The 1986–87 Big East Conference men's basketball season was the eighth in conference history, and involved its nine full-time member schools.
Georgetown, Pittsburgh, and Syracuse were the regular-season co-champions with identical records of . Georgetown won the Big East tournament championship. In the NCAA Tournament, Providence and Syracuse both reached the Final Four, and Syracuse was the national runner-up.
Season summary & highlights Despite low expectations for the season, Syracuse won its first 15 games and finished the season as a regular-season conference co-champion and runner-up in the 1987 Big East tournament. Georgetown fielded a team that relied heavily on young and inexperienced players and was expected to have a rebuilding year, but instead had great success in conference and non-conference play, advanced to the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament, and finished the season ranked No. 4 behind the leadership of senior forward and team captain Reggie Williams. The team received the nickname "Reggie and the Miracles." Georgetown, Pittsburgh, and Syracuse were the regular-season co-champions with identical records of 12–4. It was the third regular-season championship or co-championship for both Georgetown and Syracuse and the first for Pittsburgh. Georgetown won its fifth Big East tournament championship. In the NCAA Tournament, Providence and Syracuse both reached the Final Four, and Syracuse finished as the national runner-up, narrowly losing the national championship game to Indiana. The 104 points Syracuse scored against Western Kentucky in the second round of the NCAA tournament tied the record for the most points scored in an NCAA tournament game by a single team.
Head coaches SchoolCoachSeasonNotes Boston College Jim O'Brien 1st Connecticut Jim Calhoun 1st Georgetown John Thompson, Jr. 15th Big East Coach of the Year (2nd award) Pittsburgh Paul Evans 1st Providence Rick Pitino 2nd Resigned July 13, 1987 St. John's Lou Carnesecca 17th Seton Hall P. J. Carlesimo 5th Syracuse Jim Boeheim 11th Villanova Rollie Massimino 12th
Rankings Georgetown, Pittsburgh, and Syracuse were ranked in the Top 20 of the Associated Press poll for the entire season, and St. John's was in the Top 20 for most of the season. Providence also reached the Top 20 during February 1987.
+ 1986–87 Big East Conference Weekly RankingsKey: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. AP Poll Pre 12/1 12/8 12/15 12/22 12/29 1/5 1/12 1/19 1/26 2/2 2/9 2/16 2/23 3/2 FinalBoston College Connecticut Georgetown 18 16 13 10 10 8 16 9 15 11 10 13 11 8 7 4 Pittsburgh 16 12 17 14 14 17 14 18 16 17 13 10 8 9 11 12 Providence 17 20 19 20 St. John's 15 15 10 10 13 14 15 19 16 20 Seton Hall Syracuse 15 17 12 9 7 7 5 5 7 6 11 9 9 11 10 10 Villanova
Regular-season statistical leaders
ScoringNameSchoolPPG Reggie Williams GU 23.6 Billy Donovan Prov 20.6 Mark Jackson SJU 18.9 Dana Barros BC 18.7 James Major SHU 17.6
ReboundingNameSchoolRPG Jerome Lane Pitt 13.5 Gerry Besselink Conn 10.7 Derrick Coleman Syr 8.8 Reggie Williams GU 8.6 Charles Smith Pitt 8.5
AssistsNameSchoolAPG Sherman Douglas Syr 7.6 Billy Donovan Prov 7.1 Mark Jackson SJU 6.4 Tate George Conn 6.0 Kenny Wilson Vill 5.1
StealsNameSchoolSPG Billy Donovan Prov 2.4 Reggie Williams GU 2.1 Mark Jackson SJU 2.0 Gary Massey Vill 1.8 Delray Brooks Prov 1.8
BlocksNameSchoolBPG Charles Smith Pitt 3.2 Rony Seikaly Syr 2.1 Derrick Coleman Syr 2.8 Jeff King Conn 1.7 Tyrone Scott BC 1.5
Field GoalsNameSchoolFG% Rony Seikaly Syr .568 Jerome Lane Pitt .568 Charles Smith Pitt .550 Sherman Douglas Syr .531 Willie Glass SJU .515
3-Pt Field GoalsNameSchool3FG% Pop Lewis Prov .432 Billy Donovan Prov .409 James Major SHU .390(no other qualifiers)
Free ThrowsNameSchoolFT% Jamie Benton BC .884 Dana Barros BC .850 Billy Donovan Prov .843 Mark Jackson SJU .806 Reggie Williams GU .804
Postseason
Big East tournament
Seeding Seeding in the Big East tournament was based on conference record, with tiebreakers applied as necessary. The eighth- and ninth-seeded teams played a first-round game, and the other seven teams received a bye into the quarterfinals.
The tournament's seeding was as follows:
Bracket
NCAA tournament
Five Big East teams received bids to the NCAA Tournament, with Georgetown seeded No. 1 in the Southeast Region. Pittsburgh and St. John's both lost in the second round, and Providence upset Georgetown in the Southeast Region final. Syracuse defeated Providence in a national semifinal game but lost to Indiana in the national championship game.
School Region Seed Round 1 Round 2 Sweet 16 Elite 8 Final 4 Final Syracuse East 2 15 10 6 Florida, 1 SE6 Providence MW1 Indiana, Providence Southeast 6 11 UAB, 14 2 Alabama, 1 Georgetown, E2 Syracuse Georgetown Southeast 1 16 Bucknell, 9 5 Kansas, 6 Providence, Pittsburgh West 3 14 Marist, 6 Oklahoma, St. John's Midwest 6 11 3 DePaul, National Invitation Tournament
Two Big East teams received bids to the National Invitation Tournament, which did not yet have seeding. Playing in the same unnamed bracket, Seton Hall and Villanova both lost in the first round.
School Round 1 Seton Hall Niagara, Villanova
Awards and honors Big East Conference Player of the Year: Reggie Williams, Georgetown, F, Sr. Defensive Player of the Year: Mark Jackson, St. John's, G, Sr. Freshman of the Year: Derrick Coleman, Syracuse, F Coach of the Year: John Thompson, Jr., Georgetown (15th season)
All-Big East First Team Reggie Williams, Georgetown, G, Sr., , , Baltimore, Md. Charles Smith, Pittsburgh, F, Jr., , , Bridgeport, Conn. Jerome Lane, Pittsburgh, F, So., , , Akron, Ohio Billy Donovan, Providence, G, Sr. , , Baltimore, Md. Mark Jackson, St. John's, F, Sr., , , Brooklyn, N.Y. Sherman Douglas, Syracuse, G, So., , , Washington, D.C.
All-Big East Second Team: Dana Barros, Boston College, G, So., , , Boston, Mass. Perry McDonald, Georgetown, F, Jr., , , New Orleans, La. Mark Bryant, Seton Hall, F, Jr., , , Glen Ridge, N.J. Rony Seikaly, Syracuse, C, Jr. , , Athens, Greece Harold Jensen, Villanova, G, Sr., , , Trumbull, Conn.
All-Big East Third Team: Dave Kipfer, Providence, F, Sr., , , Kitchener, Ontario, Canada James Major, Seton Hall, G, Jr., Willie Glass, St. John's, G, Jr., , , Atlantic City, N.J. Derrick Coleman, Syracuse, F, Fr., , , Mobile, Ala. Greg Monroe, Syracuse, G, Sr. , , Rochester, N.Y.
Big East All-Freshman Team:
Tate George, Connecticut, G, , , Newark, N.J. Dwayne Bryant, Georgetown, G, , , New Orleans, La. Mark Tillmon, Georgetown, G, , , Washington, D.C. Rod Brookin, Pittsburgh, F, , , Steelton, Pa. Derrick Coleman, Syracuse, F, , , Mobile, Ala.
All-Americans The following players were selected to the 1987 Associated Press All-America teams.
Consensus All-America First Team: Reggie Williams, Georgetown, Key Stats: 23.6 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.7 apg, 48.2 FG%, 38.6 3P%, 802 points
Consensus All-America Second Team: Mark Jackson, St. John's, Key Stats: 18.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 6.4 apg, 50.4 FG%, 41.9 3P%, 566 points
First Team All-America: Reggie Williams, Georgetown, Key Stats: 23.6 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.7 apg, 48.2 FG%, 38.6 3P%, 802 points
Second Team All-America: Mark Jackson, St. John's, Key Stats: 18.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 6.4 apg, 50.4 FG%, 41.9 3P%, 566 points
Third Team All-America: Jerome Lane, Pittsburgh, Key Stats: 15.8 ppg, 13.5 rpg, 2.2 apg, 56.8 FG%, 50.0 3P%, 522 points
AP Honorable Mention Sherman Douglas, Syracuse Charles Smith, Pittsburgh
See also 1986–87 NCAA Division I men's basketball season 1986–87 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball team 1986–87 Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball team 1986–87 Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball team 1986–87 Providence Friars men's basketball team 1986–87 St. John's Redmen basketball team 1986–87 Syracuse Orangemen basketball team
References