Walter Berry played just two seasons with St. John's but his
impact was tremendous. The "Truth," as he was known, transferred to
St. John's from San Jacinto Junior College where he was named the
National Junior College Player of the Year, averaging 28.9 points
and 14 rebounds.
He emerged as one of the top newcomers in the nation in his
first season at St. John's, helping lead the team to the Final
Four. He earned second-team All-BIG EAST honors and first-team
All-Metropolitan honors that season. He averaged 17 points a game
which was second on the team behind Mullin. He shattered the school
record in his senior season, scoring 828 points.
As a senior, he was the recipient of the John R. Wooden Award,
given by the Los Angeles Athletic Club to the nation's top
collegiate player. He was also awarded the Adolph R. Rupp Trophy,
given to the player of the year in college basketball by the
Associated Press. Berry's biggest honor was being selected the
Kodak Player of the Year by the National Association of Basketball
Coaches. He was the UPI Player of the Year, The Sporting
News Player of the Year, Basketball Weekly Player of
the Year, CBS/Chevrolet Player of the Year and the BIG EAST Player
of the Year. He earned these honors by averaging 23.0 points and
11.1 rebounds per game.
Berry was named to the AP and UPI first-team All-America squads.
He became only the fourth player in St. John's history to reach the
1,000-point mark in two seasons.