Good Guy Wears Black in Lubbock

You can take the coach out of Indiana.

He’ll just show up in West Texas with players outfitted in brand-new Hoosier-style candy-stripe warmups--black and red for Texas Tech.

It was all there Friday night--the classic uniforms, the familiar motion offense, the players summoned to the sideline to hear about their defensive lapses.

What wasn’t there for Bob Knight’s debut at Texas Tech was the full house so many expected.

There were a dozen or more empty sections in the upper-deck for the Red Raiders’ 75-55 victory over William & Mary before an announced crowd of 10,444 in an arena that holds 15,050.

“I was frankly disappointed that we didn’t have a larger crowd,” Knight said in a bantering news conference afterward. “We screwed the thing up.”

The two-day Red Raider Classic was a late addition to the schedule--and not included in the 13,000 season tickets sold amid the enthusiasm for Knight’s arrival. Fans either were confused or balked at buying the extra ticket.

Still, there was great anticipation for Knight’s emergence from the tunnel, wearing a black sweater instead of the old familiar red.

“I felt at home the second day I was here,” he said.

Students, few and far between during last year’s 9-19 season, made a good turnout, eager to be part of the event.

Two seniors, Bobby Saenz and Stuart Seagers, snagged front-row seats a few feet behind the visitors’ bench, though they haven’t been stalwarts in previous seasons.

“Not really,” Saenz said with a laugh. “This is my first game.”

Like others, they were there to see Knight.

“Maybe I can catch a chair,” Seagers said.

About 40 Indiana fans made the trip to Texas, holding up signs that said “SOUTHERN INDIANA” and “OUR COACH” with a few wearing T-shirts with the logos of both schools and the words, “House Divided.”

“Seeing him tonight, it seems like he’s calm. He’s at ease here,” said David Poole, an Indiana fan from Lewisport, Ky.

Knight seemed like himself--not on eggshells, his exasperation showing often--but very much at home as he won his first game in 20 months.

It was also the 764th victory of a Hall of Fame career that includes three national championships.

Asked how it felt to be back, Knight made a point to make it clear he never doubted he could return to the court after being fired at Indiana before last season after a series of disputed incidents.

One centered on former player Neil Reed’s allegation Knight used one hand to “choke” him during a practice, something Knight denies.

The other was a confrontation with a student who addressed Knight only by his last name, an incident Indiana decided violated a so-called zero-tolerance policy.

“There was never a question in my mind that if I wanted to coach I was going to be able to coach,” Knight said. “That’s not a big thing, to be back in it.

“It isn’t like they found me on a barren island somewhere.”

Friends say he is energized by his new team in Lubbock.

“I’ve never seen him more hopped up and ready to coach than right now,” said Don Haskins, the former Texas El Paso coach. “This guy is like a young Bob Knight. He’s just extremely enthusiastic. But you know, this team only won three games in the Big 12. It’s a heck of a conference.”

That’s what people wonder: How will Knight handle losing?

“I don’t know,” Haskins said. “Maybe he won’t lose.”

Though Haskins didn’t make the trip, such luminaries as John Havlicek and Abe Lemons did, something Knight called very emotional for him.

Despite all the newness, both Knight and his team seemed familiar Friday.

He has a finesse big man in Andy Ellis, the top returning player, who led Texas Tech with 19 points and eight rebounds.

The Red Raiders have added an athletic swingman in Kasib Powell, a developing point guard named Will Chavis, and a sharpshooting freshman, Nathan Doudney, who came off the bench to score 13 points but drew needling from Knight for going 0 for 5 from the line.

Texas Tech shot almost 51% from the field and amassed 19 assists, and it was remarkable to see how much of what is trademark Hoosier basketball has been instilled in only a month.

But when the Red Raiders gave up a fastbreak layup to Sherman Rivers just before the half, letting a 21-point lead dwindle to 16, Knight went off the court already barking at the players.

In the stands, one fan who made the trip from Indiana and wore a T-shirt with both school logos reading “House Divided,” smiled and shook her head.

“I just wish the half could have ended 30 seconds earlier,” Debbie Dyson said.

“Because tomorrow, all we’ll see on ESPN is him yelling on the way out.”