Northeast Notebook
Blackbird Coach Flees the Coop
It seems like just yesterday I sat in a packed Schwartz Center at Long Island University for the NEC finals. It was a heavily favored LIU team versus underdog Fairleigh Dickinson. FDU pulled off the upset and earned a bid to the 1998 NCAA tournament. LIU would go on to the NIT. They haven’t been the same since.
After 3-plus years and a 30-61 record Blackbird headcoach Ray Martin has
called it quits. An 0-9 start can do that to a guy. Injuries and
inconsistency have been at the top of the excuse list for the team.
Assistant coach Ron Brown will take the job on an interim basis.
Like most inner city schools LIU doesn’t have a campus, collegiate
atmosphere, or picturesque grounds to offer a potential basketball player. It
does have an NYC address and a strong fan base that loves their Blackbirds.
Coach Martin hopes to latch on somewhere else and get back to winning
basketball games. The Blackbirds have the same aspirations.
Player of the Week
Wagner Senior Guard Yves Kabore
6-0, 175 lbs., Queens, NY/Holy Cross
Part of the upperclassmen-dominated Seahawks for Coach Whitenburg, Kabor has
stepped in at the point for Courtney Pritchard after he suffered a broken
hand. Kabore has responded with arguably the best stretch of ball in his
entire career. He recently helped lead the Seahawks to an 88-83 home win
over Colonial power Virginia Commonwealth, and a 69-58 victory one week
later at American, formerly of the CAA and now a member of the Patriot League. Kabore helped kick-start the Wagner offense by averaging 17.0 points, 4.0 assists and 3.0
rebounds. In the victory over American Kabore went on to tally a
career-high 21 points.
