A team coached by Mike Woodson once again ended up on the right side of Madison Square Garden's scoreboard.
Woodson's Indiana Hoosiers salvaged a victory at the Saatva Empire Classic men's college basketball tournament on Monday, downing the Louisville Cardinals by a 74-66 final in the third-place game. Though the Hoosiers (4-1) dropped a 77-57 decision to defending national champion Connecticut on Sunday, it was nonetheless an enjoyable return to Manhattan for Woodson, whose first and final NBA days were spent with the Garden's New York Knicks.
Woodson offered a classy remembrance to the Knicks in the aftermath, partly dedicating Indiana's Monday win to Knicks owner James Dolan.
"I want to send a shoutout to Jim Dolan, owner of the New York Knicks, who came by to see me, which means a great deal to me," Woodson said (h/t New York Basketball on X). He was gracious enough to let me out of my contract and come home and coach this team. I have nothing but love and respect for the man, because he’s special, he's special to me."
Prior to the five-game first-round win over Cleveland for Tom Thibodeau's group last spring, Woodson was the last coach to guide the Knicks to a postseason advancement, doing so in 2013 after a 54-win season. Woodson amassed a 109-79 record over two-plus seasons (2012-14) at the New York helm. The resulting .580 winning percentage is good for third-best in franchise history behind Pat Riley and Jeff Van Gundy.
Woodson, who also served as head coach of the Atlanta Hawks (2004-10), began his NBA career as the Knicks' first-round pick out of Indiana in the 1980 draft. He was on Thibodeau's staff during the 2020-21 season before his alma mater came calling upon Archie Miller's departure.
Under Woodson's watch, the Hoosiers' men's program has started to get it together: they have reached the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament in consecutive seasons and won 23 games last season, reaching both of those landmarks for the first time since 2015-16.
Woodson's Hoosiers will be back in action this Sunday afternoon at home against Harvard (4:30 p.m. ET, BTN). The current Knicks will likewise get to come home after a lengthy absence, facing the Miami Heat on Friday night in Manhattan (7:30 p.m. ET MSG/ESPN).
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