Just weeks prior to its third Elite Eight appearance in program history, the mood surrounding Boston College men’s basketball was anything but optimistic.
Thirty seasons ago, the 1993–94 Eagles suffered a decisive loss to Georgetown in the Big East Tournament’s first round, putting the season’s future in doubt.
“Everyone was just so negative around campus,” then-senior Bill Curley said. “It was just nasty.”
But while doubt ran rampant in Chestnut Hill, the team didn’t lose sight of its potential.
“We never wavered, even though we had lost some games that we probably shouldn’t have,” then-freshman Danya Abrams said. “We knew what we had collectively inside, and it was just about gelling at the right time.”
Against a pair of blue-blood programs and Hall of Fame head coaches, the Eagles realized their potential and embarked on one of the greatest March Madness runs in program history.
This is the story of that run, narrated by those who lived it. All titles and positions are from the 1993–94 season.
The Season
The Eagles hadn’t appeared in an NCAA Tournament since 1985, creating high expectations as BC entered the 1993–94 season. With four returning senior starters—Curley, Howard Eisley, Gerrod Abram, and Malcolm Huckaby—the Eagles appeared primed for their first tournament berth in nearly a decade.
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“Externally, the expectations were high. You have four seniors coming back, a great supporting cast to help them out, and it was like, either now or nothing.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“As seniors, we thought our time was there to really have a really good team.”
John McInerney, The Heights’ Asst. Sports Editor (March 1994, The Heights)
“The student body expected success and would not be tolerant of a third-straight NIT bid.”
Following an up-and-down regular season and an early 78–68 exit to Georgetown in the Big East Tournament, the future of the Eagles in the Big Dance was unclear.
Bill Curley, BC forward
“Going into the Big East Tournament, we had really high hopes that we were going to do some damage and really, really make a good run in that tournament.”
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“We had the first round of the Big East Tournament. We played against a Georgetown team who was struggling, and they beat us pretty bad. We didn’t even know if we were gonna get into the NCAA Tournament.”
John McInerney, The Heights’ Asst. Sports Editor (March 1994, The Heights)
“Questions began to arise that maybe coach Jim O’Brien was not getting the most out of this team.”
Paul Biancardi, BC assistant coach
“People thought that was the end of the season.”
Despite the loss to Georgetown, BC still secured its first tournament berth in nine years, seeded as a No. 9 seed in a first-round matchup against No. 8-seed Washington State.
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“I remember before Selection Sunday, we were just saying, ‘If we get in, we don’t care where we are, who we play—we’re going to prove everyone wrong”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“We didn’t want to just make the tournament. We wanted to win a title.”
The Upset, Vol. One
After narrowly defeating Washington State 67–64 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, BC was tasked with facing a defending champion North Carolina, which boasted Hall of Fame head coach Dean Smith and future stars Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse. With the odds ever-stacked against them, BC’s fate seemed sealed, but the Eagles rode their confidence and experience to a 75–72 upset over the Tar Heels.
John McInerney, The Heights’ Asst. Sports Editor (March 1994, The Heights)
“Almost no one thought they stood a chance.”
Gerrod Abram, BC guard
“We just thought we had a chance to beat them and we wanted to prove to the world that we were the better team.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“It didn’t matter, Carolina, [we] didn’t care that they had won the national title before, they had all these 7-footers. We played [Dikembe] Mutombo and [Alonzo] Mourning on the same team when we were freshmen and sophomores, so we had been battle-tested.”
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“Our game plan was to do the same thing—get the ball to Billy and get out of the way, because he’ll make the right play. But he had so much attention on him that Gerrod Abram got free and hit a couple big threes in the first half.”
Paul Biancardi, BC assistant coach
“They never really adjusted to it. By the time they did, our confidence level was sky high.”
Gerrod Abram, BC guard
“As you see how we shot that 3-point ball against North Carolina, it was a testament of them trying to pack it in and double Bill. We got some open looks and we were knocking them down.”
Ed McLaughlin, The Heights’ Sports Editor (March 1994, The Heights)
“Abram’s outside game and the inside play of Bill Curley won the game for the Eagles down the stretch.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“That’s what opened up late in the game, where then I got to one-on-one coverage, because the guys out there were shooting so well in the first half.”
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“Bill Curley—the last two minutes, minute and a half, of that game against UNC—willed us to a victory running probably the same play two or three times in a row.”
Dan McDonald, BC ’96 (March 1994, The Heights)
“We didn’t really think it could happen. [BC was] ahead most of the game, but we still didn’t believe it could happen.”
And for a split second, success nearly evaded the Eagles. With BC leading 75–72 with under 10 seconds to play, Wallace pulled up for a corner three in a last ditch effort to balance the score. It hit the rim and rattled out—an Eagles victory.
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“When Rasheed Wallace took that shot, everyone’s breath was held for those three seconds.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“We were going to take our chance with them trying to make a three. You know, he did get a good look at it, but it was contested, and that’s the difference when you contest and don’t contest.”
Gerrod Abram, BC guard
“I said, ‘I’m taking the point guard away, I’m not gonna let them set up a play. And that forced Rasheed to dribble down. And once I see him take a shot, I didn’t think it was going in. I just wanted us to rebound—we had to get in there and rebound. And the rest is history.”
Jim O’Brien, BC head coach (The Heights, March 1994)
“This was clearly the best win that these guys have had. I can’t put into words how happy I am for these seniors. It is a tremendous win for our program.”
Dean Smith, UNC head coach (The Heights, March 1994)
“They played extremely well. They were hard to defend, and they got the ball to Curley. They’re a very athletic team.”
Paul Biancardi, BC assistant coach
“There was a feeling of, ‘This is a miracle, this is a miracle.’ They’re North Carolina, they won the NCAA championship last year, they’re the No. 1 seed, and we just beat them.”
The Upset, Vol. Two
Even after dispatching the No. 1-seed Tar Heels, BC’s tournament path wasn’t getting any easier. A Sweet Sixteen date with Bob Knight’s Indiana awaited the Eagles in Miami. In yet another upset, BC won the matchup, 77–68.
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“We beat Dean Smith, one Hall of Famer, and then by you beating him, you’re like ‘Okay, now you get Bobby Knight and Indiana.’ It doesn’t get any easier.”
Paul Biancardi, BC assistant coach
“It’s like being in a heavyweight fight with Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier and Mike Tyson.”
Like UNC, Indiana centered its attention on Curley, leaving his teammates room to execute their gameplan.
Bill Curley, BC forward
“They packed it in to try to take me out of the game.”
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“I think our three-guard offense was just a little too much for Indiana’s guards.”
Bob Knight, Indiana head coach (March 1994, The Heights)
“They are as tough a bunch of kids that we’ve played all year. They made some really big plays.”
Gerrod Abram, BC guard
“We just knew we were a better team. And I thought we were in better shape. We were tough.”
Following the Eagles’ victory, campus spiraled into chaos. In a feverish scene of celebration, thousands of BC students swarmed outside Conte Forum to show their support. Some turned to rioting, and three students were reportedly arrested after 10 cars were allegedly damaged.
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“We have police escort back to the campus and it’s like 1:30 in the morning. It’s pandemonium, I mean, thousands of people outside of Conte waiting for us. It was unreal. That was one of the best moments of my career, collegiately and professionally.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“It was bedlam.”
Gerrod Abram, BC guard
“I know a couple of the guys had tore the rims down over in the Rec Center. Somebody handed me a rim. I know I had a picture with a rim around my neck.”
The Defeat
For the East Regional Final, a formidable Florida team wasn’t the only obstacle in the Eagles’ way—the Gators had a quasi-home court advantage in Miami, Fla. Ultimately, the Eagles’ Cinderella story came to an end in a 74–66 defeat.
Bill Curley, BC forward
“That game haunts me. We went into that final TV timeout with four minutes left, up 10 and starting four seniors. You’re supposed to finish that game up. They came out of that timeout and hit three quick threes.”
Gerrod Abram, BC guard
“We couldn’t recover from that.”
Jim O’Brien, BC head coach (March 1994, The Heights)
“We got to the point where [the seniors] carried us, and we said we’re going to win it or lose it with the guys that got us that far. You’ve got to go with your best guys at the end.”
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“It always stings when you’re a minute and a half away from the Final Four.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“The clock struck midnight on us there.”
BC fans braved the rain at around 1 a.m. following the loss to embrace their team as the Eagles returned to Chestnut Hill after their postseason exit.
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“Just for them showing that appreciation—I’m getting goosebumps just thinking about it.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
We left there saying, “I could barely walk.” We left everything on the floor, and I think that’s what people appreciated.
Paul Biancardi, BC assistant coach
“To see the fans, the alumni, and just the state, the city get behind us was really cool, because I don’t think that ever happened before at BC.”
Gerrod Abram, BC guard
“It’s indescribable, but we still talk about it to this day. To see that pride of BC, to have the students out there to bring some happiness and joy to that campus—it was just unbelievable.”
The Aftermath
Thirty years later, the Eagles’ Elite Eight run remains etched into school history—both in the Conte Forum rafters and in the memories of fans.
Paul Biancardi, BC assistant coach
“It’s a moment that we’re still talking about 30 years later. We knew it was an iconic moment—not just in Boston College history, but in college basketball history.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“We came into a program that didn’t win many games in the Big East that two years before we get there—our first year, we only won one. So we scratched and clawed and changed the culture, really to build a competitive program in the Big East.”
Danya Abrams, BC forward
“Even to this day, when I walk around downtown Boston or any other arena—even now when we’re in the ACC—they remember and know that we were the team that beat North Carolina and almost made the Final Four.”
Gerrod Abram, BC guard
“Just across the country, being able to recruit student-athletes from California, Florida, all over the world—I think it just put us all on the map.”
Even after a strong stretch of success in the mid-2000s, BC has yet to surpass the 1993–94 team’s accomplishments.
Paul Biancardi, BC assistant coach
“That run, I think, was the greatest moment in Boston College history.”
Bill Curley, BC forward
“It shows that, again, you can win at BC, and people care, but you have to win.”
