"When I look back at the early years when we got in the tournament and lost early, I realize I didn't handle it well," Wooden said. "We should have done better. When we got in tournament play in my early years, I overworked them mentally and emotionally. I forgot what got us there. I always wanted to add something else, and I tried to teach something new in a hurry. I think subconsciously I wanted to win so much that I hurt ourselves in doing that. I think I learned a lot as I got more tournament experience." Five of the 14 coaches debuting in the 2001 NCAA Division I Tournament won their opener--North Carolina's Matt Doherty, Georgetown's Craig Esherick, Butler's Thad Matta, Northwestern State's Mike McConathy and Hampton's Steve Merfeld. Esherick has joined a minority group of less than one-fourth of the nearly 600 individuals to coach in the NCAA playoffs and have a winning tournament record. Among the active luminaries to get off on the wrong foot before eventually reaching the Final Four were Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, Arizona's Lute Olson (Iowa) and Arkansas' Nolan Richardson (Tulsa). Krzyzewski (lost to Washington in 1984), Olson (Toledo in 1979) and Richardson (Houston in 1982) dropped their debuts by four points or less despite having better-seeded teams than their initial opponents.