Roland Vincent Massimino (November 13, 1934 – August 30, 2017) was an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

coach. He served as the head men's basketball coach at

Stony Brook University Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public research university in Stony Brook, New York. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is one of the State University of New York system' ...

(1969–1971),

Villanova University Villanova University is a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1842 and named after Saint Thomas of Villanova. The university is the oldest Catholic university in Pennsy ...

(1973–1992), the

University of Nevada, Las Vegas The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes th ...

(1992–1994),

Cleveland State University Cleveland State University (CSU) is a public research university in Cleveland, Ohio. It was established in 1964 and opened for classes in 1965 after acquiring the entirety of Fenn College, a private school that had been in operation since 1923 ...

(1996–2003), and at

Northwood University Northwood University (NU) is a private university focused on business education with its main campus in Midland, Michigan. Opened in 1959, more than 33,000 people have graduated from the institution. History Northwood University opened as Nort ...

's Florida campus, which was sold in 2014 to Keiser University (2006–2017). At Villanova, he led his 1984–85 team to the

NCAA championship The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

. Entering the 1985 NCAA tournament as an eight seed, Villanova defeated their heavily favored

Big East Conference The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and ...

foe, the

Georgetown Hoyas The Georgetown Hoyas are the collegiate athletics teams that officially represent Georgetown University, located in Washington, D.C. Georgetown's athletics department fields 23 men's and women's varsity level teams and competes at the National ...

, in the title game. It is widely regarded as one of the greatest upsets in NCAA history.

Education

Roland Massimino graduated in 1952 from Hillside High School in

Hillside, New Jersey Hillside is a township in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States census, the township's population was 21,404, reflecting a decline of 343 (−1.6%) from the 21,747 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in ...

. In 1956, he earned a bachelor's degree in education from the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the Unite ...

(UVM), where he played varsity basketball for three years. He earned a master's degree equivalent in health and physical education from

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...

in 1959. While he was a student at UVM, he became a member of the Alpha-Lambda chapter of the

Kappa Sigma Kappa Sigma (), commonly known as Kappa Sig, is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1869. Kappa Sigma is one of the five largest international fraternities with currently 318 active chapters and col ...

fraternity.

Coaching career

High school

After graduating from UVM, Massimino entered the coaching ranks, where he coached varsity baseball and freshman and JV basketball at

Cranford High School Cranford High School is a four-year public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades, located in Cranford, in Union County, New Jersey, United States, and operating as the lone secondary school of the Cranford Township ...

Cranford, New Jersey Cranford is a township in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located southwest of Manhattan. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 23,847, an increase of 1,222 (+5.4%) from the 2010 census count ...

. In 1959, he began a four-year tenure as head varsity basketball coach at Hillside High School in

, the town in which he had grown up. In his second year as head basketball coach at Hillside, he led his team to the finals of the State Group III Championship. They lost a tightly contested final game to Burlington High School from

Burlington, New Jersey Burlington is a city in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 9,743. Burlington was first incorporated on October 24, 1693, and was ...

. The Hillside team was led by Frank Checorski, a unanimous Top-Five All-State Selection throughout The Garden State. In 1963, with the support of high school All-American Bill Schutsky—who later captained the Army Cadets basketball team—Massimino led the Comets to the state Group IV finals. In both seasons, Hillside was defeated in the final playoff game by Newark's Central High School. The Comets lost during both years to a team composed of taller players, despite pushing the thrilling 1963 championship game into double-overtime. For the 1963–64 season, Massimino moved to Lexington High School in

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. In 1965, he led the Lexington squad to a state championship and later led another to a 20–1 record. Along the way, Massimino was laying the foundation for an elite scholastic program which later dominated the Middlesex League, winning state titles in 1971, 1972, and 1978 along with league championships in 16 of the past 30 years. In ten seasons as a high school coach, Massimino compiled a 160–61 record.

College

Massimino's collegiate debut came in 1969 as head coach of

. In his first season the Patriots (now Seawolves) won the conference championship after going 19–6, earning a berth in the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

small college tournament. Massimino's next stop was as an assistant coach under

Chuck Daly Charles Jerome Daly (July 20, 1930 – May 9, 2009) was an American basketball head coach. He led the Detroit Pistons to two consecutive National Basketball Association (NBA) championships in 1989 and 1990—during the team's "Bad Boys" era—a ...

at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...

. Massimino left Penn in March 1973, succeeding

Jack Kraft John Jack Kraft (February 10, 1921 – August 28, 2014) was an American basketball coach who coached Villanova for 12 years, from 1961 through 1973. He compiled a 238–95 record (.715). Kraft led Villanova to the NCAA Tournament six times, ...

as head coach of Villanova and leading the 1984-85 Wildcats team to one of the greatest upsets in NCAA tournament history by knocking off top-seeded

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private research university in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll in 1789 as Georgetown College, the university has grown to comprise eleven undergraduate and graduate ...

(Washington, D.C.) in the 1985 NCAA Tournament Championship Game. The road to the finals proved an even greater challenge, kicking off with a win on #9-seed

Dayton Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...

's home court, followed by victories over #1-seed

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

, #4-seed

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...

, #2-seed

North Carolina North Carolina () is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 28th largest and List of states and territories of the United ...

, before culminating in a Final Four victory over #2-seeded

Memphis State } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

. After Villanova's unexpected championship run, Massimino was offered the head coaching position of the NBA's

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

. At the last minute, he declined the offer to stay at Villanova and devote more time to his family. After a few subpar years, Massimino left Villanova in 1992 to assume the head coaching job at

UNLV The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes th ...

. The initial hope was that he could restore the success and credibility of the UNLV program after the basketball team's 1991–92 probation and the forced resignation of long-time coach

Jerry Tarkanian Jerry Tarkanian (August 8, 1930 – February 11, 2015) was an American basketball coach. He coached college basketball for 31 seasons over five decades at three schools. He spent the majority of his career coaching with the UNLV Runnin' Rebe ...

. Two years later, Massimino was himself forced out when it was revealed that he and UNLV president Robert Maxson had cut a side deal to lift Massimino's salary above the figure being reported to the state of Nevada and the state commission ruled that this had violated both state ethics laws, as well as UNLV rules. Moving on to

in 1996, Massimino's teams recorded a 90–113 record in his seven seasons as coach. Massimino's contract was bought out following a series of off-court issues. These included several players with drug and alcohol problems, other players arrested for serious crimes, and allegations of academic fraud. Massimino was the head coach of the men's basketball team at Keiser University in

West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populati ...

, members of the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...

(NAIA). Massimino continued his role as coach when

sold its Florida campus to Keiser University. The 2005-06 Northwood team coached by Massimino was its inaugural season in

The Sun Conference The Sun Conference (TSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Seven of the ten full member institutions are located in Florida, with three in Georgia. The Sun Conference ...

. In his first four seasons with the Seahawks, Massimino led Northwood to four FSC regular-season titles, four appearances in the NAIA National tournament, and the Seahawks reached the Elite Eight in 2008. Massimino and the Seahawks received bids to the NAIA tournament in all of his eight seasons at Northwood, and once as Keiser, with the team's best finishes a place in the national semifinals in 2011 and a national runner-up finish in 2012. Massimino's overall record at Northwood/Keiser stands at 298–75 ( winning percentage). On November 1, 2012, Massimino returned to Rupp Arena in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County. By population, it is the second-largest city in Kentucky and 57th-largest city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 28th-largest ...

for the first time since his 1985 championship triumph, playing a preseason exhibition game against reigning NCAA Division I champions

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

. The game was played at the request of Massimino after indicating to Kentucky head coach

John Calipari John Vincent Calipari (born February 10, 1959) is an American basketball coach. Since 2009, he has been the head coach of the University of Kentucky men's team, with whom he won the NCAA Championship in 2012. He has been named Naismith College ...

that the 2012–13 season could be his last in coaching. In a later interview, Massimino hedged somewhat, saying, "I don't know if it's my last

eason Eason is a surname. The name comes from Aythe where the first recorded spelling of the family name is that of Aythe Filius Thome which was dated circa 1630, in the "Baillie of Stratherne". Aythe ''filius'' Thome received a charter of the lands of F ...

I hope I can go another year or so." Kentucky introduced Massimino with a video montage of the final minutes of Villanova's 1985 victory. On December 14, 2016, Massimino, at 82 years old, reached coaching win number 800 when Keiser University defeated Trinity Baptist 77–47.

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the F ...

released a 2018 television documentary titled ''The Maestro: The Rollie Massimino Story'', written and directed by

Bill Raftery William Joseph Raftery (born April 19, 1943) is an American basketball analyst and former college basketball coach. High school and college years Raftery attended Saint Cecilia High School in Kearny, New Jersey, where he starred in basketball an ...

, which chronicles Massimino's final season (2016–17) coaching Keiser University. Massimino coached the season, against his doctors' recommendation, while battling terminal cancer.

Death

Massimino was diagnosed with terminal

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, mali ...

and

brain cancer A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and second ...

in April 2016 and given one year to live. Coincidentally, he was at NRG Stadium in Houston in April 2016 to see Villanova win the NCAA tournament. Massimino died sixteen months later on August 30, 2017. To honor Massimino's memory, Villanova wore throwback uniforms throughout 2017–18 in the style of those the Wildcats did during their 1984–85 championship season.

Head coaching record

References

External links

Northwood profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Massimino, Rollie 1934 births 2017 deaths American men's basketball players American people of Italian descent Basketball coaches from New Jersey Basketball players from New Jersey Cleveland State Vikings men's basketball coaches College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Deaths from lung cancer in Florida Hillside High School (New Jersey) alumni High school basketball coaches in the United States National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame inductees Northwood Seahawks men's basketball coaches Penn Quakers men's basketball coaches People from Hillside, New Jersey Rutgers University alumni Sportspeople from Union County, New Jersey Stony Brook Seawolves men's basketball coaches UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball coaches Vermont Catamounts men's basketball players Villanova Wildcats men's basketball coaches