WINSTED – Brendan Fritch grew up in a basketball family.
His uncle Mike has won more than 500 games in his long career as head coach of the Torrington High girls. His uncle Ric is the former longtime lieutenant of Northwestern’s Fred Williams, the winningest girls basketball coach in state history, and also a basketball referee.
And his own father, Tom, while not a high school coach, taught fundamentals to youngsters in the local sports leagues when Brendan was growing up in Barkhamsted.
“I’d hear all the stories of what works, what doesn’t, of this situation and that situation in a game,” Brendan recalled. “At Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve, we’d all get together. You’d get the referee’s angle, the coach’s angle. As a basketball guy, I’m sitting there listening and taking it all in like a sponge.”
When Fritch, now 40, was asked for his high school yearbook in 2004 what he’d like to be doing in 20 years, it’s no surprise he answered, “Teaching history and coaching basketball at Northwestern.”
And two decades later, his dream came true. Following the retirement of 22-year head coach Doug Sebach at the end of last season, Northwestern made the obvious move and placed Fritch, Sebach’s longtime assistant, in charge of the program.
He’s only the fourth head coach in the 68-year history of the school, following Pete Avery (1958-61), Leon Veretto (1961-2004) and Sebach (2004-26). A two-time team captain, Fritch played for both Veretto and Sebach, who was his freshman coach.
After graduating from Western New England University, Fritch was hired as a social studies teacher at Northwestern in 2011 and took over the middle school boys team. Four years later, he was promoted to JV coach under Sebach.
Sebach won 329 games, six Berkshire League championships, three BL tournaments and reached the state semifinals three times in 22 seasons. Tactically, Sebach was a “basketball perfectionist,” according to Fritch, who doesn’t foresee major changes in the Highlanders’ system.
“The things he proved worked over the years, we’re not going to change just because there’s someone new (as head coach). I don’t have that big of an ego,” Fritch said. “We’ll do some things different, but a lot of the things, we’ve proven they work, whether it’s presses, press breaks or whatever.”
Fritch learned last January that Sebach planned to step down. Initially, it was daunting to envision coaching without his close friend, whom he still talks with frequently. He even joked that he plans to call Sebach for advice at halftime of games.
That emotion soon subsided, though, replaced by an excitement about taking over the whole program. “I’m excited and hungry,” he said.
Sebach was legendary for his calm courtside demeanor, never receiving a technical foul from an official. Fritch acknowledged he isn’t as reserved. His Uncle Mike, of course, is well-known for his intensity on the Torrington sideline.
“Maybe it’s in the blood,” Brendan joked. “I’m not a screamer or a yeller, but I’m more vocal than Doug. That’s who I am. Doug famously never got a technical foul in 22 years. Not that I’m going to get techs in every game, but if I can go that long without one, I don’t know. We’ll see.”
His staff will include Nick DallaValle, who, like Fritch, is being promoted to JV coach from the middle school level, and former Gilbert star Mike Dalis as varsity assistant.
As he prepares for the first day of practice Dec. 3, being only the fourth head coach at Northwestern has great meaning for Fritch, a student of history.
“The role I have now only three others have had. As a history guy, I’m honored to be in that club with those guys,” he said. “Going here, teaching here, playing here, all those things – Northwestern is a fantastic school, a great place to learn, a great place to play and coach. What I want to build is a program that includes everyone in the community. I think that’s important. I want everyone to feel they have a stake in our success.”
This article originally published at Northwestern boys basketball lifer Brendan Fritch takes over as Highlanders’ fourth head coach.
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