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Battle of Brooklyn (college rivalry)

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The Battle of Brooklyn was the college sports rivalry between Long Island University and St. Francis College. The LIU Sharks and SFBK Terriers were both in the Northeast Conference and competed against each other in various sports. The Battle of Brooklyn was a fierce rivalry, which originated in men's basketball; while the two schools are rivals in all sports that both schools sponsor, the "Battle of Brooklyn" name is currently applied only to matchups in men's and women's basketball and men's soccer. The intensity of the rivalry was augmented by the proximity of the two universities, located less than a half-mile (about 500 m) apart in Downtown Brooklyn. The name of the rivalry is in reference to the first major battle of the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of Brooklyn.[1]

Prior to 2019–20, the rivalry involved LIU's Brooklyn campus, branded athletically as "LIU" or "Long Island" through 2012–13 and "LIU Brooklyn" from 2013 forward. With the 2019 merger of the athletic programs of LIU's two main campuses (Brooklyn and Post), creating the current LIU Sharks, the Battle of Brooklyn continues to be a pure geographic rivalry in basketball. The men's soccer rivalry is no longer a geographic "Battle of Brooklyn" because the merged LIU program chose to house that sport at the Post campus in Nassau County, New York. After the 2022-23 academic year, St. Francis Brooklyn ended intercollegiate sports, putting an end to the rivalry between the Sharks and Terriers.

Men's basketball

[edit]
Battle of Brooklyn
St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers
LIU Sharks
SportBasketball
First meetingFebruary 25, 1976
SFBK 83, LIU 79
Latest meetingJanuary 28, 2023
SFBK 71, LIU 59
TrophyLai-Lynch MVP Trophy
Statistics
Meetings total49
All-time seriesLIU leads, 27–22
Largest victoryLIU 82–45 (February 15, 2017)
Longest win streakSFBK, 5 (1999–2003)
Current win streakSFBK, 2 (2023)

The Battle of Brooklyn started as an annual basketball game played between the basketball programs of Long Island University (which then consisted only of today's LIU Brooklyn campus) and St. Francis College.[2] The rivalry between the Terriers and the Sharks (previously known as the Blackbirds) dates back to the 1928 season, when they first played one another, but the tradition of an annual game between the two programs began in the 1975–76 season predating when both teams joined the Northeast Conference in the 1981. At the conclusion of each game an MVP is announced and the winning team receives the Lai-Lynch Trophy, which honors William Lai and Daniel Lynch, the former Athletic Directors of Long Island and St. Francis, respectively.[1][3]

The Battle of Brooklyn plaque listing the past men's basketball winners since 1976

Both the St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers and the LIU Sharks compete in the Division I Northeast Conference. Although the two schools regularly play twice each regular season, only one of the games, usually the last, is officially designated as a Battle of Brooklyn game. The host of the designated Battle of Brooklyn alternates annually and is held at campus sites. The Blackbirds host their games at the Steinberg Wellness Center. Through the 2021–22 season, the Terriers played home games at the Generoso Pope Athletic Complex. In 2022, SFC moved its campus from Remsen Street in Brooklyn Heights to Livingston Street in Downtown Brooklyn; with the new campus lacking a basketball venue, the Terriers will at least temporarily play home games at the Activity Resource Center (ARC) of Pratt Institute, located about 2 miles away in the Clinton Hill neighborhood. The 39th installment of the Battle of Brooklyn was held at the Barclays Center, the largest venue so far for the annual contest, with LIU Brooklyn as the hosts.[4] The Sharks led the overall series 69–45 and the Battle of Brooklyn series 25–20.

Notable games

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  • The first game of the Battle of Brooklyn rivalry was played on February 25, 1976 before 1,000 spectators at the "old Brooklyn Paramount theater." The game was decided in the final 40 seconds, when Tony Babin of St. Francis scored on a lay-up to give the Terriers a 3-point lead.[5]
  • In a testament to the rivalry's intensity, on January 4, 1994, the Terriers, suffering through the worst season in school history (eventually finishing at 1–26) stepped it up a notch and collected their only win of the season, beating LIU by 11 points, 78-67.
  • On February 22, 2003, the Terriers hosted the Blackbirds at The Pope and both teams set a NEC record for points in a game. The match-up went into double overtime and featured 282 points, with St. Francis winning, 142–140.
  • The Blackbirds' first game at the Steinberg Wellness Center was on January 26, 2006 against Sacred Heart. Yet the grand opening of the Steinberg Wellness Center was for the Long Island vs. St. Francis men's basketball game on February 27, 2006.[6] The wait until the Battle of Brooklyn game for the grand opening of the Wellness Center is a testament to the rivalry's importance to both schools. The Blackbirds previously held their home games at the Schwartz Athletic Center.[7]
  • On February 6, 2010, the Blackbirds and Terriers went into triple overtime in the annual Battle of Brooklyn game. The Terriers were eventually able to beat the Blackbirds. After the game former LIU head coach Jim Ferry had this to say: "A 10-point lead in a Battle of Brooklyn game is never safe. I’ve been through this before, I think this is my third overtime game in this series..."[8]

Men's game results

[edit]

Long Island/LIU Brooklyn victories[9] shaded black ██. Beginning with the 2019-20 season LIU victories are shaded gold ██.

St. Francis College victories[10] are shaded blue ██.

# Date Site Winner Score MVP Series
1 February 25, 1976[5] Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 83–79 Jerome Williams (SFBK) SFBK 1–0
2 1976–77 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 114–92 Gerard Trapp (SFBK) Tied 1–1
3 1977–78 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 64–61 John N. Bailey (LIU) LIU 2–1
4 1978–79 Neutral Location St. Francis 82–72 Manny Figueroa (SFBK) Tied 2–2
5 December 3, 1979 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 91–69 Robert Cole (LIU) LIU 3–2
6 January 14, 1981 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 85–67 Rudy Johnson (LIU) LIU 4–2
7 January 18, 1982 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 98–82 Riley Clarida (LIU) LIU 5–2
8 January 5, 1983 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 81–72 Kevin Henry (SFBK) LIU 5–3
9 February 4, 1984 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 88–81 Carey Scurry (LIU) LIU 6–3
10 December 7, 1984 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 68–63 Walter Jordan (LIU) LIU 7–3
11 January 4, 1986 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 76–66 Andre Evan (LIU) LIU 8–3
12 January 3, 1987 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 94–91OT Darwin Purdie (SFBK) LIU 8–4
13 December 12, 1987 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 66–63 Glenn Daniels (LIU) LIU 9–4
14 February 20, 1989 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 79–77OT Freddie Burton (LIU) LIU 10–4
15 January 6, 1990 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 74–63 John Arnold (SFBK) LIU 10–5
16 February 9, 1991 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 117-1152OT Brent McCollin (LIU) LIU 11–5
17 February 8, 1992 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 97–94 Lynn Smith (SFBK) LIU 11–6
18 January 28, 1993 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 107–98 Lou Meyers (SFBK) LIU 11–7
19 January 4, 1994 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 78–67 Bryan Willcox (SFBK) LIU 11–8
20 January 5, 1995 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 74–61 Joe Griffin (LIU) LIU 12–8
21 February 19, 1996 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 105–77 Dave Masciate (LIU) LIU 13–8
22 January 25, 1997 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 68–64 Mike Campbell (LIU) LIU 14–8
23 February 18, 1998 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 86–71 Mike Campbell (LIU) LIU 15–8
24 January 11, 1999 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 74–68 Ray Mineland (SFBK) LIU 15–9
25 January 19, 2000 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 66–63 Herberth Reyes (SFBK) LIU 15–10
26 January 13, 2001 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 81–63 Steven Howard (SFBK) LIU 15–11
27 February 25, 2002 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 108–94OT Jason Morgan (SFBK) LIU 15–12
28 February 22, 2003 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 142–1402OT Cliff Strong (SFBK) LIU 15–13
29 February 21, 2004 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 78–75 Brandon Thomas (LIU) LIU 16–13
30 February 10, 2005 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 77–68 Allan Sheppard (SFBK) LIU 16–14
31 February 27, 2006 Steinberg Wellness Center Long Island 67–64 James Williams (LIU) LIU 17–14
32 February 11, 2007 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 82–79OT James Williams (LIU) LIU 18–14
33 February 21, 2008 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 67–64 Kayode Ayeni (SFBK) LIU 18–15
34 February 28, 2009 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 66–54 Ron Manigault (LIU) LIU 19–15
35 February 6, 2010 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 88–843OT Ricky Cadell (SFBK) LIU 19–16
36 February 12, 2011
MSG		 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 82–80 C. J. Garner (LIU) LIU 20–16
37 February 12, 2012
MSG		 Steinberg Wellness Center Long Island 81–78 Jamal Olasewere (LIU) LIU 21–16
38 January 24, 2013
FCS/MSG+		 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 78–68 C. J. Garner (LIU) LIU 22–16
39 February 16, 2014
FCS/MSG		 Barclays Center LIU Brooklyn 69–68 Jason Brickman (LIU) LIU 23–16
40 January 31, 2015
FCS/MSG		 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 81–64 Brent Jones (SFBK) LIU 23–17
41 January 23, 2016
ESPN3		 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 64–49 Chris Hooper (SFBK) LIU 23–18
42 February 15, 2017
CBSSN		 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex LIU Brooklyn 82–45 Jerome Frink (LIU) LIU 24–18
43 February 22, 2018 Steinberg Wellness Center LIU Brooklyn 81–76 Joel Hernandez (LIU) LIU 25–18
44 February 14, 2019 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 83–76 Glenn Sanabria (SFBK) LIU 25–19
45 February 18, 2020
ESPNU		 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 87–77 Milija Cosic (SFBK) LIU 25–20
46 January 30, 2021
ESPN3 & SNY		 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex LIU Sharks 102–88 Ty Flowers & Eral Penn (LIU) LIU 26–20
47 February 10, 2022
ESPN3		 Steinberg Wellness Center LIU Sharks 74–69 Ty Flowers & Eral Penn (LIU) LIU 27–20
48 January 16, 2023
ESPN3		 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 73-66 LIU 27-21
49 January 28, 2023
NEC Front Row		 Pratt ARC St. Francis 71-59 LIU 27-22

Women's basketball

[edit]
Battle of Brooklyn
St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers
LIU Sharks
SportBasketball
First meetingFebruary 26, 1994
LIU 76, SFBK 63
Latest meetingFebruary 11, 2022
SFBK 82, LIU 73
TrophyMVP Trophy
Statistics
Meetings total29
All-time seriesSFBK, 16–13
Largest victoryLIU 66–39 (February 4, 2010)
Longest win streak6 SFBK, 2017-present
Current win streakSFBK, 6 (2017–present)

During the 1993–94 season the women's basketball programs of St. Francis College and Long Island University contested their first official Battle of Brooklyn. Since February 21, 1975 when the two teams first met, LIU leads the overall series 50–30. St. Francis leads the Battle of Brooklyn series 16–13.[11]

Women's game results

[edit]

Long Island/LIU Brooklyn victories shaded black ██. Beginning in the 2019-20 season LIU victories are shaded gold ██.

St. Francis victories[12] are shaded blue ██.

# Date Site Winner Score MVP Series
1 February 26, 1994 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 76–63 Nicole Thomas (LIU) LIU 1–0
2 February 25, 1995 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 90–76 Christine Cunningham (SFBK) Tied 1–1
3 January 18, 1996 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 75–53 Dot Guerriero (SFBK) SFBK 2–1
4 February 22, 1997 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 81–68 Danielle Fiorello (LIU) Tied 2–2
5 January 17, 1998 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 90–80 Christine Taps (SFBK) SFBK 3–2
6 January 7, 1999 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 71–50 Carolyn Harvey (SFBK) SFBK 4–2
7 February 9, 2000 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 68–46 Kim MacMillan (LIU) SFBK 4–3
8 January 31, 2001 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 80–72 Tamika Dudley (LIU) Tied 4–4
9 January 7, 2002 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 70–57 Tamika Dudley (LIU) LIU 5–4
10 February 27, 2003 Schwartz Athletic Center Long Island 73–55 Tamika Dudley (LIU) LIU 6–4
11 March 1, 2004 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 58–57OT Brittany Porter (SFBK) LIU 6–5
12 February 21, 2005 Schwartz Athletic Center St. Francis 62–57 Kim Bennett (SFBK) Tied 6–6
13 January 23, 2006 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 64–52 Amber Wirth (LIU) LIU 7–6
14 December 7, 2006 Steinberg Wellness Center Long Island 59–54 Valerie Nainima (LIU) LIU 8–6
15 March 3, 2008 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 62–49 Valerie Nainima (LIU) LIU 9–6
16 January 17, 2009 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 49–48 Kara Ayers (SFBK) LIU 9–7
17 February 4, 2010 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 66–39 Chelsi Johnson (LIU) LIU 10–7
18 February 14, 2011 Steinberg Wellness Center Long Island 64–41 Ashley Palmer (LIU) LIU 11–7
19 February 15, 2012 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex Long Island 60–53 Ashley Palmer (LIU) LIU 12–7
20 January 28, 2013 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 69–58 Leah Fechko (SFBK) LIU 12–8
21 March 3, 2014 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 66–50 Sarah Benedetti (SFBK) LIU 12–9
22 March 2, 2015 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 73–49 Sarah Benedetti (SFBK) LIU 12–10
23 February 13, 2016 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex LIU Brooklyn 62–65OT Shanice Vaughan (LIU) LIU 13–10
24 January 14, 2017
ESPN3		 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 56–54 Kat Phipps (SFBK) LIU 13–11
25 February 17, 2018
ESPN3		 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 64–54 Jade Johnson (SFBK) LIU 13–12
26 January 21, 2019
ESPN3		 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 79–67 Jade Johnson (SFBK) Tied 13–13
27 January 8, 2020
SNY		 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 88–63 Nevena Dimitrijevic (SFBK) SFBK 14–13
28 January 28, 2021
ESPN+		 Steinberg Wellness Center St. Francis 66–53 Nevena Dimitrijevic (SFBK) SFBK 15–13
29 February 11, 2022
NEC Front Row		 Generoso Pope Athletic Complex St. Francis 82–73 Alyssa Fisher & Isabella Posset (SFBK) SFBK 16–13

Men's soccer

[edit]
Battle of Brooklyn
St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers
LIU Sharks
SportSoccer
First meetingNovember 10, 2013
St. Francis 4, LIU Brooklyn 0
Latest meetingNovember 3, 2022
St. Francis 1, LIU 0[a]
Next meetingTBA in 2023
TrophyRamirez–Tramontozzi Trophy
Statistics
Meetings total10
All-time seriesSFBK 5–4–1
Largest victorySt. Francis 4–0 (November 10, 2013)
Longest win streakSt. Francis, 2 (2013–2014, 2016–2017); LIU, 2 (2018–2019)
Longest unbeaten streakLIU, 4 (2018–2021)
Current win streakSFBK, 1 (2022–present)
Current unbeaten streakSFBK, 1 (2022–present)

Starting in 2013, the men's soccer programs for LIU Brooklyn and St. Francis College formalized their rivalry by naming their annual match a Battle of Brooklyn and awarding a trophy. The trophy is called the Ramirez–Tramontozzi trophy and recognizes former men's soccer coaches Arnie Ramirez and Carlos Tramontozzi, from LIU (Brooklyn) and St. Francis respectively. Both coaches were lifelong friends and greatly influenced their respective programs.[13] St. Francis Brooklyn captured the inaugural trophy on LIU's field on November 10, 2013, behind a 4–0 performance. Since the 1970 season, when the two programs first met, LIU leads the overall series 25–23–4.

Since the LIU athletic merger, the men's soccer rivalry is no longer a Battle of Brooklyn in geographic terms, as LIU moved its unified men's soccer program to the Post campus.[14]

Men's game results

[edit]

LIU Brooklyn victories (2013–2018) shaded black ██. LIU victories (2019–present) are shaded gold ██. St. Francis victories are shaded blue ██.

Note that the 2013 men's soccer season, the first in which the "Battle of Brooklyn" name was applied to the rivalry, was also the first in which LIU's Brooklyn campus had officially adopted "LIU Brooklyn" as its athletic brand name.

# Date Site Winner Score Series
1 November 10, 2013 LIU Soccer Field, Brooklyn St. Francis 4–0 SFBK 1–0–0
2 November 9, 2014 Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 5 St. Francis 2–0 SFBK 2–0–0
3 November 8, 2015 LIU Soccer Field, Brooklyn LIU Brooklyn 1–0 SFBK 2–1–0
4 November 6, 2016 Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 5 St. Francis 1–0 SFBK 3–1–0
5 November 3, 2017 LIU Soccer Field, Brooklyn St. Francis 2–1 OT SFBK 4–1–0
6 September 30, 2018 Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 5 LIU Brooklyn 2–1 OT SFBK 4–2–0
7 November 10, 2019 LIU Soccer Park, Brookville LIU 3–0 SFBK 4–3–0
8 April 12, 2021 Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 5 Draw 0–0 SFBK 4–3–1
9 November 7, 2021 LIU Soccer Park, Brookville LIU 3–1 Tied 4–4–1
10 November 3, 2022 Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 5 St. Francis 1–0 SFBK 5–4–1
  1. ^ Most recent Battle of Brooklyn meeting; the most recent meeting overall was on November 6, 2022 in the Northeast Conference tournament quarterfinals, won by St. Francis 6–5 on penalties after being drawn at 1–1 after extra time.

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Rivalry's all good in the neighborhood". ESPN. Retrieved February 19, 2012.
  2. ^ "Battle of Brooklyn has a little extra on the line this week". usatoday.com. February 7, 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  3. ^ "2010-11 Men's Basketball Media Guide". SFC Athletics. p. 39. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  4. ^ "LIU Brooklyn vs St. Francis Brooklyn". barclayscenter.com. Retrieved November 4, 2013.
  5. ^ a b "L.I.U. Is Upset By St.Francis". timesmachine.NYTimes.com. February 26, 1976. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
  6. ^ "Wellness, Recreation and Athletic Center". liuathletics.com. 2007. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
  7. ^ "The Arnold and Marie Schwartz Center". liuathletics.com. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
  8. ^ "2009-2010 Men's Basketball News and Notes" (PDF). northeastconference.org. 2010. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
  9. ^ "2012-2013 LIU Men's Basketball Record Book" (PDF). liuathletics.com. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
  10. ^ "St. Francis (NY) Terriers". Sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
  11. ^ "LIU WBB Record Book" (PDF). LIUAthletics.com. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
  12. ^ "2009-2010 St. Francis (NY) Terriers women's basketball Media Guide". SFCAthletics.com. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  13. ^ "St. Francis Brooklyn & LIU Brooklyn Play For More Than Bragging Rights This Sunday". SFCAthletics.com. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  14. ^ "One LIU: Frequently Asked Questions". Long Island University. Archived from the original on October 12, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
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