Sendek Isn’t Going Anywhere
WORCESTER, Mass. – How many coaches who have brought their teams to four straight NCAA Tournaments wind up on the hot seat? One would think that a coach with that record, as well as a recent conference Coach of the Year award and postseason play in all but one year of his tenure would be very much appreciated by fans.
Herb Sendek isn’t your average coach or at your average school.
Sendek has quietly put together an excellent tenure at North Carolina State. Now finishing his ninth season, he has compiled a 167-121 record and has now brought them to four straight NCAA Tournaments after starting his tenure with four straight NIT bids and a 13-16 season. He’s fourth all-time in coaching wins at the school and has clearly revived a program that despite its history has become somewhat of the red-headed stepchild in the hotbed of college basketball that is the Triangle area of North Carolina.
Prior to his arrival in Raleigh, the Wolfpack had five consecutive losing seasons. Those five seasons also saw just one ACC Tournament win and five double-digit losses. That was certainly not what the program was in the previous decade under the late Jim Valvano, where they won less than 20 games just three times and were never below .500.
The pressure seemed to be on Sendek in recent years, as the NIT bids weren’t quite enough for the Wolfpack faithful and the 13-16 showing in 2000-01 just fanned the flames. With Duke becoming a national power in the late ’80s and up through today, the Wolfpack had fallen very much under the radar in the Triangle area. It was clearly time for them to turn the corner.
They did just that the following season, getting to the NCAA Tournament and nearly getting to the Sweet 16. A freshman guard from the Bronx who has been a big key to the resurgence had already made an impact, as Julius Hodge was arguably the top freshman in the ACC and had played his best ball later in the season. The Wolfpack fell just short against Connecticut in the second round, losing 77-74 in a well-played game.
The next season didn’t quite match it, as they made the NCAA Tournament but went 18-13 after starting 5-0. They lost in the first round, but were ready to make a jump and did just that last year. They went 21-10 and finished second in the ACC with an 11-5 mark, and spent some time ranked in the polls. They would rise as high as No. 12 in one poll, buoyed by an upset of then-No. 1 Duke in February. Not only did Sendek earn ACC Coach of the Year honors, but Hodge was the ACC Player of the Year as well.
With both returning, hopes were high for this season, but the Wolfpack flew under the radar early on. Part of it was because they didn’t play the toughest schedule, as only one of the eight teams they beat to start the season is in the NCAA Tournament (Louisiana-Lafayette), and then they lost to the first ranked team they played, Washington. A 63-45 loss to St. John’s was the start of a four-game skid that included their first two ACC games, and many felt that the Wolfpack was paying for its poor early non-conference schedule. A three-game losing streak later added to it, and they entered the ACC Tournament squarely on the bubble with a 7-9 ACC record despite winning four of their last six games.
With their backs to the wall, the Wolfpack first beat Florida State 70-54 in the first round. That gave them 18 wins, but their ACC record and lack of signature wins in non-conference play were still hurting them. So when they pulled away from Wake Forest with an 81-65 win in the quarterfinals, they appeared to have done what they needed to, especially with other ACC bubble teams losing in that round. They had a signature win (even though the Demon Deacons didn’t have super sophomore floor leader Chris Paul) in the tournament, and it’s clear that conference tournaments were of much importance this year with the selection committee.
“I think the home stretch for us was the product of our guys having great perseverance and resiliency,” Sendek said Thursday. “There wasn’t any one single moment, or any special event that took place; it just was the product of guys rolling up their sleeves and coming in one day at a time to continue to work hard to get better. Our team has endured more than their fair share of adversity this year, and I think that that has enable them to persevere nonetheless.”
Certainly, Sendek has persevered. With fans constantly calling for his head during the times of struggle, he righted the ship late in the season. That should quiet the critics, who need to look at his record, including the four straight NCAA Tournament appearances (Valvano is the only other coach in the school’s history to make four straight NCAA Tournament appearances), and realize that he has done an excellent job. He’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
Now Sendek’s team is in the NCAA Tournament as the No. 10 seed in the Syracuse region. They await cross-state rival Charlotte in the first round, which Sendek knows will not be an easy game.
“They have clearly established themselves as one of the perennial powers in Conference USA,” he said of the 49ers. “I think along with Louisville and Cincinnati, people would associated them with the great teams in Conference USA.”
Perhaps a win over such a team will finally quiet the critics – for now. In Raleigh, they never seem to be very far away.
