My five time moments of the Bennie Lewis coaching career

Legendary high school basketball coach Bennie Lewis passed away this week. Lewis was the architect of the East St. Louis Lincoln boys basketball dynasty during the 1980s. He also had a nice run at East St. Louis Senior High for three seasons between 1998-2000. When I moved into the St. Louis area in 1980, Lewis was already a decade into this tenure at Lincoln. What I witnessed over the next 10 years over at Lincoln as a fan and later as a reporter was just sheer greatness from the Tigers’ program under Lewis’ leadership.

Here are my five best moments from watching the Bennie Lewis years at both Lincoln and East St. Louis Senior High schools.

1. The 1989 Class AA state championship game between Lincoln and Peoria Central is still the best high school game I’ve ever watched in person. The triple-overtime game came down to the final seconds with the score tied at 57-57. With time winding down, the ball ended up in the hands of senior guard Vincent Jackson, who dribbled between the legs and let fly a 17-foot jumper that swished through the net as time expired to give Lincoln the state championship and the legendary three-peat. It was the only time in my career that I broke the media’s code of cheering in the press area. When everyone arrived in Champaign, all of the Chicago talking heads were crowning Chicago King as the state champions and not giving Lincoln a chance because All-American LaPhonso Harris had graduated. After Lincoln defeated King in the semifinals, they defeated Peoria Central in that dramatic final. When Jackson’s shot went through the net, I just jumped up and down, yelling “Oh, My God!! They Did It!!, It’s a THREE-PEAT!!”
2. In 1982, Lincoln won the first of its four state championships of the decade when they defeated Chicago Mendel Catholic 56-50.  I remember watching this game on WGN-TV. The final sequence of that championship game was most memorable. Mendel Catholic had the ball trailing 53-50 and had the ball in the closing seconds when star guard Mike Hampton attempted a jumper. The shot was swatted off the glass by Lincoln star forward Tyrone Jackson and the ball bounced out to guard Calvin Phiffer, who threw down a two-handed transition dunk to seal the state championship for the Tigers. I still remember Tyrone Jackson wearing a cowboy hat in the post-game championship celebration.
3. One of the real special games that I got a chance to cover came during the 1999 season when East St. Louis played Vashon at Martin Luther King Day Classic, which was hosted by the late Earl Wilson and the St. Louis Gateway Classic. The game was held at the then-Kiel Center downtown. Lewis was the coach at East St. Louis and Vashon was led by head coach Floyd Irons in a battle of legendary coaches. What was incredible on this night was that a snowstorm had hit the area, but nearly 17,000 people showed up to watch this epic showdown. The atmosphere was electric from start to finish. In the end, the Darius Miles-led East St. Louis Flyers edged Vashon in a tremendous game.
4. Back in the day, the KMOX Shootout in St. Louis was one of the top high school basketball events in the country. In the 1987-88 season, Lewis’ Lincoln team was matched up against Indian River (VA) in the featured contest. It matched up a pair of All-American big men in LaPhonso Ellis of Lincoln and Alonzo Mourning of Indian River. It was a classic matchup and both men showed up and showed out. Indian River won a close game, but Ellis was tremendous with 27 points and 12 rebounds, plus he put the Lincoln program in the national spotlight.
5. Back to the 1989 state tournament and the three-peat season, Lincoln faced East Aurora in the state quarterfinals in the opening game. East Aurora had the ball with the score tied at 70-70 and were holding for a final shot to win the game. They could have ended Lincoln’s three-peat dreams on the first day. However, junior forward Cuonzo Martin stole a pass and threw it down to the other end of the court. Senior forward Sharif Ford chased the ball down and in one motion, threw the ball at the basket. The ball went in and Lincoln scored an improbable win at the buzzer to keep their hopes alive. Two nights later, the Tigers were state champions.