The Morning Dish – Wednesday, March 30th
St. Joseph’s, South Carolina Move in on Title: Although both schools would have preferred a trip to the NCAA Tournament, St. Joseph’s and South Carolina are offering their fans a championship run in the NIT. St. Joseph’s started the NIT’s Final Four action last night with a 70-58 win against Memphis. The Hawks rode senior forward Pat Carroll to another victory as Carroll hit six three-pointers en route to a game-high 24 points. Memphis junior forward Rodney Carney came off the bench to lead the Tigers with 21 points.
Meanwhile in the night cap, South Carolina eliminated the inconsistent Maryland Terrapins 75-67. The Gamecocks overcame early struggles by holding Maryland to less 50 points during the final three-quarters of the game. Senior forward Carlos Powell led South Carolina with 17 points, while juniors Travis Garrison and Chris McCray joined sophomore guard Mike Jones as Maryland’s high men at 15 points apiece.
Nash to Coach St. Francis: St. Francis, N.Y., officials found their next coach – Seton Hall’s Brian Nash. Nash has been an assistant under coach Louis Orr for the past four seasons and has also been an assistant coach at Siena, St. Bonaventure and Sacred Heart. Although he’s covered several jobs in the Northeast, St. Francis, a member of the Northeast conference, will be his first job as a head coach. He replaces Ron Ganulin, who compiled a 187-207 record in 15 seasons. The coaching carousel continues to spin as more coaches are finding new jobs among this off-season’s Coaching Changes .
Ramsey Returns: Eastern Michigan also filled its coaching hole by hiring Michigan assistant coach Charles Ramsey. Ramsey is a graduate of Eastern Michigan and served as an assistant coach under Ben Braun from 1990-93. He also has experience as an assistant at Tennessee State, Drake and California, prior to working under Tommy Amaker at Michigan for the past four years. Ramsey replaces Jim Boone, who racked up a 48-96 record in five seasons.
Smith Staying at Kentucky: Despite rumors that Virginia officials would aggressively court Kentucky coach Tubby Smith for the Cavaliers’ vacant position, Smith met with Wildcat officials to reaffirm his dedication to the program. Smith said he plans to honor the remaining six years of his contract at Kentucky. Virginia officials have not contacted the Wildcats yet, and probably shouldn’t waste the effort based on Smith’s public announcement. Other members of Virginia’s short list include Texas’ Rick Barnes, DePaul’s Dave Leitao and Notre Dame’s Mike Brey, a Duke alum.
One Soph in the Draft, One Out: A pair of sophomore forwards, Connecticut’s Charlie Villanueva and Gonzaga’s Adam Morrison, have NBA aspirations, but only one will make a move this year. Villanueva confirmed what was already suspected – he will enter this year’s NBA Draft, forgoing two years of eligibility at Connecticut. On the other hand, Morrison will return to the Bulldogs for at least another season to help Gonzaga remain the preeminent force among non-major conference programs. Villanueva averaged 13.6 points and 8.3 rebounds per game last season, his first as a major contributor at Connecticut. Morrison averaged 18.5 points per game last season and was the Zags’ most reliable scoring options. With him back, Gonzaga should remain an NCAA-caliber squad capable of winning a few games in the 2006 NCAA Tournament.
St. Mary’s to Keep Bennett Longer: Fresh off the school’s first NCAA Tournament since 1997, St. Mary’s extended the contract of coach Randy Bennett through 2011. Bennett led the Gaels to a 25-9 record, earning the team an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament, in which St. Mary’s lost to Southern Illinois 65-56. Bennett’s new contract increases his pay to a competitive level with his West Coast Conference peers and also adds to the salaries of Bennett’s staff. Bennett joined St. Mary’s in 2001 after the Gaels finished a miserable two-win season.
Top Titan Rewarded: California State – Fullerton officials rewarded coach Bob Burton for guiding the Titans to the NIT, in which the team won two games, by extending his contract through 2010. Burton had completed his second year of his original four-year contract. At the Titans’ helm, Burton guided Cal State – Fullerton back to the post-season for the first time since 1998. The Titans finished the year 21-11.
The Grass Is Greener on the Other Side: As the season wraps up, several players will seek new starts by transferring to another program. After sitting out a year according to NCAA regulations, the transfers will look to get more playing time, enjoy a different playing style or simply spend more quality time closer to home. Several players who announced their intentions to transfer recently include Minnesota’s Miles Webb and Kerry Wooldridge, Purdue’s Adam Liddell and Xavier Price, and Colorado State’s Phillip Thomasson and Stephen Verwers. None of these players averaged more than 15 minutes per game or started more than nine games. Their losses primarily affects their teams’ depth.
And the Nominees Are…: NCAA officials have announced the five finalists for the John R. Wooden Award, given to the nation’s best college basketball player for the season. The nominees are Illinois’ Dee Brown, North Carolina’s Sean May, Duke’s J.J. Redick, Utah’s Andrew Bogut and Kansas’ Wayne Simien. Each player helped get his team to the NCAA Tournament, but May and Brown are the only ones remaining as the Tar Heels and Fighting Illini will play in the Final Four in St. Louis against Michigan State and Louisville, respectively. The Final Four will also be the site for the announcement of the Wooden Award. Smart money goes on Bogut, whose stock is rising faster than any other player’s at this time.
Supreme Court Weighs in on Title IX: The country’s final judicial authority, the Supreme Court, ruled yesterday that Title IX protects whistleblowers from retaliation by their employers if they publicize unequal conditions based on gender. Title IX is the 1972 law that, among other things, requires equal treatment for women’s athletics. Courts have supported the rights of players to sue without fear of retaliation from coaches, administrators or others. But the Supreme Court was the first to extend that right to others who face retaliation. A former coach of a Birmingham, Ala., girls’ high school team was fired after complaining that the players’ facilities failed to match the condition of the boys’ team. The facility featured a smaller basketball court that had bent rims. School officials fired him, and he filed a lawsuit that worked its way through the system to the Supreme Court.
Tonight’s Menu
• It’s a lean night as we’ve got nothing on the plate for either the men or the women. But we do have a glimpse at next year’s fantastic freshmen in the McDonald’s All-American game. Or at least we have a glimpse at some of the NBA’s next generation of 18-year-old bench warmers.
