It is hard enough to succeed at 1 school but there are a handful of coaches who have had success at multiple schools including Fran Dunphy (250+ wins at Penn and 250+ wins at Temple), Bob Huggins (300+ wins at Cincinnati and 300+ wins at West Virginia), and Roy Williams (400+ wins at Kansas and 400+ wins at UNC). Pat Douglass also won games everywhere he coached: 100+ wins and 4 D-2 tourney appearances at Eastern Montana, 250+ wins and a trio of D-2 titles at Bakersfield, and almost 200 wins and back-to-back NIT appearances at UC-Irvine. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Douglass about winning all of those titles and then switching schools. Today is Coach Douglass’ 72nd birthday so let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!
You played basketball at Pacific: how good a player were you back in the day, and how did you get into coaching? I always wanted to be a coach. We had really good teams at Pacific and I started as a senior along with my teammate John Gianelli (who later played 8 years in the NBA). We were undefeated at home for 3 straight years under Coach Dick Edwards. Coach Edwards passed away when I was 28 and I ended up replacing him at Eastern Montana.
In the 1993 D-2 tourney title game as coach at Bakersfield, Terry McCord scored 23 PTS to help beat Troy State, win the title, and finish 33-0 (the 1st undefeated team to win the D-2 title since 1965): how were you able to keep your team focused for 33 straight games, and where does that season rank among the highlights of your career? I had a lot of good teams in my days as a high school/JC coach but it was very special to go undefeated and win a title. We had 4-5 kids who previously won state titles so after we won a few games it just kind of snowballed from there. We had some new players who did not get worn down and were able to stay motivated all year, plus a nice tradition that was built on our returning players.
In the 1994 D-2 tourney title game Kenny Warren scored 21 PTS in a 6-PT win over Southern Indiana to become the 1st team in 25 years to repeat as D-2 champions: was it harder to win the 1st title or the 2nd title? It was harder to win the 1st title because we had to face some tough teams to get there.
Tourney MOP Kebu Stewart had 18 PTS/21 REB in a 1-PT win over Northern Kentucky in the 1997 D-2 tourney title game to clinch your 3rd national title in 5 years: how were you able to hang on for the win, and where does Stewart rank among the best players that you ever coached? He is in the top-5 but was probably the best at his position. If he could have converted at the FT line it would not have been that close but we were able to block a shot at the buzzer.
What are your memories of the 2001 NIT as coach at UC-Irvine (Greg Harrington scored 20 PTS in a 4-PT win by eventual champion Tulsa)? The NIT is tough because the schools with bigger arenas get to play host, which gives them a huge advantage. It was a tough road game for us but it was good to win 25 games en route to claiming the league title. I actually think that it is easier to win an NCAA tourney game because it is at a neutral site.
In 2002 you won your 2nd straight Big West regular season title: did you ever consider switching schools to face a new challenge or was your hope to stay at Irvine for as long as possible? After that year our AD Dan Guerrero went to UCLA and it was never the same for me after that. At a mid-major the relationship with your AD is really important.
In the 2006 Big West tourney Aaron Nixon scored 28 PTS including a 3-PT shot at the buzzer in a 2-PT loss to Long Beach State: where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? The kid just turned and heaved it from the corner. I am used to winning when I have a lead with 2 minutes to go so it was weird to lose a close game at the end. His parents were there and everyone was watching on TV: it was a tough loss.
In the 2008 Big West tourney you made it to the title game before losing to Fullerton: how big a deal was it to come so close year after year without ever making it to the NCAA tourney? We had a lot of good games in the conference tourney. Jerry Green was a really good player for us: we should have won the conference tourney at least once during his time there. Once you lose a couple you start putting pressure on yourself to get it done. I was happy just to get the program started and have a few 20-win seasons as coach: Irvine finally made the NCAA tourney in 2015.
In 2010 you finished your career in Irvine as the winningest coach in school history: what made you such a great coach, and do you think that anyone will ever break your record? If someone coaches there long enough then they will probably break the record. I played for some exceptional coaches in high school/college. I always had a thirst to learn from the best and have a team framework where everyone worked well together and played good defense.
What have you been doing since leaving Irvine, and what do you hope to do in the future? I am involved with my local church, play a lot of golf, and spend time with my family, all of which makes me happy. I was a coach for 30 years and loved it, but I look forward to what I do now and staying relaxed.