NEW YORK, March 1 – Detroit Pistons head coach Rick Carlisle today was named the IBM Coach of the Month for games played during the month of February.

Carlisle led the Pistons to a 9-3 record, including a 4-1 record on the road during the month.

The Pistons held their opponents to 87.6 points per game, second only Miami’s 85.2 points per game. They defeated the Eastern Conference leading New Jersey Nets 85-80 on the road on February 14th. The win at New Jersey began a five-game winning streak that also included victories against New York, Washington and twice versus Toronto.

Carlisle guided the Pistons to their best monthly record since February 1997 when the team went 10-3. February saw the Pistons complete season sweeps over New Jersey, New York and Toronto.

Other candidates for the IBM Coach of the Month award were Cleveland’s John Lucas, Miami’s Pat Riley, New Jersey’s Byron Scott, Orlando’s Doc Rivers, Philadelphia’s Larry Brown, Portland’s Maurice Cheeks, Seattle’s Nate McMillan and Utah’s Jerry Sloan.

As the "Official Information Technology Partner of the NBA," IBM creates technical solutions for the NBA. The IBM Advanced Scout ("data mining") Program for the IBM Think Pad aids NBA coaches in their scouting, team analysis and game preparation, while the IBM Coach of the Month and IBM Coach of the Year awards recognize their achievements.