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Legendary former PCC men’s basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian died Wednesday morning in Las Vegas, Nevada after battling health issues for several years. He was 84 years old.

An alumnus of PCC, Tarkanian coached the men’s basketball program for two seasons, recording a 67-4 overall record. Known for his team’s swarming defense and fast paced offense, Tarkanian coached the Lancers to a state championship in 1967 and a No. 2 finish in 1968.

“He was a head coach for 38 years, recording 988 victories and is considered the greatest coach in California Community College history with four state titles between Riverside City College and PCC,” PCC statistician Robert Lewis said in a statement.

After his successful coaching career at the community college level, Tarkanian continued his success at the NCAA Division I level, including coaching the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (UNLV) to the 1990 national championship. Tarkanian also had coaching tenures at Long Beach State and Fresno State and guided his teams to four Final Four appearances, 18 NCAA Tournament appearances and 778 university wins. Only twice did his teams fail to win at least 20 games in a season.

Also known as “Tark the Shark,” Tarkanian was a coaching pioneer both on and off the court. On the court he was known for his recruitment of junior college transfers and student-athletes other schools passed on. Off the court Tarkanian was one of the earliest and loudest critics of the NCAA. In 1992 Tarkanian filed a lawsuit against the NCAA claiming that one of the corporation’s investigators was untruthful during an investigation in an effort to get Tarkanian removed from UNLV. Tarkanian was also an advocate for student-athlete’s rights and fought the NCAA for what he called “flawed enforcement practices.”

“I watched a lot of his teams play and I liked his style of coaching,” PCC’s men’s basketball coach Michael Swanegan said. “I think he had a great influence on a lot of coaches because he revolutionized the game in a lot of areas, in terms of fast breaking and playing defense full court.”

Tarkanian’s 1990-91 team became infamous for nearly completing a perfect season, with an average win margin of more than 27 points, before ultimately falling to eventual champion Duke in the national semifinals.

He is seventh in NCAA history with his .784 winning percentage at the NCAA Division I level.

Tarkanian was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in September 2013 and was inducted into the PCC Dick Ratliff Court of Champions on October 6, 2013, where a bust of his head was placed next to many PCC greats outside Robinson Stadium. He attended the induction ceremony and it was his last visit to the college.

“It’s a really tough day for us,” said former UNLV All-American and Cal State Northridge head coach Reggie Theus. “The basketball world has lost a great coach and a great mentor, someone that’s given everything to basketball and meant so much to a lot of people. It’s hard for me because I smile every time I think about him. I have so many great memories of Tark, but I’m really sad. He will be missed.”

Tarkanian is survived by his wife Lois Tarkanian, two sons, Danny, who played for him at U.N.L.V. and George and his two daughters Pamela Tarkanian and Jodie Diamant.

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