|
July
11, 2002 (Lexington, Ky.) -- Scott
Rigot, an assistant coach at Hawaii the past three
years, has joined the Wildcats’ coaching staff, Kentucky
coach Tubby Smith announced Monday. Rigot replaces
Mike Sutton, who became head coach at Tennessee Tech
this spring.
“This is
a wonderful opportunity because I have a chance to
work with Tubby Smith,” Rigot said. “He’s a good friend
and a great coach and while you can’t choose your
family, you can choose your friends and I’ve chosen
a great one in Tubby Smith.”
Rigot (pronounced
Ri-ZJOH) has been in collegiate coaching for 16 years
and has earned a reputation has a highly successful
recruiter.
Last year,
the Rainbows won the Western Athletic Conference Tournament
and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. It was Rigot’s
second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance with
Hawaii as the Rainbows won a school-record 27 games
in 2002. He also made trips to the NCAA Tournament
with South Carolina in 1989 and Alabama-Birmingham
in 1999.
“Scott
comes to Kentucky with a very good reputation as a
recruiter, but I also am quite impressed with his
coaching ability,” Smith said. “He’s going to hit
the ground running and will be a great addition to
our staff.”
Rigot’s
college coaching career began with the Gamecocks as
a graduate assistant in 1986-87. He was promoted to
a full-time assistant the next three years where he
coached alongside Smith on George Felton’s staff.
In 1990-91,
he became the head coach at Spartanburg (S.C.) Methodist
College where he gained instant credibility. After
inheriting a 6-22 team, he compiled a 158-35 record
over the next six years for an .818 winning percentage.
Rigot guided Spartanburg to six consecutive 20-win
seasons, including five straight in which the team
was ranked nationally.
In the
1994-95 season, Rigot coached the Pioneers to the
NJCAA championship game and a No. 1 national ranking
for 12 weeks, while also finishing as runner-up in
the national coach of the year voting. The next season,
his team was 31-5 and finished the year seventh in
the NJCAA Tournament.
He was
a four-time Carolina Conference Coach of the Year
and three-time Region 10 and District 10 Coach of
the Year.
Thirty-three
of Rigot’s players earned scholarships to four-year
schools, including 26 at Division I programs.
In 1999,
Rigot was inducted into the Spartanburg Methodist
Athletic Hall of Honor.
After leaving
Spartanburg, he was an assistant at UAB for three
seasons (1996-99). During his stint, the Blazers made
three post-season appearances, including consecutive
20-win seasons. UAB’s 1997 recruiting class was ranked
among the top 20 nationally.
A native
of Pittsburgh, Pa., Rigot played one season at Jamestown
Community College (1981-82) in New York. The Jayhawks
were ranked No. 1 in the nation and participated in
the 1982 NJCAA Tournament. After he was sidelined
with an injury his sophomore season, he completed
his career as a two-year letterman at Buffalo (1983-85)
and earned a sociology degree there in 1986.
He received
his master’s degree in education from South Carolina
in 1988.
He and
his wife, Renee, have a daughter, Natalie Renee.
|
