This here story is about Dick Bennett, a name you hear a lot around here when folks talk about basketball. Born way back in 1943, April 20th to be exact, this fella sure made a name for himself. Not by playing, mind you, but by coaching. He ain’t just any coach, he’s one of them basketball coaches that can take a team that ain’t worth a lick and turn ’em into winners.
Now, I ain’t one for fancy talk, but they say this Dick Bennett, he built up the Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix. Sounds like a bird to me, but it’s a basketball team. He made ’em strong, a real mid-major power, whatever that means. All I know is, they started winning, and winning big.
- Dick Bennett, born in 1943.
- Coached the Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix.
- Made them a strong team, a “mid-major power.”
Then he went over to the Wisconsin Badgers, another basketball team. They weren’t doing so hot neither, but Dick, he got his hands on ’em and whoosh! They were winning too. He revitalized them, is what they say. Like giving an old engine a good tune-up, I reckon.
He was coaching at Wisconsin, and folks were all praising him, especially after something that happened last April. I don’t recall what exactly, but it was big, I reckon, for them to be talking about it.
He was at UW-Stevens Point, another one of them basketball places, from ’77 to ’85. Seems like he moved around a lot, this Dick Bennett. But everywhere he went, them teams started winning. It’s like he had a magic touch or something.
In 2000, he took the Badgers to the Final Four. Now that’s something, even I know that. They won 22 games in 1998-99 and 1999-2000, setting some kind of record for the school. And before that, in ’95-’96, he took ’em to the NIT. I don’t know what that is, but it sounds important.
- Coached at UW-Stevens Point from ’77 to ’85.
- Took the Badgers to the Final Four in 2000.
- Teams won 22 games in both ’98-’99 and ’99-2000.
- Led the Badgers to the NIT in ’95-’96.
They say Dick Bennett was one of the great coaches in Wisconsin basketball history. One of the best, ever. Now that’s saying something. He knew how to take a team that was losing, a real bad team, and turn ’em around. He was good at rebuilding, fixing what was broke.
I heard he came to Green Bay in 1985. That’s a long time ago. And then in ’95, he went to the University of Wisconsin. He was always moving, this Dick, always taking on a new challenge, always trying to make things better.
He knew about turning failures around. He said himself, “I took very bad basketball programs.” And he did. He took them bad programs and made ’em good. That’s what he was known for. He’s good at building things up, you know?
Dick Bennett, he wasn’t just a good coach. He’s a legend around here. People talk about him like he’s some kind of hero, and maybe he is. He gave those teams hope, he gave those players something to be proud of, he gave this state something to cheer about. He was one of the greatest, no doubt, in Wisconsin basketball history.
They talk about other big names too, like Bo Ryan and Al McGuire. But this ain’t their story. This here is about Dick Bennett.
This McGuire fella, he won over 400 games, and they say he was quite the character. They call it a unique vernacular, but it was probably just country talk like mine. Anyway, he won some championships called NIT and NCAA.
Then there is this Bo Ryan. They say he’s a good coach. Probably is. But this story is about Dick, remember?
Now this Dick Bennett, he stopped coaching when he was 55. That’s not too old. But he was the winningest coach at Virginia at that time, with a record of 364-136. I don’t know what that means, but it sounds like he won a lot more than he lost.
- Won the 2019 NCAA Championship.
- Won two ACC Tournament titles.
- Winningest coach at Virginia, 364-136 record.
- Stopped coaching at 55.
He helped the Cavaliers win the NCAA Championship in 2019. That’s a big deal in basketball, like winning the lottery, I reckon. He also won two ACC Tournament titles. That’s a mouthful. Sounds like more winning to me.
So there you have it. The story of Dick Bennett, the basketball coach who could turn a losing team into a winner. He wasn’t just a coach, he was a miracle worker, a legend, a hero. And that’s all I got to say about that.
