Tigers honor Summitt in big win
Robin Pingeton was a high school player shooting baskets in her driveway when Pat Summitt came on a house visit to recruit Pingeton's older sister, Lisa, to Tennessee.
Missouri point guard Lauren Aldridge was in fourth grade when she met Summitt at the Tennessee shootaround before the Vols faced Arkansas. Aldridge’s mom set it up — the basketball-crazed fourth grader had to meet her role model.
Both Pingeton and Aldridge were touched by Summitt as kids. Now, Pingeton is coaching Aldridge at Missouri, and on Sunday, the two — along with Missouri, Arkansas and the rest of the SEC — kicked off “We Back Pat” week, a week in women’s college basketball to honor the legendary Tennessee coach, who died in 2016 at age 64 from Alzheimer’s disease.
The goal of the week, and of any “We Back Pat” game, is to remember Summitt and to raise awareness for that deteriorating disease that kills more people a year than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined. Five million people are living with Alzheimer’s today; that number could be as high as 16 million by 2050, according to the Alzheimer’s Association website.
In 2011, Summitt stepped down from her head coaching position at Tennessee — one she held for 38 years — after she revealed she was suffering from early onset Alzheimer’s.
She and her son, Tyler Summitt, founded the Pat Summitt Foundation to help find a cure for Alzheimer’s. The foundation provides grants to organizations that provide research, education and awareness and support services to patients, families and caregivers.
In Mizzou Arena on Sunday, Summit’s legacy was shown everywhere, starting with the sheer number of people who came to watch No. 11 Missouri (17-2, 5-1 SEC) defeat Arkansas (11-9, 2-5) 88-54 — 5,219, the biggest crowd of the season thus far.
“I mean, 5,000 fans came out to watch a women’s basketball game,” Aldridge said. “I don’t think you would have seen that before Pat Summitt. A lot of respect for her; we want to carry on her legacy.”
Bursts of purple stuck out amid the black and gold in the crowd, the symbol of Alzheimer’s awareness.
Both teams wore warm-up t-shirts to honor Summitt. Arkansas’ t-shirt was white with a red basketball hoop and “WE BACK PAT” splashed in red across the front. The Tigers wore a white t-shirt with a purple Alzheimer’s ribbon and “Mizzou” on the front. On the back, “WE BACK PAT” appeared with another purple ribbon. Coaches and staff on both benches wore their team’s t-shirt as the game commenced.
In the thick of conference play in a league that is easily the best in the nation, with rivalries seemingly between every program, Sunday afternoon was a reminder that this is much more than just two teams grinding it out on the court.
“What an incredible legacy that she’s left behind,” Pingeton said. “For some of the younger generation who maybe don’t know the kind of impact she’s had, they need to read her books. They’re pretty impressive. We’ve got to do a good job making sure our players are educated on the legacy that she has left behind because it’s changed this sport for all of us.”
Summitt was a fantastic coach. With 1,098 wins, she was the winningest coach in NCAA history — men’s and women’s teams. How’s that for girl power?
She was an inspiration to her players, her colleagues, her opponents and her fans. You mention Pat Summitt to a women’s hoops fan, and you’ll get a smile.
“I think that she and all of her teams have paved the way for us to be able to do what we’re doing on a daily basis and at the magnitude that we’re able to do it,” Aldridge said.