If there’s one reason, above the rest, that Ron Sanchez believes he was hired to coach UNC-Charlotte, it was to bring Virginia’s style of basketball to a success-starved program.
That style, specifically, is the Pack Line defense and a methodical offense. It’s the now-famous brand of basketball that took over the sport during this past season as UVa shot up to No. 1 in the nation.
“I think [athletic director] Mike [Hill] hired me to bring what Virginia had,” Sanchez said on Tuesday. “I would be doing him and the chancellor a disservice if I don’t provide that. If they wanted something else, they would have gone to a different school and they would have brought someone else in here.”
But looking up at the podium, there was Sanchez. He was introduced as the 49ers’ new men’s basketball coach after getting hired eight days prior. Sanchez, who was an assistant for Tony Bennett for all 12 of his seasons as a head coach — including the last three Sanchez as associate head coach — finally took a job leading a program of his own.
The 49ers were 6-23 last season, which included a 15-game losing streak. But with a new AD and now a new head coach, there was optimism. Sanchez, who normally operated out of the media spotlight at UVa, was center stage on Tuesday.
“I was very comfortable at Virginia,” Sanchez said. “I think Tony is one of the best coaches in the country. I could have been next to him for the next 20 years and been just fine. I decided to get uncomfortable with this situation.”
Bennett said on his radio show on Monday night that he first told Sanchez when they got back in the locker room after losing to UMBC in the first round of the NCAA Tournament that he hoped he didn’t cost Sanchez a job.
Three days later, Sanchez was named the head coach in the very same city where that historic loss took place. Sanchez said he accepted the job without visiting the campus or looking at the basketball facilities. He took the job because he believed in the administration’s vision for the program.
“As I began speaking with multiple people across the college basketball world, Ron’s name kept coming up over and over and over again,” Hill said. “It was obvious that the consistent message was this — impeccable character, impeccable reputation, he’s humble, outstanding coach, outstanding recruiter and an identifier of talent. … I tried really hard to find someone to say something bad about you, Ron, but nobody would.”
Hill said the priority was to hire someone fairly quickly, as opposed to waiting until Final Four weekend to start talking to coaches.
It’s unclear if Sanchez and Hill met while the team was in Charlotte for the NCAA Tournament.
Sanchez also said he’s working on putting together a staff, but declined to speak about names until the process was completed.
The first thing Sanchez did after taking the job was talk to the team, which will have its third head coach in the last calendar year. He also started talking to recruits, and has been in contact with those signed recruits every day since taking the job.
“We’re kind of getting to know each other,” Sanchez said. “You can’t speed date with a coach who’s recruited you. It’s starting anew. I’ve been talking to those young men for seven days today. We’re are getting to know each other, and time will tell where it goes.”