Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

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Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

HALL OF FAME | Mourning Selected to HOF

FILE PHOTO: JOHN TOOLAN/THE HOYA
FILE PHOTO: JOHN TOOLAN/THE HOYA

Former Georgetown center Alonzo Mourning (COL ’92) is an Olympic Gold Medalist, an NBA Champion and now a Hall of Famer.

On Monday afternoon, it was announced that Mourning was selected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He joins nine other players, coaches and teams in the 2014 Hall of Fame Class.

While at Georgetown, Mourning was a three-time All-American and led the Hoyas to four NCAA appearances and three Big East tournament finals.

Mourning quickly made a mark in his freshman season. In only his third game, he broke Georgetown’s single-game block record — a record previously held by Patrick Ewing. The Big East Rookie of the Year would finish his freshman season averaging 13.2 points and 7.3 rebounds a game.

He was even better his sophomore season, as he averaged 16.5 points and 8.5 rebounds a game and was named all-Big East first team. After his first two collegiate seasons, Mourning established himself as an elite player.

An injury, however, sidelined Mourning for nine games in his junior season. But he would return and turned in a 22-point, 13-rebound performance in Georgetown’s losing effort against Seton Hall in the Big East tournament championship.

In his final season, Mourning dominated the opposition. He scored in double figures in every game he played and averaged a double-double. For his efforts, he became the first player to be named Big East Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Tournament MVP in the same season.

Mourning graduated from Georgetown with 2,001 and 1,032 career point and rebounds, respectively, and in the 1992 NBA draft was selected second overall by the Charlotte Hornets. After three seasons, Mourning was traded to the Miami Heat, where he was a centerpiece of the team averaging nearly 20 points and 10 rebounds a game.

Mourning, who suffers from a kidney disease, was forced to retire in 2003 because of health concerns. A successful kidney transplant, however, aided his return later that year. He then made roster appearances on the New Jersey Nets and Toronto Raptors before returning to the Miami Heat in 2005.

FILE PHOTO: JAMES MANGAN/THE HOYA
FILE PHOTO: JAMES MANGAN/THE HOYA

In his second stint with the Heat, Mourning was used as a backup for Shaquille O’Neil and a defensive specialist. In 2006, he and the Heat won the NBA Championship.

On January 22, 2009, Mourning announced his retirement from the NBA. One month later, the Miami Heat announced they would retire his jersey — the first jersey the organization retired.

In his NBA career, Mourning was named Defensive Player of the Year twice and was a seven-time NBA All-Star.

Currently, Mourning is a member of the board of directors at Georgetown and is involved in multiple philanthropic efforts. He and his wife endowed the Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Scholarship, which provides financial support for need-based student-athletes majoring in science or medical research and is active in fundraising for kidney research.

He and the rest of this year’s Hall of Fame class will be inducted in August.

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