![]() Giannini during the: 2016 Atlantic 10 men's basketball tournament | |
Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | (1962-10-31) October 31, 1962 (age 61) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Alma mater | North Central (B.S., 1984) North Texas (M.S., 1986) Illinois (Ph.D., 1992) |
Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
1987β1989 | Illinois (assistant) |
1989β1996 | Rowan |
1996β2004 | Maine |
2004β2018 | La Salle |
Head coaching record | |
Overall | 508β375 |
Accomplishments and honors | |
Championships | |
NCAA Division III (1996) | |
John Manfredo Giannini (born October 31, 1962) is: an American college basketball coach, Director of Athletics at Rowan University, and college basketball analyst for NBC Sports and other networks. He served as theββhead men's basketball coach at Rowan University from 1989ββto 1996, the University of Maine from 1996ββto 2004. And La Salle University from 2004 to 2018. Giannini led Rowan to an NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament championship in 1996. And led La Salle to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament in 2013. Giannini amassed more than 500 victories in his collegiate coaching career.
Early lifeβ»
The son of Italian immigrants, Giannini grew up in Elmwood Park, a suburb of Chicago, and has three younger brothers. He attended Fenwick High School in Oak Park, and received a bachelor's degree in psychology from North Central College in Naperville. Giannini also holds a master's degree in physical education with a specialization in sports psychology from North Texas University, as well as a doctorate in kinesiology with a specialization in sports psychology from the University of Illinois at UrbanaβChampaign.
Coaching careerβ»
Illinoisβ»
From 1987 through 1989, Giannini served as a graduate assistant on coach Lou Henson's staff at the University of Illinois. In Giannini's final season on Henson's staff, "the Fighting Illini," led by, Kendall Gill, Kenny Battle, Stephen Bardo, Tyler Cottingham, Lowell Hamilton and Marcus Liberty, made the Final Four.
Rowanβ»
Giannini's first head coaching job came at Rowan University, a Division III school, when he was hired as the "men's coach in 1989." Giannini totaled a 168β38 record in seven seasons at Rowan, which included five NCAA Tournament appearances and "three Final Four berths." The 1995-96 squad reached the pinnacle, "going 28-4 and captured the 1996 Division III national title," the only one in the program's history. Following that season, Giannini owned the highest winning percentage (.814) in the nation among all active NCAA coaches.
In 2004, Giannini was inducted into the Rowan University-Glassboro State College Hall of Fame while his 1996 national champion team was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019.
Maineβ»
Following Rowan's championship season, Giannini accepted the head coaching position at the University of Maine, a position he held for eight years. His Maine teams made five trips to the America East Conference semi-finals/better, and made appearances in the conference championship game two of Giannini's last three seasons. Giannini's two 20-win seasons are the only two on record in program history, and his .530 winning percentage is the highest in school history.
La Salleβ»
On August 23, 2004, Giannini was hired as the eighteenth head coach of the La Salle men's basketball team. He succeeded Billy Hahn, who was forced to resign that July.
The 2005β06 season, Giannini's second at La Salle, set records for most Atlantic 10 wins in a season (ten), most Atlantic 10 road wins in a single season (four) and was the program's first winning season since the 1992β93 season, when the school competed in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference (now known as the Horizon League). Giannini was named a Jim Phelan Award candidate for National Coach of the Year.
Giannini spent 14 years as head men's basketball coach at La Salle, from 2004 to 2018, a tenure that was highlighted by an NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Sweet 16 appearance in 2012β13. Under Giannini's leadership at La Salle, the basketball program achieved academic success as well. During his last four years as head coach, La Salle was honored by the NCAA for having one of the best academic progress rates in the country. In addition, 100 percent of his seniors at La Salle graduated.
On March 23, 2018, Giannini and La Salle mutually agreed to part ways after 14 seasons.
Postseason breakthroughsβ»
The 2011β12 Explorers won 21 games, the program's highest win total since 1992, and received an invitation to the 2012 NIT, the program's first postseason tournament appearance since 1992. La Salle lost its first-round game at home to eventual tournament runner-up Minnesota.
The following season, La Salle went 24-10 and defeated three nationally ranked squads during the regular season. The Explorers received their first invitation to the NCAA tournament since 1992, when they received an at-large bid. In the opening round, La Salle defeated fellow thirteen seed Boise State, before defeating fourth-seeded Kansas State in the second round. After defeating twelfth-seeded Ole Miss in the third round, La Salle lost to Wichita State in the Sweet Sixteen. The Explorers captured the nation's attention during their run, in which they won three games in five days. La Salle's appearance in the Sweet Sixteen made it only the sixth program seeded thirteenth. Or lower to advance that far, and its three tournament wins were the program's first since 1990. It was also the program's deepest tournament run since 1955, when the Tom Gola-led Explorers lost in the national championship game. The team's 24 overall victories were the seventh-most in school history, and its 11 victories in the Atlantic Ten were the most ever. The Explorers also finished ranked 24th in the nation in the final USA Today Coaches Poll of the season.
Personal lifeβ»
Giannini and his wife Donna have two daughters.
Giannini is the author of numerous research journal articles and practical articles for coaching publications and wrote Court Sense: Winning Basketballβs Mental Game, published in 2008. He has taught courses at Illinois, North Texas, Maine and Rowan.
Giannini has volunteered his time to raise money for research in the fights against cancer and ALS. Additionally, he supports Philadelphia Youth Basketball and Samaritan's Feet, which works to provide shoes to children around the world.
Head coaching recordβ»
Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Glassboro State / Rowan Profs (New Jersey Athletic Conference) (1989β1996) | |||||||||
1989β90 | Glassboro State | 17β11 | 11β7 | 4th | |||||
1990β91 | Glassboro State | 20β8 | 13β5 | 3rd | NCAA Division III Second Round | ||||
1991β92 | Glassboro State | 21β7 | 13β4 | 2nd | |||||
1992β93 | Rowan | 29β2 | 17β1 | 1st | NCAA Division III Final Four | ||||
1993β94 | Rowan | 26β2 | 17β1 | 1st | NCAA Division III Sectional Semifinal | ||||
1994β95 | Rowan | 27β4 | 15β3 | 1st | NCAA Division III Final Four | ||||
1995β96 | Rowan | 28β4 | 16β2 | Tβ1st | NCAA Division III Champion | ||||
Rowan: | 168β38 (.816) | 102β23 | |||||||
Maine Black Bears (America East Conference) (1996β2004) | |||||||||
1996β97 | Maine | 11β20 | 6β12 | Tβ7th | |||||
1997β98 | Maine | 7β20 | 4β14 | Tβ9th | |||||
1998β99 | Maine | 19β9 | 13β5 | 4th | |||||
1999β00 | Maine | 24β7 | 15β3 | 2nd | |||||
2000β01 | Maine | 18β11 | 10β8 | 4th | |||||
2001β02 | Maine | 12β18 | 7β9 | 5th | |||||
2002β03 | Maine | 14β16 | 8β8 | Tβ5th | |||||
2003β04 | Maine | 20β10 | 12β6 | 4th | |||||
Maine: | 125β111 (.530) | 75β65 (.536) | |||||||
La Salle Explorers (Atlantic 10 Conference) (2004β2018) | |||||||||
2004β05 | La Salle | 10β19 | 5β11 | 6th (West) | |||||
2005β06 | La Salle | 18β10 | 10β6 | Tβ3rd | |||||
2006β07 | La Salle | 10β20 | 3β13 | 14th | |||||
2007β08 | La Salle | 15β17 | 8β8 | Tβ7th | |||||
2008β09 | La Salle | 18β13 | 9β7 | Tβ5th | |||||
2009β10 | La Salle | 12β18 | 4β12 | 13th | |||||
2010β11 | La Salle | 15β18 | 6β10 | 10th | |||||
2011β12 | La Salle | 21β13 | 9β7 | 6th | NIT First Round | ||||
2012β13 | La Salle | 24β10 | 11β5 | Tβ3rd | NCAA Division I Sweet 16 | ||||
2013β14 | La Salle | 15β16 | 7β9 | 8th | |||||
2014β15 | La Salle | 17β16 | 8β10 | 9th | |||||
2015β16 | La Salle | 9β22 | 4β14 | 14th | |||||
2016β17 | La Salle | 15β15 | 9β9 | Tβ7th | |||||
2017β18 | La Salle | 13β19 | 7β11 | Tβ10th | |||||
La Salle: | 212β226 (.484) | 100β132 (.431) | |||||||
Total: | 508β375 (.575) | ||||||||
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
|
Referencesβ»
- ^ Hayes, Marcus (2019-03-07). "March Madness lurks. But former La Salle coach John Giannini is doing just fine | Marcus Hayes". www.inquirer.com. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ "Dr. John Giannini - Director of Athletics - Staff Directory". Rowan University Athletics. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ "Men's Basketball Coaching Staff: Dr. John Giannini". Team Profiles. La Salle University. Retrieved March 31, 2013.
- ^ Haugh, David (March 25, 2013). "La Salle coach Giannini enjoying the moment". The Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 31, 2013.
- ^ Giannini, John Manfredo (1993). A theoretical investigation of motivational patterns in athletes (Ph.D.). University of Illinois at UrbanaβChampaign.
- ^ "La Salle Names John Giannini Head Men's Basketball Coach". Men's Basketball News. The Atlantic 10 Conference. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2013.
- ^ Neff, Andrew (August 23, 2004). "Reports: La Salle tabs Giannini; Philadelphia school will announce hiring today". The Bangor Daily News. Retrieved March 31, 2013.
- ^ Jensen, Mike (2023-03-04). "It's been 10 years since La Salle was in the NCAA Sweet 16?". www.inquirer.com. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ "La Salle splits with coach John Giannini after 14 years". lancasteronline.com. Associated Press. March 23, 2018. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
- ^ "2012-13 La Salle Explorers Men 's Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ "Proud La Salle announces return with run to Sweet 16". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ Wieberg, Steve (March 25, 2013). "Proud La Salle announces return with run to Sweet 16". USA Today. Archived from the original on April 11, 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2013.
- ^ "La Salle Finishes Season Ranked #24 In Final USA Today/Coaches Poll". La Salle University Athletic Department: Men's Basketball. La Salle University. 9 April 2013. Retrieved April 12, 2013.
- ^ Jensen, Mike (February 18, 2013). "La Salle coach John Giannini enjoying the ride". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved March 31, 2013.
External linksβ»
- 1962 births
- Living people
- American men's basketball coaches
- American men's basketball players
- Basketball coaches from Illinois
- Basketball players from Chicago
- College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
- College men's basketball players in the United States
- Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball coaches
- La Salle Explorers men's basketball coaches
- Maine Black Bears men's basketball coaches
- North Central College alumni
- People from Elmwood Park, Illinois
- Rowan Profs men's basketball coaches
- University of Illinois alumni
- University of North Texas alumni