John Thurston (basketball)
{{short description|American college basketball coach (born 1948)}}
{{Infobox college coach
| name = John Thurston
| image = John Thurston Head Coach St. Francis College 2 cropped.jpg
| alt =
| caption =
| current_title =
| current_team =
| current_conference =
| current_record =
| contract =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1948|04|17}}
| birth_place =
| death_date =
| death_place =
| alma_mater =
| player_sport1 = Basketball
| player_years2 = 1966–1970
| player_team2 = Seton Hall
| coach_sport1 = Men's basketball
| coach_years2 = 1971–1972
| coach_team2 = Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham (assistant)
| coach_years3 = 1972–1975
| coach_team3 = Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham
| coach_years4 = 1975–1985
| coach_team4 = James Madison (assistant)
| coach_years5 = 1985–1988
| coach_team5 = James Madison
| coach_years6 = 1988–1997
| coach_team6 = Wingate
| coach_sport7 = Women's basketball
| coach_years8 = 2003–2006
| coach_team8 = UNC Wilmington (assistant)
| coach_years9 = 2006–2008
| coach_team9 = Northwood
| coach_years10 = 2008–2010
| coach_team10 = Fordham (assistant)
| coach_years11 = 2010–2012
| coach_team11 = St. Francis Brooklyn (assistant)
| coach_years12 = 2012–2018
| coach_team12 = St. Francis Brooklyn
| overall_record = 165–232 (men's)
114–131 (women's)
| bowl_record =
| tournament_record = Men's
0–1 (NIT)
Women's
0–1 (NCAA Division I)
| championships = Women's
2 FSC regular season (2007–2008)
NEC tournament (2015)
| awards = Men's
CAA Coach of the Year (1987)
Women's
FSC Coach of the Year (2008)
| coaching_records =
}}
John Thurston (born April 17, 1948) is a retired American college basketball coach. He was the head coach of the St. Francis College women's basketball team from 2012 to 2018.{{cite web |url=http://www.sfcathletics.com/news/2012/3/28/WBB_0328123120.aspx |title=St. Francis Brooklyn College Terrier Athletics - New Women's Basketball Head Coach John Thurston Introduced on Monday |publisher=Sfcathletics.com |date=2012-03-28 |accessdate=2015-11-11 |archive-date=2017-06-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170630140426/http://www.sfcathletics.com/news/2012/3/28/WBB_0328123120.aspx |url-status=dead }} Thurston was born in the Bronx, New York and is an alumnus of Archbishop Molloy High School and Seton Hall University.{{cite web|title=2015-2016 Women's Basketball Coaching Staff John Thurston|url=http://www.sfcathletics.com/coaches.aspx?rc=472&path=wbasket|publisher=SFCAthletics.com|accessdate=11 November 2015}} Through both high school and college, Thurston was a two sport player playing baseball and basketball. After graduating high school in 1966, Thurston was drafted by Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1966 MLB Amateur Draft.
Coaching career
Thurston is one of only a few coaches who has been a head coach at the NCAA DI, DII, DIII and NAIA levels in 26 years of coaching men's college basketball from 1971 to 1997. Thurston started out as an assistant basketball coach of men's basketball at Fairleigh Dickinson University's Florham Campus in 1971. Then from 1972 to 1975, he served as the FDU-Florham Devil's head coach. Thurston next served as an assistant to Lou Campanelli at James Madison University, and was promoted to head coach in 1985. With the Dukes, Thurston helped lead the team to three straight trips to the NCAA tournament from 1981 to 1983, and was named Colonial Athletic Association Coach of the Year in 1987. In 1988, he moved to Wingate University as athletic director and head men's basketball coach.
Thurston then began coaching women's basketball. From 2003 to 2005, he was the top assistant at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and in 2005, became the head coach at Northwood University, as the first head coach of the women's program. In two seasons with Northwood, he led the Lady Seahawks to two Florida Sun Conference titles, a trip to the NAIA national tournament, and was named Coach of the Year in 2008. After the 2008 season, Thurston resigned from Northwood and became an assistant at Fordham University for two years.{{cite web|title=Thurston Resigns As Northwood Women's Basketball Coach|url=http://www.thesunconference.com/news/2008/4/21/nuwbb042108.aspx|publisher=thesunconference.com|accessdate=11 November 2015}}{{cite web|title=2008-09 Women's Basketball Coaching Staff John Thurston|url=http://fordhamsports.com/coaches.aspx?rc=360&path=wbball|publisher=ordhamsports.com|accessdate=11 November 2015}} In 2010, Thurston was hired as an assistant coach by then Terriers head coach Brenda Milano for the St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers women's basketball program.{{cite web|title=St. Francis (NY) Women's Basketball Adds John Thurston to Coaching Staff for 2010-11 Season!|url=http://www.sfcathletics.com/news/2010/8/31/WBB_0831100938.aspx?path=wbasket|publisher=SFCAthletics.com|accessdate=11 November 2015}}
In 2012, Thurston was named the head coach of the Terriers women's basketball program. His 2013–14 squad set the program record for wins in a season with 19. The following year, his 2014–15 squad won the NEC tournament and participated in the NCAA tournament, the first in the program's history. After the 2017–18 season Thurston retired from coaching the St. Francis Terriers women's basketball team.{{cite web|title=Championship Head Women's Basketball Coach, John Thurston Retires|url=https://sfcathletics.com/news/2018/4/5/womens-basketball-championship-coach-john-thurston-retires.aspx?path=wbasket|publisher=SFCAthletics.com|accessdate=8 January 2019}}
Head coaching record
=Men's=
{{CBB Yearly Record Start | type = coach | conference = | postseason = | poll = }}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead
| name = Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham Devils
| conference =
| startyear = 1972
| endyear = 1975
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1972–73
| name = Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham
| overall = 9–15
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1973–74
| name = Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham
| overall = 12–14
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1974–75
| name = Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham
| overall = 18–10
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name = Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham
| overall = 39–39 ({{Winning percentage|39|39}})
| confrecord =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead
| name = James Madison Dukes
| conference = Colonial Athletic Association
| startyear = 1985
| endyear = 1988
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1985–86
| name = James Madison
| overall = 5–23
| conference = 3–11
| confstanding = T–6th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1986–87
| name = James Madison
| overall = 20–10
| conference = 8–6
| confstanding = T–3rd
| postseason = NIT First Round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1987–88
| name = James Madison
| overall = 6–11
| conference = 2–4
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name = James Madison
| overall = 31–44 ({{Winning percentage|31|44}})
| confrecord = 13–21 ({{Winning percentage|13|21}})
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead
| name = Wingate Bulldogs
| conference = South Atlantic Conference
| startyear = 1988
| endyear = 1997
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1988–89
| name = Wingate
| overall = 17–13
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1989–90
| name = Wingate
| overall = 10–15
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1990–91
| name = Wingate
| overall = 8–20
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1991–92
| name = Wingate
| overall = 11–17
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1992–93
| name = Wingate
| overall = 11–15
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1993–94
| name = Wingate
| overall = 9–17
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1994–95
| name = Wingate
| overall = 8–18
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1995–96
| name = Wingate
| overall = 11–16
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 1996–97
| name = Wingate
| overall = 10–18
| conference =
| confstanding =
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name = Wingate
| overall = 95–149 ({{Winning percentage|95|149}})
| confrecord =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record End
| overall = 165–232 ({{Winning percentage|165|232}})
| legend = no
}}
=Women's=
{{CBB Yearly Record Start | type = coach | conference = | postseason = | poll = }}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead
| name = Northwood Seahawks
| conference = Florida Sun Conference
| startyear = 2006
| endyear = 2008
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference
| season = 2006–07
| name = Northwood
| overall = 18–13
| conference = 8–2
| confstanding = 1st
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference
| season = 2007–08
| name = Northwood
| overall = 23–8
| conference = 9–3
| confstanding = 1st
| postseason = NAIA First Round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
| name = Northwood
| overall = 41–21 ({{Winning percentage|41|21|}})
| confrecord = 17–5 ({{Winning percentage|17|5|}})
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead
| name = St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers
| conference = Northeast Conference
| startyear = 2012
| endyear = 2018
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 2012–13
| name = St. Francis Brooklyn
| overall = 11–19
| conference = 8–10
| confstanding = 7th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 2013–14
| name = St. Francis Brooklyn
| overall = 19–11
| conference = 10–8
| confstanding = 5th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship = conference tournament
| season = 2014–15
| name = St. Francis Brooklyn
| overall = 15–19
| conference = 9–9
| confstanding = 5th
| postseason = NCAA Division I First Round
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 2015–16
| name = St. Francis Brooklyn
| overall = 7–22
| conference = 4–14
| confstanding = 9th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 2016–17
| name = St. Francis Brooklyn
| overall = 8–22
| conference = 6–12
| confstanding = T–7th
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Entry
| championship =
| season = 2017–18
| name = St. Francis Brooklyn
| overall = 13–17
| conference = 9–9
| confstanding = T–3rd
| postseason =
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record Subtotal
|name = St. Francis Brooklyn
|overall = {{Winning percentage|73|110|record=y}}
|confrecord = {{Winning percentage|46|62|record=y}}
}}
{{CBB Yearly Record End
| overall = {{Winning percentage|114|131|record=y}}
}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://sfcathletics.com/coaches.aspx?rc=700&path=wbasket St. Francis Brooklyn profile]
{{James Madison Dukes men's basketball coach navbox}}
{{St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers women's basketball coach navbox}}
{{Colonial Athletic Association Men's Basketball Coach of the Year navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thurston, John}}
Category:American men's basketball coaches
Category:American men's basketball players
Category:American women's basketball coaches
Category:Baseball players from the Bronx
Category:Basketball coaches from New York (state)
Category:Basketball players from New York City
Category:College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
Category:Fairleigh Dickinson–Florham Devils men's basketball coaches
Category:Fordham Rams women's basketball coaches
Category:James Madison Dukes men's basketball coaches
Category:Seton Hall Pirates baseball players
Category:Seton Hall Pirates men's basketball players
Category:Sportspeople from the Bronx
Category:St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers women's basketball coaches
Category:UNC Wilmington Seahawks men's basketball coaches