The Maine high school basketball coaching fraternity welcomed the 15th member into its 400-win club Tuesday night.
Gray-New Gloucester beat Fryeburg Academy, 57-49, to give Tony DiBiase the milestone victory.
DiBiase, now 8-5 in his first season at G-NG, won state championships at each of his previous stops in Gorham, Portland and South Portland.
Every step up the ladder puts a coach in smaller company. According to the Maine Basketball Coaches Association web site, only 14 others have won 300 games, while 26 own 200 victories.
Dick Barstow, best known for his years with the Presque Isle girls’ program, stands alone in the 600-win bracket. Bangor’s Roger Reed is over 500.
Of the 13 coaches preceding DiBiase with 400 wins, five are active: Jim Bessey (Mt. Blue boys), Bob Brown (Cheverus boys), Jeff Hart (Camden Hills boys and a former player for Bessey at Mt. Blue), Rick Clark (York girls) and I.J. Pinkham (Boothbay boys).
Brown, Hart and Clark’s teams all are undefeated thus far this season. Bessey, Pinkham and Reed’s clubs also are tournament-bound with double-digit victories.
The others to hit 400: Ordie Alley (Jonesport-Beals), Bob Cimbollek (John Bapst), John Donato (Hall-Dale, Houlton, Messalonskee), Phil Faulkner (Katahdin, Southern Aroostook, Hodgdon), Gavin Kane (Dirigo, Rangeley), Paul Vachon (Cony, Messalonskee) and Dwight Littlefield (Valley).
Changing times and expectations make sticking around long enough to achieve any round number an accomplishment.
With a maximum of 22 games per season — and that, only if your team advances to the state final — a coach needs to win roughly 75 percent of his games over 27 seasons to hit the 400 mark.
Gray-New Gloucester plays in one of the state’s most demanding leagues, the Western Maine Conference. The Patriots often have been overshadowed by neighbors Greely, Falmouth and Yarmouth and nearby Cape Elizabeth in Western Class B.
But if the 2010-11 season ended today, G-NG would be in the tournament. That’s a rare treat for the Patriots and a sign of the respect and credibility DiBiase brings.
The school — and the state — are fortunate to have him.
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