BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Bob Knight, the successful and volatile coach who led Indiana’s men’s college basketball team to three national titles, died Wednesday. He was 83.
Knight died in Bloomington, Indiana, where he had his greatest success and controversy as a college basketball coach, the Indianapolis Star reported.
His death was also announced on bobknight.com, a website that represents Knight and his foundation. The school later confirmed Knight’s death, the Star reported. The school announced his death before the Hoosier women’s basketball team played Wednesday night at Assembly Hall.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share that Coach Bob Knight passed away at his home in Bloomington surrounded by his family,” the website said in a statement. “We are grateful for all the thoughts and prayers and appreciate the continued respect for our privacy as Coach requested a private family gathering, which is being honored. We will continue to celebrate his life and remember him, today and forever as a beloved Husband, Father, Coach, and Friend.”
Knight, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991, won national titles at Indiana in 1976, 1981, and 1987. He won 11 Big Ten titles and 662 games at Indiana during a 29-year career at the school.
Robert Montgomery Knight was famous for his fiery temper, which was on display whether he tossed a chair across a basketball coach or grabbed a player by his throat.
He was fired in September 2000 after he allegedly grabbed a student by the arm in a hallway, according to ESPN.
Knight had been placed on a “zero tolerance” policy after allegations and video evidence that the coach had choked former player Neil Reed during a practice, The Herald-Times of Bloomington reported.
‘’Practically all of us have some problem to deal with in life,’’ Knight said in a statement at the time, according to the newspaper. ‘’For some, it’s something as simple as meeting people or talking in front of people. My temper problem is a lot more troublesome than those, and it is something I have had to deal with for as long as I can remember.”
Knight was hired by Texas Tech in 2001 and coached until he retired in 2008. At the time of his retirement, Knight was the all-time Division I leader in victories with 902, Sports Illustrated reported. He is now sixth on the all-time list, according to ESPN.
In seven seasons at Texas Tech, Knight guided the Red Raiders to four NCAA Tournament berths, reaching the Sweet 16 in 2005, the Herald-Times reported.
Knight moved back to Bloomington, Indiana, in 2019, according to the Star. On Feb. 8, 2020, he relented from a long-held promise not to return to Indiana when he attended a game between the Hoosiers and Purdue University, WDRB-TV reported.
[ Former Indiana men’s basketball coach Bob Knight released from hospital ]
Mike Woodson, who played for Knight from 1976 to 1980, was hired as Indiana’s coach in March 2021, according to the Star.
Knight was a four-time NCAA coach of the year and was Big Ten coach of the year five times.
He guided the U.S. men’s Olympic team to a gold medal in 1984.
Knight had been hospitalized with “an acute illness” in April, the Star reported.
An Orrville, Ohio, native, Knight was born on Oct. 25, 1940. He starred in basketball, baseball, and football at Orrville High School. He attended Ohio State and was a reserve on the Buckeyes’ 1960 national championship-winning team that also included future NBA Hall of Famers John Havlicek and Jerry Lucas, the Star reported.
In 1965, Knight became the youngest coach at a Division I school when he was hired to coach at Army at the age of 24, ESPN reported.
The bulk of his career was spent at Indiana, where he won a school-record 661 games and led the Hoosiers to the NCAA Tournament in 24 of his 29 seasons at the university.
Knight’s 1976 squad remains the last Division I team to win a national title with an unbeaten record.
Knight’s outbursts also included a conviction for striking a police officer in Puerto Rico and head-butting Hoosiers player Sherron Wilkerson while yelling at him on the sideline, ESPN reported. He also allegedly kicked his own son, although the coach claimed he kicked the chair he was sitting on.