Video: Hilltop Hoops - Remembering Champions (March 25, 2015)
The University of San Francisco celebrates the life of one of its own, the only man who holds the distinction of being part of all three of USF Basketball's national championships – in 1949 as a player, and from the assistant coach seat for both the 1955 and 1956 squads. Ross Giudice passed away in his sleep on July 14 at the age of 93, in Sonoma County.

On the court, Giudice played for the Dons from 1945-50, coolly sinking his free throw in the final minute against Loyola-Chicago to secure the 1949 NIT Championship. In that contest, USF led 27-19 at halftime only to see the Ramblers tie the game at 47 with less than 60 seconds remaining. Giudice was fouled and calmly sank his under-handed free throw to give the Dons the lead.

Loyola repeatedly fouled in the closing seconds, but the rules at the time stipulated that the fouled team could refuse the free throw in favor of maintaining possession. USF secured its first national championship after running out the clock, and no one would have imagined what the future had in store for Giudice or the program.

Prior to coming to the Hilltop, Giudice served in the Navy for 38 months during World War II, and was wounded aboard the battleship California in the battle of Leyte Gulf. After earning his degree in accounting from USF and helping the squad to the NIT championship, Guidice was 26 when he was tapped as the head coach of the freshman squad after Phil Woolpert succeeded Pete Newell as the varsity head coach in 1950. He served alongside Woolpert as assistant coach during the most prolific basketball era of Hilltop history.

One of Giudice's most famous pupils was the legendary Bill Russell, and Giudice was involved in Russell's path to USF from the outset.

In an excerpt of the book Dandy Dons, by James W. Johnson, Russell's recruitment, or lack thereof, was explained:

USF freshman forward Dick Lawless had been playing a 3-on-3 pickup game at a Boys Club in Oakland against Russell during the summer before Russell's last year at McClymonds High. Lawless told USF coach Phil Woolpert and assistant coach Ross Giudice about the "string bean" who, when he jumped, towered over the six-foot-four Lawless.
After the game, Lawless asked Russell if he was interested in college. Russell responded that he was, so Lawless told Woolpert that he should keep an eye on him.

"My God, the first time I did see him at a workout, I couldn't believe my eyes," Woolpert said. "He could jump – oh, how he could jump – but he was so ungainly. Still, there was something about Bill then that you just couldn't ignore. He had this rare, wonderful confidence in himself." Russell told Woolpert and freshman coach Ross Giudice, "Gentlemen, I want you to know that I am going to be the University of San Francisco's next All-American."

In another book, Bill Russell: A biography by Murray R. Nelson, Giudice is credited with much of Russell's development, and that of all of the USF players of the time.

Bill credits Giudice with the real refinement and development of his game. Giudice offered to work individually with any player after practice almost any time, and Bill took advantage of that offer. He would often stay two or three hours after practice working with Giudice on his hook shot, his footwork, and his shooting technique. Sometimes they would work out on Saturdays or holidays. As hard as Bill worked, Giudice would match him. He was still in his 20s, and he enjoyed the game so much that this wasn't really work for him. And Bill realized that Giudice was taking him on not because he felt sorry for his limited economic background or his lack of basic skills; rather, Giudice loved the game and his players and he would have done this for any player who wanted to sacrifice time and effort to improve his game. Giudice worked on the finer points of the game that Bill had never really been schooled in – setting screens and getting through them, making different passes for different situations, and most importantly, perfecting the hook shot. … Once Bill was able to perfect hooking with either hand, he became a constant offensive threat near the basket, something he had never been before. Bill repaid Giudice by scoring 461 points, a new freshman record at USF, leading the team to a 19-4 record.

While Russell and company took USF basketball to unimaginable heights including a 60-game winning streak and back-to-back national titles, Giudice's influence on the team in its entirety was unmistakable. In 2015, on the 60th anniversary of the first NCAA Championship team, the men reunited on the Hilltop and reflected on that period of history. The team showed their appreciation for Giudice's guidance as the Dons honored the anniversary with special tribute to their assistant coach.

"Back in 1953-54, I played freshman ball for the University of San Francisco and Ross Giudice was my freshman coach, reflected Gene Brown in 2015. "It's so nice to have played under Ross, especially freshman ball."

"I learned how to play the game from Ross Giudice. It's okay to pass, but make sure you shoot all the time, right?" joked Rudy Zannini at the reunion.

"He took me out of the game and he said, 'Stan do you know how high you got in that last rebound? (Motioning a few inches) This high!' I want to ask you how many coaches in the game of basketball would take you out of the game just to tell you how much you've improved since the start of the season," quipped Stan Buchanan.

"I wish we had more time to spend together as a unit," added Mike Farmer. "It brings back memories of when we were a team. If it wasn't for [Ross], I wouldn't have had a career because I always thought I was going to beat out Russell for center and he told me after my freshman year, you better think about playing another position."

Giudice served as Woolpert's assistant for nine years, and then ascended to the head coach chair for just one year. Giudice stepped down from coaching the Dons after the 1959-60 season to focus on his furniture business, where he worked until the 1990s.

Giudice is preceded in death by his wife Elaine, who passed away in January. He is survived by two daughters, Lisa Giudice of San Rafael and Denise Donald of Sonoma; a son, David Giudice of Rhonert Park; a sister, Mary Mercurio, of San Rafael; and four grandchildren.