Cougs have a trophy coach

Tony Bennett moved into a new house in Pullman within the last year, but he and his family may have to do a little rearranging already – a trophy room is probably in order.

Bennett, who has already won the Pac-10’s coach of the year award and a number of national coach of the year honors, picked up the first “major” national coaching award, winning the Associated Press title in a landslide.

After going 26-8 in his first year as head coach at Washington State, Bennett collected 40 out of 72 first-place ballots in the AP vote, 30 more than Ohio State’s Thad Matta and Texas A&M’s Billy Gillispie.

“What do you do from here?” Bennett said to the AP in Atlanta, where the Final Four begins today. “Having grown up with a father who was a coach and spending my life in this game, I know how fleeting things can be. So I will enjoy this and remember that it is a privilege to coach.”

The accolades may not be done. The Naismith Award, which is arguably the other top coaching honor alongside the AP award, is set to be given out today, and Bennett is a likely choice there as well.

Bennett also picked up the Jim Phelan Award as national coach of the year, as presented by collegeinsider.com. Even before the Naismith Award is given out, Bennett has five national coach of the years in his back pocket.

What’s more, the AP award triggered a $25,000 bonus in his WSU contract, adding to a salary that is already set to increase dramatically with the new contract agreement he and athletic director Jim Sterk are in the process of working out.

In the AP voting, Wisconsin’s Bo Ryan – under whom Bennett once served as an assistant – was the fourth and final coach to garner multiple votes with seven. Oregon’s Ernie Kent, Florida’s Billy Donovan, Virginia’s Dave Leitao, Butler’s Todd Lickliter and Georgetown’s John Thompson III all received one vote apiece.