MIAMI (AP) — The last time Florida International finished with a winning record, Richard Pitino was in high school.
He’s now the Panthers’ first-year coach. And already, the son of famed Louisville coach Rick Pitino has FIU showing signs of a turnaround.
Winners of nine of their last 12, the Panthers take a 13-10 record into a Sun Belt game at North Texas on Saturday night. A record that’s three games over .500 might not sound all that impressive, but keep in mind, the last time FIU won more games in a season was 1999-2000 — also the last time the Panthers didn’t have a losing season.
The 30-year-old Pitino acknowledges that FIU might be “a little ahead of schedule from where I thought we’d be.”
