Dave Leitao
Encyclopedia
Dave Leitao is the head coach of the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League
and the former head men's basketball
coach of the University of Virginia
. Previously, he was head coach at Northeastern University and DePaul University
. He was named the 2006-07 Atlantic Coast Conference
Coach of the Year by the Associated Press
, but finished at 10th and 11th place in the conference during his final two years with the Cavaliers. He resigned as the UVA basketball coach on March 18, 2009.
to play basketball at Northeastern University
. From 1978 to 1982 Leitao played at Northeastern, where he averaged 6.0 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. The teams made it to the NCAA tournament twice, and posted an overall 79-34 record.
as an assistant from 1986–1994. He returned to serve as Head Coach
at his alma mater
, Northeastern
, from 1994–1996. Leitao returned to Calhoun's staff for six seasons, including the Huskies National Championship in 1999.
after the departure of Pat Kennedy
; in a three-year stint on the Chicago
campus, Leitao oversaw the Blue Demons
' transition from Conference USA
to the Big East
basketball conference. He led DePaul in two trips to the NIT
and a trip to the NCAA Tournament
.
prior to the 2005-2006 basketball season. Upon his hiring, Leitao became the first Cape Verdean American head coach for the Virginia Cavaliers
; he was hired by Virginia's Craig Littlepage
, the first African-American athletics director in ACC
history. In his first year at Virginia, Leitao led the Cavaliers
to a 15–15 (7–9 ACC) record and a berth in the NIT.
Leitao is known for his intense coaching, as well as the way he approaches officials during games.
His first season at UVA, with only seven scholarship players, Virginia was picked last in the ACC by reporters, but surprised the ACC finishing at 7–9 tied for 7th place. Getting contributions from little known front court players including Jason Cain and Tunji Soroye, Virginia was able to upset #23 North Carolina on Jan. 19th. Most of the season's success was due to All-ACC first team Sean Singletary, who carried the team with JR Reynolds. This year also marked the last year at University Hall
for the Cavaliers. Labeled as the "Last Ball At U-Hall", Virginia was ready to move into the new state of the art John Paul Jones Arena
right next door. This marked the end of an era that Ralph Sampson built, bringing flashbacks and reunions to mark the final season at University Hall. The year finished with a disappointing loss to Maryland
to close out U-Hall and a blowout loss at Stanford in the NIT. (*However, only one day notice was given for the team to travel 3,000 miles.) At this point, things were looking up for Leitao and the Virginia Cavaliers. With its core returning and a new group of recruits, Virginia looked to turn its fortunes around in 2006–07
.
Leitao started his second year
with the opening of the new John Paul Jones arena and an upset win over Arizona
. Led by Sean Singletary and JR Reynolds, Virginia finished with an 11–5 conference record and a share of the ACC regular season title with North Carolina. Memorable wins came over Duke, with Sean Singletary's fadeaway floater and stare on ESPN, while memorable losses came in Puerto Rico and last place Wake Forest
. This was Leitao's best year with the Cavaliers. On March 6, 2007, Leitao was voted as the 2007 ACC Coach of the Year by the Associated Press
in conjunction with the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association. Two days later, the National Association of Basketball Coaches
(NABC) named Dave Leitao the 2007 District 5 Coach of the Year. In the NCAA Tournament
, the #4 seeded Cavaliers defeated the University at Albany in the first round in an 84–57 rout. In the second round, Sean Singletary
's last-second shot bounced off the rim and the Cavaliers were defeated by the University of Tennessee in a 77–74 loss. The team completed the 2006-2007 season with a record of 21–11 (11–5 ACC).
Leitao's third season
(2007–2008
) was marked with close losses and early injuries to the team's top two frontcourt players, Tunji Soroye and Laurynas Mikalauskas; the two injured players only appeared in two games and sixteen games, respectively. The team attained a 4–3 record with Mikalauskas in the line-up versus a 1–8 record with him injured. Without these two players, the Cavaliers proceeded to lose seven games by two points or less or in overtime; the team ended the season with a record of 17–16 (5–11 ACC). However, as injured players began to return to the team, the Cavaliers won six of their final ten games, and advanced to the semifinals of the inaugural CBI
postseason tournament.http://www.virginiasports.com/pdf4/119340.pdf
In Leitao's fourth year (2008–09), Virginia was the unanimous pick for last place in the ACC. In December, UVA looked as if they were going to be the surprise of the ACC with their first ACC win coming at Georgia Tech. However, Georgia Tech was the surprise finishing last with UVA coming in 11th place at 4–12 in the league. Leitao's frustrated team was led by Sylven Landesberg who averaged 16.8 points per game and captured the ACC Rookie of the Year award. Other notables: Assane Sene missed early and late parts of the season with ankle injuries while showing some promise as a young defensive stopper. Sammy Zeglinski, Leitao's first recruit, gained valuable experience at point guard after being red-shirted in 2007–08 with an ankle injury. Overall, fans were quite discouraged with the lack of improvements and player rotation. 4th year Mamadi Diane's career hit the lowest point during a 4 game stretch where he did not log a single minute. However, he did return for 23 points in his Senior Day finale and 24 points in the first round loss to BC in the ACC tournament. Leitao resigned as head coach on March 16, 2009 at the conclusion of a 10–18 season and 11th place finish in the ACC. The 10–18 season was Virginia's worst season since the 1967–68 season, when the team posted a 9–17 record. Leitao will be paid $2.1 million in a contract buyout by the University of Virginia. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3986162
NBA Development League
The NBA Development League, or NBA D-League, is the National Basketball Association's official minor league basketball organization. Known until summer 2005 as the National Basketball Development League , the NBA D-League started with eight teams in the fall of 2001...
and the former head men's basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
coach of the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
. Previously, he was head coach at Northeastern University and DePaul University
DePaul University
DePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul...
. He was named the 2006-07 Atlantic Coast Conference
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
Coach of the Year by the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, but finished at 10th and 11th place in the conference during his final two years with the Cavaliers. He resigned as the UVA basketball coach on March 18, 2009.
Playing career
The 6'7" forward was recruited by Jim CalhounJim Calhoun
James A. Calhoun is the head coach of the University of Connecticut's men's basketball team. His teams have won three national championships , played in four Final Fours , won the 1988 NIT championship, and have won seven Big East tournament championships...
to play basketball at Northeastern University
Northeastern University, Boston
Northeastern University , is a private, secular, coeducational research university in Boston, Massachusetts. Northeastern has eight colleges and offers undergraduate majors in 65 departments...
. From 1978 to 1982 Leitao played at Northeastern, where he averaged 6.0 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. The teams made it to the NCAA tournament twice, and posted an overall 79-34 record.
Early coaching career
Leitao was recruited by Calhoun to join his staff at Northeastern University in 1984, and followed him to the University of ConnecticutUniversity of Connecticut
The admission rate to the University of Connecticut is about 50% and has been steadily decreasing, with about 28,000 prospective students applying for admission to the freshman class in recent years. Approximately 40,000 prospective students tour the main campus in Storrs annually...
as an assistant from 1986–1994. He returned to serve as Head Coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
at his alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
, Northeastern
Northeastern University, Boston
Northeastern University , is a private, secular, coeducational research university in Boston, Massachusetts. Northeastern has eight colleges and offers undergraduate majors in 65 departments...
, from 1994–1996. Leitao returned to Calhoun's staff for six seasons, including the Huskies National Championship in 1999.
DePaul
In 2002, he secured the head coaching position at DePaul UniversityDePaul University
DePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul...
after the departure of Pat Kennedy
Pat Kennedy
Pat Kennedy is an American college basketball coach who most recently was men's basketball coach at Towson University before announcing his resignation on March 7, 2011. Previously, Kennedy coached at Iona College, Florida State University, DePaul University, and the University of Montana.Kennedy...
; in a three-year stint on the Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
campus, Leitao oversaw the Blue Demons
DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball
The DePaul Blue Demons Men's Basketball program is the NCAA Division I intercollegiate men's basketball program of DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois...
' transition from Conference USA
Conference USA
Conference USA, officially abbreviated C-USA, is a college athletic conference whose member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports...
to the Big East
Big East Conference
The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletics conference consisting of sixteen universities in the eastern half of the United States. The conference's 17 members participate in 24 NCAA sports...
basketball conference. He led DePaul in two trips to the NIT
National Invitation Tournament
The National Invitation Tournament is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. There are two NIT events each season. The first, played in November and known as the Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off , was founded in 1985...
and a trip to the NCAA Tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
.
University of Virginia
Leitao was hired by the University of VirginiaUniversity of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
prior to the 2005-2006 basketball season. Upon his hiring, Leitao became the first Cape Verdean American head coach for the Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia Cavaliers
The Virginia Cavaliers, also known as Wahoos or Hoos, are the athletic teams officially representing the University of Virginia in college sports. The Cavaliers compete in 25 NCAA Division I varsity sports and are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
; he was hired by Virginia's Craig Littlepage
Craig Littlepage
Craig Littlepage is an American athletic director at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia...
, the first African-American athletics director in ACC
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
history. In his first year at Virginia, Leitao led the Cavaliers
Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball
The Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball program represents the University of Virginia in the Atlantic Coast Conference in the NCAA's Division I. The team is coached by Tony Bennett.-Statistics:-Retired numbers:-Retired jerseys:...
to a 15–15 (7–9 ACC) record and a berth in the NIT.
Leitao is known for his intense coaching, as well as the way he approaches officials during games.
His first season at UVA, with only seven scholarship players, Virginia was picked last in the ACC by reporters, but surprised the ACC finishing at 7–9 tied for 7th place. Getting contributions from little known front court players including Jason Cain and Tunji Soroye, Virginia was able to upset #23 North Carolina on Jan. 19th. Most of the season's success was due to All-ACC first team Sean Singletary, who carried the team with JR Reynolds. This year also marked the last year at University Hall
University Hall
University Hall is an 8,457-seat multi-purpose arena on the University of Virginia Grounds in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA. The arena opened in 1965 as a replacement to Memorial Gym, which is still used as the home to the volleyball and wrestling teams...
for the Cavaliers. Labeled as the "Last Ball At U-Hall", Virginia was ready to move into the new state of the art John Paul Jones Arena
John Paul Jones Arena
John Paul Jones Arena, or JPJ, opened for the 2006–2007 NCAA Division I basketball season and is located at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia...
right next door. This marked the end of an era that Ralph Sampson built, bringing flashbacks and reunions to mark the final season at University Hall. The year finished with a disappointing loss to Maryland
Maryland Terrapins men's basketball
The Maryland Terrapins men's basketball team represents the University of Maryland in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I competition...
to close out U-Hall and a blowout loss at Stanford in the NIT. (*However, only one day notice was given for the team to travel 3,000 miles.) At this point, things were looking up for Leitao and the Virginia Cavaliers. With its core returning and a new group of recruits, Virginia looked to turn its fortunes around in 2006–07
2006-07 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2006–07 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 7, 2006, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Championship Game on April 2, 2007 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia...
.
Leitao started his second year
2006-07 Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team
The 2006-07 University of Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team is an NCAA Division I college basketball team competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference....
with the opening of the new John Paul Jones arena and an upset win over Arizona
Arizona Wildcats men's basketball
The Arizona Wildcats basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball program representing the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The team competes in the Pacific-12 Conference of NCAA Division I. They are currently coached by Sean Miller.Arizona has a long and rich...
. Led by Sean Singletary and JR Reynolds, Virginia finished with an 11–5 conference record and a share of the ACC regular season title with North Carolina. Memorable wins came over Duke, with Sean Singletary's fadeaway floater and stare on ESPN, while memorable losses came in Puerto Rico and last place Wake Forest
Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's basketball
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's basketball team participates in the Atlantic Coast Conference and their homecourt is the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Their only Final Four appearance was in 1962 and through the years they have produced several NBA players. The Demon Deacons have...
. This was Leitao's best year with the Cavaliers. On March 6, 2007, Leitao was voted as the 2007 ACC Coach of the Year by the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
in conjunction with the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association. Two days later, the National Association of Basketball Coaches
National Association of Basketball Coaches
The National Association of Basketball Coaches , headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, is an American organization of college men's basketball coaches...
(NABC) named Dave Leitao the 2007 District 5 Coach of the Year. In the NCAA Tournament
2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 65 NCAA schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball as a culmination of the 2006–07 basketball season...
, the #4 seeded Cavaliers defeated the University at Albany in the first round in an 84–57 rout. In the second round, Sean Singletary
Sean Singletary
Sean Singletary is an American professional basketball player.-Early life:Singletary was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He attended C. W...
's last-second shot bounced off the rim and the Cavaliers were defeated by the University of Tennessee in a 77–74 loss. The team completed the 2006-2007 season with a record of 21–11 (11–5 ACC).
Leitao's third season
2007-08 Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team
The 2007–08 University of Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team is an NCAA Division I college basketball team competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference...
(2007–2008
2007-08 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2007–08 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 5, 2007 ended with the 2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament's championship game on April 7, 2008 in the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.-Season headlines:...
) was marked with close losses and early injuries to the team's top two frontcourt players, Tunji Soroye and Laurynas Mikalauskas; the two injured players only appeared in two games and sixteen games, respectively. The team attained a 4–3 record with Mikalauskas in the line-up versus a 1–8 record with him injured. Without these two players, the Cavaliers proceeded to lose seven games by two points or less or in overtime; the team ended the season with a record of 17–16 (5–11 ACC). However, as injured players began to return to the team, the Cavaliers won six of their final ten games, and advanced to the semifinals of the inaugural CBI
2008 College Basketball Invitational
The 2008 College Basketball Invitational was a single-elimination tournament of 16 National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I teams that did not participate in the 2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament or the 2008 National Invitation Tournament...
postseason tournament.http://www.virginiasports.com/pdf4/119340.pdf
In Leitao's fourth year (2008–09), Virginia was the unanimous pick for last place in the ACC. In December, UVA looked as if they were going to be the surprise of the ACC with their first ACC win coming at Georgia Tech. However, Georgia Tech was the surprise finishing last with UVA coming in 11th place at 4–12 in the league. Leitao's frustrated team was led by Sylven Landesberg who averaged 16.8 points per game and captured the ACC Rookie of the Year award. Other notables: Assane Sene missed early and late parts of the season with ankle injuries while showing some promise as a young defensive stopper. Sammy Zeglinski, Leitao's first recruit, gained valuable experience at point guard after being red-shirted in 2007–08 with an ankle injury. Overall, fans were quite discouraged with the lack of improvements and player rotation. 4th year Mamadi Diane's career hit the lowest point during a 4 game stretch where he did not log a single minute. However, he did return for 23 points in his Senior Day finale and 24 points in the first round loss to BC in the ACC tournament. Leitao resigned as head coach on March 16, 2009 at the conclusion of a 10–18 season and 11th place finish in the ACC. The 10–18 season was Virginia's worst season since the 1967–68 season, when the team posted a 9–17 record. Leitao will be paid $2.1 million in a contract buyout by the University of Virginia. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3986162
Head coaching record
External links
- UVA Bio
- DePaul Basketball Stats
- http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/9340936/Sources:-Virginia-fires-coach-Leitao