With the 2020 NCAA tourney tipping off next month, we will spend this month taking a walk down memory lane with a choice collection of players/coaches who are celebrating an awesome anniversary this year. From some game-winning FTs in the 1955 tourney (65th anniversary) through a 17-PT comeback win in the 2015 1st 4 (5th anniversary), these legends have all carved out a little piece of history in past Marches. We continue our series with Dick Bennett, who devised the “pack-line” defense that his son Tony worked to perfection while leading Virginia to an NCAA title last spring. He was 1984 NAIA national COY at Wisconsin-Stevens Point, made 5 postseason appearances in his final 6 years at Green Bay, then took the Badgers to the 2000 Final 4 before losing to eventual champ Michigan State. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Dick about the 20th anniversary of his great run in the 2000 NCAA tourney and having so many coaches in the family.
In 1976 you led Eau Claire Memorial High School to the Class A state title game (a 2-PT loss to South Milwaukee): how dominant was Rockets’ star 6’10” Kurt Nimphius back in the day (32.3 PPG in 3 state tourney games)? They were the only undefeated team in the state and he was the difference in that game. I had a very young team that surprised everyone by getting to the title game, but we did not really have an answer for him.
In 1984 you were named NAIA national COY after going 28-4 and leading Wisconsin-Stevens Point to the NAIA title game (NAIA national POY Terry Porter scored 22 PTS and was named tourney MVP despite a 2-PT OT loss to Fort Hays State): how did it feel to keep making it to a championship game before falling just short of winning it all? I felt like a big loser! I played 3rd base for my high school baseball team, and in the last game of my career I had to fill in on the mound and was the losing pitcher in the state title game, so I know what it is like to lose the big ones. We were a non-scholarship school in the NAIA: most of our opponents had scholarships. Terry was a great player but missed a shot to win it at the end of regulation.
In the 1990 NIT as coach at Green Bay, Anthony Bonner had 18 PTS/17 REB in a 4-PT win by eventual runner-up St. Louis: how close did you come to winning the game? It was a tight game. They had a nice club and it was tough to play them at their place: we could just not get over the hump. The most painful games were the NCAA tourney games that we always seemed to lose at the end.
In the 1991 NCAA tourney Steve Smith scored 19 PTS including an 18-footer at the buzzer in a 2-PT win by Michigan State: where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? I remember outsmarting myself. We mostly played man-to-man defense but I decided to switch to a 1-3-1 “victory” defense toward the end of the game…and when we switched to that they hit a pair of 3-PT shots to tie it. My son Tony missed a shot toward the end and then Smith made a great change-of-pace move and made the game-winning shot over our best defender.
In the 1992 NIT Tony scored 36 PTS/9-10 3PM but turned the ball over to Carey Edwards for a dunk with 2 seconds left in a 2-PT loss to Manhattan: how much pain was Tony in while playing with a muscle pull in his back? We went 25-3 and won our conference but did not make it into the NCAA tourney because they thought that we had too many injuries. Tony was not even supposed to play in that game but he demanded to play after we fell behind early. He probably did not come within 20 feet of the basket all night but still shot the lights out.
Take me through the 1994 NCAA tourney:
Jason Kidd went 4-17 from the field with 6 turnovers in a 4-PT loss by Cal: how was your defense able to keep the future Hall of Famer in check? We built a wall in front of him and decided that the only way he would beat us was over the top of our defense or by giving it up to someone else. We tried to pinch the gap and it worked well. I think they just took us lightly.
Lawrence Moten scored 17 PTS in a 5-PT win by Syracuse: what was the reaction like when you got back to campus? It was very positive, but Green Bay was largely a commuter school so there was not as much reaction as you would think. We had a 3-PT play in the final minute but got called for a charge which wiped out the basket.
What are your memories of the 1995 NCAA tourney (Eric Jackson missed a 20-foot jumper at the buzzer in a 1-PT loss to Purdue)? That was 1 of the most remarkable groups I ever had. We were leading Big 10 champion Purdue in the final 15 seconds but got called for a block and then Cuonzo Martin made 2 FT to win it. That was my final year in Green Bay and the next year they had the best year in school history under my former assistant Mike Heideman.
Take me through the magical 2000 NCAA tourney as coach at Wisconsin:
Andy Kowske had 10 PTS/12 REB in a 7-PT win over #1-seed Arizona: where does that rank among the greatest upsets of your career? That was 1 of them, for sure. Coach Lute Olson did not take us lightly but I think that some of his players might have and we jumped on them early. That was as good a defensive team as I have ever coached and was 1 of the best I have ever seen.
Jon Bryant scored 18 PTS (5-9 3PM) in a 4-PT win over Purdue: did you do anything differently as a coach when playing a team for the 4th time in a 2½ month span? I did not do anything differently as a coach but the players had a better understanding on the defensive end (when to close out on a guy, which direction a guy prefers to go, etc.). They are little things but when you play a team so many times you start to learn a lot about them.
Your team only scored 41 PTS in a loss to eventual champion Michigan State: did the Spartans play great defense, or did your offense just have a cold shooting night, or a little of both? That was 1 of the best Spartan teams I have ever seen. With Mateen Cleaves running the break and Charlie Bell/Morris Peterson out on the floor our only chance was to make it a half-court slug-fest, but they were also comfortable playing that style.
In 2009 Wisconsin-Stevens Point renamed its basketball court Bennett Court to honor both you and your brother Jack (who won back-to-back D-3 national titles in 2004/2005): what did it mean to your family to receive that recognition? To this day I look at it as something that was earned for us by the quality teams we had. Any coaching honor is really a team honor and the best part was to have many of my players come back for it. I have only been back to campus a few times since retiring but I am happy for Jack because that is where he closed out his career. I am not as big on honors as some might think but it is a nice reflection on the teams I had.
Your son Tony is head coach at Virginia and your daughter Kathi was head coach of the women’s team at Northern Illinois: how much influence did you have on their own decisions to go into coaching, and who is the best coach in the family? Very little: I would have been satisfied had they not gone into coaching because I know about all the heartbreaks that go along with being a coach. Kathi was a great PG until she got hurt, and she and Tony lived in the gym as kids so it was easy to see them pursuing a career in basketball. Kathi is the best coach in the family: her teams never come out of their stance on defense because she really motivates them and has an incredible command of the game. Tony is the best at making use of his resources/assistant coaches.
