Last season, men’s basketball reached the NCAA tournament in a head coach’s first season leading the Pack -— something that had not been accomplished since the Les Robinson era at N.C. State.
Head coach Mark Gottfried’s squad finished 24-13 overall, 9-7 in the Atlantic Coast Conference last season. The Pack reached the NCAA tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2005. The program hasn’t finished with 24 or more wins since legendary former head coach Jim Valvano’s 1987-88 team, which finished 24-8, 10-4 in the ACC and reached the first round of the NCAA tournament. Last year’s Sweet 16 run was the programs first since 2005, under former head coach Herb Sendek.
Thus far, Gottfried has amassed a 39-16 record. In Gottfried’s first year and a half in charge, he has already totaled more wins than the two previous men’s basketball coaches in their first two years leading the Pack.
Former head coach Sidney Lowe, who took over in the 2006-07 season, finished with a 35-32 record in his first two campaigns. Lowe’s overall record stands at 86-78.
Lowe’s predecessor was Herb Sendek, currently the head coach at Arizona State University. In his first two seasons at N.C. State, Sendek compiled a 34-30 record. Much like Gottfried in 2013, Sendek knocked off Duke in 2004 at a time when Duke was ranked No. 1 in the nation. Sendek was named ACC Coach of the Year in 2004.
Neither Lowe nor Sendek reached the NCAA tournament in their first two seasons. Of the two coaches, only Lowe led a team to a 20-win season in his first two years, his first season going 20-16, 5-11 in the ACC.
Lowe’s unranked Wolfpack also defeated Duke during the 2009-10 season. The Blue Devils were ranked No. 7 at the time.
Sendek reached the NCAA tournament five times, all in consecutive years from 2001-2006. Lowe reached the National Invitational Tournament twice but never led State to the NCAA tournament.
Statistics say that Gottfried has been relatively successful, thus far, when compared to previous head coaches. Valvano’s first two seasons at State totaled a record of 36-23. Valvano finished his first season at 14-13, 4-10 in the ACC but reached the NCAA tournament the following season.
Following his first trip to the “big dance,” State claimed the ACC championship in Valvano’s third year in charge and completed the ultimate Cinderella story, clinching the program’s second NCAA championship. Ironically, Lowe was a captain on Valvano’s championship squad.
Gottfried’s hire reignited fan interest, as many were ready to move on from the disappointments of previous coaching regimes. Gottfried’s seven trips to the NCAA tournament, before reaching his eighth trip last year with State, made him a shoe-in for head man of the basketball program.
Gottfried has reached the NCAA tournament on consecutive occasions twice. He landed his first head coaching position with Murray State, where he led the Racers to the NCAA tournament in back-to-back years.
Gottfried was hired by Alabama following the 1997-98 season. At Alabama, he led the Crimson Tide to the NCAA tournament in five consecutive seasons from 2001 to 2006.
Gottfried’s total record comes out to 315-170, a winning percentage of .649. Valvano reached 346 wins and 120 losses to earn a winning percentage of .742. Sendek currently has 352 wins and 253 losses, a .581 winning percentage. And finally Lowe, who’s only collegiate coaching experience was at N.C. State, totaled 86 wins and 78 losses for a win percentage of .524.
Last season, Gottfried took a squad with many unknowns to heights the program hasn’t seen in years. This season, with one of the nation’s top recruiting classes, Gottfried looks poised to take the team even further.
Gottfried said that the team had a good finish last season, but not a good year. With a more complete team this season, this second year coach has the chance to engrave his legacy at N.C. State.
