Former Holy Cross coach retires
Thursday, June 13, 2013
After 43 years of pounding the college hardwood, George Blaney has finally decided to hang up his whistle.
Blaney, 73, served as UConn’s associate head coach under former coach Jim Calhoun, as an assistant coach for Calhoun and last year for first-year head coach Kevin Ollie, spending 12 seasons in Storrs, CT. He is currently a special assistant/advisor to Ollie.
“I always said I would know when it would be the right time to go,” Blaney said. “I have thoroughly enjoyed my years at UConn, but I think for me, this is the right time.
“Coaching with Jim has been so special for me. We have always been such great friends and that just made for a wonderful working relationship. His passion for the game, for the kids, and for UConn is what made him such a special coach.
“And I am just so excited about Kevin. I said right from the get-go that Kevin Ollie is a superstar coach and he certainly showed it last year. And I think this year’s team is going to be terrific.”
Blaney brought a wealth of basketball knowledge with him when he joined the UConn staff before the 2001-02 season after coaching stops at Stonehill, Dartmouth, Seton Hall, Rhode Island, and for 22 years as head coach at his alma mater, Holy Cross.
A 2003 inductee into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame, Blaney has an impressive lifetime coaching record of 461-383 in more than 30 years as a head coach, including 357 wins and eight postseason appearances as head coach at Holy Cross. During his distinguished career, he served as president of the National Association of Basketball Coaches was a board member of the organization for 12 years.
Blaney also served as the Vice President of Basketball Operations for the International Basketball League before returning to coaching as an assistant at Rhode Island for the 2000-01 season. He then joined Calhoun at UConn the following season. During Blaney’s 12 years at UConn, the Huskies compiled a 298-112 overall record and he helped guide them to two National Championships, three trips to the Final Four, six Big East championships, and 10 NCAA appearances.
A native of Jersey City, NJ, Blaney was an All-New England selection as a player at Holy Cross, where he scored 1,012 points. After his 1961 graduation, he was drafted in the fourth round of the NBA Draft by the New York Knicks and played the 1961-62 season with the team.
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