Just 1 Jewish coach still in NCAA title contention as Todd Golden’s Florida faces Houston in men’s basketball final
But Houston features an Israeli-born guard, Emanuel Sharp, who played for Israel’s under-16 national team
Head coach Todd Golden of the Florida Gators looks on during the first half of a game against the Auburn Tigers, Feb. 10, 2024, in Gainesville, Florida. (James Gilbert/Getty Images)
(JTA) — Three Jewish coaches entered the NCAA men’s basketball Final Four on Saturday. Now, just one remains.
Florida, coached by Todd Golden, beat Auburn, coached by Bruce Pearl, 79-73 in a close game Saturday evening. It isn’t the first time the two Jewish coaches have shared the court: A decade ago, Golden was at Auburn as an assistant to Pearl, who coached him as a player at the Maccabiah Games in 2009. Golden also played professionally in Israel.
Later that night, Duke, led by Jewish coach Jon Scheyer, lost to Houston in a shocking collapse. Scheyer’s team was up by six with 40 seconds on the clock but crumbled as Houston roared back to win the game, capping a 15-3 run to win 70-67.
In the women’s tournament, USC, coached by Lindsay Gottlieb, who is Jewish, lost in the Elite Eight.
Duke’s loss ended hopes of a men’s final Monday night with two Jewish coaches against each other. But Golden will face an opponent whose career began in Israel. Emanuel Sharp, a guard, was born in Tel Aviv, where his father Derrick Sharp coached Maccabi Tel Aviv for more than a decade, and played for Israel’s under-16 national basketball team.
As Golden gets a shot at March Madness glory, he’s also seen controversy: Earlier this year, multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct, prompting a Title IX investigation. The charges were dismissed as Golden had not committed misconduct “within a university program or activity,” the investigators said.
The Houston vs. Florida final tips off Monday at 8:50 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
