Basketball coaching legend Jerry Tarkanian dies at 84

[Acebb]

RIP

Tarkanian took UNLV to four Final Fours and won the 1990 national championship utilizing players contemporaries such as Dean Smith or Bob Knight never would have recruited. He gave second chances to talented prospects with rap sheets or checkered academic histories and taught them a high-scoring, action-packed style of play characterized by a stifling full-court press that fueled most of the offense.

UNLV's rapid ascent made Las Vegas synonymous with something other than gambling and prostitutes and turned Tarkanian into a towel-chomping icon, but it also attracted scrutiny from NCAA investigators.

Tarkanian fought the perception he ran an outlaw program throughout his 31 seasons as a Division I coach, refuting allegations of grade fixing, point shaving and impermissible gifts for recruits and accusing the NCAA of undue harassment.

 

[Acebb]

If you love college basketball, watch this

 

[REDEYE]

great coach.. sorry to see this....to bad the NCAA had it out for him.. cost them a championship in 91 with the worst refereed game in sports history..

 

[Betallsports]

You knew it would happen soon... he hasn't been in good health for some time now

RIP

 

[Betallsports]

LAS VEGAS -- Hall of Fame coach Jerry Tarkanian, who built a basketball dynasty at UNLV but was defined more by his decades-long battle with the NCAA, died Wednesday after several years of health issues. He was 84.
Danny Tarkanian announced his father's death on Twitter.

Danny Tarkanian @DannyTarkanian Follow
Coach Tark, my father, the greatest man I have ever known, passed today, to take his place in heaven. I will miss him every day of my life.
<time pubdate="" class="dt-updated" datetime="2015-02-11T16:54:01+0000" title="Time posted: 11 Feb 2015, 16:54:01 (UTC)">11:54 AM - 11 Feb 2015

</time>Tarkanian had been hospitalized since Monday at Valley Hospital Medical Center for a respiratory ailment and infection. He had been rushed to the hospital by ambulance after his blood oxygen fell to dangerous levels.

The towel-chewing coach, dubbed Tark the Shark, had been hospitalized three times in 10 months.


He had a second heart attack last April and was treated for pneumonia in November.


Tarkanian, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 2013, led the 1990 UNLV team that won an NCAA national title and the 1991 Runnin' Rebels who lost to Duke in the Final Four.


His teams were as flamboyant as his Las Vegas surroundings, with light shows and fireworks for pregame introductions and celebrities jockeying for position on the so-called Gucci Row courtside.


He ended up beating the NCAA, too, collecting a $2.5 million settlement after suing the organization for trying to run him out of college basketball.


He retired in 2002 with a 729-201 record in 31 years at the Division I level, ranking 12th all time. He spent 19 seasons at UNLV, compiling a 509-105 mark.


Tarkanian later coached with the San Antonio Spurs and at Fresno State, leading the Bulldogs to the NCAA tournament twice. He also coached for Long Beach State.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.

 

[Greenbacks]

R.i.p.

 

[Vlad the Impaler]

great coach.. sorry to see this....to bad the NCAA had it out for him.. cost them a championship in 91 with the worst refereed game in sports history..

I was at that game. Was a huge UNLV fan during that era

 

[silver7]

Saw the Rebs @ Thomas & Mack in 90, Larry Johnson was a man among boys.

 

[GoSooners]

great coach.. sorry to see this....to bad the NCAA had it out for him.. cost them a championship in 91 with the worst refereed game in sports history..

Yeah, but the NCAA paid for it in the end by having to hand him a check for 2.5 million. He was the man!

 

[REDEYE]

Yeah, but the NCAA paid for it in the end by having to hand him a check for 2.5 million. He was the man!

rather have the championship then that settlement... to this day I don't recognize anyone else winning that title.

 

[Vlad the Impaler]

It was over once Greg Anthony fouled out. They only played 7 that year and never played a back up pg when it counted because they were always up so much.

 

[GoSooners]

rather have the championship then that settlement... to this day I don't recognize anyone else winning that title.

The NCAA spent years trying to take the Tark down. Meanwhile North Carolina is probably cheating like crazy.

 

[DogDaze]

That team was so dominant for a year or two with Grandma-Ma, Plastic Man Augmon and Greg Anthony.

RIP Tark.

 

[VIEJODINOSAUR]

Whenever I go past the Thomas and Mack, I always think of Tark.....same with Pieros Restaurant....

RIP Tark

 

[REDEYE]

I started going to Vegas right around the time UNLV was turning into a power.. It was quite a vibe there with that team attracting so much attention... pretty easy to get caught up in it..

 

[patswin]

RIP

love this quote from the espn story about Tark, lol

That was also the way Tarkanian approached his dealings with the NCAA. His program at Long Beach State was put on probation after he left for UNLV and it wasn't long before UNLV was also on probation and the NCAA was demanding Tarkanian be suspended for two years. But he sued to overturn the penalty and remained as head coach, though NCAA investigators became a common sight in Las Vegas over the years.

Tarkanian liked to tell the story about the time one of his assistants saw an NCAA investigator renting a car at the airport and followed him to a local strip club. Tarkanian got some brochures for the club and mailed them to the investigator, telling him there was a special going on.

 

[CY18]

Had a chance to speak with him 2006. He was a great guy. You can read the transcript here or listen:

http://www.cyinterview.com/2015/02/...onversation-with-the-coach-from-our-archives/