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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Another stunner for holidays?

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

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East Carolina is an 11-point underdog for its Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl game with Boise State but boy do the Pirates have someone who can tell their football team a whole lot about underdogs and upsets in Hawai'i around the holidays.

Terry Holland is the athletic director at ECU and somebody who lays out a storybook, but true, sporting Christmas tale of historical proportions.

For Holland occupies a special place in the sports lore of Hawai'i and beyond as the head coach of the then-No. 1-ranked University of Virginia basketball team that was upset by Chaminade in 1982.

It remains the biggest stunner in college basketball history, the time the tiny school on Kalaepohaku took down towering Ralph Sampson & Co. before a jubilant Blaisdell Center gathering. A disbelieving nation awoke to the news of the upset the day before Christmas.

As something of a frequent visitor to Hawai'i in subsequent seasons, it is a memory Holland hasn't been allowed to stray too far from over the years when he is here. But back in Greenville, N.C., the tie is less well known and place in history hardly as widely appreciated. "Since the players (and some of the coaches) weren't even born when that game was played, I don't hear much about it around here," Holland said.

But that figures to change by the time the Pirates hit town. Especially since circumstance matches ECU and the Broncos on the 25th anniversary — to the day — of the Chaminade victory. Even if the timing of it had escaped Holland's attention until yesterday. "I had not noticed but we (Virginia) did get up for our morning run as a team (already scheduled prior to the loss since we were going to be off for a while) on Christmas Eve," Holland said. "I do remember that."

Holland went on to became the Cavaliers' most successful coach with a 326-173 record and two Final Four appearances (1981 and '84) before moving into administration. Along the way he built an enduring friendship with Chaminade coach Merv Lopes and something of a hoops legacy here. Holland's suggestion to Lopes and Silverswords' athletic director Mike Vasconcellos that Chaminade look into hosting a tournament helped lead to what has become the Maui Invitational.

"Mike and Merv were great to work with and if we had to lose to someone that year, it could not have happened to nicer people," Holland said. "I would guess that sporting events have taken me to Hawai'i more than a dozen times over the years and I have always enjoyed every trip, win or lose," Holland said. "But I liked the wins a lot more."

As the silver anniversary of Virginia's milestone defeat and the match of Boise State (10-2) and ECU (7-5) approaches, Holland had a thought yesterday. "Hey, then, maybe it is our turn to win on (Dec.) 23rd."

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.

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