Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Coach on court
Rick Pitino in town for over-40 hoops tournament.
CORAL SPRINGS — At first, Rick Pitino thought it was a great idea.
Afterward, he was thinking otherwise. Pitino, the legendary college basketball coach at Louisville, laced up his sneak all ers for the first time in 25 years so he could participate Tuesday in the annual National Masters Championships at Coral Springs Gymnasium.
Pitino scored nine points, all on 3-pointers, as his team lost their opener in the round-robin tournament. The event, which runs through Saturday, is only for players over the age of the 40.
“It’s just great to play again, although my two groins feel like it’s not so good,” Pitino said, laughing.
Pitino, 65, is competing in the 55-and-up division. He was joined by former NBA player Reggie Theus, who once was an assistant under Pitino at Louisville.
“There’s only one person in this world that could have gotten me to come play basketball the way to Miami from LA,” said Theus, now the coach at Cal State Northridge. “Coach Pitino is the only reason I came here.”
Pitino, who has won national championships at Louisville and Kentucky, was in charge from the moment the team was put together. He led two intense practices Sunday and Monday at Fort Lauderdale High School.
“Coach ran us pretty hard,” said Mike Siegel, a Cooper City resident. “I think I learned more basketball in two days than I’ve learned my whole life.”
Pitino often reverted to his coaching ways during the game. Before tipoff, he huddled the team near the bench. During timeouts, he also instructed. His voice was easily the loudest in the gym, often shouting out defensive assignments while on the court and calling out substitutions.
At one point, Pitino began pacing the sidelines.
“I haven’t played competitive basketball in 25 years,” Pitino said. “At Kentucky, we’d get up at 5:30 in the morning, Billy Donovan and our whole staff would play from 5:30 to 7:30. From that point, 16 years in Louisville, four years in Boston, I haven’t touched a ball.”
Pitino showed he was much more than just a coach. He drew the largest applause from the crowd of about 100. The highlight was when he banked in a 3-pointer from near the corner. After the loss, Pitino hugged and thanked all of his teammates.
“I just told the guys to don’t get discouraged,” Pitino said. “We missed 15 layups … They’re great guys. We’re having a lot of fun.”
For the teammates, it has been a memorable experience playing alongside one of the best coaches in college basketball history. Pitino was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013 and is the only coach to win national championships at two different schools.
“I didn’t play in high school,” Siegel said. “I didn’t play in college. It was like a fantasy to play with these guys. For me, I’ve had a great week so far.”
Pitino, a Marlins and Dolphins season-ticket holder, could become a fixture at the event because there’s a strong possibility he moves to South Florida once he retires. He already has a home in Miami and spends much of the offseason there.
“I’m trying to plan that day when I don’t coach anymore and I have a life and you know what’s going to happen,” Pitino said. “I’m going to have all these season tickets and I’m going to die on the sidelines.”
The National Masters Championships is free and open to the public. Pitino’s Red Birds team plays again today at 5 p.m. and Thursday at 5 p.m. To check the schedule, go to mastersbasketballassociation.org/ schedules.