HOUSTON — Jay Wright was riding on a golf cart through the bowels of NRG Stadium when he came upon Rollie Massimino walking by with several others.
Massimino, 81, was holding a cup of water and wearing a blue Nike baseball cap that had the Villanova insignia and said “Champions.”
“Where are you going, are you going straight to the hotel?” Wright asked.
Massimino said yes and Wright was soon stepping out of the golf cart to hug the older man.
Until Monday night, Massimino had been the only person on the planet to coach Villanova to an NCAA championship when the Wildcats stunned Patrick Ewing and Georgetown in the 1985 final in Rupp Arena.
But now he has company in that club. Wright, 53, joined Massimino by virtue of a stunning 77-74 victory over North Carolina that was capped by Kris Jenkins’ three-pointer at the buzzer.
So what did Massimino tell Wright after the confetti started to fall and before “One Shining Moment” began?
“I told him I loved him,” Massimino told SNY.tv.
What does this mean for Wright to win his first NCAA championship and Villanova’s second?
“Well, he’s great,” Massimino said. “He’s done a marvelous job and he’s a great, great coach and motivator.”
Wright said Massimino took him under his wing when he was a young coach and didn’t have to do that.
“He did that for me,” Wright said. “To share this with him, our Villanova people love him. to be able to share this with him…it was really rewarding.”
There had been some doubt that Massimino would ever make it to the final. He’s dealing with a blood clot and kidney stones, combined with the poor health of his wife Mary Jane, and he didn’t fly in until Monday afternoon. He planned to fly back to his home in Jupiter, Fla. on Tuesday.
Massimino’s Villanova team played what many call the perfect game in ’85 when they beat Georgetown by shooting 79 percent.
In this game, the Wildcats “only” shot 58 percent but Jenkins made the biggest shot of the night — and the only one that ended up mattering.
“Great shot, great shot, came off the pick and roll,” Massimino said. “It was a great shot.”
Yes, it was and now Jay Wright knows what it’s like to walk in Rollie Massimino’s shoes.
Photo: Daily News
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