Year graduated
1971
Major accomplishments
Indiana Ail-Star; Led all scorers in the final four games of the 1971 state tournament with 116 points
When Pete Trgovich (pronounced TUR-go-vich) arrived at UCLA to play college basketball for Indiana native John Wooden, Californians were saying, “Man, we heard you scored 68 points in one game.”
To which Trgovich replied, “No, no, no. It was one day. I had 40 in the afternoon, 28 at night. In California they all talked about the Indiana high school tournament when it was just one winner. Now with class basketball, there’s nothing to talk about anymore.”
The 1969-70 and 1970-71 seasons were magical for The Region, the northwest sector of Indiana where East Chicago is located. East Chicago Roosevelt won the 1970 state championship with a 28-0 record. Washington followed with an equally scintillating season 29-0.
In the middle of the 1969-70 season, Roosevelt was ranked No. 1 and Washington No. 3 when they met. “The papers billed it as the game of the decade,” recalled Trgovich, who became the head basketball coach at East Chicago Central in 2005. “Roosevelt beat us by 23. Other than Bill Walton, I’ve never played with or against anybody more dominant than Jim Bradley of that Roosevelt team. I don’t think the people in East Chicago or in the state of Indiana really appreciate what a talent he was.”
Roosevelt defeated Washington by just three points in the East Chicago sectional final, a game Trgovich believes the Senators should have won. From that game a seed was planted for Trgovich and his teammates.
“Roosevelt was the one that set the bar so high for us,” said Trgovich. “They went undefeated and won the state championship. We figured we were going to do the same thing, which is kind of ridiculous when you think about it, having that goal and fulfilling it.
“Athletically, that was probably the best year of my life. I’ll never forget, another student at the high school said to me, In the championship pictures you look so sad. What were you sad about?’ I said, I just realized the year was all over.’”
That season ended on March 20, when the Senators defeated Floyd Central with a record one-game total in a 102-88 victory in the afternoon session at Hinkle Fieldhouse; and Elkhart, 70-60, in the championship game. Trgovich—who led all scorers in the final four tournament games with 116 points—had 40 points against Floyd Central’s Superhicks, and 28 at night.
“The Superhicks made me a fan,” said Trgovich. “Jerry Hale, their star player, went on to play at the University of Kentucky. We had a lead going into the fourth quarter, and I was guarding Hale. I held him to 12 points in the first three quarters. At the start of the fourth quarter he took me to the baseline and hit a sky hook. I just looked over at the bench with my palms up saying, Ain’t nothing else I could do.’ Hale ended up with 26 points, so he took it to me in the fourth quarter.”
The 1971 Senators of coach John Molodet were ranked No. 1 all season. They scored 100 or more points in eight games, and became the third successive unbeaten state champion. Trgovich’s Senators are considered one of the best teams ever in Indiana.
“There’s no way of knowing which team was really the best,” said Trgovich. “I don’t know who did it, or how they got it, but there was a poll of the greatest high school basketballs teams of all time in the country. They put us at No. 17, which, just being in the top 25, is a huge compliment.
“The team they put in front of us from Indiana was Crispus Attucks of 1955, Oscar Robertson’s junior year. It was comical, because the only thing I cared about was we were ahead of this team from San Diego that featured a 7-foot center named Bill Walton. They were 25th.”
Trgovich narrowed his college choices to UCLA, Notre Dame, Kansas, and North Carolina State. He visited each school; however, Notre Dame was No. 1 on his list, because it was close to home and it was a Catholic school. But a funny thing happened on the way to wearing an Irish uniform.
“When I made my official visit, Johnny Dee was the coach,” said Trgovich.” He resigned maybe two minutes before I walked into the coach’s office. Gene Sullivan was Dee’s assistant and had he got the job, I still would have gone to Notre Dame. Digger Phelps came in, and basically he didn’t want me. And I didn’t care for him.”
ESPN had not come onto the college basketball scene yet, and UCLA was about the only team Trgovich saw on television. “Look how lucky of a kid I was to have these choices. Had I been a little more mature, let somebody walk me through it a little better, maybe I wouldn’t have chosen UCLA. Kansas is the most storied program in the history of basketball. I wasn’t aware of that at the time. UCLA was the thing, and I wanted to be on a winner, and that’s basically how I made my decision.”
Trgovich got two championship rings as a Bruin, in his sophomore and senior seasons, but he says his career at UCLA was “real frustrating.” Freshmen weren’t eligible his first season, and he was homesick much of time. Trgovich feels he earned a starting guard spot as a sophomore, but Wooden preferred to go with a senior.
“I was sixth man for maybe half the year, then my minutes dropped,” Trgovich said. “I was immature, and I didn’t want to accept that, and I showed an attitude.” But the team did claim Wooden’s ninth national title and seventh in a row.
Trgovich says “Coach Wooden always said, 'It takes me a long time to determine my starting lineup, but once I decide, it takes me an equally long time to change my mind.’” Trgovich didn’t start again as a junior, but Wooden changed his mind on his lineup the fourth game of the season in St. Louis, and started Trgovich against N.C. State. The Bruins won by 18 points.
N.C. State ended UCLA’s NCAA winning streak in ‘74 by beating the Bruins in double overtime in the first round of the Final Four. The Wolfpack went on to win the championship. UCLA beat Kansas for third place, so Trgovich played against two of the schools he had considered attending.
After Trgovich had a slow start his senior season, Wooden thought about replacing him in the lineup. “Had that happened, it would have killed me,” said Trgovich. He redeemed himself in the next game. He guarded the leading scorer in the country, and outplayed him. “The reason I did so well in that game is because I no longer had any pressure on me,” said Trgovich. “From that point on I played very, very well.”
The highlight of Trgovich’s UCLA career came in the final conference game of the season against Southern Cal at the Sports Arena. The Bruins had to win that game to make the NCAA tournament, because at that time only the conference champion was eligible.
“The score was tied and USC had the ball,” Trgovich said. “We took a timeout, and I told Coach Wooden, If I steal the ball, what do you want me to do?’ He looked at me like I was crazy. I said, cCoach, do you want me to push it up, or do you want me to call time out?’ He said, cPush it up.’ It was like I was predicting another steal. I had stolen the ball the week before against California to win a game. USC was running a little weave. I gambled and left my man, and sure enough, I stole the ball. They fouled me, and after a time out or two, I sank both free throws and we won the game.”
In the Final Four at San Diego, UCLA defeated Louisville, 75-74, in overtime; and Kentucky, 92-85, in the championship game.
“If you were an Indiana kid, who would you want to play for the national championship?—Kentucky,” said Trgovich. “I got to guard the Mr. Basketball of Kentucky my senior year in high school, Jimmy Dan Connor. The other guard was the Mr. Basketball, Mike Flynn, of Indiana who beat me out my senior year in high school. Jerry Hale was on the Kentucky team, but couldn’t get off the bench because of Connor and Flynn. I scored 14 points in the first half, and only ended up with 16. But I had a really great run in the tournament, and my career ended almost in story-book fashion.”
Trgovich was drafted by San Diego of the ABA, and Detroit of the NBA. San Diego folded before the start of the 1975-76 season. Trgovich didn’t go to the Pistons camp. “It was the biggest mistake of my life,” he said. Trgovich did play one year of minor league basketball with the Rochester, New York, Zeniths, and had a special teammate—Jim Bradley.
Trgovich and his wife, Helen, live in Munster, Indiana. They have a son named Pete, who went to Marian College in Indianapolis in 2005 on a basketball scholarship, and helped the Knights win a conference title in tennis. They also have a daughter, Alaina, who is a senior at Munster High School, and is a nationally ranked tennis player.
Trgovich, who left his supervisor’s job with Inland Steel because he hated it, has coached basketball at Purdue-Calumet in Hammond, South Suburban Junior College in Chicago, and at Andrean High School in Gary before taking over the Cardinals in his hometown. His East Chicago Central High team won a sectional championship in his first season as coach. The team lost in the regional.
“I started coaching at too old of an age,” he said. “To be honest, I never thought I would coach again, and I’m back in it, and I’ve had so much fun. Looking back I wish I hadn’t put so much emphasis on the sport, but what happened to me was that I became one of the luckiest guys in the world— that here was a sport that I love so much, and I ended up having a son that loves it just as much as I do. I’m able to look at him and, through his eyes, see my life all over again.”