and a third-place finish in A-10 play. The Hawks won the A-10 tournament by beating #23 VCU and earned the school's first bid since 2008 to the NCAA tournament. The Hawks lost to eventual National Champions, Connecticut, in the Second Round (formerly the First Round).
Following the NCAA appearance in 2014, the Hawks looked to build on their success in 2014–15, but suffered a setback, finishing the season with 13–18 record.
The most recent appearance in the NCAA Tournament came in 2016. The 2015–16 team finished the season with a 28–8 record, a game out of first place in A-10 play. DeAndre' Bembry was named A-10 Player of the Year. The Hawks won the A-10 tournament for the fourth time by defeating VCU. The Hawks were awarded a #8 seed in the NCAA Tournament and defeated 9 seed Cincinnati in the First Round before losing to 1 seed Oregon.
The Hawks won the inaugural Big 5 Classic in 2023, defeating Temple 74-65. St. Joe's went 2-0 in "pool play" defeating Penn 69-61, and defeating 18th ranked Villanova in the Holy War 78-65. This was the Hawks' 21st Big 5 Championship and 10th outright.
Postseason
NCAA tournament results
The Hawks have appeared in the NCAA tournament 21 times (with one vacated appearance). Their combined record is 19–25. The 1961 appearance was subsequently vacated.
NIT results
The Hawks have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 19 times. Their combined record is 18–18.
Rivals
The main rival has been the Villanova University Wildcats which is locally referred to as the Holy War. Saint Joseph's also has a heated rivalry with the Temple University Owls, the La Salle University Explorers, and the University of Pennsylvania Quakers. Because games against Drexel University are in-city, the two teams are sometimes considered rivals but Saint Joseph's leads the all-time series 43–6. The all-time series between La Salle and the Hawks is 63–49 in SJU's favor. They are losing the all-time series against Temple 63–75, Villanova 25–50, and winning the series with Penn 45–32.
Traditions
Fans of the Hawks often chant "The Hawk Will Never Die!". In a September 2003 issue, Sports Illustrated listed that cheer among The 100 Things You Gotta Do Before You Graduate (Whatever the Cost), calling it "the most defiant cheer in college sports".
Midnight Madness The first men's varsity basketball practice, Midnight Madness is an event which allows students and fans to attend. Players entertain the crowd by putting on events such as slam dunk contests.
The Drum It is believed the Drum played a significant role in many important wins. The Drum leads the student section during fight songs and chants. Today this tradition lives on with a new generation of drummers.
Rollouts During Big 5 match-ups, each student section prepares written messages on large rollouts that are passed down the crowd.
The Double Dip Anytime the Saint Joseph's Hawks win the same day or night the Villanova Wildcats lose. The ultimate double dip occurs when the Hawks beat the Wildcats.
Fight Songs 'When the Hawks Go Flying In' is sung before every game and 'Mine Eyes' is sung immediately after every game regardless of the outcome.
Cheers Cheers include "Let's go St. Joe's!" and of course "The Hawk Will Never Die!" which is reserved for the end of games.
54th Airborne The student section at SJU basketball games is known for being deafening. At Hagan Arena there are about 1,200 seats for students (over 1/4 of the total seating). The section, along with the pep band, leads the cheers for the rest of the crowd. In order to formalize the student section, the 54th Airborne was created in 2010 by Bryan Keister '12. The name is derived from the location of Hagan Arena at the corner of 54th St and City Ave, and while Airborne is appropriate for a Hawk mascot it also pays hommage to the military focused second place mascot name from student led voting in 1929, "Grenadiers". The core members of the 54th Airborne continue to make up the Student Booster Club. These students work to come up with the rollouts for Big 5 games.
Retired numbers
The Hawks have retired four numbers for seven players, with No. 4 retired in honor of four players:
Accolades and achievements
In 2004, the Hawks—as Atlantic 10 East Division champions—were one of the three inaugural-year recipients of the Pride of Philadelphia Award from the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.
In 2005, the Saint Joseph's University men's basketball team was ranked 43rd best of all time by Smith & Street's magazine.
In 2009, the 2004 Hawks were named the best single-season team of the decade (2000–2009) by Sports Illustrated.
The Hawks have won seven Atlantic 10 regular season titles and four A-10 tournament championships and rank 33rd all-time in wins with 1,439 and 44th all-time with a .605 winning percentage.
Saint Joseph's recently ranked 57th in the "Prestige Rankings" of the best programs since 1985 by ESPN.
Notable players
NBA Draftees
1947 – Round 2, Pick 16: Norman Butz (Philadelphia Warriors)
1950 – Round 4, Pick 39: Paul Senesky (Philadelphia Warriors)
1953 – Round 11, Pick 88: John Doogan (Philadelphia Warriors)
1957 – Round 4, Pick 2: Kurt Engelbert (Detroit Pistons)
1957 – Round 4, Pick 6: Ray Radziszewski (Philadelphia Warriors)
1959 – Round 6, Pick 3: Joe Spratt (Philadelphia Warriors)
1960 – Round 3, Pick 3: Bob McNeill (New York Knicks)
1960 – Round 7, Pick 7: Bob Clarke (Philadelphia Warriors)
1960 – Round 9, Pick 69: Joe Gallo (Philadelphia Warriors)
1961 – Round 3, Pick 6: Jack Egan (Philadelphia Warriors)
1961 – Round 15, Pick 1: Vince Kempton (New York Knicks)
1964 – Round 3, Pick 8: Steve Courtin (Cincinnati Royals)
1966 – Round 1, Pick 9: Matt Guokas (Philadelphia 76ers)
1966 – Round 5, Pick 9: Tom Duff (Philadelphia 76ers)
1967 – Round 4, Pick 4: Cliff Anderson (Los Angeles Lakers)
1967 – Round 8, Pick 11: Al Grundy (San Diego Rockets)
Active professional players
C. J. Aiken - Taoyuan Pauian Archiland (Taiwan - Super Basketball League)
DeAndre Bembry - Milwaukee Bucks (NBA)
Charlie Brown Jr. - New York Knicks (NBA)
Langston Galloway - Atlanta
Darrin Govens - Cholet Basket (France - LNBA Pro A)
Jordan Hall - San Antonio Spurs (NBA)
Carl Jones, "Tay" - Mineros (Mexico)
Isaiah Miles - Hapoel Tel Aviv (Israeli Basketball Premier League)
Garrett Williamson - London Lightning (Canada - NBLC)
Men's basketball in Saint Joseph's athletics Hall of Fame
Cliff Anderson (1999, Men's Basketball, '67)
Mike Bantom (2000, Men's Basketball, '73)
Rodney Blake (2001, Men's Basketball, '88)
Tony Costner (1989, Men's Basketball, '84)
Harry Booth (2006, Baseball/Men's Basketball '62)
Kurt Engelbert (1976, Men's Basketball ‘57)
Bill Ferguson (2006, Men's Basketball)
James "Bruiser" Flint (1998, Men's Basketball, '87)
Matt Guokas Jr. (2000, Men's Basketball, '67)
Mike Hauer (2011, Men's Basketball, '70)
The Hawk (1999, Mascot, '56)
Dan Kelly (2011, Men's Basketball, '70)
Jim Lynam (2003, Men's Basketball, '63)
Maurice Martin (2006, Men's Basketball, '86)
Paul McDermitt (2006, Baseball/Men's Basketball/Golf/Track, '59)
Pat McFarland (2005, Men's Basketball, '73)
Jack McKinney (2004, Men's Basketball/Track, '57)
Bob McNeill (2001, Men's Basketball, '60)
Current coaching staff
Steve Donahue – Head Coach (2025)
John Griffin III – Assistant Coach (2019)
Justin Scott – Assistant Coach (2019)
John Linehan – Assistant Coach (2022)
Eric Lang - Head Strength and Conditioning Coach (2019)
Amanda Casale - Director of Men's Basketball Operations (2019)
Thomas Boyle - Director of Scouting and Analytics (2019)
Reggie Cameron - Graduate Manager (2019)
Michelle Thomas - Program Services Specialist (2019)
Alumni who are current Div. I coaches/administrators
Geoff Arnold (1982–1986 – player) – Assistant, Rider
Kevin Baggett (1986–1988 – player) – Head Coach, Rider
Rich Carragher (1996–2000 – student manager) – Associate Athletics Director, Monmouth
Na'im Crenshaw (1998-2002 – player) - Assistant, West Chester
Mike Farrelly (2001–2003 – player) – Assistant, Notre Dame
John Gallagher (1995–1999 – player) – Head Coach, Manhattan
Dwayne Lee (2002–2006 – player) – Assistant, Quinnipiac
Phil Martelli Jr. (1999–2003 – player) – Head Coach, Virginia Commonwealth University
Bill Phillips (1999–2002 – player) – Assistant, Delaware
Rob Sullivan (2002-2006 – player) - Associate Athletics Director, Saint Joseph's
Ryan Whalen (2005–2008 – student assistant) – Assistant, Seton Hall
Ernest Pearsall (2000–2004 – manager) – Assistant, Mississippi Valley State