Pat Knight Loses Debut As Head Coach

(AP) — When Pat Knight planned changes in the way Texas Tech would do certain things, he didn’t worry about the opinions of anyone else. Not even those of the coach he succeeded.

Who just happens to be his father, Bob Knight, the NCAA’s winningest Division I men’s coach.

“Like when you grow up and leave the house, you have got to be on your own,” Pat Knight said after his first game, an 80-74 loss at Baylor on Wednesday night. “That’s pretty much the way it’s going to be. He’s not going to be there to bail me out when I lose games, or when I win.”

Bob Knight wasn’t there for his son’s head coaching debut with the Red Raiders (12-9, 3-4 Big 12), when it was clear that a different Knight was in charge.

“Wow! Coach Knight to Coach Knight is definitely a little different,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said. “Press, zone, some things that you wouldn’t expect.”

Two days after Bob Knight’s sudden resignation after 902 wins and three national championships over 42 years, the younger Knight was already putting his imprint on the team.

“I’m not sitting here doing this job now thinking about what other people think,” he said. “I’m either going to win my way or lose my way, just like he did.”

The Red Raiders were trapping on defense and putting a lot of pressure on the ball. And what about that 3-2 zone defense, far from the man-to-man schemes his father prefers?

“The reason I used 3-2 was because of him. We talked during the year and he always thinks that’s the best zone to run,” said 37-year-old Pat. “Everything I really did tonight were ideas from him, even though he hasn’t done it in a game.”

Then he added a phrase repeated several times after his first game: “It’s my team.”

Despite their effort, the Red Raiders couldn’t overcome missing 10 of their last 11 field goals before halftime, then having six turnovers in a 2-minute span right after the break when Baylor stretched its lead to 12 points.

Curtis Jerrells led Baylor (17-4, 5-2) with 16 points, including a 3-pointer followed by an inside bucket in that 12-1 spurt right after halftime.

The Bears snapped a two-game losing streak that had knocked them out of the Top 25 after they were in the national rankings for the first time since 1969.

“They’re still a Knight-coached team,” Baylor’s Aaron Bruce said. “They caught us at a bad time. We were really hungry and wanted to win.”

The Red Raiders’ miscues put them in a hole they couldn’t get out off – even though they cut a 14-point deficit to 74-71 on John Roberson’s 3-pointer with 33 seconds left before Baylor made six straight free throws.

Mike Singletary had 20 points for Texas Tech, which dropped to 1-7 on the road – 0-4 in the Big 12. Alan Voskuil added 16, including four 3-pointers.

“I was just happy that they got it back within range where we could have a chance to maybe win the game instead of letting it get totally out of hand,” said Knight, who was admittedly nervous before the game.

At times, Knight wrote notes in a small pad he held in his hand. He alternated between sitting in his seat and pacing the sideline throughout the game.

Knight spent a decade as a college assistant. The only season he wasn’t with his father was 2000-01, when Bob Knight didn’t coach between his departure from Indiana and his hiring at Tech.

During Tech’s turnover-plagued stretch early in the second half, Knight sat at one point staring at the ground and rubbing his temples with both hands. Then, when leading scorer Martin Zeno committed his fourth foul with almost 17 minutes left, the coach stood with his hands on his hips.

While disappointed with losing, Knight appreciated the effort from players asked to “do a lot of things they weren’t used to.” He had “a blast” coaching his first game.

“I haven’t had this much fun since I played,” he said. “I haven’t felt this much nervousness or energy since I was lacing up and playing for my dad.”