Tommy Kearns

Tommy Kearns
	Kearns in the 1956–57 season.
Personal information
Born	October 6, 1936 (age 88); New York City, New York, U.S.
Listed height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Listed weight	185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High school	Saint Ann's Academy; (Manhattan, New York)
College	North Carolina (1955–1958)
NBA draft	1958: 4th round, 30th overall pick
	Selected by the Syracuse Nationals
Playing career	1958–1959
Position	Point guard
Number	3
Career history
1958–1959	Syracuse Nationals
Career highlights and awards
	NCAA champion (1957); Third-team All-American – AP (1958); 2× First-team All-ACC (1957, 1958);
	Stats at NBA.com
	Stats at Basketball Reference

Thomas Francis Kearns Jr. (born October 6, 1936) is an American former professional basketball player.

Born in New York City, he played collegiately for the University of North Carolina, where he played an integral role on the 1957 National Championship team. In an effort to rattle the 7-foot 1-inch Wilt Chamberlain of the Kansas Jayhawks in the national championship game, North Carolina coach Frank McGuire sent Kearns out at the start of the game to jump center. Kearns lost the tip-off but scored 11 points during the game. He was named first-team All-ACC in 1957 and 1958 and second-team All-America in 1957. Because of his national accolades, Kearns' number 40 was honored by the University of North Carolina and currently hangs in the rafters of the Dean Smith Center.^[1]

He was selected by the Syracuse Nationals in the fourth round (29th pick overall) of the 1958 NBA draft. He played for the Nationals in the NBA for one game. He scored two points during his professional basketball career.^[2]

In 2000, he played coach Garrick in Finding Forrester, a film directed by Gus Van Sant with Sean Connery and Rob Brown.^[3]

Career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

NBA

Source^[4]

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
1958–59	Syracuse	1	7.0	1.000	–	.0	.0	2.0

References

^ Halberstam, David (February 7, 1999). "He Got a Shot in the NBA, and It Went In". New York Times. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
^ Gagne, Matt (July 9, 2012). "Though he played in only one NBA game, the former NCAA title-winning point guard has had a rich postbasketball life". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
^ Schlosser, Jim (January 11, 2001). "Kearns has been in the spotlight as a member of the 1957 Tar Heel team that won the national championship. But his role as a coach in ``Finding Forrester' is his latest claim to fame". News & Record. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
^ "Tommy Kearns NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 4, 2023.

External links

Career statistics from NBA.com and Basketball Reference

This biographical article relating to a United States basketball player, coach, or other figure born in the 1930s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[1] Halberstam, David (February 7, 1999). "He Got a Shot in the NBA, and It Went In". New York Times. Retrieved March 15, 2022.

[2] Gagne, Matt (July 9, 2012). "Though he played in only one NBA game, the former NCAA title-winning point guard has had a rich postbasketball life". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 15, 2022.

[3] Schlosser, Jim (January 11, 2001). "Kearns has been in the spotlight as a member of the 1957 Tar Heel team that won the national championship. But his role as a coach in ``Finding Forrester' is his latest claim to fame". News & Record. Retrieved March 15, 2022.

[bbr-4] "Tommy Kearns NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 4, 2023.

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