James A. "Buck" Freeman (February 16, 1902 – February 14, 1974) was an American basketball coach who was head coach of the St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team from 1927 to 1936.
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 16, 1902 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | February 14, 1974 (aged 71) Columbia, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| Men's basketball | |
| 1924–1927 | St. John's |
| Position(s) | Center / power forward |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| Men's basketball | |
| 1927–1936 | St. John's |
| 1937–1938 | St. Thomas |
| 1938–1941 | LIU (assistant) |
| 1941–1945 | Power Memorial Academy |
| 1947–1949 | Scranton |
| 1949–1951 | LIU (assistant) |
| 1952–1961 | North Carolina (assistant) |
| 1964–1973 | South Carolina (assistant) |
| Baseball | |
| 1928–1936 | St. John's |
| 1939 | LIU |
| Football | |
| 1928–1938 | Iona Prep |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1932–1935 | St. John's |
| 1938 | Iona Prep |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 202–69 (College basketball) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| As assistant: NCAA national (1957) | |
Career
editFreeman played forward and center for St. John's basketball team.[1][2] After graduating in 1927, he became the team's head coach.[3] From 1927 to 1931, he coached the "Wonder Five" of Matty Begovich, Mac Kinsbrunner, Max Posnack, Allie Schuckman, and Jack "Rip" Gerson. The group compiled a 88–8 record and led the university to national prominence.[4] He also served as the school's baseball coach and athletic director. He resigned unexpectedly in 1936 without giving a reason.[5]
In 1937, Freeman became basketball head coach at St. Thomas College (now known as the University of Scranton).[6] He left the school after one season to become athletic director at Iona Preparatory School, where he had coached football since 1928.[6][7] In 1938, he became an assistant basketball coach at Long Island University. He succeeded Clair Bee as the school's baseball coach the following spring.[8] In 1941, he became head basketball coach at Power Memorial Academy.[9] In 1947, Freeman returned to the University of Scranton following the in-season resignation of John "Les" Dickman.[10] He resigned after two losing seasons and rejoined the athletic staff at LIU, where he remained until the school dropped its basketball program in 1951 following a point shaving scandal.[11][12]
Freeman served as an assistant coach under one of his former players, Frank McGuire, at the University of North Carolina and University of South Carolina.[3] McGuire called Freeman "the best assistant coach in the business" and gave him much of the credit for the success of the Tar Heels national championship team.[13] In between his stints at the two schools, Freeman was a scout for the Houston Colt 45s.[14]
Freeman resigned after the 1972–73 season, but remained involved with the South Carolina program as a consultant and adviser.[15] He died on February 14, 1974 at Providence Hospital in Columbia, South Carolina.[3]
Head coaching record
editCollege basketball
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. John's Red Storm (Independent) (1927–1933) | |||||||||
| 1927–28 | St. John's | 18–4 | |||||||
| 1928–29 | St. John's | 23–2 | |||||||
| 1929–30 | St. John's | 23–1 | |||||||
| 1930–31 | St. John's | 21–1 | |||||||
| 1931–32 | St. John's | 22–4 | |||||||
| 1932–33 | St. John's | 23–4 | |||||||
| St. John's Red Storm (Metropolitan New York Conference) (1933–1936) | |||||||||
| 1933–34 | St. John's | 16–3 | 3–4 | 5th | |||||
| 1934–35 | St. John's | 13–8 | |||||||
| 1935–36 | St. John's | 18–4 | 4–3 | 4th | |||||
| St. John's: | 177–31 | ||||||||
| St. Thomas Tommies (Independent) (1937–1938) | |||||||||
| 1937–38 | St. Thomas | 12–9 | |||||||
| Scranton Royals (Independent) (1947–1949) | |||||||||
| 1946–47 | Scranton | 9–12 | |||||||
| 1947–48 | Scranton | 7–20 | |||||||
| 1948–49 | Scranton | 9–16 | |||||||
| St. Thomas/Scranton: | 25–38 | ||||||||
| Total: | 202–69 | ||||||||
References
edit- ^ "St. John's Five Practices". The New York Times. November 10, 1926.
- ^ "St. John's Faces Test". The New York Times. February 13, 1927.
- ^ a b c "Freeman Is Dead At 69". Herald-Journal. February 15, 1974. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
- ^ Exit, Merle (April 2, 2014). "'Wonder Five' leads St. John's to big time". QNS. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
- ^ "Freeman to Give Up Posts at St. John's". The New York Times. April 26, 1936.
- ^ a b "Freeman to Coach St. Thomas". The New York Times. August 6, 1937.
- ^ "History of University of Scranton Basketball". The University of Scranton. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
- ^ "Freeman L.I.U. Coach". The New York Times. April 8, 1939.
- ^ "Coaching Post to Freeman". The New York Times. October 13, 1941.
- ^ "New York Expert Returns As Coach". The Aquinas. January 17, 1947. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
- ^ "Scranton Court Coach Resigns". Meriden Record. March 23, 1949. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
- ^ Williams, DeVere (January 27, 1970). "A Coach's Coach". The Sumter Daily Item. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
- ^ "McGuire Gives Credit To Assistant". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. March 31, 1957. Retrieved March 2, 2024.
- ^ "Freeman Gets Athletic Post". The New York Times. May 2, 1964.
- ^ "Buck Freeman, 69, Basketball Coach". The New York Times. February 16, 1974.