"Proud of my fellow championship coaches" NC State HC Kevin Keatts gets a special shoutout from Rick Pitino as Wolfpack advance to Final Four

The Rick Pitino coaching tree continues to showcase its excellence. With NC State qualifying for its first NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four selection in over 40 years, head coach Kevin Keatts became the fourth assistant under coach Pitino to make it to the Final Four.

His achievement was as commendable as it was shocking. A few weeks ago, NC State as the 10th seed in the ACC, felt like an outside bet to even make it to the ACC Tournament, let alone make a run in the NCAA March Madness.

Their incredible run drew a ton of support online, with the legendary Hall of Fame coach joining the proceedings to congratulate his former assistants, including Kareem Richardson, who is working as an assistant head coach for the Wolfpacks.

"So proud of my fellow championship coaches - Kevin Keatts n Kareem Richardson. Blocked out all the noise, handled everything with brilliance n class. So happy for you men!!!"

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How did Kevin Keatts fare with Coach Rick Pitino?

After a long head coaching tenure at Hargrave Military Academy that was wildly successful (262-17 record in 10 years), Kevin Keatts joined the staff of coach Rick Pitino in Louisville.

Their run saw the team make it to the Final Four twice, in back-to-back seasons in 2012 and 2013. The latter of those years saw the team win the national title which was later vacated by the NCAA Committee due to recruiting violations.

His coaching prowess impressed Pitino, who promoted him to the associate head coaching position before Keatts took the head coaching job at UNC Wilmington.

What's next for NC State?

The Cinderella run for NC State faces its biggest adversary yet. In the Final Four, the team is set to battle Zach Edey and the Purdue Boilermakers. Last season, Purdue lost in a huge 1 vs. 16 upset.

This season, they've been markedly better, dominating each game en route to victory. NC State's calling card is their defense, which has forced six consecutive games of opponents shooting below 40%.

Their last match, against Duke, saw them force the Blue Devils to a season-worst 32.2% from the field. That defense will need to come in handy against a vaunted Purdue offense, led by Zach Edey, who is a candidate for National Player of the Year after winning the award last season.

During his team's NCAA run, he has averaged 30 points and over 16 rebounds a night. Further, in his team's back-and-forth 72-66 victory over 2nd-seeded Tennessee, he finished his best game of the season, compiling 40 points and 16 rebounds, while shooting nearly 62% from the field.

Do you think NC State can pull off the miracle? Let us know in the comments below.