State Men's Basketball Association to Induct Three Into Hall of Fame   Posted on: Mar 1 2000 4:02PM Former state basketball coaches Calvin Riemcke of the College of Marin and Edward Greene of Contra Costa College and former star player Charles Pittman of Merced College will be inducted into the California Community Colleges Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame during the Hyundai-California Basketball State Championships next month in Stockton. The CCCMBCA Hall o Fame induction ceremony and brunch will take place on Thursday, March 9, the opening day of the 2000 Hyundai-California Men's Basketball State Tournament, at 9 a.m. at the Stockton Radisson Hotel, 2323 Grand Canal Blvd. CCCMBCA members are free. Cost is $20 to non-members. Edward Greene, Contra Costa College As a student-athlete in 1963, Edward Greene began his life's work of teaching basketball. But not even he could have believed it would lead to his induction into the California Community College Men's Basketball Hall of Fame. In 1963, Greene, along with 11 other players and with the assistance of the United States State Department, traveled through Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Ethiopia and Sudan on a goodwill tour. "The goal," Greene said, "was to get them involved in the Olympic Games." That effort didn't pay off until 1984 — some 20 years after his goodwill trip — when those same countries fielded Olympic teams for the first time. After finishing graduate school, Coach Greene set out on a promising coaching career. His first stop was James Logan High School in Union City. After five years at the high school level, Coach Greene landed the head coaching job at Contra Costa College, where only eight years before he had graduated after being selected to the all-state team in 1961. In his 18 years as head coach of the Comets, ending in 1989, Coach Greene's teams posted a 419-170 record (a .711 winning percentage). In five of those seasons, his team posted 25 wins or more, and in 11 others, it totaled at least 20 victories. He also had 14 of his teams qualify for post-season competition, five times reaching the Final Eight. He has had a 22-year relationship with the California Community College Men's Coaches Association. He continues as a physical education instructor at Contra Costa College, where he has worked for 30 years . Charles Pittman, Merced College In some ways you can say his induction into the California Community College Men's Basketball Hall of Fame completes the circle for Charles Pittman. Starting at Merced College, he starred at the University of Maryland, then went on to the NBA. Today, he returns to where it began with his inclusion in the Hall of Fame. Charles Pittman's game took off at Merced College. He led the Blue Devils to the state championship in 1979 as a freshman, when they went 34-1, earning tournament MVP honors and selection to the JC All-American team. As a sophomore, he was one of the leading rebounders in the state, but he was injured during the playoffs and Merced was unable to duplicate its championship season. The Blue Devils posted a 61-7 record during his career there. Pittman left Merced College with a scholarship to the University of Maryland, where his basketball exploits continued. In addition to being one of the Terrapins' leading players, he also began to be known for his citizenship off the court as well as on. He was recognized as one of the university's finest student-athletes. After concluding his career at the University of Maryland in 1982, Pittman was selected by the Phoenix Suns in the NBA draft and played with the Suns for five years. For a long time he held the team's single-game record for field goals (10), finally broken by another Charles — Charles Barkley. After concluding his playing career with the Suns, Pittman went to Italy where played professionally for a few more years. Today, Pittman has returned to the Phoenix Suns, where he works in the public relations office and continues his many community relation efforts. Calvin Riemcke, College of Marin One of the founding members of the California Community College Men's Basketball Coaches Association, Calvin Riemcke, who coached at the College of Marin from 1957 to 1969, helped establish the organization in the late 1950s, and served as its first secretary/treasurer. In his 12 years in the association, Coach Riemcke held several officer positions, including president, and served on a number of committees. On the floor at Marin, he held the title as head men's basketball coach. Riemcke, who holds a master's degree from Berkeley, posted a career record of 199-136 (.594) at Marin. His teams won seven Golden Valley Conference Championships and had another five runner-up finishes. He never had a team finish lower than third place in conference. The Mariners made six state tournament appearances under coach Riemcke. In 1961, his team placed third at the state tournament. He came to Marin after eight seasons as a high school coach at Alhambra and Oxnard in Southern California, recording a combined record of 103-62. He left Marin to become head coach at NAIA Division Whitworth College in Spokane, WA (1969-76), where he ended his career as an active coach. He had a combined won-loss record of 384-292 in 26 years. Coach Riemcke is also an author, having have a published a book entitled, The Guard Freedom Offense for Winning Basketball. He's published numerous articles for professional journals. He retired in 1992 and now lives in Spokane.