Pitino Named to Coach Knicks

Rick Pitino, who led Providence to college basketball’s Final Four last season, was named the head coach of the New York Knicks today, and vowed to make an instant contender of the team with the NBA’s second-worst record last season.

Pitino, an assistant with the Knicks under Hubie Brown from 1983 to 1985, had been the first man considered when interim coach Bob Hill was fired at the end of last season. He later withdrew his name from consideration and signed a five-year extension of his Providence contract for a reported $320,000 a year. Terms of his new contract were not announced.