The Morning Dish – Friday, December 24th
USC Closing in on New Coach: USC officials are still on the hunt for a new coach following the Rick Majerus fiasco. But they are close to hiring Tim Floyd, a successful college coach at New Orleans and Iowa State but a terrible NBA coach. Floyd has a 208-107 record as a collegiate coach and an amazingly bad 90-231 record as an NBA coach. The Trojans must wait for Floyd to work out the details of a previous contract with the New Orleans Hornets. He still receives payments from his former employers. Once he cuts those ties, USC and Floyd will be free to finalize a contract.
Meanwhile, the Trojans lost to Hawaii 72-68 in the Outrigger Rainbow Classic. The Rainbow Warriors continued their hot start, moving to 8-0. Under coach Jim Saia, the Trojans are now 4-2. Regardless of who the Trojans hire, officials seem inclined to keep Saia on the sidelines for the remainder of this season to provide some semblance of consistency for the players. USC remains a possible NCAA Tournament team in a relatively weak Pac-10 conference.
Krauser Ends Richmond’s Upset Bid: Junior guard Carl Krauser put up 31 points, scoring nearly half of Pittsburgh’s 69 points in a 69-50 win against Richmond. The Spiders kept the game close, pulling within four with a little more than three minutes remaining. The Panthers made their free throws when it counted, despite hitting only 57 percent for the game. From long distance, the Panthers were uncharacteristically accurate, hitting 50 percent of the team’s three-point attempts. Krauser’s career-high more than made up for the absence of shooting guard Antonio Graves, who missed the game with a sprained ankle.
Virginia Escapes from the Lions: Virginia survived an upset-minded Loyola-Marymount team 79-77 in overtime. Sophomore guard J.R. Reynolds floated in the game-winning layup with about five seconds remaining in overtime. The Lions had rallied from a four-point deficit in the final minute of overtime and appeared ready to force a second session before Reynolds won the game for the Cavaliers. And Virginia needed the game to end as quickly as possible. Senior leaders Devin Smith and Elton Brown both were gone – Smith injured an ankle in the second half and did not return, and Brown fouled out after scoring 25 points. Sophomore forward Matthew Knight was unstoppable for the Lions, scoring 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Playing with a smaller lineup with the absence of starting forward Jason Clark, the Cavaliers allowed the Lions to grab nine more rebounds in the game.
Lackluster Terps Beat American: Despite another solid performance by junior guard John Gilchrist, Maryland seemed to play in a funk for most of the team’s 82-61 win against American. Until midway through the second half, the Eagles appeared poised to upset the Terps. Then Maryland went on a 16-0 run that sealed the game. Maryland allowed American to shoot better than 45 percent from the field. Gilchrist led all scores with 20 points and added five assists and four rebounds. American was led by senior guard Jason Thomas’ 14 points.
D.C.’s Best: George Washington lengthened its winning streak to eight games with an 81-71 win at Florida International. The Panthers did not back down, however, and led by as many as eight in the first half before the Colonials increased the pressure. Guard T.J. Thompson hit six three pointers to lead George Washington with 25 points. Florida International stifled the Colonials’ star, Pops Mensah-Bonsu. But junior forward Mike Hall responded by scoring 14 points and grabbing eight rebounds off the bench. The teams’ statistics mirrored each other: Both shot 51 percent from the floor, shot about 60 percent from the free throw line and committed 24 turnovers. Thompson’s three-point shooting spree provided the difference.
Endangered Tigers: Memphis dropped to 6-6 after a 72-59 loss to Providence at home. A winter storm kept many fans away and apparently froze the Tigers’ shooters. Memphis shot only 33 percent from the floor. Only junior forward Rodney Carney warmed up, scoring 22 points in the loss. Fellow team leader Sean Banks added 17 points, but the rest of the team managed only 20 points. Providence senior forward Ryan Gomes shined brighter than his opponents’ superstars by scoring 24 points and grabbing eight rebounds to lead the Friars to a much-needed road win. The loser of this game, Memphis, has a long road ahead to try to grab an NCAA Tournament berth. According to ESPN analysts, only one team has reached the NCAA Tournament after posting six non-conference losses: Michigan State in 2004.
Saints Limp to Loss to Fordham: With three players recently injured and a 2-7 record, Siena did not figure to win at Fordham. Junior forward Michael Haddix learned he had a broken left leg that will force him to miss at least three weeks. Haddix is the only Saint to score in double figures consistently, averaging 16.3 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. In addition to Haddix, freshman guard Kojo Mensah will miss two weeks with a stress fracture in his left leg and another freshman guard, Albert Fisher, missed last night’s game with a bruised sternum. Despite the injury-riddled lineup, the Saints gave Fordham a challenge before losing 69-59. Freshman guard Jack McClinton scored 21 points to lead all scores. But the team shot less than 40 percent from the floor, offering little support. Only five players scored for the Rams, but it was enough to give them the win.
