With his exciting style of play, Maravich was seen as the perfect man for the job. In the summer of 1974, an expansion franchise was preparing for its first season of competition in the NBA. .I just happened to glance into the crowd. SEC Sports Blog | We had Ray Balukas guard him. The following season (1973–74) was his best yet—at least in terms of individual accomplishments. We double-teamed him. One time a University of Wyoming guard named Harry Hall issued a pregame promise that he would ”Jam the Pistol.” The Pistol went for 45 points, fouled out Hall and said afterwards, “That was stupid of him to say that. The first game in program history was a 35–20 away game victory versus Dixon Academy. He was the fastest human being you've ever seen. The Golden Eagles would win 110-64 to move to 17-5 on the season. The panel voters could also write-in their own candidates. Peter Press Maravich (Serbian Cyrillic: Пит Маравић; June 22, 1947 – January 5, 1988), known by his nickname Pistol Pete, was an American professional basketball player. SEC Softball | . The NCAA lights a positive candle for Dale Brown’s birthday, LSU picked to finish second in the SEC West in preseason media poll. LSU also possesses an all-time The Utah Jazz began play in the 1979–80 season. Mississippi State Bulldogs Basketball History, South Carolina Gamecocks Basketball History, From LSU Basketball History to SEC Basketball, Click Here for AWESOME Sports Fan Products, Click to view our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. He had been born without left coronary artery. Maravich died the year after his father's passing and a number of years after his mother, who had committed suicide with a self-inflicted gunshot. [37] The signed game ball from his career-high 68 point night on February 25, 1977, sold for $131,450 in a 2009 Heritage auction. 3 bye in next week’s SEC tournament, LSU proves opposites are attractive in Mainieri’s 600th victory at LSU, Orgeron and Pelini contracts approved, men’s basketball and gymnastics season ticket prices increased in some areas, Ja’Marr Chase accepts the challenge of wearing No. Nothing was beyond his imagination. This quote from the Associated Press’ article on the game is great: “I really didn't know how many I had until fairly late in the game," he said. Maravich turned heads in his first days playing pickup games on the LSU campus as a rail-thin 6-4 freshman. NCAA Tournament: 22 Years (26-25), 4 Final Fours, 0 Championships NCAA Champion: Ranked in AP Poll: 14 Times (Preseason), 13 Times (Final), 215 Weeks (Total) College Sports Merchandise | The following season (1976–77) was his most productive in the NBA. Ranks 4th in NBA history – Free throws made, none missed, game: 18–18, Pete Maravich, Atlanta Hawks vs. Buffalo Braves, November 28, 1973, Ranks 5th in NBA history – Free throws made, game: 23, Pete Maravich, New Orleans Jazz vs. New York Knicks, October 26, 1975 (2 OT), CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (, CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (, Southeastern Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Pistol Pete: The Life and Times of Pete Maravich, Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of individual National Basketball Association scoring leaders by season, List of National Basketball Association players with most points in a game, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 60 or more points in a game, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season scoring leaders, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball career scoring leaders, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball career free throw scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association annual minutes leaders, "Maravich, Pete (1947-1988), basketball player | American National Biography", "Peter Maravich at Basketball Hall of Fame", "The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame – Hall of Famers", "Pete Maravich, a Hall of Famer Who Set Basketball Marks, Dies", "What if 'Pistol' Pete had a 3-point line? The Jazz traded Robinson to the Phoenix Suns, receiving draft picks and some cash in return. That's an amazing 44.2 points per game average. Seas. Every day is an adventure at Torina Elementary, LSU women’s golfers were on the rise when season was cancelled, An Alabama at LSU 2020 season opener? National Player and SEC Athlete of the Year 1992, Three-time All-SEC first team honoree led league in scoring 1952-53-54, Two-time SEC Player of the Year, set NCAA freshman scoring record, The school’s all-time leading rebounder and second all-time leading scorer.