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HPU fans say For Tony Sellitto, his players played, the home fans cheered and the raucous Hawaii Pacific band jammed a final time.
goodbye to Sellitto
His swan song at home ends on an
off note, as the Seasiders beat HPUBy Brandon Lee
blee@starbulletin.comLast night, the all-time winningest collegiate basketball coach in Hawaii history and the only local skipper at any level to win a national hoops title (1993 NAIA championship), guided HPU for the last time in a home game.
Unfortunately for Sellitto and the Sea Warriors, the Pacific West Conference game against Brigham Young-Hawaii didn't turn out like most in his career. HPU was blitzed 78-64 by the Seasiders at Blaisdell Arena.
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After 37 years of coaching in Hawaii -- the first 23 of them at Maryknoll High School and the last 14 at HPU -- Sellitto is leaving the bench after this season. As he has during his entire tenure with the Sea Warriors, he will head the HPU athletic department one more year, before retiring completely."It's almost seemed like it's not even a job, it's just like a game," Sellitto, 64, said. "I really don't feel down about (leaving coaching), I don't feel disappointed. I feel real happy because I've had an opportunity to coach.
"I've always been a philosophical guy. ... I think (retirement is) something people look forward to."
Sellitto has always been an ultra-intense personality on the sidelines. Whether winning or losing, he yells -- and at times screams -- at his players. He still has his incredible passion for the game, he simply feels it's his time to move on.
"Not really," said Sellitto, when asked if he was going to miss the competition. "It's not that I don't care, but what I think people got to understand is that I've really gone through this so many times. ... I think it's almost like too much for one person.
"Some other coaches should experience (success) and really enjoy it because it's really an enjoyable thing. And I certainly can't be greedy about it. I had chances and I've won. ... You don't have a good time when you lose."
Last night, Sellitto didn't have a good time.
The defeat was Sellitto's 17th loss against 28 wins to 12th-year BYUH coach and chief rival Ken Wagner. The Seasiders won the season series 2-1.
Sellitto's career record stands at 294-135. He and the Sea Warriors have two regular-season games remaining at Hawaii-Hilo on Friday and Saturday. HPU (17-8, 8-5) needs two wins at Hilo to have a chance at winning the PacWest title and an automatic bid to the Division II postseason. BYUH (17-9, 8-5), HPU and Chaminade are tied for second place in the conference, trailing Montana State-Billings by just a half game.
"Tonight (was) probably the most important game of the season so far," Sellitto said. "(Needing to win) two at Hilo (is) incredible; that's a very difficult venue to play in. But playing them is a challenge we look forward to."
Alexus Foyle had a game-high 21 points in leading BYUH. Nick Spajic had a team-high 15 points for HPU.
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The Sea Warriors held a brief 12-5 lead with just over 15 minutes to play in the first half, but were outscored 38-15 until intermission, for a 43-27 deficit at the break.HPU never recovered, as the Seasiders built their first 23-point advantage at 16:49 of the second half and matched it once more a minute later for their biggest leads of the night.
The Sea Warriors shot miserably most of the night, but hitting just 26 percent (9 of 35) of their shots in the first half ultimately proved to be their downfall. By contrast, BYUH shot 62 percent (16 of 26) in the half and hit 5 of 6 3-point shots.
Last night was also Senior Night for eight Sea Warriors: Zack Anderson, John Avilla, Jeff Jensen, Dragan Karanovic, Spajic, Alvin Stephenson, Larz Stewart and Nash Subotic.
PACWEST STANDINGS
PacWest Overall W L GB W L Montana State-Billings 9 5 -- 19 6 Hawaii Pacific 8 5 1/2 17 8 Brigham Young-Hawaii 8 5 1/2 17 9 Chaminade 8 5 1/2 16 9 *Hawaii-Hilo 7 6 1 1/2 17 8 *Western New Mexico 0 14 9 2 20 *Eliminated from title race
15-game season
Yesterday
BYU-Hawaii 78, Hawaii Pacific 64Friday (All times HST)
Western New Mexico at MSU-Billings
Hawaii Pacific at Hawaii-Hilo, 7:15 p.m.
BYU-Hawaii at Chaminade, 7:30 p.m.Saturday
Western New Mexico at MSU-Billings (non-conference)
Hawaii Pacific at Hawaii-Hilo, 7:15 p.m.
BYU-Hawaii at Chaminade, 7:30 p.m.
Sellitto vs. Hawaii schools
School Home Road Total Chaminade 13-2 9-3 22-5 BYUH 21-5 10-14 31-19 Hawaii-Hilo 16-3 11-10 27-13 Hawaii Loa 5-4 3-5 8-9 Totals 55-14 33-32 78-46
Sellitto joins all-pros as Sports Ethics Fellow
Hawaii Pacific's Tony Sellitto, along with sports luminaries such as Jeff Gordon, David Robinson, former Olympian Dara Torres and NFL coach Herman Edwards, has been named one of 15 Sports Ethics Fellows for 2002 by the Institute for International Sport.Sellitto, basketball coach and athletic director for the Sea Warriors, was selected in conjunction with the Institute's National Sportsmanship Day. Its "Dare to Play Fair" program is celebrated annually on the first Tuesday of March.
Sports Ethics Fellows are recognized for their past and continued promotion of sportsmanship and fair play.
Sellitto coached at Maryknoll for 23 years, where he won two state championships, before moving on to HPU in 1988. There, he directed the Sea Warriors to eight 20-win seasons and an NAIA national title. He retires as coach at the completion of this season.
Star-Bulletin staff
HPU Sports