Iona found itself needing to issue a statement about NCAA violations committed by men’s basketball coach Rick Pitino, even though he hasn’t coached a game for the school yet.
Pitino has a long, sordid history of NCAA trouble that dates back to the 1970s when he was an assistant coach at Hawaii. On Monday, his past was brought to light again when the NCAA gave both Pitino and his former school, Louisville, notice of violations in the “pay to play” scandal that ultimately got Pitino fired.
Pitino has had NCAA troubles since at least 1976 when he was just starting out in his coaching career.