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Herb Magee gets 1000th victory, Rams win 80-60

02/07/2015, 1:00am EST
By Ari Rosenfeld

Herb Magee poses with his players, and a commemorative basketball, after his 1000th career victory. (Photo: Ari Rosenfeld)

Ari Rosenfeld (@realA_rosenfeld)
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The stage was perfectly set. The show just got off to a late start.

After falling just short on Tuesday night against Wilmington, the Philadelphia University Rams ran away from Post University, 80-60, giving head coach Herb Magee his elusive 1000th career victory.

Magee, a member of the Naismith Hall of Fame who is in his 48th season coaching at Philly U, becomes the first Division II coach to reach the millenium mark. Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski is the only other NCAA men’s coach with 1,000 wins, having accomplished the feat just two weeks ago.

While there may not have been a week’s worth of leadup on ESPN, as there was for Krzyzewski, this win represents yet another achievement in what has been an incredible coaching career.

“Three years ago, any part of my ego that wasn’t satisfied, it was satisfied when I was inducted into the Hall of Fame,” Magee said after the game. “Nothing can touch that as far as you are concerned as an individual, but this is a tremendous team goal. Not that I set out trying to make the Hall of Fame or win 1,000 games, but there’s two things right there that I’m really proud of.”

Magee, a 2011 Hall of Fame inductee, has gone back-and-forth with Coach K as the winningest NCAA coaches of all time, with Krzyzewski currently leading with 1,003 wins. Although Magee hasn’t fed into the hype surrounding the mark, it’s clear how much he means to the community at Philly U, and how much the school at which he has spent 56 years of his life as either a player or coach means to him.

“I’ve always been a guy as a coach that wants to put a good team on the floor. It’s not about my ego, it’s about the student population, to make them proud of us and I think they were tonight,” Magee said. “The opportunities came and I never wanted to leave the area. I like this place, it’s a good place. It’s my school.

“It’s a great place to be, it’s a great place to work, and a great place to go to school,” he added.

Magee entered the season 15 wins shy of 1,000, and with the Rams entering the season with high expectations surrounding them, it was pretty clear that he would reach the mark sometime this year; everyone involved with the program has been hearing about the impending milestone for months.

However, the Shot Doctor, as Magee has been called over the years, has always been quick to deflect the spotlight back to his players.

“The players did a tremendous job, he said. “We’ve always had great kids, and these guys are good guys, and I like them even more when they hit threes but even when we happen to lose a game they give me everything they have and I’m really proud of them.”

The win moved the Rams to 15-6, including a 9-3 mark in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, positioning them two games behind University of the Sciences in the conference’s South Division.

Although Magee has most certainly earned his fair share of bragging rights, you won’t hear him take advantage of it too often, at least not until his team’s current campaign is over, as he remains focused on the Rams quest to return to the NCAA Tournament.

“I think I’ll really reflect on this when the season’s over,” he said. “When this season’s over and I’m talking to some of the guys at the coach’s convention, I’m sure I’ll bust on Franny Dunphy and Phil Martelli and all about having more wins than they do, but for right now, it’s a matter of relief, and we have practice tomorrow morning.”

The Gallagher Athletic Center, where the Rams play their home games, was filled to the brim to see Magee reach the milestone, and every bucket from the opening tip-off to the final buzzer brought the fans lucky enough to get seats to their collective feet.The game reached its climax around the midway point of the second half.

With the Rams holding an eight-point lead, they exploded for a 17-0 run, with each basket eliciting a larger and larger reaction from the crowd. Nick Schlitzer, Derek Johnson, and Andre Gibbs nailed back-to-back-to-back triples, and Peter Alexis’ and-one slam capped the spurt, forcing Post into its second timeout in as many minutes and giving Philly U a 59-34 lead.

In somewhat typical fashion this season, each of the Rams’ starters played every meaningful minute, coming out together in the final minute with the Rams holding a 26-point advantage. Derek Johnson led the way with 20 points, followed by Nick Schlitzer with 18, and all of the Rams starters finished in double figures.

Along with his 10 points, forward TJ Huggins also chipped in seven boards and eight assists, leading the Rams in both categories.

“It’s pretty neat, because you get to be a piece of history,” said Schlitzer, the lone senior in the starting lineup and the team’s leading scorer. “Even if it’s just a real little piece, to be part of something that’s been going on for the past 40, 50 years, it’s pretty cool. It’s a fun environment to play in, and I’m happy we could do it.”

Nardie Bogues, nephew of former NBA star Muggsy Bogues, led the way for Post with 11 points and three assists.

Midway through the first half, it looked like this might be a repeat performance of Tuesday night, as Post held a 22-11 lead with just under ten minutes remaining. However, the Rams turned up their defensive intensity from that point on, holding the Eagles to just five more points before halftime, with Post converting only two field goals in the final 10:39 of the opening session.

By the time Johnson finished a tough layup before the halftime buzzer, the sellout crowd was fully engaged and the Rams held a 34-27 lead. They would go on to outscore Post 69-38 over the game’s final thirty minutes.

Most of the local basketball community has had an eye trained on Philly U for at least the last few weeks, but Magee knows that attention will most likely go elsewhere until he is approaching another career wins mark.

Being out of the spotlight, though, is probably something that he prefers.

‘The time did drag, just waiting to get to this moment. It is hard,” he admitted. “It really is difficult because I don’t like to make it about me. It’s not about me, it’s about these guys. So I’m glad it’s over, to be honest with you.”

While Magee may prefer to undersell the importance of his latest milestone, there’s really no way around it: history was made today in East Falls.


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