Jeff Grayer, ISU's all-time leading scorer, on Barry Stevens and the creation of "Hilton Magic"
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That was my senior year at ISU. Good memories. I miss Barry too, he left us too soon.
For fun, here's the full roster and stats as listed at Sports Reference
Iowa State basketball 1984-85
Iowa State basketball 1984-85
That 84-85 season was my freshman year at Iowa State. It is really hard to overstate how much it meant to make the tournament in 85. My DAD was in diapers in 1944 and he had accepted that Iowa State would never win in basketball. Especially after Maury John passed away in the 70s... Oh what could have been there...
Then, Norm retired, and Doogie took over. The students still yelled: "St Down Norm! Sit Down Norm" when Snyder got up and about.Norm Stewart, the then Mizzou coach, and Johnny Orr were both characters. I remember having seats right behind the Mizzou bench for one game. Stewart was a guy that always seemed to be on the court, kinda like Bruce Weber but slightly less annoying. The crowd would chant relentlessly "Sit down Norm." That was when student tickets rotated to a different level each game. I can't remember which year it was, but Norm had finally heard enough and turned around and said some very hurtful things.Which of course just increased the frenzy of the crowd.
You're right about Hornacek's passing (and the rest). Because he played alongside Stockton so many years, people forget how well he delivered passes.
I loved this team as a student.
I'm glad Ron Virgil was back. He was an underappreciated glue player. My memory of him was that he seemed about 6'4", 140 lbs. Maybe that's an exaggeration but he always was defending guys that had more size.
Tom Peterson as well, went from a high scorer in Iowa HS BB to a blue-collar guy that defended and rebounded.
It's sad that not only did the great Barry Stevens pass away but so did Gary Thompkins who, like Grayer, started from Day 1 as freshman. Tompkins could really play full court pressure.
That team could run all day. Hornacek wasn't as fast but he was great in transition.
Tom Peterson as well, went from a high scorer in Iowa HS BB to a blue-collar guy that defended and rebounded.
It's sad that not only did the great Barry Stevens pass away but so did Gary Thompkins who, like Grayer, started from Day 1 as freshman. Tompkins could really play full court pressure.
That team could run all day. Hornacek wasn't as fast but he was great in transition.
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Some glimpses of the reunion from Twitter:
I work with a former player and he is very complimentary of Prohm and staff for this annual basketball alumni event. They love the chance to get together with former teammates.
Barry was a stud and my favorite Cyclone player. He was a scoring machine. Very smooth
They were underclassmen but the 3 Chicago kids- Moss, Virgil and Hill were key role players over their careers who played with a lot of passion.
Barry was a stud and my favorite Cyclone player. He was a scoring machine. Very smooth
They were underclassmen but the 3 Chicago kids- Moss, Virgil and Hill were key role players over their careers who played with a lot of passion.
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Hill amazed me at how much of an impact player he became by his senior year. As a freshman, I remember thinking he'd never be anything but a big body and I was wrong.
Team photo I found on Twitter @CycloneMBB ... post from April promoting the reunion.
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I didn't realize that Gary had passed. I knew him pretty well his freshman year. We were in a couple classes together and went out to bars (gasp) several times. As long as the players behaved, Johnny was OK, with players in bars.
I'd forgotten that LaFester Rhodes was on that team (I don't think he got much playing time as freshman).
Loved Ronnie Virgil, yes.
Wondering if anybody knows if Terrance Allen has been back? He was also one of Johnny's early recruits from Florida, too. Played way bigger than he was. I think it was him - they said on his recruiting trip on the drive from DSM to Ames it was one of those cold cold days and the recruiter/coach was wondering how he would react to the location and climate. To the recruiter's surprise Terrance said something like, "This is great, I think I'm going to go to school here!"
https://spark.adobe.com/page/jPB1Xj...hP8YogX3HxxMV3Ru8EU4dTQeU8s4zsbk_HItEe8jMSN_A
Bumping this for the pictures that Iowa State put together. For whatever reason, it just makes me really happy that so many players come back for this after a few years. And since it didn't get a lot of mention, it's worth pointing out that the Steven's family donated money for an endowed scholarship at the event. Pretty cool.
Also, because people had been worried about it, Leech is clearly in Ames.
Bumping this for the pictures that Iowa State put together. For whatever reason, it just makes me really happy that so many players come back for this after a few years. And since it didn't get a lot of mention, it's worth pointing out that the Steven's family donated money for an endowed scholarship at the event. Pretty cool.
Also, because people had been worried about it, Leech is clearly in Ames.
Yeah, I think he was in the same class as Ron Harris. Tremendous athleticism; could really elevate. I played with him a number of times (and was happy not to have to try to guard him). He could be a streaky shooter. I've heard nothing of him since he left Ames.
