1996–97 Boston College Eagles men's basketball team

The 1996–97 Boston College Eagles men's basketball team represented Boston College as members of the Big East Conference during the 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by 11th-year head coach Jim O'Brien and played their home games at the Silvio O. Conte Forum in Boston, Massachusetts.

1996–97 Boston College Eagles men's basketball
Big East regular season co-champion
Big East tournament champion
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
APNo. 23
Record22–9 (12–6 Big East)
Head coach
Home arenaSilvio O. Conte Forum
Seasons
1997–98 →
1996–97 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Big East 6
No. 20 Villanova 12 6   .667 24 10   .706
No. 23 Boston College 12 6   .667 22 9   .710
West Virginia 11 7   .611 21 10   .677
Notre Dame 8 10   .444 16 14   .533
St. John's 8 10   .444 13 15   .464
Connecticut 7 11   .389 18 15   .545
Big East 7
Georgetown 11 7   .611 20 10   .667
Providence 10 8   .556 24 12   .667
Pittsburgh 10 8   .556 18 15   .545
Miami 9 9   .500 16 13   .552
Syracuse 9 9   .500 19 13   .594
Seton Hall 5 13   .278 10 18   .357
Rutgers 5 13   .278 11 16   .407
1997 Big East tournament winner
As of March 31, 1997[1][2][3]
Rankings from AP poll

After finishing tied atop the Big East regular season standings, the Eagles won the Big East tournament to receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as No. 5 seed in the West region. After defeating a game Valparaiso team in the opening round,[4] the Eagles were eliminated in overtime by Saint Joseph's, 81–77, in the round of 32.[5]

Roster

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1996–97 Boston College Eagles men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 11 Scoonie Penn 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Salem, Massachusetts
C 14 Mickey Curley 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Jr Duxbury, Massachusetts
G 20 Duane Woodward 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr New York, New York
F 24 Danya Abrams 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Sr Westchester, New York
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
Nov 22, 1996*
No. 21 Brown W 89–72  1–0
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Nov 25, 1996*
No. 23 New Hampshire W 82–40  2–0
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Dec 4, 1996
No. 20 Rutgers W 73–64  3–0
(1–0)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Dec 7, 1996
No. 20 at Connecticut L 54–61  3–1
(1–1)
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, Connecticut
Dec 9, 1996*
No. 25 Vanderbilt W 59–52  4–1
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Dec 21, 1996*
at Holy Cross W 92–76  5–1
Hart Center 
Worcester, Massachusetts
Dec 27, 1996*
No. 25 Central Connecticut State W 63–53  6–1
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Dec 29, 1996*
No. 25 at No. 16 Louisville L 85–89 2OT 6–2
Freedom Hall 
Louisville, Kentucky
Jan 2, 1997
No. 25 Miami (FL) W 65–62  7–2
(2–1)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Jan 4, 1997
No. 25 at Seton Hall W 80–64  8–2
(3–1)
Continental Airlines Arena 
East Rutherford, New Jersey
Jan 7, 1997
No. 23 at Syracuse W 94–83  9–2
(4–1)
Carrier Dome 
Syracuse, New York
Jan 11, 1997
No. 23 at Notre Dame W 73–61  10–2
(5–1)
Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Jan 13, 1997
No. 19 Georgetown W 81–74  11–2
(6–1)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Jan 15, 1997*
No. 19 at Fairfield W 81–79 OT 12–2
Alumni Hall 
Fairfield, Connecticut
Jan 18, 1997*
No. 19 vs. UMass L 78–90  12–3
TD Garden 
Boston, Massachusetts
Jan 21, 1997
No. 22 Pittsburgh W 81–61  13–3
(7–1)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Jan 25, 1997
No. 22 No. 12 Villanova L 66–84  13–4
(7–2)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Jan 29, 1997
at West Virginia L 76–89  13–5
(7–3)
WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Feb 1, 1997
at Providence L 71–83  13–6
(7–4)
Providence Civic Center 
Providence, Rhode Island
Feb 4, 1997
Syracuse W 79–71  14–6
(8–4)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Feb 9, 1997
St. John's W 81–80 OT 15–6
(9–4)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Feb 12, 1997
Connecticut L 56–61  15–7
(9–5)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Feb 16, 1997
Seton Hall W 74–57  16–7
(10–5)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Feb 19, 1997
at Miami (FL) W 59–57  17–7
(11–5)
Miami Arena 
Miami, Florida
Feb 23, 1997
at Pittsburgh L 71–75  17–8
(11–6)
Fitzgerald Field House 
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Mar 1, 1997
Notre Dame W 76–74  18–8
(12–6)
Silvio O. Conte Forum 
Boston, Massachusetts
Big East tournament
Mar 6, 1997*
(3) vs. (6) Pittsburgh
Quarterfinals
W 76–68  19–8
Madison Square Garden 
New York, New York
Mar 7, 1997*
(3) vs. (2) Georgetown
Semifinals
W 70–58  20–8
Madison Square Garden 
New York, New York
Mar 8, 1997*
(3) vs. (1) No. 21 Villanova
Championship game
W 70–58  21–8
Madison Square Garden 
New York, New York
NCAA Tournament
Mar 13, 1997*
(5 W) No. 23 vs. (12 W) Valparaiso
First round
W 73–66  22–8
Jon M. Huntsman Center 
Salt Lake City, Utah
Mar 15, 1997*
(5 W) No. 23 vs. (4 W) No. 12 Saint Joseph's
Second round
L 77–81 OT 22–9
Jon M. Huntsman Center 
Salt Lake City, Utah
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Sources [6]

Rankings

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References

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  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1996-97 Big East Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ Keefe, Gavin, "Big East Notes: The Big East 7 and Big East 6? Big Deal!", The Day, January 1, 1996, p. 7.
  3. ^ "PLUS: COLLEGE BASKETBALL -- BIG EAST CONFERENCE; League Cuts Games In Search of Bids," The New York Times, August 7, 1998.
  4. ^ "Boston College Rallies Past Valparaiso". The Washington Post. March 13, 1997. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  5. ^ "St. Joseph's, Bey Use Long Ball to Keep Boston College at Bay in 81-77 Victory". The Los Angeles Times. March 16, 1997. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  6. ^ "1996-97 Boston College Eagles Schedule and Results". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 9, 2022.