MINNEAPOLIS Hes on a path toward Bob Knight-like success … without the volatility.
Texas Tech mens basketball coach Chris Beard cherishes his days as a Red Raiders assistant under Knight, saying it was like studying for a doctorate in basketball.
The influence is obvious, especially on the defensive end. Texas Tech leads the nation in defensive efficiency, smothering Michigan and Gonzaga to win the West Regional and earn a spot in the Final Four. Tech will face Michigan State here on Saturday.
Coach Knight was a strong defensive coach, one of the best ever, said Gerald Myers, the former Tech athletic director who hired Knight in 2001. Chris has taken a lot of those ideas and expanded on them. I think its the best defense in college basketball.
So good that Myers, who won 326 games as Techs coach from 1970-91, said he marvels as much at what happens away from the ball. Watching the four others play, thats where it makes a difference, Myers said.
Beard has shared Bob Knight tales during media opportunities at every step of the tournament. Along the way, he has revealed a storytelling side of his personality, relating moments about his own basketball background a side of his personality that Knight rarely revealed.
Knight, known as The General during his long coaching career, could be an intimidating presence. His tenure ended at Indiana, where he won three NCAA championships, because Knight failed to adhere to a zero tolerance policy of behavior established by the school president. This after a player claimed he was choked by Knight during a practice.
Beard spent part of his Thursday media session at the Final Four recalling how, as an assistant coach who attended the coaches convention at the Final Four, hed share a hotel room with seven others with two to a bed, several on the floor and another in the bathtub with pillows.
The problem was in the mornings with the towel situation, Beard said. I guess Ill share a bar of soap if you wash it really good. But Im not sharing a towel with another man.
Beard has preached to his team the importance of enjoying this experience: being the first team in school history to reach the Final Four.
But when its time to play, its time to play, Beard said. And when its time to practice, its time to practice. We have a two-part mission here. Smell the roses but also be us. Be disciplined and prepared.
Sounds like any Knight-coached program, doesnt it?
Beards path toward his big break started in college. He attended Texas and served as a manager for coach Tom Penders teams in Austin. Beard then started working his way up the ranks and got his first job as a head coach at Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College in 1999, where in his one season he led the team to its first winning record in eight years.
He moved to Seminole State College in Oklahoma the next year. And thats where Beard was discovered by the Knights Bob and his son Pat, then a Red Raiders assistant.
Tech had a job to fill and Beard gladly accepted, beginning a decade on the Red Raiders bench with Bob until 2008 and Pat, until he was fired in 2011.
