Steve Lavin - St. John's

St. John's

In 2010, Lavin was hired as the head men's basketball coach at St. John's University. His first year included a 21-12 overall record, St. John’s highest number of wins since the 2002-03 season, with six Top 25 victories, four over Top 10 opponents and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2002. Lavin transformed a team that finished in 13th place in the Big East Conference in 2009-10 at 6-12 into a squad that tied for third in 2010-11 at 12-6. Only twice before has a jump of such magnitude occurred in the tournament's history. The Red Storm finished its season ranked 18th in the Associated Press Top 25, marking the first time it qualified for the postseason as a ranked team since 2000-01. The Red Storm, which posted a 7-1 record in eight regular season games at Madison Square Garden and a 5-2 record on campus at Carnesecca Arena, saw its home attendance climb by 38.1 percent, marking the fourth-largest increase in NCAA Division I men’s basketball.

Lavin underwent surgical treatment for prostate cancer in early October 2011, returning to the bench on November 9 and coaching four games in a nine-day span before leaving the bench again and modifying his schedule to reduce stress that was inhibiting his recovery.