Thoughts on WVU’s Carey retiring and Huggins analyzing March Madness games
I guess I’ve known Mike Carey since the late 1980s to early 1990s.
Back then he was a young men’s basketball coach at Salem who used grit and fire to turn around a program that was 8-19 into one ranked No. 4 nationally. His Tiger teams won five West Virginia Conference titles and made seven postseason appearances (two NAIA and five NCAA Division II).
He was hell on wheels and the folks in Morgantown loved his rough and tumble style of coaching.
Yet Gale Catlett coached the WVU men’s team. So, some thought, maybe Carey would coach the women’s team and eventually move over.
Of course, that never happened. John Beilein and Bob Huggins were eventually hired. And that was good news for the Mountaineer women’s program.
I remember talking to Mike each year at the state girls basketball tournament in Charleston. At first, he had trouble even getting the best state products. Stars like Alexis Hornbuckle and Renee Montgomery left for more established programs.
But Carey turned the ship around. WVU started winning. The Mountaineers began winning 20 games and making the NCAA tournament – 11 to be exact.
Perhaps the moment most seared in my brain was when Carey’s West Virginia team won the 2017 Big 12 tournament championship. Yes, even more than when WVU won the 2014 regular-season title.
In that 2017 tourney, WVU won. And won. And won.
In the championship, the Mountaineers, which entered as the sixth seed, shocked top-seed Baylor 77-66.
I’ll never forget Tynice Martin in that game because I’d never seen a Mountaineer woman play so well. And I haven’t since. As part of earning the Most Outstanding Player award, Martin, then a sophomore guard, scored 32 points. Led by coach Kim Mulkey, Baylor, one of the nation’s best, had won 20 straight in Big 12 tournament play and finished that year No. 5 at 30-3.
Now, though, Carey says he’s ready to kick back.
“I’ve had a wonderful career coaching at the high school, Division II and Power 5 levels, but I want to now take some time for myself and my family,” he said in a press release. “I have five grandkids that are growing up fast and I look forward to spending more time with them.”
Enjoy your retirement, Mike. It’s been a hell of a good run.
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While Carey looks forward to retirement, I can’t help but look forward to WVU men’s coach Bob Huggins being a guest studio analyst for upcoming March Madness games.
WVU fans will attest there’s nothing more entertaining than listening to Huggs. We’ve watched and listened (and in my case, covered) for years and it never gets old.
Now, the rest of the country and beyond will have a chance to appreciate his dry wit. Along with longtime friend Frank Martin, Huggins will join Atlanta studio team host Nabil Karim, Candace Parker, Seth Davis and Rex Chapman. Turner Sports and CBS Sports made the move, which will air across TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV. Huggins will be on Saturday and Sunday. Martin will be on Thursday and Friday.
Keep in mind that Huggins is in full “fix-it” mode after this past season. Such national exposure has the possibility of helping him do just that.
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Mitch Vingle covered sports in West Virginia for 38 years. Follow Mitch on Twitter at @MitchVingle and be sure to check out the rest of Wheelhouse Creative’s website for your marketing and advertising needs. If interested, call us at 304-905-6005.
