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Table of Contents
January 27, 1995 - UMass vs. West Virginia
- Season: 1994-95
- Date: Friday, January 27, 1995
- Opponent: West Virginia
- Start Time: ?
- Site: at West Virginia (WVU Coliseum)
- Special Event: none
- Television: ?
- Radio: WHMP
- Result: UMass (#1) 97, West Virginia 94, OT
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Recap
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
College basketball extra: UMass’ historic rally at WVU still warms Calipari 20 years later
By John Grupp, The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, February 2, 2015
Long before John Calipari returned Kentucky to power, he left an indelible mark on Morgantown, W.Va.
Last Tuesday marked the 20-year anniversary of what remains one of the greatest comebacks — or collapses, depending on your perspective — in the history of NCAA basketball.
And the Moon native remembers it clearly.
“My high school coach, Bill Sacco, was sitting on the bench,” Calipari said Friday. “We’re down 18 points with four minutes or so left, and I look at him and said, ‘Don’t ever plan on sitting on our bench again.’ He smiled.”
No one could have imagined what happened next.
West Virginia led visiting UMass, 80-62, with 4:48 to play and were well on their way to upsetting Calipari’s top-ranked Minutemen and future All-American Marcus Camby on Jan. 27, 1995.
But UMass fought back to force overtime, eventually winning 97-94 in an outcome that prompted disgusted fans among the 13,862 at sold-out WVU Coliseum — the Mountaineers’ largest home crowd in 12 years — to throw “ice, beer, water, cups and Frisbees” onto the court, according to a Boston Globe report.
“I remember … their students came out of the stands and circled the court getting ready to storm it,” Calipari said. “We missed a shot in regulation to win the game, and you could just hear the crowd all sigh, and then they all walked back into the seats.”
Even the TV announcers had written off the Minutemen. Later, when Calipari, then a seventh-year coach at UMass, and his staff listened to the replay they heard Digger Phelps saying, “The No. 1 team in the country is going down. Stick a fork in ’em.”
UMass, led by senior guard Mike Williams, went on a 20-4 run over a 3:22 span to cut the deficit to 84-82. Later, Williams was fouled while attempting a 3-pointer with 9.1 seconds left. He made his first two free throws and missed the third, but forward Dana Dingle tipped in the miss, tying the game at 86-86 and forcing overtime.
Williams’ 3-pointer with 16.5 seconds to play in OT proved to be the winner.
“It was probably the best comeback of my career and the most memorable game as well,” said UMass forward Lou Roe, who scored a game-high 25 points and now works on Minutemen coach Derek Kellogg’s staff.
To this day, the 18-point comeback matches the largest in NCAA history with less than five minutes to play.
“It didn’t seem like it was real when it first happened,” said David Liguori, a reserve guard for WVU and now a Canonsburg-based financial advisor. “I don’t think I ever heard the Coliseum that quiet. It was probably the toughest loss I’ve ever been involved with, and I’ve got a couple teammates who would say the same thing.”
The near-miss came 24 days after UMass blew out WVU, 95-65, with an Atlantic 10 record 20 blocked shots — the Mountaineers were in their final season in the A-10.
Afterward, WVU coach Gale Catlett focused on his team’s effort in the rematch rather than the historic collapse.
“I’ve never been more proud of a team than ours,” Catlett said after the game. “If you want to blame someone, blame the coach.”
UMass would finish the season 29-5 after losing to Oklahoma State in the Elite Eight. West Virginia ended up 13-13, one of only five non-winning seasons in 24 years under Catlett.
So, as Calipari’s undefeated Kentucky Wildcats continue their pursuit of perfection, he probably will never coach in another game like that Friday night comeback two decades ago in Morgantown.
“It was unbelievable,” said former WVU guard Cyrus Jones, who scored 21 points and now is the coach at Dunbar High in Baltimore. “They were the No. 1 team in the nation. We had an opportunity to make history. We made it, but on the wrong side.”