By Kevin Cunningham
Sports Correspondent
Nick Bennett is replacing a legend this upcoming season at St. Catherine’s High School as the new head basketball coach. Bennett, a former UW-Stevens Point player, spent his last three seasons as an assistant coach with UW-Whitewater.
Prior to his time with the Warhawks, Bennett was an assistant for eight seasons, spending time at UW-Stevens Point, Marquette, Florida Gulf Coast University and Texas Pan-American (now known as the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley). Now at his first stop as the head coach, Bennett is replacing a high school coaching legend in Bob Letsch.
Letsch, who recorded the second-most victories ever in high school basketball within the state of Wisconsin, finished his career with 661 victories after 37 seasons at St. Catherine’s High School. Bennett knows exactly who he’s replacing, and understands what great coaching is all about in its own right, as he is the son of former UW-Stevens Point coach Jack Bennett, the nephew of former Wisconsin coach Dick Bennett, the cousin of Kathi Bennett, who last coached at Northern Illinois and is the cousin of Virginia’s Tony Bennett, as well.
“He’s been in the St. Cat’s school for 55 years,” said Bennett, of Letsch. “He went to school there; he was an assistant there and then the head coach. I mean, 55 years… that school has heard his voice and he has been a part of it. It’s just incredible to think of someone who gave that much time, effort and their blood, sweat and tears to a place. So, for me, it’s going to be a little bit of a learning curve. For everyone, it’s a changing of the guard if you will.”
When asked about his career, both in the past and where Bennett is now, some may look at his travels as consistently taking a step down. After being at three Division I schools, he moved to a D-III school and is now down at the high school ranks.
As the head man in charge, though, Bennett doesn’t see his move from the Warhawks to the Angels as a step down at all.
“This is really, really an exciting opportunity,” he said. “At the end of the day, when I lay down and I have my thoughts and feelings, I’m very happy and blessed to be where I am. Now when I went from D-III to high school, I really wanted to be a head coach. It was very, very important to me.
“I look at this as an unbelievable opportunity to make an impact on the kids. I mean this from the bottom of my heart, I enjoy teaching and I get a chance to be a social science and a health teacher here. I look forward to that challenge and opportunity to help the kids.”
Over the past three seasons at UW-Whitewater, the ’Hawks won a national title in Bennett’s first year as an assistant, and then in the second season, the team went into the NCAA Tournament after being ranked in the top-five throughout the majority of the season and got upset in the first round.
Finally, in his third year, the team lost its top-seven scorers from the year prior and it became a rebuilding year. Now at St. Catherine’s, the Angels have a similar current trajectory of where the team is at.
Four seasons ago, St. Catherine’s went 17-7 overall and then responded with 19-6 and 20-5 records the two years following that. This past season, however, the team went 8-15 overall and is losing its top two scorers. Bennett is familiar with the circumstances now, and wants to stress to fans that it’s not all about the wins and losses.
“Where are we going to fall in the win-loss total?” Bennett asked. “I don’t know. I wish I could tell you. All I know is that I’m going to get my guys to compete every possession, every practice and every game. It’s sometimes hard for parents and fans to understand the process.
“All that some of them look at is the win-loss record. Well, who did you play? Did you play a weak schedule or did you challenge yourself against the best? At St. Cat’s, we play the best. In the non-conference, we’ll go up and play teams with a much larger enrollment. In our conference, we’re playing against teams who are competing at the state level every year. That’s a fact. So, it’s going to be a challenge from that standpoint. We’ll be pretty young, inexperienced and there will be a bit of a learning curve.”
Bennett wrapped up talking about his time with the Warhawks, and despite it only being three years, one moment stood out above the rest.
“I mean, you’re always going to remember the relationships that you’ve built with the kids, that’s number one,” he said. “But, number two, winning a national title and the fashion that we won it in. I mean it, it was a storybook. I feel bad for Williams University because they are a fantastic college that has had phenomenal coaches and players, but luckily for me, I have been on the good end of the stick when it comes to them losing in heart-breaking fashion.
“If you go back to 2004, my friend and teammate Jason Kalsow hit a game-winning shot with 0.2 seconds left to beat them. And then obviously 10 years later, Quardell Young takes the ball coast-to-coast in three seconds for a game-winning lay-up to beat them again. With those two shots going in… I have two more national titles than I ever thought I would. So, those are the things you remember. The relationships you’ve built with the kids and obviously that national title. That will always be a fond memory.”
