Neptune High School will host a tribute to Larry Hennessy, the school’s long-time basketball coach, during halftime of the Scarlet Fliers’ game Sat., Feb. 7 against Monsignor Donovan at 1 p.m.
A postgame tribute, which will be catered and requires a separate ticket, will also be held.
The game has been designated as a tribute to the late Hennessy, who coached Neptune for 24 seasons and recorded over 400 victories, the first Shore Conference coach in history to do so.
“Coach Larry Hennessy laid the foundation for the tradition of champions that the Neptune basketball program has become known for,” said current Neptune head basketball coach Ken O’Donnell.
“He established an exciting style of play that resulted in at least 40 titles. To show our gratitude and acknowledge the tremendous accomplishments he made to our basketball program and to the Neptune community we planned this special event,” he said.
Hennessy, who played at Villanova University where his retired #14 jersey hangs from the gym’s rafters, joined Neptune in 1957 and quickly built on an already successful program. With an aggressive style of play, Hennessy led Neptune teams and captured 17 Shore Conference Class A Division Championships, nine Shore Conference Tournament Championships, six New Jersey State Group titles and eight Holiday Basketball Jubilee crowns.
As a member of the Philadelphia Warriors (now Golden State Warriors), he was also an NBA champion, winning the title as a rookie with the club during the 1955-56 season.
Hennessy, who died Aug. 20, was inducted into the Jersey Shore Sports Hall of Fame in 1992.
Tickets for the game will be on sale at the door. Tickets for the catered post-game reception, which will be held in the high school’s atrium, are available through the activities office at Neptune High School, through Coach O’Donnell, and through RKE Lettering located at 1608 Highway 71 in Belmar, New Jersey (732-280-1111). The cost is $5.
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