UMass at the Holiday Festival

Ford Guides UMass Into New Year, New Era

by Ray Floriani

NEW YORK – Some opposing coaches will watch film of Keydren Clark and feel like they are viewing a horror movie. The nightmare being how to stop or try to curtail the explosive scoring of the St. Peter’s senior. UMass head coach Travis Ford took a different approach. He simply sat back and admired.

“He (Clark) is a pleasure to watch,” Ford said after a 66-49 UMass victory over St. Peter’s in the Panosonic Holiday Festival semifinal. “He just looks so smooth out there. He makes it look so easy and even though he puts up those numbers, he doesn’t force a shot and is very unselfish. He is just a great asset to college basketball.”

Admiration aside, the UMass mentor had a task of slowing Clark down and making sure he didn’t have one of those explosive nights. On his behalf, Ford is not of the opinion that you concede the scoring threat his points while stopping the others from hurting you. Ford believes you go right at a team’s strength. “We wanted to trap him off screens and keep him away from the basket, ” Ford said. “Some of the shots he made tonight were thirty-footers.”

UMASS did the job on the defensive end. Ford’s game plan was executed admirably. Clark scored a game-high 22 points. He shot 8-of-23 from the floor, which included 4-of-11 beyond the arc. “Whenever I got past a (UMass) guard,” Clark said, “There was a 6-10 defender just waiting.” Most of the time that 6-10 player was Stephane Lasne, effectively clogging the lane and blocking eight shots.

Ford admired Clark’s ability and St. Peter’s determination. But there were numerous observers who, in turn, had to recognize the job the UMass mentor did the festival. Case in point: UMass is down 27-14 at the break in the finals against St. John’s (who rolled over Columbia in the other semi). Ford’s demeanor never changed. He’s intense on the sideline but in a teaching sense. Rarely ‘working’ the officials, Ford is concerned with his team and improving day to day.

St. John’s probably played their best defensive half of the season in the first twenty minutes of the final. The Minutemen were an icy 19 percent (5-27) from the field. The inside game was shut down, guards were neutralized, and 6-6 forward Jeff Viggiano, an effective scoring threat against St. Peter’s, struggled to get a shot off.

Ford never ranted, raved nor panicked. All it took was a few adjustments in the offensive sets and spacing. The results were immediate: UMass scored 12 points during the first six possessions of the second half. The 12-4 run put the Minutemen back in the contest.

The game, threatening to be a one-way laugher at the half, proved to be an entertaining and competitive affair. Fittingly, it wasn’t settled until the final possession. UMass, trailing by a point, was unsuccessful on a guard penetration and the buzzer sounded as both teams fought for the rebound. The record books will show it to be a 51-49 St. John’s win. St. John’s improved to 7-4 while UMass dropped to 5-4. The Minutemen have a game at Boston College just after the new year. Following that meeting, it’s all Atlantic 10 Conference action for the Minutemen.

Ford will be going through his first trip through the conference. That can be tough for someone not familiar with the league. He does, however, have some knowledge of the league.

“I followed Xavier and Dayton pretty close the last few seasons,” Ford said alluding to his days as Eastern Kentucky head coach. “I know it is a very good league. Last year was a down year in the conference, but this year it will be strong. This is a four (NCAA) bid conference,” he added. “I guarantee we will have at least four schools in the (NCAA) tournament.”

The addition of St. Louis and Charlotte enhance the league, but the traditional names and faces will be present. “Temple and St. Joe’s are consistently strong teams in the conference,” Ford added, “they’ll be good again this season.”

UMass, in all likelihood, will not challenge for the A-10 crown. But they will be competitive on a nightly basis. Beside Lasme, they have a solid inside presence in 6-9 Rashaun Freeman. The junior backcourt of Brandon Thomas and Maurice Maxwell is good. The aforementioned Viggiano is a hustling type that can get you a rebound, give an assist, hit a three or dive for a loose ball. “He (Viggiano) doesn’t do anything great,” Ford says, “but he does many things well.”

The same may be said for the Minutemen. Not great, but they can be effective in different areas. Under Ford’s guidance, they’ll be a fun team to watch and should get fans back to the Mullins Center.

Holidays At St. Peter’s

Holidays at St. Peter’s

by Ray Floriani

JERSEY CITY, N.J. – There was excitement among St. Peter’s tonight. It wasn’t simply a festive holiday mood on this evening three days before Christmas: a good turnout was on hand to see the annual FDU – St. Peter’s contest. The two always seem to meet right around the holidays. The conferences are different – FDU of the Northeast and St. Peter’s the MAAC. Still, there are bragging rights as the two schools are roughly fifteen miles apart. Hosting FDU meant excitement. What lay ahead added a spice of anticipation.

As noted Christmas was three days away. But for St. Peter’s, another big date or dates followed the 25th. On those evenings, the ‘Jesuit college of New Jersey’ would cross the Hudson River, with full knowledge of no transit strike in New York, and play in the Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden.

The St. Peter’s players and fans look toward the festival with great expectancy. The fans do as well. Especially the ‘more seasoned’ who remember the smoky nights in the Armory, just three blocks East of Yanitelli. In those days, St. Peter’s, under the late Don Kennedy, would regularly frequent MSG. And who among that loyal fan base could forget the ’68 NIT in front of a crowd of 19,500? The first order of Business on this evening though was FDU, and the homestanding Peacocks delighted the Yanitelli Center faithful with an 82-77 victory.

Keydren Clark led the way for St. Peter’s with a game-high 27 points. Even FDU coach Tom Green had to note that his defense didn’t do a poor job on St. Peter’s outstanding scorer. “We knew Kiki (Clark) could get his points,” Green said. “We were just hoping he wouldn’t go for 40 like he did to us last year. (Todd) Sowell was the one who killed us.”

A 6-7 sophomore forward, Sowell scored 25 points and hauled down 18 rebounds, eight on the offensive boards. Sowell’s scoring presence took pressure off Clark. In return Clark gave the ball up (9 assists) if the defense cheated and Sowell was the prime beneficiary.

As tough as things were for FDU, they were right there in crunch time. “I can still see the scoreboard saying 1:11 to go we’re down three,” Green recalled, “and we throw the ball away.”

Chad Timberlake led FDU with 20 points and remarked later, “I’m getting tired of these close ones.” FDU’s last 6 games have been decided by eight or less points, with the Knights slitting the half dozen.

FDU fell to 5-5 while St. Peter’s after an 0-4 start has now won 5 straight and is 5-4.

For St. Peter’s coach Bob Leckie, next week marks a return to Madison Square Garden. “I played and coached in the Garden,” he said. “I played in the ‘old Garden’ (in the 1967 NIT) as well as the new (or current) one.”

To get an idea how exited the St. Peter’s team is over playing on the same floor the New York Knicks call home, Leckie spoke about the game day schedule. “We have the Garden from 11:00 until noon on Tuesday (the day of the festival semis). I asked the team if they would want a short practice and shootaround during that time. The response was an overwhelming yes. They can’t wait until they get on that floor.”

Clark played once at MSG during his career. It was during his high school days at Rice High School. To return the ‘The world’s most famous arena’ in a St. Peter’s uniform has added significance.

“For any New York City player it is a dream to play in the Garden,” Clark said.

The St. Peter’s senior guard is also dealing with the arduous task of handling ticket requests. “I’ll have about 40 family and friends there,” he says with a smile.

St. Peter’s faces UMass in the festival tip off on Tuesday, while Columbia faces St. John’s in the nightcap. The consolation and finals are on Wednesday. Two guaranteed games, non-conference competition and an honor to represent the MAAC. For St. Peter’s, it promises to be both a great experience and opportunity.

Redick’s Big Day

Redick Puts on a Show for the Fans

by Ray Floriani

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Duke and Texas didn’t really give us a competitive game. But it was a great show. The atmosphere and excitement, as well as a special performance, hinted of March not early December.

It is just before noon. Ninety minutes until game time and there is already a crowd outside Continental Airlines Arena. The game is a complete sellout; prime tickets are going for as much as $500 on Ebay. In this morning’s Newark Star Ledger, there was a piece about how three teenage girls from a northern New Jersey high school bought tickets for $130 each on the Ebay. Why? They love Duke and J.J. Redick, and they had the money.

Duke assistant Mike Jarvis III is under the basket as the Blue Devils warm up. We discuss the Virginia Tech game that Duke survived on a forty-footer by Sean Dockery. “Each year,” Jarvis said, “you have to get a few of those.” He went on to note how great the atmosphere was in Duke’s win at Indiana.

Among those credentialed is Adam Kamras, the Public Relations Director of Cecil Community College in Maryland. He is up here to interview Craig Winder, a 6-2 junior guard who starred a Cecil before transferring to Texas. Winder’s presence on the Texas squad is a big thing as Kamras notes the coach Bill Lewit brought the entire team to today’s game.

Just before heading upstairs, Duke assistant Chris Collins asked if I refereed this morning. In fact I did, it was a twenty-seven point blowout in a girls’ game. “Wow,” Collins replied, “at least you’ll see a close one here.” How ironic Collins’ words would turn out to be.

Beer sales are brisk and I notice the vendors have small bottles of white and red wine at their stands, probably for the older Duke alums who want a sip of merlot.

Concession stands are very busy as hats, shirts and assorted items are moving. Duke enjoys a significant, though not monumental edge, in this category. Fans making their way around the arena proudly display their allegiance. Again, Duke has a good lead. A number of fans have jerseys of their favorite players. Redick has a big lead in that area. A few Texas fans have Rose Bowl shirts – probably a reminder to Duke that you might beat us today, but we own you on the gridiron.

Two young ladies, Mary and Amy, are on a food court line and holding Duke signs. They are not Duke graduates, just fans who adore the Blue Devils and made the trip from Pennsylvania. Amy has a Redick sign, though she is wearing number 21. “Duhon was my favorite,” she said. “I like Battier too.” How about Bobby Hurley, I ask to test her sense of history and allegiance. “I loved Bobby Hurley, I thought he was great,” she said, “how could anyone not like Bobby Hurley?” Agreed, case closed.

A woman in a Texas jersey #2 for PJ Tucker, is in the front row snapping pictures and shouting encouragement to the Longhorns as they warm up. She proudly says that she is Tucker’s grandmother and she and 85 others made the bus trip from Raleigh, North Carolina to see their favorite son play. Interesting that Tucker rejected the ACC to head to Texas. “They (ACC schools) were after him,” she said, “but after visiting Texas, he came back and said that is the place for me. I don’t know what coach (Rick) Barnes said,” she adds with a laugh, “but that had to be some visit.”

Game time. Duke goes inside the first few possessions and Sheldon Williams converts. The Blue Devils are following an axiom John Chaney always preaches: establish the inside game before the outside.

Duke starts opening it up at the midway point and Redick is on fire. The Duke senior guard has the ability to run off a screen catch on the run and in seemingly one motion, establish himself and quickly release the shot. It happens so quick but he never forces.

Texas’ Brad Buckman leaves the game late in the first half with a calf injury. He will not return, but even during his seven-minute outing, Buckman struggled with the Duke big men, notable Williams.

At the half, it is 45-33 Duke, and Redick has 22 points. Of equal significance is the ease which Duke is getting their looks. Texas, on the other hand, seems to struggle for virtually every basket. While Duke has been successful inside and out, Texas has only been proficient inside: the Longhorns have 15 field goals but only one trey and two fifteen-footers.

The Arena is jammed with NBA scouts. Dermon Player is in attendance but not in an official scouting capacity today. He will begin his duties with the Charlotte Bobcats after the new year. We spoke at the half and naturally Redick was the topic. “He (Redick) is great coming off screens, but he has improved immensely in getting his own shot off the dribble,” Player notes. “Any team with a need for him and the opportunity would be foolish not to draft him.”

Texas regroups and makes an early second half run to cut it to 50-44. It is a crucial juncture for both teams, but Duke responds with a knockout punch: a 16-0 run, fueled by Redick that, for all intents, decides the contest. Redick is unconscious with his shooting touch. But it’s not all firing jumpers. He is distributing the ball, taking a charge and doing the ‘little’ things that do not always show up in the box score.

With about 6 minutes to play Redick strokes a three to give him a career-high 39 on the day. The next trip down the floor he aggressively battles in the lane and rebounds a Texas miss, all with the Blue Devils up over twenty at this point. The game is in hand, yet Redick is still hustling on both ends.

It is basically all Duke, to the delight of most of the crowd. Texas had a good contingent on hand, but by the latter part of the contest they can only watch in disbelief and awe. Still, the work of 6-10 sophomore LeMarcus Aldridge (21 points 6 boards) is a bright spot.

The final is 97-66 Duke. Redick finishes with 41 points on 13-of-24 from the floor, including 9-of-16 beyond the arc. Willams added 23 points as well.

Duke had an alumni pep band and cheerleaders present. Cheer captain Alli Gardner, a senior from Chicago, has been to the Garden last season and now Continental Airlines Arena, and was amazed at the Duke turnout and fans in both cases. “It feels like a home game at Cameron,” she says. Good point, and Texas probably felt like it was.

In the aftermath, there was deep disappointment on the Texas side. It’s nothing related to the one versus two issue; after all, it still is early December, a point Barnes made to his team following the game. The Texas coach also noted, “You have to take games like this and learn from them.”

The darkest cloud for Texas was over the inability to take care of the ball and consistently defend. Still, there were times defense was not enough.

“A lot of his (Redick’s) shots were defended with a hand in his face,” Texas guard Daniel Gibson said. ” But he knocked down those shots, he’s just a great player.”

Another concern was the Longhorns’ inability to respond after cutting it to six early in the second half.

“When we got it to five early in the second half,” Barnes noted, “Duke responded but we didn’t.”

As Tucker noted though, there is plenty of time before the two could possibly meet three months from now.

“We know we are good,” Tucker said, “but we have to learn to defend the entire possession.”

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski felt Texas’ losing Buckman was a key. Still, with or without him, as well as Redick was playing and the entire team for that matter, there was little Texas could do.

“J.J. had a spectacular performance,” Krzyzewski said, adding, “he is as good as they come.”

No one who witnessed this vintage performance would dare argue.

Jimmy V Classic

Jimmy V Classic Got Better as the Night Went Along

by Ray Floriani

NEW YORK – The night didn’t start out too well. The elevator taking us to the press room on the 6th floor of Madison Square Garden was not functioning. We, including Hoopville managing editor Phil Kasiecki, assembled on the freight elevators which the players often use. We exited on the fourth floor – still two to go. There was another elevator, but it was not working. “Don’t worry,” I tell Phil, “I know this place.” We use a stairway to get to the sixth floor. At the top of the stairs is a door – great, but it doesn’t open from our end. We knock on the door and luckily a young lady from the promotions department was passing by and opened it to let us in. All of us, especially the Michigan Sate radio crew who actually woriied about being stranded in an MSG stairwell, were happy and relieved. From there, it got better.

Revenge? Not really

A year ago, St. Joseph’s ventured to Allen Fieldhouse in Kansas and left with a 40-point beating. St. Joseph’s coach Phil Martelli will be quick to note it could have been worse, only Kansas mentor Bill Self was gracious. In the opener of the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden, the Hawks showed how much difference the year made with a 70-67 victory. For Martelli, the greatest joy and satisfaction was not any payback motive. Rather, it was his team buying into a game plan.

“We wanted to jam the lane and they came out hitting threes,” Martelli said.

Down 17-4 early, Martelli called time out to reinforce his game plan and emphasized that the Hawks believe in it. The percentages would catch up to Kansas and the marksmen would cool off outside the arc. The Hawks listened, believed and slowly chipped away, and after a Dwayne Lee three at the halftime buzzer, only trailed 34-31.

St. Joseph’s victory was possible largely due to senior guard Chet Stachitas, who scored a game high 27 points. Stacithas had a 17-point second half and was 6-of-7 from beyond the arc.

“What I like about Chet’s three point shooting,” Martelli said, “is that they are open shots, which means his teammates are delivering the ball and he is properly being screened. He is the type of player we should enjoy. He plays the way we all used to play – he’s constantly in motion.”

While Stachitas’ performance was big for St. Joe’s, they also received a shot in the arm fron two players who played their high school ball just a few miles away on the other side of the Hudson River. Lead guard Dwayne Lee scored 13 points and handed out seven assists while defending in a solid forty-minute night, while freshman forward Ahmad Nivins came off the bench for an 11-point, five-rebound contribution. Both Lee and Nivins are products of powerhouse St. Anthony’s of Jersey City, N.J.

“If you are from Jersey City, just getting a loaf of bread there means you’re tough,” Martelli said. “After playing for coach Bob Hurley at St. Anthony’s, Lee and Nivins must think I’m like Pope John Paul II,” Martelli added in jest.

St. Joe’s improved to 4-1 while Kansas dropped to 3-4. Said Kansas coach Bill Self: “We have had a tough three weeks. It has been a little frustrating because we haven’t experienced success. We are not that far off.”

Self has a combination of 11 players who are freshman or sophomores on his roster. Some of them, like freshmen guards Mario Chalmers and Brandon Rush plus forward Julian Wright, are talented. They key is consistency. Rush, for example, had 10 points in the game’s first six minutes, then finished with only 13. Again, consistency and patience are keys.

“You have to learn how to play to finish people,” Self said in reference to his young group, “and we haven’t done that.”

In the nightcap, Michigan State defeated Boston College 77-70. In a physical, defensive battle over the course of the first half, BC took a 27-26 lead into the locker room at intermission. Early in the second half, Michigan State got a few baskets in transition, continued to attack the glass and went on to post the victory.

Maurice Ager, who benefited by the Spartans’ second half transition, led Michigan State with 22 points. Jared Dudley of BC paced all scorers with 23, while teammate Craig Smith also came up big with 18 points. In the second half, Paul Davis was a huge factor for Tom Izzo’s club, as the 6-11 senior center scored 14 of his 18 points following the halftime break. Davis added 7 boards and was 6 of 6 from the charity stripe.

Notes

• A good representation of NBA scouts were in attendance for the doubleheader.
• The Garden scoreboard keeps a rundown of key games. One of the intriguing matchups on the board was the Villanova-Bucknell contest, won by Jay Wright’s Wildcats. A Kansas media relations representative was asked if he was rooting for ‘Nova against Bucknell. “Oh, we try to not even bring up that Bucknell game (first round of last year’s NCAAs),” he courteously responded.
• Speaking of St. Anthony’s, coach Bob Hurley and assistant Damiel Ling were in attendance at the Garden.
• Hurley noted the 6-9 Nivins was a baseball player who really only had a year and a half of seriouas basketball under his belt before heading to St. Joe’s. Needless to say, Nivins is still emerging as a player and can can get significantly better down the road.
• Nivins on the transition from high school to college: “The biggest thing was the academics. I knew I could compete as a player on this level but here you have to work extra hard every day. I’m trying to leave it all ‘on the floor’ each time I go out there.”
• Martelli on the win: “It’s great, but tomorrow we will be back in practice at 4:30 and we’ll try to improve. That’s the whole thing with us, it’s trying to be better each day whether if it’s practice or a game.”
• Patience is the key word in Kansas. The Jayhawks are young and there will be growing pains. Still, this club will get better as the year progresses.
• St. Joe’s will be a strong team this season, probably good enough for a 6th straight A-10 regular season title. Defenitely good enough for a 6th straight post season tournament appearance. Their inside play is fair but Martelli does a wondeful job of utilizing strengths and minimizing team weaknesses.
• Freudian Slip: Michigan State fans not happy with a call in the BC game, yelled ‘what are you, Big East refs?’ It’s still a bit hard to get used to, but Boston College is in the ACC.
• A significant win for Michigan State following a November with two losses in Hawaii. The Spartans did a nice job handling BC’s physical presence, then showed the ability to get out in transition.
• Tom Izzo believes the BC win was significant. He’s right, as Michigan State responded to a tough challenge at Madison Square Garden and came away with a hard-fought win. The struggles of Hawaii are now in the rear view mirror.
• Boston College is not really a top ten team, but the Eagles are a good, physical club that should do well in the ACC. This will be a learning year for Al Skinner and Co. Gone are the familiar Big East foes. Now it’s new teams, venues and styles to face. That could be something to keep in mind as conference play progresses.

NIT Season Tip-Off Notes

NIT Season Tip-Off: Notes from the final rounds

by Ray Floriani

NEW YORK – It’s become a tradition around Thanksgiving. It hasn’t been around as long as the Macy’s Parade, but the NIT Season Tip-Off (formerly the Pre-Season NIT) is a big part of the scene in New York during the holiday. Here is a brief rundown of the tourney’s start, conclusion and a few notables in between.

Wednesday, November 23
5:00 P.M. – We are just getting set to park the car at the lot near Madison Square Garden. On what is considered the worst travel day of the year, the day before Thanksgiving, the trip from my Lyndhurst, NJ residence to MSG (about 6 miles) has taken yours truly and writing colleague George Rodecker, a solid hour, as figured. At least the trip on ‘Black Friday’ will be quick. Shoppers will be in the process of melting the ‘fantastic plastic’ (a.k.a. credit cards) as we breeze through the Lincoln Tunnel.

5:10 – After a fast stop at Gerry Cosby’s (a sports shop next to MSG), a group in sweatshirts with ‘Drexel Cheerleading’ is heading up the stairs to the Garden with the band just behind them. It is almost two hours prior to game time, but these young men and women are excited. Their coach, Sophia Avanzato, asks what entrance they use. I explain the procedure and she remarks, “you know more than the security people here.” I explain that it’s probably a case of going to events here longer than a lot of them. Anyway, the Drexel group is excited. Facing number one Duke? Difficult, but hey, just being here is great, the rest is gravy.

5:30 – The bill of fare in the press room tonight is turkey. No one in the media officially complains, but we all question it and agree we will probably see a fair share of this entree tomorrow. And a few days after.

5:45 – Do a double take in the press room. It is Mel Greenberg of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Mel is the women’s basketball guru and for the two and a half decades I’ve only run into him at women’s games, usually the NCAA Tournament or at Rutgers. “The Inquirer has changed staffing so I had to help out,” Mel explains. He then adds in jest, “this is my gender equity class.’

6:00 – Dick Vitale is talking to a group of us, yours truly George Rodecker and Dick Weiss at courtside. Vitale is giving a breakdown and rave review of the ‘Jersey Boys’. That’s the play on Broadway, not Rutgers, who defeated Delaware State the night before. It was the play that highlighted the music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Dickie V spoke of it with the same enthusiasm he gives us on the ESPN telecasts. Call it a PTP – ‘prime time play’. Amazing.

7:00 – The mood is festive, excitement is in the air, and the Drexel band lends to it with their excitement. Especially the member who held a Rocky poster high in the air whenever the Dragons took the lead or went on a run.

The Scores:
Duke 78, Drexel 68
Memphis 88, UCLA 80

Consolation: UCLA 57, Drexel 56
Championship: Duke 70, Memphis 67

Players of note
Sheldon Williams, Duke – What’s not to like? The 6-9 senior was a terror inside. Williams scored 16 of his game-high 30 against Memphis in the second half and earned tournament MVP honors.

J.J. Redick, Duke – A marked man of opposing defenses, Redick had 31 against Drexel and fifteen in the final. His 15 in the championship game all came in the first half as he was quiet over the last 20 minutes.

Rodney Carney, Memphis – Good outside shot, can slash inside and is very athletic. Just an exciting talent.

Bashir Mason, Drexel – Known for his relentless defense, Mason can run the club and create if the shot clock is winding down and the situation necessitates.

Shawne Williams, Memphis – A 6’9″ freshmen, an inside-outside threat, who will be heard from a great deal. Williams burned UCLA for 26 points and came back with 15 against Duke.

Frank Elegar, Drexel – Had a nice 13-point, 5-rebound outing against UCLA and showed the ability to mix it up inside on both nights.

Aaron Affalo, UCLA – The 6’5″ sophomore guard burned Drexel with several crucial threes in the stretch. Cannot be left alone on the perimeter.

Darius Washington, Memphis – A solid talent at the point. We almost forget Washington is only a sophomore.

Sean Dockery, Duke – Did not have big numbers but played very strong on the ball defense at the guard spot on both nights.

Drexel finished the tourney 2-2, going 0-2 in New York City. Despite heading back to Philadelphia with two straight losses, Drexel made an impression. Coach Bruiser Flint noted that his team was in New York to win the championship – not to play close and get a cosmetic ‘moral victory’, but to win.

“They probably played the best over 80 minutes here in New York and wind up 0-2,” praised Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski.

After Duke’s semifinal victory, assistant Johnny Dawkins was shocked to learn that Drexel was picked seventh in the Colonial Athletic Association.

“Who is doing the picking and who is ahead of them?” Dawkins inquired. “They are talented, well coached and play extremely hard. We were fortunate to get the victory tonight.”

Following the consolation win over the Dragons, UCLA coach Ben Howland could only wonder who was picked higher in their conference.

“They (Drexel) are a very good, tough team that reflects their coach,” Howland said. “We hope not to play them any time soon.”

After the games
9:10 P.M., Friday – During the awards, Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski has a chance to speak to the crowd. He tells them of the honor in winning the NIT Season Tip-Off and the trophy named after the late Peter A. Carlesimo.

9:15 – Exiting the floor after the awards, Duke assistant Mike Jarvis III tells Jack Powers, the NIT’s Executive Director for a number of years, “I got a chance to get a post season title (with St. John’s in 2003), now I have the Pre-Season one (title) as well. This is special.”

9:25 – Coach K, who has won several national championships and a number of ACC titles and a numerous awards and accolades over his outstanding career. The Duke mentor was seriously moved and spoke again during the interview session with the media on how special it was to win the trophy named after Carlesimo, who did so much for the NIT and college basketball in his lifetime.

9:30 – The Memphis coaches are in their locker room alone and reflecting. I quickly wish them luck on the rest of the season. The mood is reflectively somber. Simply, coach John Calipari and his entire staff and team were not here to play it close or just give a good showing. Don’t even mention moral victory. Memphis was here to win the tournament. And they gave Duke a serious run for the title.

9:45 – Blue Devil rubbernecking. In our traffic-congested New York/New Jersey area, ‘rubbernecking’ is a lane that is tied up because drivers are slowing to see what is going on in the other lane. After the finals, fans swarmed outside the Garden, hoping to meet and/or get an autograph from a favorite player. The crowd virtually spilled on to the street, which forced drivers to slow down and see what all the commotion was over, and in effect, slowing traffic. Ah, the impact of being in a Duke uniform these days.

Scouting Opponents/CVC Notes

The Intricacies of Scouting in the NCAA

by Ray Floriani

NEW YORK – A great deal of scouting today is done by exchanging tapes. Teams will get a few game tapes of upcoming opponents to try to read or get a breakdown of team and individual tendencies from more than one game. In tournament play, the NCAA allows live scouting.

At the Coaches vs. Cancer semifinals at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, the luck of the courtside seating draw had yours truly next to Texas Tech assistants Stew Robinson and Chris Beard. Wake Forest was facing Florida in the 7:00 matchup. Tech would line up against Syracuse at approximately 9:30. Whether Tech won or lost, Beard knew this would be a late night for the Red Raider staff.

“After we play we will go back to the hotel,” Beard set, “then settle in and watch game tapes.” The ones of Wake Forest – Florida or his game against Syracuse Beard was asked. “Both,” he said. “We always would watch some of our game as well as tomorrow’s opponent.”

Beard went on to say he already broke down two or three tapes on Wake Forest and Florida. The Tech staff wanted to get a look at a tape from last season. Unless there is a coaching change, styles do not drastically change. Still, it is essential to get, if you can in early season, a tape from the current campaign. That is especially true in Wake’s case as Chris Paul’s departure necessitated Justin Gray shifting from two guard to the point.

Beard has a yellow legal pad on the press table, while Robinson is using a pad with court half court diagrams. Beard will make notes on individual tendencies (only goes right) or team tendencies (screen to free guard on the inbounds vs. full court pressure).

“You get that extra advantage with live scouting,” Beard says. “Tape can give you a lot but watching live you can pick up something that can give you an edge. Any slight edge you get could be just what you need to win.”

Robinson diagrams the offensive and defensive sets of both Wake Forest and Florida on his pad. He played for Bobby Knight in the Eighties and remembers coming to the Garden in the 1985 NIT.

“We played UCLA,” Robinson recalled. “We had a tough game, but Reggie Miller (of UCLA) went off the second half and broke it open.” Robinson was asked if two decades has seen any change in his Knight’s offense. “Not at all,” Robinson says. “It’s basically the same passing game principles we ran, only now it’s more (commonly called) motion.”

During the game both Beard and Robinson will verbally point something out. One will talk, the other will jot a note down. Both have “Texas Tech things to do” lists on the top of their note sheets. During the game both answer any questions regarding their team, conference, whatever. Beard is asked if the usually good Texas Tech turnout will be there for the second game. “Not really,” he observes, “our football team is hosting Oklahoma Saturday so everybody is in Lubbock.”

Understood.

About eight minutes remain, and Wake switches to a 2-3 for a few possessions. I ask if that is because Florida is running a high screen and roll with favorable results.

“Florida does have mobile big men,” Beard answers, “but I think Wake went zone because of foul trouble.” Sometimes we try to overcomplicate this game.

The game goes down to the final minute. Robinson and Beard both stay to the buzzer hoping to get another hint how each team handles late game situations. At the buzzer, we wish the Tech assistants well and they leave business cards. They will now focus on the semifinal matchup with Syracuse. Then sometime after midnight, while many of us settle down to call it a night, they will just start going over the report on tomorrow’s opponent with coach Knight.

Players of note during Coaches vs. Cancer

Taurean Green – A no-brainer on this one. The explosive Florida guard put on a show both nights and walked off with MVP honors. In the finals, Green led Florida with 23 points, hitting 6 of 9 from beyond the arc.

Eric Williams – Listed at 6-9, the more-like 6-7 post player for Wake is a wide body who simply works extremely hard for 40 minutes. Against Texas Tech in the consolation, it was 45, of a possible 50 minutes, that Williams battled a Red Raider double- or triple-team all night long.

Eric Devendorf – We know about Gerry McNamara and Terrence Roberts, to name a few of Jim Boeheim’s tested talents. You may not know Devendorf but soon will. He comes off the bench and provides hustle and an offensive spark at the guard spot.

Martin Zeno and Jarrius Jackson – The Texas Tech pair struggled (as did all the Red Raiders) against Syracuse. They bounced back to score 23 and 27, respectively, against Wake. They had to: no one else on T-Tech hit double figures.

Kyle Visser – The 6-11 junior had a subpar outing against Florida, but came back with a nice 16-point, 16-board outing against Texas Tech. More nights like that on the part of Visser could take some inside pressure off Williams.

Demetris Nichols – The 6-8 Syracuse forward had solid scoring nights with 11 against T-Tech and a game-high 24 against Florida. Nichols can rebound and did show a nice (5 of 10) touch beyond the arc against the Gators.

Al Horford – The Florida forward put up numbers that, while not spectacular, were very solid and crucial on both nights.

Joakim Noah – The Gator soph was hit by foul trouble against Wake, but bounced back with a strong effort inside against Syracuse. Noah attacks the glass with energy and can do dame in the paint.

Justin Gray – Struggling a bit with his transition to the point, he did put those issues aside to hit the big three-pointer that tied up the consolation game that Wake captured in OT.

Also of note: strong inside play especially down the stretch and balance helped Florida to the team title, 75-70 over Syracuse. Gator coach Billy Donovan noted following the semifinal win over Wake Forest: “We probably don’t have a guy who can average 20 (points) per game, but we have several who can get that on a given night.” The Gators are simply a young team that shares the ball, defends, has good chemistry and is a pleasure to watch – providing you’re not on the opposing bench.

Seton Hall/Manhattan Opener

Pirates Look Good in Win Over Manhattan

by Ray Floriani

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – In baseball, the early part of the season sees pitchers often enjoying an edge on batters. In the early going of the college basketball season, they say defense is ahead of offense. In the opening round of the NIT Season Tip-Off, Seton Hall’s defense was decidedly ahead. The Pirates limited Manhattan to 26 percent shooting from the floor en route to a 66-52 decision.

The victory aside, a few encouraging things came out of this matchup for Seton Hall.

• Entering the season, senior point guard Donald Copeland and forward/center Kelly Whitney were the known entities; who else would step up was a question. Off Monday’s performance, it appears Jamar Nutter is set for a breakout season. The 6-2 junior scored 17 points, showing the ability to get to the rim as well as hit the jumper. Junior forward Stan Gaines, a transfer from Minnesota also chipped in with a strong 13-point, 5-rebound outing. Gaines especially impressed Manhattan coach Bobby Gonzalez. “I couldn’t believe how good he (Gaines) was,” Gonzalez said. “He was the X-factor. He’s chiseled (242 lbs.) like no one in our league and here he is bringing the ball up the floor (against the press).”
• As noted, Seton Hall played outstanding defense. Even in the disappointment of last season, one staple was good defense. It’s a trademark of Louis Orr-coached teams, but on Monday evening the Pirates took it to another level. “It (defense) was great beginning to end,” he said. “It was the most focused I’ve seen our guys defensively since I’ve been here.” Seton Hall played mostly man with an occasional 1-3-1 half court trap thrown in.
• Manhattan made a late 10-0 run to trim an 18-point deficit to eight with six minutes remaining. Seton Hall never folded, simply showing great poise, regrouping and closing out the win. “Our guys handled themselves well,” Orr said regarding that key part of the game. “They encourage each other they want to compete.”
• Copeland didn’t score a point until 44 seconds remained. Still, the senior lead guard did an outstanding job running the team and making his presence felt on the defensive end as the Manhattan guards struggled all night.
• Kelly Whitney dominated inside. The 6-8 senior scored a game-high 25 points while pulling down 5 boards. Whitney was especially lethal on the low blocks and virtually anywhere in the lane. “There’s no one like Kelly Whitney in our (MAAC) conference,’ Gonzalez praised. “We tried to go zone, man and mix up the defenses.” All to no avail.

Manhattan struggled to get easy baskets. Gonzalez would have liked to press a bit more and force the tempo, but the Jaspers struggled from the field and were an icy 11-21 from the foul line. Simply, opportunities to set up the press were not present.

Manhattan’s outstanding 6-7 sophomore C.J. Anderson led the Jaspers with 16 points, but rarely got a good look en route to a tough 5-20 night from the floor. The Jaspers found easy baskets rare, and basically struggled in their half court set all night.

“It’s a challenge to face a Big East team on the road,” Gonzalez said. “That’s not an excuse either, it’s a test.” Jasper guard Jason Wingate added, “They (Seton Hall) played tremendous defense, it was a learning experience.”

As usual Manhattan did play hard, a trait they have regularly shown in the past. The Jaspers grabbed 23 offensive rebounds and outrebounded the Hall 42-41. “We didn’t play well or that smart, but we played hard,” Gonzalez remarked.

A sparse crowd of 5,372 was on hand for the contest.

Seton Hall now travels to Duke on Wednesday to battle the top-ranked Blue Devils, who defeated Boston University. Orr relishes the challenge.

“We have to keep our poise,” he said. “We have to handle their pressure on the ball, on the wings and the crowd. It’s a great opportunity. I’m excited.”

Nothing is certain. The opening night saw a significant upset as Sam Houston knocked off Missouri on the road. Even in the first round, playing at home, teams cannot mail it in.

Camp Next

Camp Next features the next generation of high school stars

by Ray Floriani

TEANECK, N.J. – Camp Next gave a good look at rising eighth and ninth graders. Rising is an appropriate description: these players are emerging as the elite of their respective class and rising above the rim is one of the qualities they possess on the basketball court.

The camp began last season as a prelude to ABCD, held at Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey just like ABCD. This year, another site was added with another session going on out West. Over the weekend of June 24-26, campers made the trip to FDU to display their talents and get some important instruction and advice.

Campers were divided into eight teams. Copying the ABCD format, the teams had NBA names. On Friday evening each team played one game, then on Saturday there were three sets of doubleheaders, at 10:40 A.M, 2:40 P.M. and 7 P.M., which gave the teams three games. The camp wound up on Sunday with each team playing at 10 A.M. with the all star game following an hour later.

A few observations:

• These were far from your typical 13 to 15 year-old players. The games routinely featured wing players in the 6-5 to 6-7 range and post men 6-8 and taller. In addition, the skill level and athleticism was truly impressive.
• A number of players were outstanding and stood out. There were those, however, one would be wise not to write off. A little more weight training, natural maturation and a solid work ethic in practice can transform those who may have struggled here into complete polished players down the road. That’s especially true of several big men whose games were a little on the ‘raw’ side.
• The important part of the weekend was the games. But in keeping with the Sonny Vaccaro influence, the teaching part of the game was not neglected. At FDU, four courts were available. Games were on courts two and three, while teams not playing held ‘sweat shop’ sessions on courts one and four. The sweat shops were basically practice sessions. Teams ran offensive sets and were drilled by their respective coaches in proper execution; defense was not neglected either. Practices were just an hour but well organized. Throughout the duration, fundamentals and proper execution were stressed by the coaches.
• Games showed a carryover of the teaching accomplished in practice. The players sped up and down the floor in transition, but if the break didn’t materialize the offense put on the breaks and ran a set of structured plays. Simply put, it was not all out run n’ gun.
• The all-star game was a different situation. As many of these type games go, there was structure and a sense of offensive purpose in the first quarter, but soon the play reverted to an exhibition of dunks and athleticism. A team would get the rebound, pitch the ball out on the break to a wingman who would toss the ball airborne with a cutter grabbing it out of the stratosphere and slamming it (or sometimes not) home. For the most part, the all-star game was ‘showtime’, where the players could exhibit their skills and talent in the open floor.

The tournament was sponsored by Reebok as part of its Grassroots Basketball program. Sonny Vaccaro took in the action on the Saturday sessions. Dennis Gregory of the Hoop Group, Greg Vetrone, Gary Charles (director of the New York Panthers AAU program) and Nick Mariniello, head coach at Bloomfield Tech (NJ) all assisted throughout the well organized event.

Some of the standout players:

• Travon Woodall 6’1″ Guard (St. Anthony’s HS, Jersey City, NJ) – Woodall showed a nice perimeter touch and the ability to slash to the hoop with his strength and quickness.
• Curtis Loving 6’4″ G/F(Rice HS, NY) – Another fine talent who entered the lane almost at will. A tough rebounder especially on the offensive end.
• Richard Hall 5’11″ Guard (Bloomfield Tech, NJ) – Hall showed solid point guard skills and the ability to get his shot and score. He will certainly continue the tradition of fine backcourt play at the New Jersey power.
• Muniru Bawa 6’9″ Forward (Madison, AL) – Still raw but has great size and a tremendous ‘upside’.
• Kenny Boyton 6’2″ Guard (Pompano Beach, FL) – Highly touted, Boyton owned up to his reputation. A prolific scorer, he is a player who doesn’t neglect the defensive end.
• Dexter Strickland Guard (St. Patrick’s HS, NJ) – Will enter ninth grade in the Fall. Strickland’s game has the total package. He can hit from the perimeter and penetrate as well.
• Chris Braswell 6’8 Forward (Fort Washington, MD) Has good skills inside. Braswell runs the floor like a deer, but with a purpose, not out of control.

This writer had the opportunity to officiate games on each day. The play was just a notch below ABCD. The players ran the floor exceptionally well in transition; guards were quick penetrating to the basket, and the level of play was decidely ‘above the rim’. Getting the opportunity to see the talent of a number of these players up close was truly a memorable experience. Officiating was demanding but great fun. As fellow official Dave Hoffman who also worked here light heartedly noted, “each year we get older but the kids stay the same age.” They also seem to get faster and quicker.

AND1 HBC Regional Notes

Sights and sounds from Seton Hall

by Ray Floriani

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – Seventy-two high school teams gathering for the two-day And One event gives basketball fans a veritable smorgasbord of viewing. Eight courts at Seton Hall University were in action from nine A.M. through nine P.M. on Saturday. On Sunday, there was still plenty of action before the 2:00 PM championship. Activity was intense on the floor, and off of it was quite a scene as well.

• Walk up to the Walsh Gym-Richie Regan Complex and you were certain to see at least one team huddled with their coach outside the facility engaged in an impromptu strategy session.
• You couldn’t walk one hundred feet with out seeing someone wearing a ‘I’m down with the Playaz’ t-shirt. The Tim Thomas Playaz AAU organization ran the concessions and coach Jim Salmon was frequently making the rounds.
• Six of the courts were in the Regan Center on one floor , virtually guaranteeing that a game would be stopped at least one because a ball from the neighboring court strayed on the floor.
• Prominent coaches Bob Hurley, Bob Farrell and Kevin Boyle were closer to the spectators than their respective benches. All three took a step back to get a read on their respective teams, allowing their assistants to run the club as they watched from the stands.
• Noted AAU mentors such as Salmon and Sandy Pyonin frequently moved about taking in the action and chatting with coaches.
• It was not a ‘live’ period for Division I coaches, but D-II and III mentors were out in force evaluating talent. Getting close to the action, the college coaches move court to court, mostly taking notes and occasionally chatting with colleagues.
• It was not uncommon to see Joe Battiato, clipboard in hand, making assignment changes and ensuring sure games were adequately covered by officials. Joe is a Northeast Conference official entrusted with the task of assigning the tournament’s 126 games. He gets it done and still maintains his friendly disposition – and sanity.
• Frequently milling about were the Hoop Group’s (the tournament directors) Rob Kennedy and Dennis Gregory, as well as the many helpers they had on hand moving around from court to court and keep a watchful eye on things going smoothly.
• The Seton Hall trainer in the Regan Center was wearing shorts and running shoes. Good thing, as it was not uncommon seeing her frequently on the go, moving among the six courts at the center to attend to an injured athlete. In her ‘spare’ time she taped ankles and checked minor bumps and bruises.
• Some familiar faces among the media and talent evaluators were on hand. Jay Gomes from njhoops.com and Eastern Basketball was seated in his chair at courtside while keeping score of key games in a traditional school notebook. Others, such as the Star Ledger’s Josh Rosenfeld, focused on key games while moving about to see other prominent teams and individual players. And of course there was Hoopville colleague Phil Kasiecki dutifully making the rounds. Phil caught at least a half of two games I officiated, so he now has the distiction of critiqiung my work in this column as well as on the basketball court.

St. Benedict’s, with outstanding senior talent Lance Thomas, edged St. Patrick’s for the team championship. As regional winners, St. Benedict’s advances to the national championships (the June 24-26 weekend) at La Salle University in Philadelphia. The Newark-based school, coached by Danny Hurley, advanced to the final after defeating an athletic Our Savior Lutheran (NY) club in the semifinals. St. Pat’s earned a berth in the final with a hard-fought won over Paterson Catholic in the other semifinal contest.

Judging by the teams playing far into this tournament, the always tough Parochial B North division of the New Jersey State Tournament should be even more treacherous next season. St. Pat’s and Paterson Catholic, both B schools, faced each other in the other semifinal. Meanwhile, no one can forget perennial powerhouse St. Anthony’s. The Friars were defeated by Paterson Catholic in the quarterfinal round but will be very much in the hunt for Parochial B and TOC (Tournament of hampions) honors next season. Derrick Caracter did not play in the tournament for St. Pat’s, but Kevin Boyle’s club is loaded as evidenced by their strong showing during the two-day event.

On the officiating side there were four games, two each day, worked by the author. The best game? A tossup. The Grady–Our Savior Lutheran quarterfinal on Sunday morning was interesting. Grady jumped to an early lead before Savior regrouped and used their size and speed to post a double-digit triumph.

On Saturday there was an interesting second round game as Westwood faced defending TOC champs Seton Hall Prep. Westwood, from Northern Bergen County (NJ), has a good group of guards and wings around Corey Raji. A 6-5 junior, Raji is already projected as a Division I prospect. He has the ability to put the ball on the floor, size and moves to post up. With eight minutes remaining Westwood, largely due to Raji, trailed by just two before Seton Hall went on a late tear and pulled away for an 11-point victory.

Hall was later eliminated by St. Pat’s, the team they defeated in the TOC title game. Here, it was no contest as Pat’s won going away. Prep lost several key players, notably NC-State bound Brandon Costner, but Bob Farrell’s club will be solid and the type that improves as the year progresses.

Northeast Recap

Northeast Conference 2004-05 Recap

by Ray Floriani

A common theme all season in the Northeast Conference was unpredictability. The conference coaches did agree that Monmouth was the favorite, but there was a unanimous feeling that anything could, and probably would, happen.

Monmouth won the regular season title, but did not clinch it until the final night of the season. The Hawks’ victory at St. Francis (NY), coupled with FDU’s home loss to Wagner, allowed Dave Calloway’s club to edge FDU by a game. The entire season went along those lines – a succession of close contests that could ultimately make or break one’s season.

LIU, a team the coaches predicted for the basement in pre-season, won eight of ten games decided by five or less points and finished fourth. Wagner was another big surprise. Mike Deane’s club stood 2-15 at one point (1-7 in the league) and was all but completely written off. In late January, they won at Scared Heart and would lose only two more games all season. The Seahawks won 9-of-10 down the stretch of the regular season, with the only loss being an overtime setback at Quinnipiac. Along the way, Wagner captured road games at Monmouth and FDU, the two top teams in the standings.

Final Standings

Monmouth          14-4
FDU               13-5
Robert Morris     11-7
St. Francis (PA)  10-8
LIU               10-8
Wagner            10-8
St. Francis (NY)   9-9
Central Conn.     8-10
Quinnipiac        6-12
Mt.St.Mary's      5-13
Sacred Heart      3-15

NEC coaches proved to be good prognosticators. In their pre-season poll they chose the order of the top four in the perfect order as it panned out. There were no major disappointments, but LIU and Wagner were big surprises. LIU was tabbed for the basement and made it to the conference semifinals, while Wagner was predicted for ninth and wound up going to the conference championship game.

NEC Tournament

The program of the Northeast Conference post season tournament was highlighted with the slogan ‘Back to Campus’. For several years the conference experimented. Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton (NJ) was used as one site, while Central Connecticut and Wagner took turns hosting early rounds with the final at the home of the higher remaining seed. Finally, the conference decided to play every game on campus with the higher seed hosting.

Given the advantages of playing at home in the college game, some of the coaches felt it was a tough format, but one that should ensure good crowds and interest. Other coaches felt the format would lend more credence to the regular season: every game would be crucial because you would play to qualify for the tournament (the top 8 finishers go) and for a seed to guarantee a home game.

The opening round alone gave evidence that wearing the home whites did not guarantee a win. Wagner scored a road upset, defeating third-seeded Robert Morris. In addition, top-seeded and defending champion Monmouth barely survived a scare against eighth-seeded Central Connecticut.

In the semis, Monmouth was not as fortunate. Red-hot Wagner defeated the hawks and guaranteed there would be a new NEC champion. The Monmouth-Wagner game was held at 1:00 on Sunday March 6, and FDU would line up for their game against LIU at 6:00 knowing that a win would set up a championship game at the Knights’ Rothman Center. FDU was facing a double-digit deficit and possible elimination midway through the final half. The Knights went on a significant run and controlled the game down the stretch.

The finals saw FDU host the surging Wagner team that handed them a defeat at Rothman only nine days earlier. This time, in front of a packed house, Tom Green’s club would not be denied, as they stopped the Wagner team that had won 11 of their last 12 games. With the 58-52 win, FDU claimed its first conference championship and appearance in the ‘Big Dance’ since 1998. Guard Tamien Trent scored 4 points, grabbed 4 rebounds and handed out 8 assists in the championship game. The FDU senior earned tournament MVP honors.

NCAA Tournament

FDU secured the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament and drew top seed Illinois in the first round. This was the fourth time Tom Green was leading an FDU team into the ‘Big Dance’ and as was the case in the prior appearances, the Knights battled gamely, trailing the Illini by one at the half.

The second half opened with an Illini run to push the lead to double figures. FDU battled valiantly before going down by a 67-55 margin. Senior Gordon Klaiber led the Knights with 24 points while Tamien Trent added 11. Sophomre center Andrea Crosaroil had an impressive outing with a 6-point, 8-rebound, 3-block performance.

Postseason Awards

Player of the Year:  Blake Hamilton, Monmouth
Defensive Player of the Year:  DeEarnest McLemore, Wagner
Newcomer of the Year:  Allan Sheppard, St.Francis (NY)
Freshman of the Year:  Randy Jones, LIU
Coaches of the Year:  Jim Ferry, LIU; Tom Green, FDU

All-Conference
Blake Hamilton, Monmouth
Gordon Klaiber, FDU
Chaz McCrommon, Robert Morris
Rob Monroe, Quinnipiac
Sean Munson, Wagner

Team Recaps

Monmouth (14-4 NEC, 16-13)
The Hawks began the non-conference season 1-7, then reeled off seven straight wins in NEC play. They did suffer rare back-to-back home losses to Wagner and FDU in mid-February. They quickly regrouped to win the regular season title. After a close call against Central Connecticut in the conference quarterfinals, Wagner knocked the Hawks off again in West Long Branch to end their season and hopes of a conference title repeat.

Leading Scorer: Blake Hamilton 16.2 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Marques Alston 5.2 rpg
Assists: Tyler Azzarelli 2.8 apg

Starters lost: 6-7 F Blake Hamilton, 6-2 G Dwayne Byfield

Next Season: Blake Hamilton is a big loss for Dave Calloway, but the Hawks also lose another 1,000-point scorer in Dwayne Byfield. There is talent returning, but roles will be altered and someone will have to step up to replace the offensive firepower Hamilton and Byfield produced.

FDU (13-5 NEC, 20-13)
The Knights began the conference slate with three straight wins at home. Following that was a road stretch that assured they would be a major factor, as FDU won three of four away from Rothman Center. They defeated Monmouth at West Long Branch in late February, but stumbled a bit the final week and wound up a game out of first. Playing through the NEC tourney at home, FDU ran the table to capture the post season championship.

Leading Scorer: Tamien Trent 15.7 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Gordon Klaiber 7.9 rpg
Assists: Trent 5.5 apg

Starters lost: 6-1 G Mensah Peterson, 6-0 G Tamien Trent

Next Season: The Knights lose guards Tamien Trent and Mensah Peterson, but Fordham transfer John Blackgrove should step in the stating lineup and be an immediate impact player. Andrea Crosariol, a seven foot center, showed effectiveness inside during the stretch run and will be counted on for more of the same. Tom Green’s club will contend with a shot to repeat.

Robert Morris (11-7 NEC, 14-15)
A veteran club, Robert Morris won four of their last five to capture the third seed in the tournament. The Colonials, though, ran into a hot Wagner club and were defeated on their home floor in the tournament’s opening round. In non-conference play, the Colonials logged a satisfying home win against Atlantic 10 foe Duquesne in late December.

Leading Scorer: Chaz McCrommon 16.7 ppg
Leading Rebounder: McCrommon 6.0 rpg
Assists: Derek Coleman 3.5 apg

Starters lost: 6-6 F Chaz McCrommon, 6-6 F Mark Anderson, 6-0 G Maurice Carter, 6-1 G Christopher Gooden

Next Season: After several strong seasons, the Colonials will be in more of a rebuilding mode. Several seniors exit, including the likes of Chaz McCrommon and Maurice Carter. Coach Mark Schmidt will mesh several newcomers with several returnees in search of a new unit.

LIU (10-8 NEC, 14-15)
The Blackbirds were the only team to make the eight-team NEC field after failing to do so a year ago. Jim Ferry’s group was 8-2 in games decided by five points or less, which was largely responsible for their surprising season. LIU had a good run in the NEC tourney, as the Blackbirds reached the semis and took FDU to the wire at the Rothman Center before falling.

Leading Scorer: James Williams 16.3 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Esa Maki-Tulokas 5.9 rpg
Assists: Randy Jones 3.8 apg

Starters lost: none

Next Season: The only loss is Derek Bell, a 6-7 strong inside presence, as everyone else is back from the NEC tournament semifinalists. They surprised this season, and next year LIU won’t sneak up on anybody and should contend for conference honors.

St. Francis (PA) (10-8 NEC, 15-13)
The Red Flash were another strong finisher, winning five of their last seven. The season ended at the hands of much-improved LIU. Junior guard Darshan Luckey had an outstanding season and returns as one of the conference’s elite players. The Red Flash were a deadly team beyond the arc, connecting on 39 percent of their three-point attempts.

Leading Scorer: Darshan Luckey 21.5 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Jason Osborne 6.2 rpg
Assists: Garrett Farha 6.9 apg

Starters lost: 6-5 G Darshan Luckey (NBA Draft), 6-7 F Jason Osborne, 6-3 G Joey Goodson, 6-7 F Rodney Gibson

Next Season: This is another fairly young club that could move up. Winning on the road will be a priority, as the Red Flash struggled away from home this season and that should be rectified. Luckey, an outstanding talent at the guard spot, declared for the NBA Draft, but should be back for a final go-round.

Wagner (10-8 NEC, 13-17)
The record stood 2-15 at one point. But before the dirt was shoveled, Mike Deane’s club awakened. They finished winning 9 of their last 10 in regular season play and made it to the NEC title game. Sean Munson was a worker inside, while junior guard DeEarnest McLemore anchored a solid defense – largely the reason for the late run.

Leading Scorer: Sean Munson 12.4 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Munson 9.0 rpg
Assists: DeEarnest McLemore 3.7 apg

Starters lost: 6-8 F Sean Munson

Next Season: They lose a strong inside presence in Sean Munson, but everyone else is back and title contention is a certainty. McLemore anchors an outstanding defense that played a key part in an outstanding late season run this year.

St. Francis (NY) (9-9 NEC, 13-15)
The Terriers reached the tournament for the fifteenth consecutive year, an NEC record. They had also reached the semis five of the prior seven years, but that string was broken with the first round loss at FDU. Freshman Allan Sheppard was a major surprise and responsible for much of the team’s success. A major win was a wild 110-103 victory over FDU in late February.

Leading Scorer: Tory Cavalieri 15.6 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Allan Sheppard 4.4 rpg
Assists: Cavalieri 4.8 apg

Starters lost: 6-0 G Tory Cavalieri, 6-7 F Devon Nickles

Next Season: New coach Brian Nash will have to replace a solid guard in Cavalieri, but Sheppard is one of the conference’s best young talents. The Terriers are a dark horse and might be worth keeping an eye on next year.

Central Connecticut State (8-10 NEC, 12-16)
One of the strongest NEC programs (four title game appearances he last six years), Central was in much of a rebuilding mode. They captured the crown in 2000 and 2002, but had to defeat Quinnipiac on the final day of the season to get into the tourney this season. In the NEC quarterfinals, Howie Dickenman’s Blue Devils put a serious scare into host Monmouth, which barely survived.

Leading Scorer: DeMario Anderson 14.1 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Obie Nwadike 7.5 rpg
Assists: DeMario Anderson 2.6 apg

Starters lost: 6-6 F Rich Pittman

Next Season: The lone loss is 6-6 forward Rich Pittman. Everyone is back, so it is reasonable to assume the Blue Devils will move up appreciably in the standings. Obie Nwadike, a 6-4 forward, should be one of the league’s best performers next season.

Quinnipiac (6-12 NEC, 10-17)
The Bobcats were selected to play in the Pre-Season NIT. There, they lost at Penn in the opening round and in general, had a tough year. A major plus was the outstanding play of guard Rob Monroe, who will go down as one of the best in both Quinnipiac and Northeast Conference history.

Leading: Rob Monroe 22.7 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Kevin Jolley 7.5 rpg
Assists: Monroe 6.5 apg

Starters lost: 5-10 G Rob Monroe, 6-9 C/F C.J. Vick

Next Season: They lose a superb talent in Monroe. There is a great deal of young possibilities, but two concerns remain: replacing Monroe’s offense and shoring up the frontcourt.

Mount St. Mary’s (5-13 NEC, 7-20)
A long season for the Mount, which failed to qualify for the NEC tournament. They lose only two seniors and have some young talent on hand. A bright spot was junior guard Landy Thompson, one of four players in school history to hit the 1,000-point, 200-rebound and 200-assist marks.

Leading Scorer: Landy Thompson 14.4 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Mychal Keane 6.5 rpg
Assists: Thompson 3.6 apg

Starters lost: 6-8 F Jason Epps

Next Season: The Mount took their lumps this season, but virtually everyone will be back, a year older and more experienced. Thompson, the 6-1 guard, is an outstanding talent to build around.

Sacred Heart (3-15 NEC, 4-23)
It was simply a long season for the Pioneers. They were a young club and coach Dave Bike worked vigorously to get things going. Evidence of it was the use of 10 different starting lineups, as Bike searched for the right combination. Simply chalk it up as a year of learning – the hard way.

Leading Scorer: Joey Henley 12.3 ppg
Leading Rebounder: Henley 5.7 rpg
Assists: Mike Parker 4.3 apg

Starters lost: 6-6 F Mike Queenan

Next Season: Almost everyone is back, and while contention is still in the future, expect Dave Bike’s club to be much-improved. Top player Joey Henley is back for his junior year.

Newcomers for 2005-06

Central Connecticut State
Rob Robinson (6-8 F, Fort Washington, MD)
Chris Winters (6-7 F, East Lyme, CT)

FDU
John Blackgrove (6-1 G, transfer from Fordham University

LIU
Naim Benjamin (6-2 G, transfer from Des Moines (IA) Area CC)
Donovin McLendon (6-5 G-F, Miami, FL)
Lamar Pitman (6-7 F/C, Poughkeepsie, NY)

Monmouth
Shawn Barlow (6-10 C, Marlton, NJ)
Tyrone Hanson (6-6 G, New York, NY)
Tyson Johnson (6-6 F, New York, NY)

Mount St.Mary’s
Sam Atupem (6-7 F, Newport News, VA)

Quinnipiac
Steve Harley (5-9 G, Temple Hills, MD)
Jason Wilson (6-2 G, Irvington, NJ)

Robert Morris
Jonathan Clark (6-0 G, Charlotte, NC)
Jeremy Chapell (6-3 G, Cincinatti, OH)
Kelvin Bright (6-3 G, Silver Spring, MD)
Josh Johnson (6-6 F, Transfer from Polk CC)
Steve Lancaster (6-3 G, Transfer from Neosho CC)
Colson Senat (6-7 F, Montreal, Quebec)

Sacred Heart
(none)

St. Francis (NY)
(none)

St. Francis (PA)
Stephen Profeta (6-4 G, Carnegie, PA)
Grant Suprenant (6-5 G, Platine, IL)
Devin Sweetney (6-5 G, Largo, MD)
Marquis Ford (5-11G, St. Petersburg, FL)
Julian Pinkston (6-4 F, Pittsburgh, PA)

Wagner
Doug Elwell (6-5 F, Staten Island, NY)
Llewchean Radford (6-4 F, Newport News, VA)
Matt Kittrell (6-9 C, Richmond, VA)

Northeast Notes

Home sweet home was more than a slogan for St. Francis (PA), as the Red Flash were 8-1 vs. NEC competition at their Stokes Center and 2-7 away from home.

Road cont’d.: A common formula for conference success is spilt the road games and dominate at home. To little surprise the top three conference teams all fared well away from the comforts of home: Monmouth was 7-2 while FDU and Robert Morris both sported a 6-3 mark.

Say goodnight: With a late February win over Robert Morris, LIU closed the doors on its fabled Schwartz Athletic Center. A first round home game in the NEC tourney gave one encore. The facility took its shape from the Brooklyn Paramount Theatre. From the late Twenties through early Sixties, stars of stage and screen performed at the Paramount: Mae West, Eddie Cantor, Bing Crosby and Rudy Vallee were just a few. In the early Sixties, the Blackbirds started playing at the renovated facility. Now the doors are closed as LIU heads to its brand new Athletic, Recreation and Wellness Center. An era and memorable facility are now history.

Monmouth will be the first NEC school to participate in the Great Alaska Shootout. The Hawks head to Anchorage for the annual event which includes Marquette, Southern California and NIT champ South Carolina in the eight-team field, which will be staging its 28th annual tournament this November.

Brian Nash was named new head coach at St.Francis (NY), replacing Ron Ganulin in the conference’s only head coaching change this Spring. Nash assisted Jim Baron at St.Bonaventure and most recently Louis Orr at Siena and Seton Hall. The 34 year-old Nash is a graduate of Keene (NH) State and Brooklyn’s Bishop Ford High School and maintains good ties in the New York City area.

The NEC Rookie of the Week award almost was renamed the Allan Sheppard trophy. Well, not really, but the St. Francis (NY) frosh captured the honors three consecutive times in January en route to being selected conference Newcomer of the Year.

Marques Alston won two games at the buzzer this season. The Monmouth sophomore sank a three-pointer with 0.4 left to defeat Quinnipiac on January 9. In the opener of the season, Alston banked in a ten-footer at the buzzer to nip St. Peter’s. The surprising thing about both shots is their distance; Alston is a 6-4, 230-pound power forward who does some of his best work on the blocks rather than the perimeter.

Robert Morris’ late December win over Duquesne was in front of 2,852 at the Colonials’ Sewell Center. It was the second-largest crowd in the center’s history and the largest to view a regular season game in an NEC arena this season.

Jersey Shore Invitational

Jersey Shore Invitational

by Ray Floriani

TOMS RIVER, N.J. – A week ago Wednesday, I received the call from Joe Held. A Northeast Conference official, Joe and I have worked together in camp and on high school games. “We need a third partner,” Joe says. “Rene Ruth (another NEC official and partner) and I are working a game in Toms River at nine.” Sounds good, but what was the level, I ask. Was it AAU? “Don’t know – got the call from Edgar (Cartotto, the NEC supervisor) and he said give you a call.”

Calling my father Ray Sr., who lives in Toms River, I find it is a college tournament, The Jersey Shore Invitational. The players are specifically being looked at by scouts for placement to teams overseas.

On the roughly 80-minute trip down, we discuss the level and generally how we want the game called. Simply, you want to let the players play but there is a fine line to consistently maintain control and competitive balance.

Around the bend on Old Freehold road, motorists suddenly see the Ritacco Center. The 3000-capacity building is less than three years old but already has drawn rave reviews from New Jersey state tournament teams, fans and officials. It is situated on the campus of Toms River North High School. Open the doors and a long hallway greets you. It looks as though you walked into a facility like Trenton’s Sovereign Bank arena. Concession stands are on the right; the walls are covered with pictures of numerous Toms River high school teams that have captured state or Shore championships; photos of prominent athletes hailing from the Toms River schools also dot the walls, as does a team photo of the 1998 Toms River Little League team that captured the world’s championship.

Arriving at the locker room, we run into the first game officials relaxing at halftime. Scott Rosenbaum, a Northeast Conference official, alerts us on one thing. “It can be confusing,” he says. “Players are wearing their own school jerseys and it seems like there are a lot of different colors (uniforms) out there.”

Some of the second game players walk in. They are wearing sweats from schools as Purdue, Birmingham Southern, Texas Tech and Kean.

We catch part of the second half of the seven o’clock game. It’s good to get a look at the style of play and how the game is being officiated. We can see what Scott meant about the jerseys but thankfully there are dark colors for the visitors and the home whites on the opposite end. During that time we speak for a few minutes with Bruce Hamburger of Kean and Gerald Holmes of Bloomfield, both of whom have players in our game. With about nine minutes remaining, we head to the officials locker room. Joe leads the pregame discussion of some finer points. “Remember,” he said, “if we have a charge on one end, it’s the same on the opposite end.” Rene discusses handling over the back calls and generally letting the teams play.

A few minutes prior to the tip, we greet the coaches. The International team has two Swedish coaches, who quickly want to review any differences there might be in the college game from their international one. One of their guards asks us how we will call the closely guarded (5 second) count. The Internationals are opposed by a Great Plains team.

Toss the ball to start the game. Happy with the toss, good and high, but start to move into the wrong position. Rene quickly alerts me to change. Better a slight mistake at the tip than a glaring one late with the game on the line.

Play is moving along quickly. Teams are in transition for a good part of the time, and three-pointers are frequently released. These teams probably had little practice time together and players want to showcase their talent. Still, play is relatively organized, not total free lance. Teams are running motion, setting screens and big men are posting up on the blocks.

During one time out Joe suggests I rotate a little more working the lead on the baseline. Rotating simply puts you in position where the ball and majority of players are located. His suggestion helped a great deal.

It’s clear the Great Plains team is stronger, and they take a commanding lead into the locker room at halftime. We go over a few plays and points at halftime. I mention that I am trying to let them play a bit in the post but and holding is off limits. “Good,” Joe says, “keep taking that call because I’m warning them in the post about that.”

Arriving on the floor for the second half, EB’s Jay Gomes gives a thumbs up sign from the press table. There is a very sparse crowd, but the sponsoring group still has promotional shootouts and give-aways available every time out.

The game moves on and during timeouts a partner will confer and make an observation. On one sequence in the C (foul line extended) position I had a chance to take an offensive but got screened and didn’t get a good look. “It would have been good to take,” Rene said, “Joe and I both had one and you could have grabbed one.”

Devonne Giles (Texas Tech) of Great Plains has four fouls. During a timeout, we remind each other of that with the intent that foul number five must be good. With about eight minutes to play and Giles’ team up 23, a player from Birmingham Southern cuts across the lane from the weakside. He takes a pass, goes up and is hit. I get the foul and realize it is Giles. Tough to make that fifth foul call, but he (Giles) got him good on the play. Not long after I am positioned by the Great Plains coach. I tell him that it was tough to take that fifth foul, but there was no choice. “Don’t worry,” he said. “You have to learn to be cautious with four fouls.”

In the latter stretches everything is moving well. Call a two-shot foul that puts Mushon Ya’akosi (Fordham) on the line for International. Again, the Great Plains coach Dave Alderman says, “Ray the call was right but just watch 51 (Ya’akosi). He likes to clear out with his left arm.” Tell the coach I keep a good look at it and we move on. The final buzzer goes off with Great Plains winning 102-80.

It’s 10:45, and in the locker room we go over a few points before taking the ride home up the Garden State Parkway. Joe searches for the tournament director to get us free shirts. “That’s Joe,” Rene says smiling, “always politicking.” It gives me a chance to talk with Ya’akosi. The immediate plans are to return to his native Israel to play pro ball. “I would look at other offers in Europe,” he said. Ya’akosi also mentioned how rewarding his Fordham career wound up under Dereck Whittenburg. “If we didn’t lose to La Salle on the road and Duquesne at home, I think we would have gotten an NIT bid,” he said. “We won a game in the (Atlantic Ten) tournament and I think that would have gotten us in.”

The stat sheet shows that Mikael Lindquist, a Swedish all-star, led the Internationals with 17 points while Dainmon Gonner of Southeast Missouri State led Great Plains with 25. Joe has the shirts and the tournament people say thanks to us. Actually, the thanks should go to them for a unique experience.

The Mountain West, behind the play of tournament MVP Spencer Nelson, a 6-8 forward from Utah State, defeated the South in the finals to capture the championship. Eight teams were in the tournament with evyone guaranteed three games.

Players Choice Tournament

Players Choice Works for More Than the Players

by Ray Floriani

RAMAPO, N.J. – The opening line of the coaches’ packet is an introduction that can qualify as a statement of purpose: “The Players Choice has a mission to improve the forum in which college coaches evaluate potential recruits.” On the weekend of April 16-17, the Players Choice, a Brooklyn-based group, hosted an outstanding event at Ramapo College. Eighty girls AAU teams from the fourteen to seventeen year old age group ventured to the quaint Northern New Jersey campus for two days of competition and evaluation. Teams were assembled in pools of five. The schedule began at 8:00 a.m. and ran through 8:30 p.m., with action held on four courts during both days. Each club played two games per day, leaving plenty of opportunity for evaluation while not facing a schedule that put players on the brink of exhaustion.

The key here was evaluation. College coaches were on hand to closely scrutinize the action. Even fourteen year-old teams, with rosters primarily of eighth graders, were given a look. What better opportunity to catch some rising young prospect? Wayne Brunck of Players Choice figures over 50 colleges were represented. “And eleven of those were Division I,” he said.

Overall, the games went smoothly. There were few blowouts and a number of the matchups were settled in the final minutes. On both days, this doubled as an officiating duty for yours truly. Three games Saturday and four on Sunday made for plenty of time to get a good handle on the action.

Most of the teams were from the New York – New Jersey area. There were some who came from New England, Washington (D.C.) and Toronto as well.

Games were generally well-coached. A number of the AAU coaches have high school or college experience, which made for a better game.

It was good to see a young coach like Shenee Clark on the sidelines. Clark was a star at Ridgefield Park (NJ) High School. She had some interest from Division I schools but decided on Caldwell College. Today she is an assistant on the girls staff at Creskill (NJ) High School. In her ‘spare’ time she coaches an AAU team, the Gym Ratz, and does a great job of teaching the kids the proper fundamentals of the game.

The girls got out and ran. Many of the teams ran the floor well. But if the break failed they would hold up and revert to a set or motion offense. Even down by five with a minute left, teams wouldn’t hastily shoot a three. Always a few passes and/or screens before settling on a shot. “That’s a big difference with the girls,” Ramapo Assistant AD Paul Lizzo (who coached LIU a number of years) said. “The guys want to take it to the rim and run. The women always have more structure.”

Members of the Ramapo Women’s basketball team worked the scorer’s tables. It certainly makes the game (and official’s life) smoother having knowledgeable people on the table.

A number of team gear and sporting goods’ merchants were on hand and exhibited in the lobby both days. It simply lent to the atmosphere of the event.

Promotion is a positive. The Nassau Nets, a Long Island-based team, had a sixteen-page ‘media guide’ available at the front desk. Each player was given a full page for a color picture and individual bio.

Sometimes officials are also coaches. Bill Neira coaches one of the Gym Ratz teams and also officiates a busy schedule. Both days Neira put in his time running up and down the court. He had a 3:30 Sunday assignment on court two, but there was one problem – his team was scheduled to play on court two at that very time. At the last second, Neira asked someone (guess who) who was finishing up to stay for one more game. Neira had only six players on his team, but with outstanding guard play, they won easily.

Overall the even was well-received. Teams, coaches (college and AAU) and all others went away extremely satisfied. Lizzo and Ramapo Women’s Assistant Mike Ricciardi, who helped coordinate the event, were also pleased, as were the people at Player’s Choice. Working the two days garbed in maroon knit shirts, staff members did everything from collect admission to make sure players and officials had ample water at their disposal.

“We try to make things easier and work with the college coaches,” Brunck said late Sunday afternoon. He and his wife spent two weeks typing and preparing a nearly 100-page booklet that listed the entire roster and personal information of every player on the respective teams, as well as the full schedule with times and a few pages for notes. “We do not charge the college coaches anything for the packets,” Brunck said. “Some events might charge $100 for a packet with half the information. We are not trying to make a buck off the coaches. We want to work with them.” Brunck feels well-run events will simply have teams and coaches asking for more.

In July there will be another showcase near Albany and at Bishop Ford in Brooklyn as well. Both those sessions will have morning fundamental stations for the participating players which will be are open to the college evaluators.

The name is Player’s Choice. The aim is to make it the coaches’ choice as a recruiting aid as well.

Hall of Fame Coaches

For These Men, Basketball is Life

by Ray Floriani

LYNDHURST, N.J. – It is only fitting how it worked out. Jim Boeheim, Hubie Brown and Jim Calhoun were elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame on the same day. Yes, it was only appropriate the three go in together. Their carrer paths are somewhat similar but the constant remains, they are basketball lifers. And pretty good teachers as well.

Boeheim is not only a basketball lifer but a Syracuse one as well. From his undergraduate days when he walked on the squad and teamed with Dave Bing, Syracuse has been Boeheim’s home. He assisted for several years, then took over in 1978 as Roy Danforth headed to Tulane. Under his watch, Syracuse has gone from a strong regional program to a national one. The national championship in 2003 was a milestone on what has been an outstanding resume.

Boeheim strikes a very mild-mannered style on the sidelines, except when “debating” an official’s call. The looks are deceiving. He’s a competitor and simply goes out, competes and most of the time wins. The knock on him is his style is undisciplined. Nothing is further from the truth. He does allow his players some offensive freedom. Boeheim realizes that system is apt to attract some better ballplayers. There is a limit, though, to that offensive self-expression on the floor, as the system is far from “run ‘n gun”. Critics should also be reminded of the trademark 2-3 zone Syracuse employs. On the surface, a 2-3 doesn’t seem that imposing, but year after year, opponents, especially those who do not see it and face Syracuse in the tournament, struggle and often fail to effectively solve it.

The honors and accolades Boeheim has brought to Syracuse basketball are too numerous to mention here. Schools looking for a head coach don’t even bother to dial Boeheim’s number anymore. He’s there for life. Interestingly, two of his assistants as Bernie Fine (29 years) and Mike Hopkins (10 years) have looked at other jobs but remained on the staff for quite some time as well.

Boeheim remarked to the press after being notified about the selection to the Hall that it might be nice to get the honor and be retired. “The reality is,” Boehein said, “we open with Cornell next year.” Spoken as a true “lifer.” The season had recently ended and Boeheim is already pondering the opening of 2005-2006.

It appears Jim Calhoun has been at the University of Connecticut his entire coaching career. That is not the case, and the same goes for the assumption that UConn has always been a national power. Truth is, the school struggled in the Big East for several years. Jim Calhoun was running a successful overachieving program at Northeastern. UConn, a charter member of the Big East Conference was at very best, treading water in the meantime. In the mid-80s, there was serious talk among Connecticut faithful and officials of the school possibly exiting the conference. There were even (UConn) fans who felt the two Husky nicknamed schools should swap – simply, UConn go to the North Atlantic Conference while Northeastern join the Big East. The schools stayed put, but Calhoun made the move.

Following his initial year at Storrs, Calhoun lamented there probably wasn’t one player in the UConn program who could start for another Big East school. That was the 1985-86 season. His statement was not to hint any progress made that season was solely his doing; it was Calhoun’s candid and frank assessment of the scenario. Calhoun didn’t wallow in self pity over his new and extremely challenging situation. Calhoun approached the job the only way he knew: with a strong dose of plain old fashioned hard work. He coached the heck out of the kids he had, hit the recruiting trail with a vengeance and worked feverishly to alter the university’s infrastructure in its relation to the basketball program.

In 1987-88 the Huskies finished just over .500 and received an NIT bid. They got hot in March and wound up cutting the nets at Madison square Garden as champions. Two years later UConn was a possession away from the Final Four. There was no looking back from there, as a succession of Big East titles and two national championships highlight the past decade and a half.

Outspoken and not afraid to share his opinion, Calhoun basically stayed the same as he was during the days spent roaming the Northeastern sidelines. Calhoun has always been a teacher of the game, a thorough, well-prepared mentor who diligently worked and demanded the best of all his players. Again, the nation found out more about Jim Calhoun over the past decade or so. The UConn success coupled with the Nutmeg State’s extensive media coverage has revealed to more people what was basically common knowledge – Jim Calhoun is simply a superlative basketball coach. As noted, Calhoun hasn’t spent his entire career or enjoyed his only success at UConn. Still, when you mention the University of Connecticut’s outstanding success on the court the last fifteen plus years, one can’t help but think of Jim Calhoun.

Hubie Brown has traveled a different route. He’s seen it all, from a high school coach who’s responsible for sweeping the floor and phoning in scores to an NBA sideline, working under the microscope of media scrutiny and dealing with a different level of talent and demands. Through it all Brown has been the consummate teacher. His same, break the game down approach has worked on every level, from Cranford and Fair Lawn, NJ high schools, to his days as a Duke University assistant and later as a head coach in the old ABA and the NBA.

Brown left coaching the NBA the latter part of the 1980s and joined TNT as an analyst. The teaching continued, as Brown broke the game down efficiently and simply. He addressed his audience to reach all, whether it was the upwardly mobile coach or the wife or girlfriend who was watching as captive audience.

The opportunity to return to the sidelines presented itself a little over a year ago. The Memphis Grizzlies were calling, and Brown accepted. Critics said his techniques would not work with today’s pampered, often spoiled and sometimes lackadaisical NBA player mired in a losing situation. The critics were silenced and sold. Brown utilized those same principles from his high school coaching days and let the Grizzlies to the playoffs while earning himself Coach of the Year honors.

In clinics, Hubie Brown is fiery and simply phenomenal. He will give a three-hour clinic non-stop without benefit of one index card or note sheet to reference. He is 180 minutes of boundless energy captivating his audience. It’s the same style and approach he’s used since the Cranford days right through to David Stern’s league. A single play might not be diagrammed, yet notebooks of the attendees are filled.

Brown would discuss a practice from the prep days of breaking down his team stats against the upper half of the league or conference and comparing them with the breakdowns of the lower half. Another idea was having a pre-practice meeting in a different part of the practice site each day, simply to maintain concentration.

Ever the teacher, Brown constantly is open to new ideas. He once pointed out the concepts of a 1-3-1 offense he saw and borrowed while watching his daughter’s middle school basketball game during his Atlanta days.

He stepped down as head coach of the Grizzlies last fall, but rest assured, he is still watching intently – NBA, college, high school, whatever. He is watching as both a teacher prepping for the next lesson and student still learning and thirsting for knowledge of a game he passionately loves.

Jim Boeheim, Jim Calhoun, Hubie Brown – the Hall has a virtual “blessed trinity” of mentors to enshrine this September.

NIT Final Recap

2005 NIT Final: An Instant Classic

by Ray Floriani

NEW YORK – For the record, there is listed a champion and runner-up. In one respect it doesn’t do justice. The finals of the 68th NIT saw South Carolina and St. Joe’s battle it out the full forty minutes. Players expended every ounce of physical and emotional energy. The same could be said for the respective coaches and fans of both teams. The record will show South Carolina emerged a 60-57 champion and takes the NIT trophy back to Columbia. For St. Joe’s, it’s the culmination of a great run, the end of another magical year on Hawk Hill.

The final seconds alone brought a roller coaster of emotions. St. Joe’s Pat Carroll struggled from the perimeter all night but buried a trey from the left side to tie the game with just under ten seconds to play. Tarence Kinsey took the ensuing inbounds pass and pushed the ball up the floor. He stopped from the right of the arc and launched a jumper that found nothing but net. There were nine-tenths of a second left and St. Joe’s could only inbound and not get a good shot off.

The final South Carolina possession was laced in irony. From the four-minute mark on, coach Dave Odom had been substituting Kinsey for defensive purposes with Josh Gonner for offense. Kinsey was on the floor when Carroll hit his game-tying three. Odom contemplated calling time out as South Carolina pushed the ball up court. “I had thoughts,” he said, “but felt St. Joe’s was playing such great defense I didn’t want to give them a chance to set up defensively (following a time out).” Odom went with his gut reaction then added, “it was probably the best move I didn’t make.”

Two big keys in the game were rebounding and post defense. “We didn’t rebound the defensive board as well as we should,” St. Joe’s coach Phil Martelli said. “If we did we would be the champions.”

Post defense was something Odom stressed to his club. “We played (Pat) Carroll straight up (with Kinsey drawing the assignment) didn’t want a post defender to leave his man and try to double him,” Odom said. “Memphis did that and gave up a few easy dunks. Tonight it happened to us once.”

Carroll led St. Joe’s with 15 points but struggled with an icy 2-of-13 mark from beyond the arc. “Pat does not get frustrated’ Martelli said of his senior swingman who played so well all year. “The only shot that is important when you are shooting is the next shot. It is of utmost importance because you have to take that next shot thinking that it’s going to go in.”

Carroll had good looks and didn’t force the issue. Besides, St. Joe’s is far from a one-man club as Dwayne Jones (10 points), Dwayne Lee (13 points) and Chet Stachitas (11 points) contributed offensively.

In normal ‘coach speak’ a game like this will have a coach saying it was unfortunate someone had to lose. Interestingly enough, both Dave Odom and Phil Martelli elaborated on that theme.

Phil Martelli and Dave Odom rang the bell to open the New York Stock Exchange on the morning of the finals. In post-game interviews, Martelli noted the head of the stock exchange must be a financial genius. “He probably doesn’t know a lot about basketball,” Martelli said, “but he told us this game will end in a tie. To be that accurate, he must be a financial genius when he talks about finances which he knows a great deal about.”

In a strange twist of irony, the Garden scoreboard did not list yet South Carolina points until about ten seconds after the final buzzer. Almost as if the basketball gods decreed this one should end knotted up.

Carlos Powell, the South Carolina senior forward who led all scorers with 16 points and was tough in the paint, was the tournament MVP. He spoke on the court amidst the post game celebration. “This is my first championship since little league,” the Gamecocks senior forward said, beaming a wide smile. On that final possession Powell said, “I was right here (about 10 feet from the Gamecock bench). I saw him (Kinsey) come up and release the shot. I thought it looked good and as it got closer I said oh man that’s got to go down.” It did and sent off a raucous celebration by Gamecock rooters who were drowned out by St. Joe’s fans a good part of the night.

Brandon Wallace of South Carolina also played a key role in the victory. The sophomore forward scored eight points but had 9 rebounds, five on the offensive end. He was named to the All-Tournament team and deservedly so.

Notes

• Pat Carroll is a competitor who wants to win as much as anyone on that floor. Despite a disappointing shooting performance and a heartbreaking loss, Carroll fielded every question in the St. Joe’s locker room. Carroll was cooperative, insightful and an engaging interview. Again, this after a tough loss in the finals. Shows you the class person he is and the type kids Martelli has in his outstanding program.
  Carroll noted that, “It was a great run. You hope to get in the NCAAs but the NIT gives you an opportunity. It kept our season going and to go this far and finish your career at Madison Square Garden is very special.” As much as the loss hurt Carroll felt the end of his career in a Hawk uniform was the, “Tough to swallow. To realize it’s over.”
• Dwayne Lee, who did a nice job running the club, felt seniors John Bryant and (Pat) Carroll were instrumental in providing sound leadership as the team grew. The NIT run was memorable to Lee. “Last year we made the Elite Eight and lost Jameer (Nelson), Delonte (West) and Tyrone (Barley),” he said. “People thought we might not be very good this year. Everyone on the team believed and this was a great experience that can only help this program.”
• Mike Rice just finished up his first year as a member of Phil Martelli’s coaching staff. Before the game we talked about how a few years ago he officiated a few games with yours truly at the Eastern Camp at the College of New Jersey. They were short of officials so Rice grabbed a whistle and being a former player, did a great job. “Experiences at Eastern helped me get this job,” Rice said. “I was one of the directors but coach Martelli saw I would referee, get water, set up chairs, anything. He said that is the type person you have to be at St. Joe’s, be willing to do extra.” Rice is extremely happy for the opportunity of joining the Hawk staff. “It’s been wonderful, “he said, “Coach Martelli is a great person and a great coach.”
• Odom praised St. Joe’s and Martelli for their competitiveness and class. “After they received the runner up awards they stayed on the floor at their bench until we receive ours,” Odom said. “Many times teams get their awards and leave. To stay out there just speaks volumes for Phil Martelli, his program, the university and their fans. It was an honor to compete against them tonight.”
• Martelli summed up the game and effort best by saying, “I just told my team that it was an honor to coach them because every single guy emptied their tank physically, emotionally and mentally. If I coach forever I don’t think I’ll see another 45 or 30 seconds like I just saw. That was them… That was an honor to be part of and an honor to coach that group of guys.’
• Best shirt(s) of the night: Worn by St.Joe’s fans saying, “friends don’t let friends go to Villanova”.
• Two hours before game time St. Joe’s cheerleading coach Renee Poupard had her squad on the Garden floor practicing their routines in sweats. On Hawk Hill, commitment and hard work is infectious.
• Attendance was 11,555, with more than a fair amount making the trip from Philadelphia.

NIT Semifinal Recaps

NIT Title Game is Set

by Ray Floriani

NEW YORK – It will be St. Joe’s and South Carolina battling for the championship of the 68th annual National Invitation Tournament on Thursday. It promises to be an interesting final with the respective teams facing specific challenges.

St. Joe’s has to once again be concerned with tempo. South Carolina is dangerous in the open floor and runs the break well. Of greater importance, the Hawks have to take care of the basketball. The Gamecocks force about fifteen turnovers per game and run a great deal off those opposition miscues. All-SEC forward Carlos Powell leads South Carolina in scoring. The 6-7 Powell is effective in transition and is a lefty who is very effective inside. Dave Odom’s club is far from just Powell. They share the ball and have a number of players that can step up and beat you. A definite weakness for the Gamecocks is the foul line. They are shooting just above 60%, which can hurt in the waning moments of a close game.

St. Joe’s is playing with a great sense of purpose and confidence. Pat Carroll is a dangerous perimeter scorer and rarely forces or takes an ill advised shot. Dwayne Lee is running the point well and he will be tested by South Carolina’s cganging defenses. Dwayne Jones and John Bryant rebounded extremely well versus a Memphis club that had good size inside. Keeping St. Joe’s off the offensive boards will be a major concern in the finals.

St. Joe’s advanced with a 70-58 victory over Memphis in the first semifinal matchup at Madison Square Garden. “We had been playing well but tonight they out-toughed us,” said Memphis coach John Calipari. The Hawks outrebounded Memphis 40-31. In the first half St.Joe’s had 11 offensive rebounds. “that’s incredible,” Calipari said. “No one has done that against us this year.”

Dwayne Jones was largely responsible with a 13-point, 14-rebound (8 offensive) outing. The Hawks also showed outstanding poise against any Memphis pressure and dictated tempo. Point guard Dwayne Lee was a key factor there, and he forced Memphis lead guard Darius Washington into an uncharacteristic 4-of-16 shooting night. Another key factor was Carroll, who scored a game-high 24 points. Carroll drilled 6-of-9 from beyond the arc and had two huge threes in the final four minutes when St. Joe’s sealed the verdict.

Offense aside, Martelli credited the defense as crucial. “We have older experienced guys,” he said. “When we show them something on a break down they are able to acquire than information and use them in games.” Memphis, a smooth transition team that often gets in the lane, wound up forcing things. The Tigers assisted on only 6 of their 22 field goals while the Hawks patiently ran their offense and spread the ball around. The stats showed as St. Joe’s picked up 15 assists on their 20 field goals. St. Joe’s also did a good job of maintaing the lead and stopping Memphis runs. Rodney Carney led the Tigers with 21 points, 17 in the second half when Memphis threatened on several occasions.

In the second game, South Carolina and Maryland were tied at 18 with nine minutes remaining in the half. Over the next three minutes, the Gamecocks went on a 9-0 run and were never seriously threatened. South Carolina changed defenses, got in the passing lanes and ran on turnovers. Transition, quickness and balanced scoring led to the 75-67 decision. Lead guard John Gilchrist, who missed three prior NIT wins for the Terrapins, was still sidelined with ankle/wrist injuries. Without his presence, coach Gary Williams’ club never really got on track on the offensive end. Senior forward Carlos Powell paced the Gamecocks with a 17-point, 12-rebound effort. Chris McCray, Travis Garrison and Mike Jones had fifteen each for the Terrapins.

The final game is set for 7:00 on Thursday.

So much for a neutral site

The Garden is considered a neutral site, but this evening it was as if ‘Hawk Hill’ was moved to the Big Apple. The St. Joe’s fans came in droves, rocked the MSG and created a near home game atmosphere. Some samplings:

• Tom, a drummer in the band warmed up pounding his drum twenty something minutes before game time pausing to tell a friend, “I’ve got my cell phone and lighter. I’m set for the week.”
• As Maryland players assembled in before game one several members of the Hawk fan following chanted ‘you suck’, the same chant that greeted every Memphis player introduced.
• When Carroll drained his threes chants of ‘you can’t guard him’ rang out.
• Of course the traditional, ‘the Hawk will never die’ echoed throughout the building on several occasions.
• Overall, the St. Joe’s fans were animated and reveled in the moment. One member of the traveling party was asked if the fans are like this on Hawk Hill home games. “Kind of,” she replied. “But I think the availability of beer has got them a little more pumped up.”

Notes

• Calipari and assistant coach Derek Kellogg both praised the resiliency of Memphis during this run. “It was a heckuva year to come back from where we were,” Calipari said. “We had to deal with a lot (on and off the floor). To come back as we did the last few weeks makes me proud of these kids.” Kellogg specifically praised Darius Washington’s ability to bounce back from the missed free throws at the end of the C-USA final and become instrumental in the fine run in the NIT.
• South Carolina and Maryland had assistant coaches set to move on after the season. Ricky Stokes of Dave Odom’s staff will take over at East Carolina while Mike Lonergan of Maryland will replace Tom Brennan at Vermont.
• The Martellis are quite the basketball family. His children are all active in the game. Phil Jr. is an assistant at Central Connecticut, Jimmy is a senior player at Dickinson College and Elizabeth is a senior on the Merion Mercy Academy team. Wife Judy played with the legendary Immaculata College program. Judy’s teammates included coaching standouts Theresa Grentz and Rene Portland. As we spoke briefly about women’s basketball and how Rutgers was in the regional final against Tennessee, Judy reminded, “I played against (Rutgers coach) Vivian Stringer’s Cheyney State team when I was in college.” Back them in the early seventies Cheyney-Immaculata was as big a matchup as you could get in the women’s game.
• Pat Carroll drew praise from Phil Martelli for his work ethic. “We had practice at four on Saturday, and at two o’clock he was in the gym alone shooting jumpers two hours before practice.”
• Dave Odom will try for a second NIT title. He won it all in 2000 at the helm of Wake Forest and was runnerup at South Carolina losing to Memphis in 2002.
• Bob Valvano was working the game on radio. He was at the Albuquerque Regional for Louisville radio. “It was emotional going back,” he said in reference to the Pit, where his late brother Jim won the national title in 1983. “It’s nice to see they haven’t changed the place in 22 years,” he then added in jest. Valvano had nothing but praise for West Virginia and feels critics who feel they blew it are misguided, “being up 20 is not like it was about 20 years ago with no shot clock and a three-point lead. In today’s game a twenty point lead can vanish in a few minutes.”
• Mascot watch: The Hawk is the best, cased closed. The Memphis Tiger was verbally mocked by St. Joe’s fans who kept chanting, ‘what’s up Tony’. The Maryland Terrapin was good. The absolute worst was the South Carolina mascot. But one thing the Gamecock mascot did do was pick up a ball at halftime, walk to center court and heave a half court shot that swished. Not a great mascot but what a touch.
• CBS’ Len Elmore took in the Maryland contest. Elmore teamed with Tom McMillen to lead the Terrapins to the 1972 NIT title.
• Fordham coach Dereck Whittenburg was in attendance, lending support to fellow Atlantic Ten member St. Joe’s.
• Each of the NIT Final Four coaches has gone deep into NCAA tournament play during their careers. Gary Williams, in fact, won the 2002 national championship at Maryland. To a coach, they all respected and praised the NIT as a prestigious tournament in today’s game. As Dave Odom of South Carolina said, “in the NCAA tournament you play for THE national championship, in the NIT you play for A national championship. And that is very special.”

NIT Media Day

Notes from Media Day at the NIT Final Four

by Ray Floriani

NEW YORK – Gary Williams has coached over three decades. He has seen success in the Big Ten, Big East and ACC. He has a national championship on his resume. Still, the veteran mentor recalls his first NIT experience as a coach as it was last week.

“I was an assistant to Dr. Tom Davis at Lafayette in 1973,” Williams recalled. “We played Virginia, who had been as high as number five that year. We wound up winning that game on two Jay Mattola free throws in the final seconds.” Such is the lure of the nation’s oldest post season tournament.

Williams has been in the tournament with several schools. He made the finals in ’88, but lost to a UConn team that was just starting to turn the corner under Jim Calhoun. “They had Cliff Robinson,” Williams said, “who today is still in the NBA.” At Maryland, the recent tradition has seen the Terrapins go to the NCAA – eleven straight to be exact, highlighted by the 2002 National Championship. Make no mistake though, Maryland and Williams are proud to be here.

“You shoot for the NCAA,” Williams said, “but once we received the NIT bid we played through everything. We have one senior who doesn’t play a lot so this is a young club. This experience can only help us next year but to win this tournament would be great.” Interestingly, the champion of that 1972 NIT Williams alluded to? Maryland, with Lefty Dreisell on the sidelines.

The season didn’t start too kindly for St. Joe’s. As the new year rolled around the Hawks were 3-6. The only tournament, some felt, St. Joe’s might see was the Atlantic Ten post season one in March. Following New Year’s Day, the Hawks regrouped and are one of five teams to win twenty games past January first. “We are 20-5 since the New Year,” St. Joe’s coach Phil Martelli said. “A lot of the credit goes to the intestinal fortitude and determination of these kids.” Martelli was speaking at the NIT Final Four media day at New York’s Marriot Marquis. “I have to credit our seniors,” Martelli added. “Pat Carroll has shot the ball extremely well and John Bryant has been our spiritual leader.”

While Martelli credited his kids, especially the seniors, Carroll himself had a different opinion. “It (the turnaround) was definitely due to the coaching staff,” Carroll said. “We started 3-6 and were playing like last year.” Specifically, full court pressure from the opening tap and a read and react offense which afforded more spontaneous creativity. “We lost two pros (guards Jameer Nelson and Delonte West) so the coaches decided to make some changes.”

For one, the Hawks no longer opened up in full court pressure. They will press but use it more like a blitz in football, as an element of surprise. St.Joe’s also went to more structure on offense. “We had a lot of sets put in,” Carroll said. “So we work each possession more with a lot of structured sets.” Specifically the type that can free the sharpshooting Carroll who leads the Hawks with an 18.2 ppg average.

Against Memphis in the NIT semis, Carroll feels tempo is crucial. “They (Memphis) like to get up and down and get in transition,” Carroll said. “We have to dictate tempo and keep it more of a halfcourt game.”

Maryland’s Gary Williams will face a familiar coaching foe, with a little change. Before he moved to south Carolina a few years ago, Dave Odom paced the sidelines at Wake Forest and had some memorable meetings with Williams and Maryland. “If he looks at the old Wake tapes he’s be shocked,” Odom said with a laugh. “Back then we were big (don’t forget Tim Duncan played here) and rugged inside. At South Carolina we rely more on quickness and pressure.”

While Williams will notice a change, Odom expects much of the same – vintage Gary Williams basketball. “They still play you full court,” Odom said. “But the thing that is most impressive is whether they are in transition or half court, they do it well and are hard to stop.” No matter what the tempo, race horse or walk it up, Odom feels they key to winning will be decided in “the ten feet closest to the basket. We have to win the game in that area ten feet out right to the basket. Control that and we’re fine.”

For John Calipari and Memphis, the NIT is a second chance. The well-chronicled Conference USA final loss to Louisville left the Tigers out of the NCAA. In that game freshman Darius Washington missed the free throws that could have won it. Memphis, however, has rebounded in admirable fashion. “Right after that (final), Darius (Washington) and Arthur Barlclay were really down,” Calipari said. “As they started to come around and bounce back the rest of the team followed.” For Memphis, the NIT has given them a second season. And Calipari mirroers the enthusiasm. “I feel great about this,” he said. “We have young kids to coach and the, more games and chances to coach them the better. If (NIT Director) Jack (Powers) said let’s go another week, I would be all for it.”

Memphis faces St. Joe’s in Tuesday’s semifinal at 7 followed by Maryland-South Carolina at 9:30. The final is Thursday at 7 with no consolation. The third place game was eliminated last season. “A lot of the more veteran or older coaches didn’t care for it,” Jack Powers said. “And The Garden determined not having the third place game would not hurt the overall attendance and revenue.”

ESPN’s Fran Fraschilla was on hand with a few opinions on last weekend’s NCAA action. Fraschilla feels Rick Pitino is, “the best coach in America when it comes to preparing a team for a one-game situation. No one is better.” Fraschilla was also impressed with the job John Beilein did at West Virginia. “I coached against him when I was at Manhattan and he was at Canisius,” Fraschilla said. “And you know what? He ran exactly the same offense and things you saw during the tournament.”

St. Joe’s last trip to the NIT Final Four was 1996. The Hawks defeated Alabama in the semis before losing to Nebraska in the finals. Mark Bass, a member of Martelli’s staff, played for the Hawks back then. “He’s (Bass) told the kids about the experience,” Martelli said. “But we’ve reminded him he didn’t have a very good game against Nebraska,” the coach added with a spice of humor.

Dave Odom, conservative in appearance and demeanor, showed some humor of his own. After Calipari and Martelli recalled their A-10 battles when the former was at UMass, Odom remarked, “These Italians are something with their memory. I’m a Southern Baptist and lucky if I remember what went on at this morning’s practice.”

Gary Williams began his coaching career at Woodrow Wilson High School in Camden in the early Seventies. He was pleased to learn the Wilson girls team recently won the New Jersey Tournament of Champions title last week. “That’s great for them,” Williams gushed. “Camden is a tough community , there are obstacles and for them to reach an achievement like that is truly wonderful for them and the city.”

New Jersey TOC Recap

Seton Hall Prep Takes Title

by Ray Floriani

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – It was unfortunate, but someone had to come out on the short end. Seton Hall Prep and St. Pat’s met in a classic battle at Continental Airlines Arena. At stake was the New Jersey Boys Tournament of Champions title. In the end, Seton hall prevailed 63-60.

The game began with many wondering if it would be a rout like two years ago. In that contest, St. Pat’s controlled from tap to buzzer in totaling dismantling a strong Camden Catholic squad. In Thursday night’s game the Celtics jumped out to a 19-6 first quarter lead. “We rushed things on offense,” Seton Hall coach Bob Farrell said. “That gave them some run offs (transition baskets). Once we ran our offense better, the run offs stopped and we settled down..”

A crucial juncture came in the second quarter. St. Pat’s was enjoying a fifteen-point lead. Seton Hall’s senior center Brandon Costner then hit two three-pointers. Those treys by the 6-9 Costner, who is as comfortable on the perimeter as in the lane, got the lead into single digits. More importantly, it energized the Pirates and increased their confidence. At the half the Pat’s lead was seven, but you could sense the momentum had already began to swing.

At halftime there were no major adjustments for Seton Hall. “Coach (Farrell) just told the team to run our offense as we normally do, be patient,” Prep assistant Marty Berman said. “And box out,” he added. “God they (St. Pat’s) are so big.”

A crucial adjustment was made by Farrell during the first half. A concern was St. Pat’s 6-9 center Derrick Caracter. “A lot of teams used a matchup zone against him (Caracter) earlier in the tournament,” Farrell said. “Once we got in more of a halfcourt game we could see where Caracter set up and how they got the ball to him.” To counteract, Farrell had one of his guards, Chris Andrews, double down on Character when he caught the ball in the low post. Several times the double team stripped Character of the ball. On other occasions it forced him to work for his team-high 23 points. It left the perimeter open but St. Pat’s couldn’t capitalize. “Fish (Corey fisher) has hit the outside shot through the tournament,” St. Pat’s coach Kevin Boyle said. “Tonight he was off (3 of 16 from the floor). If he hits just three three-pointers we could be having a different conversation now.”

Over the course of the final half, fans at the arena were treated to outstanding performances by the two teams’ respective big men. Costner lured Caracter outside with his outside shooting, then at the opportune moment would use his skills to penetrate. Caracter, on the other end, gave Pat’s a strong low post presence, especially on the offensive boards. In the end result, the game that came down to the final minute was decided simply because Seton Hall made plays in the clutch.

“We really haven’t had close games this year,” Boyle said. “We have either won handily or been beaten pretty good ourselves. We are young and not having close games hurt. We didn’t react well at the end.”

Costner led all scorers with a 31-point effort.

“He’s a McDonald’s All-American,” Boyle said. “And he certainly showed why tonight.”

Seton Hall finished the season 30-1 while St. Pat’s wound up 28-5. Seton Hall’s lone loss was a three-point setback to East Hall (Georgia) in the finals of the Red Cross Rotary Roundball Classic.

Game Notes

• Tony Costner’s rooting interests were in two places, East Rutherford and College Station, Texas. Tony is the father of Seton Hall Prep star Brandon Costner. In the early Eighties Tony had an outstanding career at St. Joe’s who happened to be playing Texas A&M in the NIT quarterfinals. “Yes, I’ll be keeping an eye on the scoreboard,” the elder Costner said smiling before the TOC final. “I went down (to St. Joe’s) for the Holy Cross game and I think they can win it tonight.” Costner was a bit disappointed the Hawks did not get an NCAA bid. “The Atlantic Ten was a bit down this year,” he said, “but off their performance last year and finishing runner-up in the (A-10) tournament, I thought that could get them in.” By the end of the night, Tony Costner exited Continental Airlines Arena happy on both counts. Brandon and his Seton Hall teammates captured the TOC and St. Joe’s defeated Texas A&M and will be headed to New York.
• Marcus Toney-El was in attendance and made his way down to courtside to congratulate Bob Farrell after the finals. Toney-El played for Farrell at Seton Hall Prep prior to heading to Seton Hall University, where he was a major part of that celebrated recruiting class that included Andre Barrett and Eddie Griffin.
• Bob Farrell is truly one of the outstanding high school coaches not only in New Jersey, but America. Still, the veteran mentor is willing to listen to input.
  “I was out to dinner with Tyrone Barley (who played for Farrell) when he was at St. Joe’s last year. He said jokingly that I probably lost the TOC final in 2000 against Camden. What he meant was we ran them a little hard the day before the game. This time I went easier on running the day before the final. I wanted them to have fresh legs the second half and they did. St. Pat’s might have expected us to fold but we didn’t.”
• The crowd was rather sparse at the arena. A late afternoon snow storm in the area made some roads slick and probably accounted for a less-than-expected turn out.
• Savor the moment: Seton Hall Prep fans and players were still gathered in the Arena lobby nearly an hour past the final buzzer. They snapped pictures and exchanged pleasantries. Each Seton Hall player that came up from the escalator leading to the lobby was greeted with thunderous applause. Fans and players of the victorious Pirates were in no hurry to exit the facility. And who could blame them.