John Egan (basketball)

John "Jack" Egan is an American retired basketball player. His playing career is best remembered for his role on the 1962–63 Loyola Ramblers men's basketball team, which won the 1963 NCAA Championship. Egan was the lone white starting player on a team that broke racial barriers by starting four black players in an era when two or three was considered the maximum.

John Egan
Egan in 1963
Personal information
Born1942 or 1943 (age 81–82)[1]
NationalityAmerican
Listed height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1]
Career information
High schoolSt. Rita (Chicago, Illinois)
CollegeLoyola Chicago (1961–1964)
PositionPoint guard
Number11
Career history
1964–1967Twin City Sailors
Career highlights and awards

After college, Egan played three years in the short-lived North American Basketball League before retiring from basketball to work as a lawyer.[1]

In 2002, Egan was inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame.[3] The entire 1962–63 Loyola Ramblers team was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.

Early life

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John Egan was born in the early 1940s and grew up in the South Side of Chicago. He was the second-oldest of nine children born to his parents, a police officer and a stay-at-home mother. Egan started playing basketball in elementary school. He played for St. Rita High School, but they never made it past the sectionals of the city tournament. In high school, Egan was scouted by the University of Iowa starting from junior year. The school ultimately offered him a one-year scholarship, but Egan felt he had outplayed others who were given full scholarships, and declined. He was later scouted by Loyola-Chicago coach George Ireland at a Catholic League All-Star game and eventually offered a full scholarship, which he accepted.[1]

College career

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Egan with the Loyola Ramblers in the 1963–64 season

Egan played for Loyola-Chicago starting in the 1961–62 season. That season he played in 27 games and averaged 13.7 points per game.[4]

In the 1962–63 season, Loyola went 24–2 in the regular season, then went on to win the 1963 NCAA University Division basketball tournament. Egan again averaged 13.7 points across 31 games.[4]

In the 1963–64 season, Egan averaged 18.5 points across 28 games.[4] Loyola finished 22–5 but lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Michigan, which Egan attributed to poor team chemistry.[1]

After college

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After graduating Loyola, Egan played three years in the short-lived North American Basketball League. From 1964 to 1967, he played for the Twin City Sailors along with his former Loyola teammates Jerry Harkness and Les Hunter.[5]

He also studied at Loyola University Chicago School of Law. He worked in the Cook County State's Attorney's office in the late 1960s before starting his own criminal defense practice.[1]

In 1980, he moved to the Chicago-area village of River Forest, Illinois, having previously lived in the village of Riverside, Illinois. He has five children, two of them from his current marriage to Mary Egan, whom he met at the law office.[1] Egan was one of several former Loyola players who was a fixture in the stands during the Ramblers' 2018 run to the Final Four.[6]

Career playing statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
 *  Led the league

Source[7]

Regular season

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Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1961–62 Detroit 58 12.0 .425 .762 1.5 1.8 5.5
1962–63 Detroit 46 16.3 .372 .768 1.3 2.5 5.9
1963–64 Detroit 24 34.9 .410 .838 2.6 4.8 11.1
1963–64 New York 42 35.4 .456 .777 3.1 5.8 14.1
1964–65 New York 74 22.5 .488 .814 1.9 3.4 9.2
1965–66 New York 7 8.3 .313 .700 .3 2.0 2.4
1965–66 Baltimore 69 23.0 .455 .765 2.6 3.8 9.8
1966–67 Baltimore 71 24.5 .428 .845 2.5 3.9 10.1
1967–68 Baltimore 67 13.9 .393 .776 1.7 2.0 7.0
1968–69 L.A. Lakers 82 22.0 .412 .850 1.8 2.6 8.5
1969–70 L.A. Lakers 72 22.6 .438 .818 1.4 3.0 7.3
1970–71 Cleveland 26 15.8 .408 .893 1.2 2.2 4.0
1970–71 San Diego 36 11.5 .338 .739 .9 1.5 2.0
1971–72 Houston 38 11.5 .404 .813 .7 1.3 2.9
Career 712 20.3 .429 .805 1.8 3.0 7.8

Playoffs

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Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1962 Detroit 5 19.4 .468 1.000 1.8 3.2 13.6
1966 Baltimore 3 39.0 .404 .625 3.0 7.7 16.0
1969 L.A. Lakers 18* 31.7 .433 .788 2.4 3.9 13.9
1970 L.A. Lakers 16 10.1 .535 .909 .3 1.4 3.5
Career 42 22.5 .447 .795 1.6 3.1 10.1

Head coaching record

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Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %

Source[8]

Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
Houston 1972–73 35 16 19 .457 3rd in Central Missed playoffs
Houston 1973–74 82 32 50 .390 3rd in Central Missed playoffs
Houston 1974–75 82 41 421 .500 2nd in Central 8 3 5 .375 Lost in Conference semifinals
Houston 1975–76 82 40 42 .488 3rd in Central Missed playoffs
Career 281 129 152 .459 8 3 5 .375

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Stempniak, Marty (March 25, 2008). "Hardwood hero". OakPark.com. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  2. ^ 1963 NCAA Champions on Loyola Ramblers
  3. ^ "John Egan To Be Inducted Into Chicagoland Sports Hall Of Fame". Loyola University Chicago Athletics. September 26, 2002. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c "John Egan College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  5. ^ "EBA-Johnny Egan". nasljerseys.com. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  6. ^ Ryan, Shannon (March 28, 2020). "Loyola loses a legend". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  7. ^ "Johnny Egan NBA playing stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  8. ^ "Johnny Egan NBA coaching stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
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