Bruce Pearl is fast becoming the gem of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Not only did he bring his winning ways from the University of Southern Indiana in Evansville to UWM, he has quickly immersed himself in the community at large.
As the head coach of the UWM men’s basketball team, Pearl, 43, led the Panthers to 16 wins last season — the most by a first-year coach in the program’s 106-year history. And that record hurled the team to its first NCAA Division I tournament.
Having predicted success when he was hired in April 2001, Pearl said, “This is a great time to be at UWM…. I have a passion for coaching and working with young people, and I believe the foundation is set for the program to compete for championships.”
His passion for sports and kids began back in his hometown of Sharon, Mass., near Boston, where he played football, basketball and baseball.
“I went on to Boston College but wasn’t good enough to make the [basketball] team,” Pearl explained in a recent interview in his office. “So I worked as an administrative assistant for men’s basketball just to stay connected … and coached youth ball because I loved it.
“I had great youth coaches who motivated and inspired me, and most of all taught me how to compete. I am thrilled I have the chance to pass that along to young people.”
Noting the some 50 pink phone message slips on his desk, Pearl said he’ll try to get back to as many of the callers as he can.
“This is my program, so it’s important that I’m personally involved. I’m working hard to develop a fan base and I really enjoy it. If someone in the community is asked to support the program, the request should come from me. I’m involved in charity work and do a lot of speaking engagements because I want to build relationships within the community.
Fundraising is crucial to the growth and success of any athletic program,” he said.
At such events, after opening with “self-deprecating humor,” Pearl said he advocates for UWM to educate the community about the school’s importance. “I speak with an open-heart and search to find common ground among community leaders.”
His warmth apparent during the interview, Pearl said he acquired many of his personal values from his family. “My grandparents were Orthodox and I celebrated my bar mitzvah at a Conservative synagogue. I’ve always worn my Jewish heritage, with pride, on my sleeve.”
But he faced some anti-Semitism growing up, he admitted. “I attended many athletic banquets where the invocation was not ecumenical and I felt left out.”
“And,” he mused, “after the National Anthem was played at games, my teammates always crossed themselves for good luck. I figured I could use good luck, too, so I made a Jewish star. After the game, my dad asked, ‘What were you doing?’”
‘ Whole new world’
Always proud of him, Pearl’s family encouraged him to be the best he could be. And that’s what he conveys to his student athletes.
“I never imagined a career in coaching, so I majored in marketing and economics. But, in 1982 after I graduated, I got a lucky break. Since I’d been working under BC coach Dr. Tom Davis, when he took the head position at Stanford, he took me with him as an assistant coach. And, I followed him to the University of Iowa before ending our 14-year association when I took the top spot at USI.
“It was an incredible opportunity for me to launch my career at a Division I school. I learned so much from Coach Davis and I’m still learning.”
Pearl came to UWM “because it was time in my career when I was ready for another challenge. Actually, the city of Milwaukee was a key reason. It offers a lot for my family — my wife, Kim, and four children, Jacquie, 17, Steven, 16, Leah, 10, and Michael, 8.”
Acknowledging that moving is always the toughest on the kids, he said the move here was a family decision.
“Evansville was a great community, and we were always respected for going to synagogue. But the kids had no Jewish camaraderie because there were so few Jewish kids. Now we live in Fox Point and attend Congregation Shalom, which has opened up a whole new world for them.”
For example, son Steven has become active in the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization, and celebrated his bar mitzvah this fall.
“At 16, it was hard for him to study with 13-year-olds,” said his father. “He really went it alone because it was important to him. Rabbis Ronald Shapiro and Shari Shamah and Cantor Karen Berman made such a wonderful connection with him.
“Since coming to Milwaukee, I’ve had big games and our family has had other important occasions, but everyone came in for Steven’s bar mitzvah,” Pearl beamed.
Pearl’s family values also transfer to his players. “The guys come over a lot and Kim learned early on in my career how to get 20 pounds of potatoes out of a 10-pound bag,” he quipped.
Admitting to living a hectic life, Pearl said he tries to take one or two of his own kids along when the team travels. “Instead of having them resent the players, my kids are a part of it. It helps me bond with them and they with the team and coaching staff.
“I give my players my best and I expect the same from them. [W]hen they are out running at 7 a.m., I’m right there with them. And, as much as I care about their performance on the court, I care just as much about their class work. My motto is ‘No class, no play.’”
So far, Pearl’s greatest accomplishments are winning the Division II NCAA Championship in 1995 at USI (the year he was named National Association of Basketball Coaches Coach of the Year) and taking UWM to the Division I NCAA Championship for the first time last year. His greatest failings, he said, are when players don’t receive their degree.
“I take it very personally.”
He believes this season is going to be a real boost for the UWM program because the team is playing its games at the US Cellular Arena downtown.
“For the program to grow, we need a larger audience. There may be something lost in not playing in the Klotsche Center because it’s on campus, but the [change] in venue is already attracting national attention for us. That we’re going to play North Carolina State on national television [on Sunday, Dec. 7 on Fox Sports Net “ACC Game of the Week”] is unbelievable.”
Anticipating the season opener on Saturday, Nov. 22, Pearl will once again adhere to his basic strategy — “Losing isn’t an option.”
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