Projo Sports Blog

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- Ralph Willard was the king.

In 10 years as the head basketball coach at his alma mater Holy Cross, he led the program to the NCAA tournament for three consecutive years, the first time that had happened, and was named Patriot League conference coach of the year three times.

Now Willard is another member of Rick Pitino's court at Louisville, where he was officially introduced to the media Friday.

Louisville announced Wednesday that it had hired Willard as an associate coach. Pitino had been trying to get Willard back on his staff for 10 years, he said. Willard had worked as an assistant or associate coach under Pitino with the NBA's New York Knicks and at the University of Kentucky.

The two coaches joked and referred to each other as best friends several times during a wide-ranging news conference. They spoke frequently of doing "something special" now that they're together again.

Not yet settled into his new position, Willard still referred to Louisville as "they" and Holy Cross as "we."

"I think obviously, you've got the highest level here. You've got a great program," Willard said. "Something special, obviously, would be getting to the Final Four and having the opportunity, the possibility of winning a national championship. ... You're going to have to build to that, and that's what you're trying to do at this level."

The Cardinals are not far from that standard now, having gone to the Final Four once, and falling a game short twice, in three of the past four seasons.

Michigan State eliminated Louisville in the regional final game of the NCAA tournament this past season. Then in April, a position opened up when Rick Pitino's son, Richard, left his assistant coach's position with the Cardinals for the same job at Florida. Pitino went after his old friend again, the same way he did when former assistants Mick Cronin and Reggie Theus moved on.

"I said, 'I know you're not gonna come, but I'm offering you the job,'" Pitino said.

"You do things for your players to get the best out of them," Pitino said. "Bringing Ralph in here is trying to get the best for the program as a teacher."

The news conference was Pitino's first since April, when the estranged wife of Louisville's equipment manager was charged with trying to extort him. Karen Cunagin Sypher has pleaded not guilty to federal charges of extortion and lying to the FBI; her trial is pending.

When asked about the case, Pitino would only say that his job was to focus "on the basketball program."

"Times aren't easy," Pitino said, "I'm not going to lie and I'm not going to talk about it."
He added, however, that he plans to remain at Louisville until he retires.

"There's no truth to any speculation at all that's been said," said Pitino, who was most recently rumored to be considering a job with the Sacramento Kings. "Very little truth's been said, period, in this town in a long time."

Willard, who has been a head coach at Western Kentucky, Pittsburgh and Holy Cross for a total of about 20 years, said he shuddered a little when he saw the word "assistant" on the door to his office at the Cardinals' Yum! Center practice facility, but he knows how it works.

"Does Rick have the final say? Absolutely," he said. "I understand that, but I also know that he trusts me enough and has enough confidence in me that I'll have a tremendous amount of input ... .

"Everybody's in this thing to win and be the best they can, so I'm not concerned what the title is."

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