Paul Valenti

Paul B. Valenti (September 10, 1920 – September 13, 2014) was an American college basketball coach, known for his long association with Oregon State University.

For the comedian, see The Chris and Paul Show.
Paul Valenti
Valenti from the 1970 Beaver
Biographical details
Born(1920-09-10)September 10, 1920
San Francisco, California
DiedSeptember 13, 2014(2014-09-13) (aged 94)
Corvallis, Oregon
Playing career
1939–1942Oregon State
Position(s)Forward
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1946–1964Oregon State (assistant)
1964–1970Oregon State
Accomplishments and honors
Awards
UPI West Coast Coach of the Year (1966)

The son of Italian immigrants from Mill Valley, California, Valenti played basketball for coach Slats Gill at Oregon State from 1939 to 1942. After a stint in the United States Navy during World War II, Valenti returned to Corvallis in 1946 as an assistant to Gill, and served in that position for 18 years.[1] Valenti got his first taste of head coaching during the 1959–60 season as he served as interim head coach of the Beavers when Gill fell ill.[2]

Valenti followed his mentor as head coach in 1964. He had his best season in 1965–66, leading the Beavers to the AAWU (now the Pac-12 Conference) title and a berth in the 1966 NCAA Tournament, after being picked to finish last in the league.[3] His 1965-66 unit was the only team other than UCLA to win an AAWU/Pac-8/Pac-10 title between 1963–64 and 1978-79.

In his six full seasons as head coach, Valenti compiled a 91–82 record. Valenti is a member of the Oregon State Athletic Hall of Fame and the Pac-12 Conference Men's Basketball Hall of Honor.[1] He died aged 94 on September 13, 2014.[4]

Head coaching record
Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Oregon State[5] (Independent) (1959–1960)
1959–60 Oregon State 9–3
Oregon State[5] (AAWU / Pacific–8) (1964–1970)
1964–65 Oregon State 16–107–74th
1965–66 Oregon State 21–712–21stNCAA Elite Eight
1966–67 Oregon State 14–148–8t2nd
1967–68 Oregon State 12–138–6t3rd
1968–69 Oregon State 12–148–6t5th
1969–70 Oregon State 10–164–107th
Oregon State: 91–82 (.526)47–40 (.540)
Total:91–82 (.526)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

References
  1. "Paul Valenti, longtime Oregon State player, coach and administrator, dies at 94". The Oregonian. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  2. "Slats Gill is Getting Better". Port Angeles Evening News. 8 February 1960. p. 1. Retrieved September 24, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Eggers, Kerry. "No one can replace 'true Beaver' Paul Valenti". Portland Tribune. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  4. "Paul B. Valenti Obituary". McHenry Funeral Home. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
  5. "2013-14 Oregon State Beavers Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Oregon State Beavers. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 13, 2014. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
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