It is the one word that was always synonymous with Rollie Massimino.
Family.
The Villanova Family today is mourning the loss of 'Daddy Mass,' the man who led one of the most improbably sports stories in Philadelphia history when his Wildcats, the tiny school from the Main Line, slew the giant, Patrick Ewing, John Thompson and the Georgetown Hoyas, to capture the 1985 national championship.
Massimino died at age 82 in Florida.
Eventually Massimino would leave Villanova; but he would never leave his family.
Rollie was there in 2016 when his one-time assistant, Jay Wright, led the 'Cats to their second national championship.
After leaving Villanova, Massimino had coaching stints at UNLV, Stony Brook and Cleveland State. His last stop was at Keiser University in Florida.
Many in the Philadelphia hoops scene continue to hold a grudge against Massimino and Villanova, blaming him for Villanova's focus shifting away from the Big 5 and on to bigger things in the Big East.
But Massimino remained part of the "family."
"He's going to live in all the players he coached, all the coaches that coached with him," Jay Wright said. "We are all products of him."
No one has covered the Villanova story as closely as Terry Toohey over the past couple of decades. Make sure you read Terry's remembrance of the man they called 'Daddy Mass.'
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