Paul Valenti
Paul B. Valenti (September 10, 1920 – September 13, 2014) was an American college basketball coach, known for his long association with Oregon State University.
Valenti from the 1970 Beaver | |
Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | San Francisco, California | September 10, 1920
Died | September 13, 2014 94) Corvallis, Oregon | (aged
Playing career | |
1939–1942 | Oregon State |
Position(s) | Forward |
Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
1946–1964 | Oregon State (assistant) |
1964–1970 | Oregon State |
Accomplishments and honors | |
Awards | |
UPI West Coast Coach of the Year (1966) |
The son of Italian immigrants from Mill Valley, California, Valenti played basketball for coach Slats Gill at Oregon State from 1939 to 1942. After a stint in the United States Navy during World War II, Valenti returned to Corvallis in 1946 as an assistant to Gill, and served in that position for 18 years.[1] Valenti got his first taste of head coaching during the 1959–60 season as he served as interim head coach of the Beavers when Gill fell ill.[2]
Valenti followed his mentor as head coach in 1964. He had his best season in 1965–66, leading the Beavers to the AAWU (now the Pac-12 Conference) title and a berth in the 1966 NCAA Tournament, after being picked to finish last in the league.[3] His 1965-66 unit was the only team other than UCLA to win an AAWU/Pac-8/Pac-10 title between 1963–64 and 1978-79.
In his six full seasons as head coach, Valenti compiled a 91–82 record. Valenti is a member of the Oregon State Athletic Hall of Fame and the Pac-12 Conference Men's Basketball Hall of Honor.[1] He died aged 94 on September 13, 2014.[4]
Head coaching record
Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Oregon State[5] (Independent) (1959–1960) | |||||||||
1959–60 | Oregon State | 9–3 | |||||||
Oregon State[5] (AAWU / Pacific–8) (1964–1970) | |||||||||
1964–65 | Oregon State | 16–10 | 7–7 | 4th | |||||
1965–66 | Oregon State | 21–7 | 12–2 | 1st | NCAA Elite Eight | ||||
1966–67 | Oregon State | 14–14 | 8–8 | t2nd | |||||
1967–68 | Oregon State | 12–13 | 8–6 | t3rd | |||||
1968–69 | Oregon State | 12–14 | 8–6 | t5th | |||||
1969–70 | Oregon State | 10–16 | 4–10 | 7th | |||||
Oregon State: | 91–82 (.526) | 47–40 (.540) | |||||||
Total: | 91–82 (.526) | ||||||||
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
|
References
- "Paul Valenti, longtime Oregon State player, coach and administrator, dies at 94". The Oregonian. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
- "Slats Gill is Getting Better". Port Angeles Evening News. 8 February 1960. p. 1. Retrieved September 24, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
- Eggers, Kerry. "No one can replace 'true Beaver' Paul Valenti". Portland Tribune. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
- "Paul B. Valenti Obituary". McHenry Funeral Home. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
- "2013-14 Oregon State Beavers Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Oregon State Beavers. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 13, 2014. Retrieved September 24, 2014.