Pat Reaches The Summitt

Actually, she's been there for awhile. Women's college basketball doesn't always get a lot of play in the NY area, but in this case, we must tip the cap to the best college basketball coach ever-male or female. Last night, Pat Summitt became the first Division 1 hoops coach-of either gender-to reach 1,000 wins.

What I like best about Summitt is, she hasn't tailed off with age.. Eight national titles in more than 30 years at Knoxville, including the last two in a row. She hasn't coached or played past her prime for the sake of reaching a milestone or staying in the public spotlight. Ask fellow coach Bob Knight and undeserving baseball Hall of Famers Don Sutton and Phil Niekro what I mean.

Summitt just coaches, and has stayed true to herself and her hard driving style all these years. This season's Lady Vols have 7 freshmen and only 1 senior on the roster. Yet, they're 17-5, and Summitt feels they can win the whole thing if they just stay focused,

Love her (like they do in Knoxville) or hate her (UCONN coach Geno Auriemma wrote the book on all things anti Summitt) she is the best at what she does. If the Knicks had wanted to end the Isiah Thomas Error by having Summitt coach at the Garden, I'd have been all for it. If you gave her team three months to prepare, they'd be able to beat most if not all, of the WNBA teams. Some of her past teams would slice through the hideous ladies' pro game like a knife through butter.

Here's the best thing: Summitt has a 100% graduation rate. That just DOES NOT happen in college athletics. As we prepasre for March Madness next month, they'll be media reports on the low percentage of kids that get a degree. People will roll their eyes and say, "What a shame." Instead, they should just look to the example of the best coach in the history of college basketball.