Pitino rises from ashes of scandal for rebirth at Iona

[ASFN Admin]

Rick Pitino pioneered use of the 3-point shot in college, and he used the first season of the shiny, new 19-feet, 9-inch toy to help Providence become the first six seed to reach the Final Four. Pitino had already led Boston University to the NCAA Tournament several years earlier, but taking a second program with only pockets of success to March Madness made the sharp-dressed New Yorker one of the hottest coaching candidates in college or the NBA. Never is a mighty long time in college basketball, and that quote is good for a chuckle these days -- except maybe in Rhode Island -- because no coach has weaved his way through glamour jobs in the NBA and college quite like Pitino, except perhaps for Larry Brown.

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