MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota fired Richard Pitino Monday after the men’s basketball coach had broken a regular season record of 54-96 for eight years in the Big Ten and had only three conference points in 10th place.
The Golden Gophers went 14-15 this season, dropping 11 of their last 14 games. They were 0-10 on the road, one of the top three conference teams in the country without winning by road.
Athletic director Mark Coyle was scheduled to address reporters Tuesday morning. In a statement distributed by the university, he described Pitino as a “tremendous person and coach.”
“Decisions like this are never easy, but after evaluating this season and the previous eight years of our program under Richard, I’m clear that new leadership is needed,” Coyle said. “We have one of the best practice facilities in the country, a historic competition venue and a state that produces top-notch talent. It’s an extremely attractive job.”
Pitino was not available for comment, but posted a thank-you message to Minnesota on Twitter Monday night with a photo of him and his children at the Williams Arena.
“I’ve always wanted to represent Minnesota in the right way on a daily basis with class and integrity.” Pitino tweeted. “Launched for what awaits us in the future!”
According to an Albuquerque Journal report, Pitino was one of the finalists in the coaching vacancy in New Mexico. If hired elsewhere, Minnesota would be out of the house to buy $ 1.7 million, according to the language of the three-year contract. Payments will be stopped when Pitino obtains a “comparable employment,” which is defined in the agreement as the NCAA Division I head coach, head coach, or assistant to a professional team, administrator, or program director. of Division I of the NCAA or commentator of a country broadcasting company.
Coyle should have many strong candidates to consider. Two sons of Gophers ’former head coaches, Eric Musselman (Arkansas) and Brian Dutcher (San Diego State), have proven to be program creators with teams currently in the NCAA tournament. Craig Smith (Utah) and Niko Medved (Colorado) are Minnesota natives who are currently successful in conducting medium-sized programs. Then there’s Gophers student Ryan Saunders, who was fired last month as coach of the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves.
Hired at age 30 with a previous year of experience as head coach at Florida International, Pitino guided the Gophers to a NIT championship in their first season. However, only two appearances in the NCAA tournament followed in 2017 and 2019.
The Gophers prepared to return to the Big Dance this season after beating Iowa, Ohio State, Michigan and Purdue, ranked No. 5, No. 9, No. 4 and No. 20, respectively, in the AP poll of the 8th. of March. – Before injuring the starters, Gabe Kalscheur and Liam Robbins accelerated another end-of-season slide.
The Gophers just didn’t make enough shots to keep up and had to work too hard to get them. In the Division I standings as of Friday, they were 13th in 3-point attempts and 334th in 3-point percentage.
Spirit and temperament, Pitino never pretended to ignore public criticism. After winning the then -No. 6 Maryland in 2016, Pitino said he could “start going into Starbucks instead of going through the drive-through.” He expressed the same peace after Minnesota lost Thursday in the Big Ten tournament, anticipating his postseason meeting with Coyle.
“We all have losses. It’s okay. I have a great relationship with Mark. If he gives me bad news, that doesn’t mean you’re turning on a desk or anything,” Pitino said.
Minnesota’s best run under Pitino was in 2017, when a 7-0 record in February fueled fourth place in the Big Ten and No. 5 in the NCAA tournament. The Gophers were finished. Two years later, they beat Louisville in the NCAA Tournament to reach the second round.
The son of former college and professional coach Rick Pitino, who was the first to win NCAA championships at two different schools with Kentucky and Louisville, Richard Pitino was chosen by former Minnesota athletic director Norwood Teague to replace Tubby Smith. Former Pitino, now Iona’s coach, returns to the NCAA tournament this month as No. 15 seed.
After dating Fred Hoiberg, Flip Saunders, Shaka Smart and Brad Stevens, Teague received a strong endorsement of Richard Pitino from Billy Donovan, the current NBA coach with the Chicago Bulls who had Pitino on his 2009 Florida staff. 2011.
Pitino, his wife, and their three children became fond of Minnesota despite its East Coast roots, but eventually failed to establish a strong connection to the state’s high school circuit, with Minnesota producing great prospects annually.
Of course, two of the best players on the 2019 team, Amir Coffey and Daniel Oturu, are natives of Minnesota and now have LA Clippers in the NBA. There were too many recruitment failures, however, which left the Gophers shallow when they suffered injuries.
One of those puffs came with the freshman class in 2017, when Pitino and his staff signed Isaiah Washington as a New York guard and passed over McKinley Wright IV, a native of Minnesota. Wright became the all-time assist leader in Colorado, where he was a three-time All-Pac-12 player. Washington was traded after two seasons with the Gophers.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.