Personal Items: Did You Knows Regarding 2025 Tourney Sweet 16 Coaches

There is a tendency to overindulge at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Anyone digesting the following assortment of incisive facts on the 16 NCAA Division I Tournament regional semifinalist 16 coaches should find that variety is the spice of this occasionally irreverent smorgasbord. More than half of the Sweet 16 bench bosses did not play major-college basketball. Remember: If a morsel isn't appetizing, don't be a glutton for punishment in trying to comprehend what makes the coaching community tick. Just proceed directly to the next tidbit to marinate on. Sooner or later, there's bound to be a few factoids you can savor among the following 2025 Sweet 16 mentors:

ALABAMA: Detroit-area prep coach Nate Oats joined Bobby Hurley's Buffalo staff directly with junior college recruit Justin Moss in 2013 before Moss became Mid-American Conference Player of the Year the next season and one year before center Raheem Johnson aligned with the Bulls as another J.C. signee. Moss and Johnson played under Oats at Romulus H.S.

ARIZONA: Tommy Lloyd's son, Liam, played in 14 games for the Wildcats after transfer previous competed with in-state schools Northern Arizona and Grand Canyon. During the construction of their home in Spokane while Gonzaga's associate head coach, his family lived in the childhood residence of Zags legend and Hall of Famer John Stockton. Lloyd, known for his international recruiting, spent several months backpacking on several continents before commencing his coaching career in the late 1990s.

ARKANSAS: John Calipari lettered two years for UNC-Wilmington before transferring to Clarion (Pa.) State.

AUBURN: As an undergraduate at Boston College, Bruce Pearl was Tom Davis' administrative assistant before serving as an assistant coach under Davis at Stanford and Iowa.

BRIGHAM YOUNG: Kevin Young was the highest-paid assistant coach in the NBA with the Phoenix Suns. He is the great-great-great-great-grandson of Lorenzo Young, the brother of BYU founder and namesake.

DUKE: Jon Scheyer was raised in his father's Jewish religion and became a Bar Mitzvah. Scheyer was known as the "Jewish Jordan" and his Illinois high school state championship squad (Glenbrook North; prep alma mater of Northwestern coach and fellow Blue Devils guard Chris Collins) is the nation's only one known to have included an all-Jewish starting lineup. He received a scholarship offer from then Marquette coach Tom Crean as an eighth-grader before playing in high school under former Illini coach Bruce Weber's brother.

FLORIDA: Todd Golden is married to the former Megan York, who was a four-year volleyball standout at Saint Mary's and the WCC's Co-Freshman of the Year in 2007.

HOUSTON: Kelvin Sampson was a three-year baseball letterman for Pembroke (N.C.) State.

KENTUCKY: Mark Pope made all six of his free throws for UK in 1996 Final Four game when the Wildcats defeated Massachusetts in first-ever NCAA playoff meeting between John Calipari and Rick Pitino.

MARYLAND: Kevin Willard played for his father, Ralph, at Western Kentucky and Pittsburgh. Kevin went on to become a coaching intern with the Boston Celtics under Rick Pitino, who was Kentucky's coach in 1989-90 when Ralph was an assistant there with Billy Donovan, Herb Sendek and Tubby Smith.

MICHIGAN: Dusty May served as a student manager at Indiana from 1996 to 2000 under Hall of Fame coach Bob Knight. May's youngest son, Eli, holds a similar position with the Wolverines.

MICHIGAN STATE: Tom Izzo was a teammate in high school (Iron Mountain, Mich.) and college (Northern Michigan) of former Detroit Lions coach Steve Mariucci. Izzo, a running back, and Mariucci, a quarterback, were the best men in each others' weddings.

MISSISSIPPI: Chris Beard was manager at Texas under Longhorns coach Tom Penders.

PURDUE: Matt Painter's father attended Big Ten Conference rival Indiana.

TENNESSEE: Texas' turnaround in 1998-99 (19-13 record after going 14-17 in 1997-98 under Tom Penders) enabled Rick Barnes to become the only active coach to take two different schools to the NCAA playoffs in his maiden voyage with them after they posted a losing mark the previous campaign. He previously achieved the feat with Providence in the late 1980s. Barnes posted the nation's best winning percentage by a first-year major college head coach in 1987-88 when he went 20-10 (.667) in his lone season with George Mason.

TEXAS TECH: Grant McCasland owned multiple miniature donkeys.