History for 'Ping'

John Ryan was one of many people who helped Gene Pingatore in his long march toward boys basketball state history.

Ryan ended up on the wrong end of a historic Friday night as his Carmel team fell 49-26 to St. Joseph in the East Suburban Catholic Conference game in Mundelein.

But for maybe the only time in his career, that was alright with Ryan as Pingatore became the winningest boys high school coach in state history with his 827th victory in his 1,100th game.

"He's my mentor and a very good, close personal friend of mine," said Ryan, who worked at St. Joseph for 22 years and coached in Pingatore's program for eight years. "I'm as happy as can be for him.

"I don't think I've ever been involved in a game I lost where I was happy for the other coach."

Ryan presented his old friend with a plaque in a pregame ceremony honoring Pingatore for tying the record of 826 set by Dick Van Scyoc in a three-school, 44-year career that ended with a Class AA state title at Peoria Manual in 1994.

During the postgame handshakes, Ryan hugged Pingatore and said "You're the best. You're the best."

People such as Ryan are who Pingatore reflected on as he tried to deflect the attention off himself and toward the fact the Chargers (13-3, 6-0) didn't stumble going into next Friday's ESCC showdown with St. Patrick.

"I think of all the people who came out and the people with me," said Pingatore, who completed a set of top-four state trophies with a AA title 10 years ago. "The longevity hits you and I'll probably really relish that when I retire.

"A lot of great people participated and contributed to the program and it's not about me. It's about all the players, coaches and fans who supported us."

Among those is Darryl Thomas, who contributed on the court as a star from 1979-83 and is now in his fourth year as an assistant to Pingatore.

"I don't think they (current players) truly understand what this means and how important it is not only for St. Josepht but the staff," said Thomas, who has the unique distinction of also playing for the winningest coach in men's NCAA Division I history in Bob Knight at Indiana. "It means a lot to me as well as a ton of players who have gone through this program.

"This has a big meaning for me because he's my coach and the first true coach who really taught me the game."

The one who did the same with a kid named Isiah Thomas and countless others.

"I love him like a brother and he's such a great guy," said Ryan, who joined Pingatore's staff in 1980 and was part of three straight Elite Eight trips from 1982-84. "And he's probably a better person than a coach. He's done so much to help so many people."

The Corsairs (5-12, 2-4) were trying to put history on hold and hung tough to trail just 15-12 a couple of minutes before halftime.

Then the Chargers turned up the defensive heat and pulled away as junior Brandon Carr finished with 14 points and Nate Rogers added 10 points.

Afterward, Ryan recalled how St. Joseph went 3-13 in Pingatore's first year in 1969-70 and finished with losing records in four of his first seven years.

After a successful stint as the school's girls coach, Ryan's goal is a similar turnaround with Carmel, which got 6 points apiece from Ryan Kloss and Jon Huisel on Friday.

"I love that style of basketball," said of St. Joseph's tough pressure defense under Pingatore. "We're going to move in that direction but it's going to take some time.

"We're trying to put something together to build some excitement and attract kids who want to play."

Just as his mentor has done for nearly four decades.

mmaciaszek@dailyherald.com