Knight ties Smith with 879 wins

12/23/2006

LUBBOCK, Texas Add this to the list of things you can say about Bob Knight:

Nobody has ever won more Division I men s basketball games.

Knight matched Dean Smith s record of 879 victories when Texas Tech beat Bucknell 72-60 TOday.

Knight s first chance to own the top spot all by his sweater-wearing self comes Thursday night at home against UNLV.

Already a Hall of Famer, Knight now has a share of the record some believe drove him back to coaching after being fired by Indiana after 29 years, three national titles and one too many run-ins with players, bosses and fans. Since resurfacing in 2001 at this West Texas school in the heart of football country, The General hasn t changed much.

He s still fiery, as evidenced by him jerking up a player s chin earlier this season.

He still runs a motion offense and tight man-to-man defense. And he s still winning: a 115-64 record with three trips to the NCAA tournament in five full seasons at a school that went twice the previous 15 years.

About all that s changed is the color of his sweater (black, instead of Hoosiers red) and the importance of the milestones, none bigger than this one, no matter how much Knight has tried to downplay it.

In his 41st year of coaching, Knight has a career record of 879-353. Smith went 879-254 over 36 years, all at North Carolina. Knight and Smith also are the only men to have won national championships as players and coaches. They also share the record for coaching in the most NCAA tournaments (27).

Tennessee women s coach Pat Summitt is the overall leader in major-college victories with 913 going into today's play.

Playing before the biggest home crowd of the season, and without third-leading scorer Charlie Burgess (groin), Tech led for all but a couple possessions in the opening minutes.

Bucknell (5-6) got within 42-39 early in the second half, but missed 13 straight shots starting with a 3-pointer that could have tied it. The Red Raiders capitalized with a 17-0 run and it wasn t close again.

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