Portal:Basketball/Selected biography/April, 2008

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Robert Montgomery (Bob or Bobby) Knight also known as "The General", is an American former college basketball head coach. He was most recently the head men's basketball coach at Texas Tech before announcing his retirement on February 4, 2008. He was previously the head coach at Indiana University and at the United States Military Academy.

Knight has won more NCAA Division I men's basketball games than any other head coach. On January 1, 2007, he achieved his 880th victory, which broke the record previously held by Dean Smith. His 900th victory came just over a year later, on January 16, 2008.

From 1971–2000, Knight coached at Indiana, where he led his teams to three NCAA championships, one National Invitation Tournament (NIT) championship, and eleven Big Ten Conference championships. For his accomplishments, he received the National Coach of the Year honor four times, and the Big Ten Coach of the Year honor six times. In 1984, he coached the Michael Jordan-led U.S. Olympic basketball team to win a gold medal, becoming one of only three coaches to win the "triple crown" with an NCAA title, NIT title, and an Olympic gold medal.

Due to his in-game behavior, Knight is one of NCAA Division I college basketball's most controversial coaches. He has thrown a chair across the court during a game, been arrested for physical assault, and has repeatedly displayed a combative nature during his encounters with members of the press. However, he is simultaneously commended for running clean programs, as none of his teams have ever been sanctioned by the NCAA for recruiting violations, and most of his players have graduated. Furthermore Knight is still highly regarded in the state of Indiana.

It was announced on February 28, 2008, that Knight will be joining ESPN as a men's college basketball studio analyst during Championship Week and for NCAA Tournament coverage.

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