In 1962, the Connecticut basketball annual known as Gentile's proclaimed Fairfield Prep's Jim Lyddy the top recruit in the state, another sign of a career that captured significant attention.

Six years earlier, Lyddy was a pitcher on Bridgeport's third place finish in the Little League World Series; a year later, he led Bridgeport to the World Biddy Basketball Championship in Scranton, PA. The first all-state basketball player in the history of Fairfield Prep, Lyddy scored 1308 points in four seasons from 1959 to 1963, including 28 points in the state semifinal versus New Haven Hillhouse.

Lyddy arrived at Georgetown alongside another outstanding guard, Parade All-American Pete Michell, but neither could crack the starting lineup for their first two seasons. Lyddy averaged 3.3 games in 21 of 23 games in 1964-65, but his outside shooting was not enough for him to be a consistent scorer. A career low of 28 percent led Lyddy to a 1.7 point average in 1965-66, as sophomore Dennis Cesar moved into the lineup alongside Jim Brown. As a senior, he shot 35 percent from the field i 20 of 24 games, with a season high nine points versus Manhattan.

Following Georgetown, Lyddy coached high school basketball for two seasons and joined Jack Magee's staff as an assistant from 1969 to 1971. He returned to Connecticut to receive his master's degree from Fairfield University in 1972, and earned a Ph.D. from Catholic University in 1975. In a 35 year career in non-profit development, Lyddy served as the Chairman of Development at the Mayo Clinic and the Vice President of Institutional Advancement at Sacred Heart University.