Back in business

Pitino finally returns to where he belongs -- the tournament

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- He strode on to the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center court with about two minutes to spare, sporting a bright red Louisville tie to match his freshly pressed suit, perfectly coifed hair and insuppressible smile.

Within seconds, he’d begun his customary pacing of the sideline, hand on his chin as if in deep contemplation, but not with quite the usual solemnity. This was, after all, a moment that he’d been waiting six years for and he was at least going to take a second to enjoy it.

"Even in the pros, I loved to watch March Madness," Rick Pitino said after coaching his first NCAA tournament game since 1997. "It brings back so many good memories and it’s a lot of fun to be part of again."

This is where Pitino belongs on a weekend in March. Not playing out the string with a bunch of spoiled NBA millionaires, not watching the tournament on television, not calling the tournament for television.

Coaching in the tournament. And coaching well.

Friday at the site where his Final Four run with Providence began 16 years ago, against an opponent, Austin Peay, that it beat that weekend, Pitino brought his fourth different school to the Dance.

And this trip began the same way all but one of his nine appearances have, with an 86-64 victory.

"He’s been through it so many times and he’s been successful," said Louisville forward Luke Whitehead, "that every word he says, every player on this team takes to heart."

Louisville broke out one of Pitino’s old Kentucky trademarks midway through the first half, a swarming press that suffocated the Governors and broke open a close game.

Combine that with some rapid fast breaks and solid outside shooting and you had all the makings of a Pitino-stamped effort.

Granted, these Cardinals aren’t as loaded as some of his Wildcats teams, most notably the ’96 national title squad that Pitino readily proclaims as "the most talent ever assembled." But as long as he’s on the sideline, who’s to say this group can’t make its own deep tournament run?

"We’re a rebuilding program right now," said Pitino. "We have Reece Gaines, and he’s that one player you need to get over the hump."

Gaines was his usual, versatile self Friday, hitting 4-of-9 from three, scoring 18 points, grabbing six rebounds and notching three steals. The senior is their undisputed star, but like any good Pitino team, the Cards also have depth.

Whitehead continued his recent tear, scoring 20 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, and 10 players scored in all. They’ve already survived a season-ending injury to starter Ellis Myles, and they hardly missed a beat Friday when sharpshooter Francisco Garcia went down with what turned out to be a minor knee injury.

Louisville’s most important element, however, is on the sideline.

Pitino’s .794 tournament winning percentage is eighth-best in history. His four Final Four appearances rate ninth.

Four teams, nine trips, and only one has ended in the first round. Only two have fallen short of the Sweet 16.

There’s a reason he calls it, "my favorite time of year."

"I just love the whole atmosphere," said Pitino. "To see East Tennessee State almost beat Wake Forest, the St. Joe’s game was great. It’s just so much fun to watch all of it."

Seeing this picture of success back in his rightful environment, it’s easy to forget how uncharacteristically sour his past few years have been.

He had to deal with failure for the first time in his career during an ugly three-and-a-half year stint with the Celtics.

Then he had to deal with something far worse, tragedy, following the deaths of brother-in-law Don Vogt in a car accident and best friend Billy Minardi, brother of wife Joanne, in the attack on the World Trade Center, both in 2001.

Amid such trying circumstances, he sunk his teeth into the fourth rebuilding project of his college career.

Sure enough, less than two years later, he has the Cardinals exactly where we’d expect to find a Pitino-coached team, and exactly where we’d expect to find Louisville, a proud program with two national titles that hadn’t won a tourney game in six years.

"I know in a couple years I’m going to be picking up the paper and seeing that U of L is No. 1," said the senior Gaines, "and I’m going to be able to say I was part of a team that got it all started."

Stewart Mandel covers college sports for SI.com.

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