A Little "Bit" of Irish Basketball History: John Cooney Drinks For Free

Setting the Scene:

The Maryland All Stars ( a Pete Strickleand creation) were heavily favored to win the 1981 Neptune International Tournament in Cork. They stumbled in the prelims and needed to beat Neptunes hated rival Blue Demons or they would be out of the tournament.

With the All-Stars up by two points and mere seconds left on the clock, Ruback and a Demon named Andy Houlihan got tied up going for a loose ball at the Irish end. This was in the days before the alternating possession rule, so Ruback and Houlihan faced off in the jump circle.

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“The ref tossed the ball so far to the other guy’s side, there was no way I could even reach it without knocking [Houlihan] over,” Ruback says. “I had no chance.

Houlihan tipped the ref’s allegedly slanted lob to a Demons teammate, John Cooney, who launched a three-pointer at the buzzer. Cooney’s shot went in. The crowd went ape. The Yanks were booted out of the tournament. ( Losing 71 - 70)

A photo of Cooney’s shot was on the next cover of Basketball Ireland, the island’s primary hoops periodical.

“Cooney beat the Yanks,” says Strickland. “He’s a hero.”

“Pete says the guy who hit the shot on us still drinks for free,” Brey says, “because the people in Cork thought they beat Team USA.”