Monsignor Pace brings back five-time state champion coach Mark Lieberman

Monsignor Edward Pace High School has reached into its trophy-case for a familiar face

More than a decade after leaving Miami Gardens’ Monsignor Edward Pace High School for Rick Pitino’s staff at Louisville, the school announced Wednesday that Mark Lieberman has been hired to once again coach Pace’s boys basketball team.

Lieberman returns to the program he spent 16 years helping build into a state power, now with college coaching experience under his belt from stops at Louisville, FIU and Southeastern Louisiana.

“There aren’t a lot of times that you can go back to where it all began. To a place where it feels like home. This is an opportunity bigger than myself,” Lieberman told the Herald. “We want to bring Pace back to the forefront of athletic dominance.”

Pace won five FHSAA boys basketball state championships (1996, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2008) during Lieberman’s time with the program, including four with him as head coach and one while he was an assistant.

“He brings a tremendous amount of knowledge from the collegiate level,” Pace athletic director Tom Duffin said “We’re excited to see what the future holds for this program.”

His first run at Pace included a 335-95 record over 13 seasons, three state runner-up finishes and 10 Elite Eight appearances. Lieberman was also named FHSAA Coach of the Year in 2003, 2007 and 2008.

After leaving Pace, Lieberman spent time on Rick Pitino’s staff at Louisville, helped the Cardinals reach the 2012 Final Four, then joined his son, Richard Pitino, at FIU for the 2012-13 season. He later served as associate head coach at Southeastern Louisiana University.

The years since

Since Lieberman’s departure, Pace has had flashes of success but has not fully recaptured the dominance of his first run. The Spartans have gone 210-240 since he left for Louisville in 2010, while South Florida programs like Miami Columbus, Miami Norland and NSU University School in Davie have emerged as regional powers.

This past season, Pace reached the Class 3A regional quarterfinals before losing to NSU University, 96-65.

The program’s most recent state championship remains the 2008 title won during Lieberman’s first run, making his return a chance for the Spartans to reconnect with the standard that he helped create.