Pete Newell, who led the Bears to their only hoops title in 1959, passed away today at the age of...

Pete Newell, who led the Bears to their only hoops title in 1959, passed away today at the age of 93.

Some could argue that 1959 might have been the best year of Cal athletics. Newell and Cal made it to the finals in '60 before losing to Ohio St. Ohio St.'s coach (Fred Taylor) used a defense Newell had willingly taught him a year earlier

Mr. Newell had one more coaching stop, however. He led the U.S. Olympic men's basketball team, which included West, Robertson and Lucas, to a 1960 gold medal.

That completed a "Triple Crown" only two other coaches have achieved - NIT, NCAA and Olympic titles.

He also coached the '60 Olympic team to the gold medal, completing the coaching triple crown with an NIT (USF), national championship (Cal), and an Olympic gold medal.

The Bay Area honors Newell with the "Pete Newell Challenge," a tournament held annually in late December.

Newell stopped coaching at the age of 44, citing stress-related health concerns as his primary reason.

Miraculously, he continued coaching top amateur and professional bigs in his Big Man's camps. Along the way he elicited glowing comments like this from Shaquille O'Neal: "He's the best teacher there is."

about 1 month ago carp Comment 14 comments 2 recs |

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RIP Pete.

Go Bears!

by SoCal Oski on Nov 17, 2008 2:57 PM PST reply reply 0 recs

thanks TnH!

Bobby Knight:

“Newell was the best there ever was.”

The Maharg makes me look like an idiot.

by carp on Nov 17, 2008 3:01 PM PST reply reply 0 recs

Knight talks about Newell

http://www.contracostatimes.com/sportsheadlines/ci_11010137?nclick_check=1

The Maharg makes me look like an idiot.

by carp on Nov 18, 2008 10:01 AM PST up reply reply 0 recs

Bruce Jenkins also has a piece on Newell:

I sat across from John Wooden at his San Fernando Valley apartment in the summer of 1990, delivering questions about the man he could not beat. An eternity had passed, more than 30 years, but the legendary Wooden was squirming just a little. Such was the impact of Pete Newell on his legacy and his psyche.

link.

The Maharg makes me look like an idiot.

by carp on Nov 17, 2008 3:28 PM PST reply reply 0 recs

by carp on Nov 17, 2008 5:27 PM PST reply reply 0 recs

sad day for both USF and Cal. Should be a great game tommorow though.

by i wish we were good on Nov 17, 2008 8:07 PM PST reply reply 0 recs

Tim Kawakami

I think I spoke to Newell two or three times when I used to cover college basketball–he was always the nicest guy imaginable and always knew everything about every technical aspect and every team and every coach you could bring up, college or pro.

I’ve talked with his sons here and there over the years–everybody I’ve known in the Newell family is smart and funny and incredibly in-tune with the entire basketball scene.

When I talk to any part of the Newell family, it’s like tapping into the Basketball Universe main-frame. It’s that intense.

And now that Pete is gone… it feels like the mainframe has been turned off, gone quiet. It’ll get turned on again soon–the hoops will always continue–but for now, it’s hard to imagine basketball without Pete Newell around to see it, analyze it and make it better.

The Maharg makes me look like an idiot.

by carp on Nov 17, 2008 9:39 PM PST reply reply 0 recs