News, Notes, and Highlighted Games: Friday, Nov 10th

Posted on November 9, 2017 by David Griggs

Happy College Basketball Season Everybody!!! 

For ALL of our extensive preseason coverage, which amounts to more than what most preseason magazines offer – CLICK HERE

For the first ever episode of Hoops HD’s latest podcast, The Kyle Lamb Show – CLICK HERE

NEWS AND NOTES

-After about two weeks of meaningless and mostly boring exhibition games, the season is finally here!!  Like any first weekend of the season, we have a bunch of games that really aren’t a whole lot less boring, but at least they mean something!!  And, we have some pretty good showcase games as well.  At least by Week 1 standards.

-Everyone starts out at zero.  Regardless of what the write ups say, everyone starts out at zero.  To give the games some sort of context we have to do some sensible supposing, but in theory the SWAC could win 80 percent of their OOC games, end up with half the teams in the RPI top 25, and put more than half the league in the NCAA Tournament.  It’s also true that the ACC could end up losing 80 percent of their games and only sending the conference tourney winner to the NCAAs.  Everything is ultimately determined by what happens on the court, which is how it should be.

-MARCH MADNESS BE DAMNED!!!  There are college basketball games being played today than there will be on any other day for the rest of the year.  And with so many exempt tournaments being played in November, we actually have more basketball crammed into the the final three weeks of November than what we typically see in March.  And whether you believe it or not, a lot of these games are just as important as a lot of the games in March because they do so much to shape which teams will be in positions to land inside the bubble on Selection Sunday.  As the previous note says, everyone starts out at zero, and the teams that pick up the most meaningful wins early on will be the ones best positioned to make the NCAAs without needing the automatic bid.  So on that note,  NOVEMBER MADNESS IS HERE!!

 

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-SPRING ARBOR (nondiv1) AT EASTERN MICHIGAN.  This gets highlighted because it is the first official game to tip off!!  No other reason.  None.  I mean…ZERO!  If this were the second game to tip off there would be no reason to mention it, but since it’s the first, it gets mentioned.

-CAL STATE DOMINGUEZ HILLS AT CAL BAPTIST.  The Team of the People officially open what is destined to be their season of dominance!!!!  Your Lancers Ladies and Gentlemen!!!  CLICK HERE to watch the game at 10pm, est!

-TEXAS A&M VS WEST VIRGINIA (Armed Forces Classic in Ramstein Germany).  One of the better games of the day, and if you want to see it in person you need to fly to Germany.  TAMU should be much improved, and if they get this win over a West Virginia team that many think could end up as a protected seed, then it will go along way toward establishing TAMU as a protected seed.  I know it’s the first night, but big wins count as big wins even on the first night, and this would be a big neutral floor win for whoever pulls it off.

-MEMPHIS VS ALABAMA (Veterans Classic in Annapolis, MD).  Alabama isn’t used to being formidable in basketball, but it appears they will be this year.  They are on the cusp of the coach’s poll and could end up in the rankings before too long.  Memphis has a good coach, but they appear to have an awful team this year.  But, who knows?  Tubby Smith has surprised us before.  If Memphis can somehow get this one then everyone will sit up and take notice.

-NORTHERN IOWA AT NORTH CAROLINA.  It’s actually not technically a buy game, but it could end up looking like one.  Northern Iowa has had some good teams, but they really struggled last season and by all accounts will struggle again this year.

-ELON AT DUKE.  This is a buy game, but it is worth mentioning.  Elon had a strong finish to the season last year and they return most of their key players, so they should be a very strong UTR team.  They’re probably swinging over their heads in this game, but they’re still better than what many probably realize.

-INDIANA STATE AT INDIANA.  The IU debut of Archie Miller!  The Hoosiers may really struggle this year, but they shouldn’t struggle tonight.

-MARYLAND AT STONY BROOK.  Interesting road game for the Terps against a Stony Brook team that will be formidable in the America East, but most likely not a frontrunner.  They have a showcase game against a P5 school tonight, though, and the atmosphere alone should make it worth tuning in to.

-SOUTH CAROLINA AT WOFFORD.  Mike Young has done an outstanding job at Wofford, and tonight they get to open the season and a new arena against a team that was in the Final Four last year.  Much of that team for South Carolina has since departed, but this should still be a great game and experience for both teams.

-FORT WAYNE AT OAKLAND.  I like this Oakland team and feel they’re good enough to land inside the bubble if they fail to win their conference tournament, but that means blowing through their season.  Their margin for error is small, and even though it’s opening night they need to treat this game, and every other game, like it’s meaningful if they want to pull it off.

-SIENA AT CHARLESTON.  Charleston is another team that I think may be good enough to land inside the bubble, but it’s the same deal as Oakland.  They have a small margin for error and if they’re going to pull that off then they cannot error tonight against a decent (by UTR standards) Siena program.

-TOWSON AT OLD DOMINION.  It’s unlikely that either of these teams will end up in the NCAA Tournament picture, but it’s not impossible.  ODU should be a force in CUSA, and Towson returns a lot from a team that looked good down the stretch last year.  It’s a good first game for both teams.

-MIT (nondiv1) @ HARVARD.  Harvard is actually potentially a top 40 team, but even if they weren’t I’d highlight this game.  These two commonly open the season against each other, and I love it!!

-UNC ASHEVILLE AT RHODE ISLAND.  We all like this Rhode Island team, and some of us (me included) think they may be a top 25 caliber team.  This is a buy game, but it’s not a complete joke of a game.  UNC Asheville is probably the best team in the Big South this year so Rhody just can’t completely overlook them.

-LOUISIANA AT OLE MISS.  This is a buy game, and this Ole Miss team is a team to keep an eye on, but that’s not why we’re highlighting this game.  It’s not Louisiana Lafayette anymore!  They are simply the University of Louisiana!  RAJUN CAJUN!!

-SAMFORD AT ARKANSAS.  Yes, this is a buy game, but this is a Samford team that should be a SoCon frontrunner this year, and it will be interesting to see what they do against an Arkansas team that we still have a lot to learn about.

-MERCER AT UCF.  We highlight this because we think UCF may be a tournament team, and that Mercer is capable of making some noise on the SoCon.

-UMBC AT SMU.  This is technically an unbracketed Battle 4 Atlantis game, and I like the match-up because of how drastically improved UMBC was last season, and how we have so many questions about SMU going into this year.  Can Tim Jankovich keep SMU’s program at the level of them consistently making the NCAA Tournament?

-NORTHERN COLORADO AT COLORADO (Front Range).  We love the Front Range!!!!  Okay, that’s all I’ve got, but we do love the Front Range!!

-MISSOURI STATE AT WESTERN KENTUCKY.  Missouri State is who a lot of us like to win the Missouri Valley this year, and Western Kentucky is a team that we all liked as a top forty team this year until their offseason went completely to hell.  So many question marks about the Toppers this year.  Maybe we’ll learn something about them tonight.

-NIAGARA AT SAINT BONAVENTURE (Big 4).  I like the Bonnies.  I think they can be a tournament team.  In order for that to happen, they need to take care of business in games like this.  It is somewhat of a rivalry game.

-CENTENARY AT SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA.  Whenever Centenary plays a div1 team, we mention it.  That’s not the rule, but it’s sort of the rule.

-BUCKNELL AT MONMOUTH.  Monmouth had an NCAA caliber team the last two years.  It’s a shame the committee never took them.  I understand why they didn’t because of their paper, but I also disagree with that decision and feel they were better than a lot of teams the committee did take.  They are rebuilding this year, but Bucknell is not.  This Bucknell team roared down the stretch last year and was right in there with West Virginia in the Round of 64.  With nearly all of that team back the Bison could be a force this year, and could get the attention of the committee if they fail to win the automatic bid.  In order to do that, they need to be able to win games like this, even on the first night.

-IOWA STATE AT MISSOURI.  This is a great first game for an Iowa State team that is in complete rebuild mode, and Missouri who is trying to turn around what has been a horrendous last couple of seasons.

-YALE AT CREIGHTON.  Creighton clearly has the upper hand, but I still like this match-up.  Yale is at least a formidable opponent and should finish in the top half of the Ivy League.

-PITTSBURGH VS NAVY (Veterans Classic).  It could be a very long year for Pitt this year, but if they can start their season off with a road win it may give them some much needed momentum for early in the season.

-BELMONT AT WASHINGTON.  It’s a buy game, but Belmont is perhaps the best team in the OVC, and although Washington’s struggles have been addressed with a recent coaching change, they’re still going to go through a rebuilding process.  Don’t be surprised if Belmont makes them sweat, or even beats them.

-IDAHO AT NEVADA.  It’s the Big Sky preseason favorite visiting the Mountain West preseason favorite (or at least one of them).  These are the kinds of games teams like this need to win in order to build momentum and start making a case for themselves.

-GEORGIA TECH VS UCLA (Shanghai, China).  I still believe UCLA to be a solid tournament team, but I don’t expect them to be as good as they were a year ago.  They begin the year halfway around the world against a Georgia Tech team who showed signs of life a year ago under Josh Pastner.  Okay, what is in italics is what I wrote about this game on Monday, when I first typed up this page.  On Tuesday, things happened that changed things more than a little bit.  Georgia Tech has been reported by a (presumably now former) friend of Josh Pastner for providing players with improper benefits.  So, that seemed noteworthy.  Then UCLA did something that totally blew that out of the water.  Three UCLA players, including LiAngelo Ball, were arrested in China for shoplifting.  They have since been released from prison, which is fortunate because I imagine that whatever sort of “re-education program” the Chinese have for shoplifters is not pleasant.  One can only assume that the school will deal with this very severely.  It remains to be seen how severely the Chinese authorities will handle this.  While out of jail, they have been instructed to not leave the hotel.  GOOD JOB UCLA!!!

 

BUY GAMES

-Savannah State @ Cincinnati
-Trevecca Nazarene (nondiv1) @ Middle Tennessee
-Central Arkansas @ Baylor
-Campbell @ Penn State – Campbell is improved and should do well in the Big South, but even though Penn State is nothing special they’re probably in over their heads
-Walla Walla (nondiv1) @ Eastern Washington.  The greatest name of any school anywhere.  I’m not talking about EWU either.
-Detroit @ Virginia Tech
-Alabama State @ Mississippi State
-Fairleigh Dickinson @ Seton Hall
-Cornell @ Syracuse
-VMI @ NC State – NC State welcomes Kevin Keatts as their new coach
-Western Carolina @ Clemson
-Robert Morris @ Ohio State
-CCNY (nondiv1) @ Rutgers
-South Carolina State @ Wisconsin
-UNC Greensboro @ Virginia
-Presbyterian @ Tennessee
-Utah Valley @ Kentucky – Mark Pope is the coach of UVU and a former Kentucky player.  He should get a hero’s welcome tonight.  Unless he somehow wins the game, of course.
-Bryant @ Georgia
-Colgate @ UConn
-Cal Poly @ Stanford
-Kennesaw State @ Butler
-New Orleans @ Saint John’s
-Morehead State @ Xavier
-Houston Baptist @ Providence
-Charleston Southern @ Davidson
-Ball State @ Dayton – Ball State is improving, and Dayton is reloading, but it’s still probably a mismatch in Dayton’s favor
-Grambling @ VCU
-Delaware @ Richmond
-Georgia Southern @ Wake Forest
-Southern @ Illinois
-North Florida @ Michigan State
-South Carolina Upstate @ Minnesota
-Edwardsville @ Purdue
-Gardner Webb @ Miami FL
-Norfolk State @ Auburn – Chuck Person will n0t be attending
-UMKC @ Wichita State – Stay div1 Roos!!  Stay div1!!
-Northern Arizona @ Arizona
-Northwestern State @ Texas
-Seattle @ Saint Louis – If SLU loses this then Chad will never hear the end of it
-Loyola MD @ Northwestern
-Pepperdine @ Oklahoma State
-Columbia @ Villanova
-Texas Southern @ Gonzaga
-Mount Saint Mary’s @ Marquette
-Chattanooga @ Wyoming
-Tennessee State @ Kansas
-American @ Kansas State
-UL Monroe @ TCU
-Chicago State @ Iowa
-Austin Peay @ Vanderbilt
-Sacramento State @ Colorado State
-Southern Utah @ Oregon State
-Cal State Fullerton @ USC
-Prairie View A&M @ Utah
-San Diego Christian (nondiv1) @ San Diego State
-UC Riverside @ California
-Coppin State @ Oregon

Posted in Daily Rundown, News and Notes | 1 Comment

The Kyle Lamb Show!! Season 1, Episode 1

Posted on November 9, 2017 by David Griggs

Welcome to the first ever edition of Hoops HD’s brand new podcast ‘The Kyle Lamb Show!!!’  Whereas Hoops HD Report focuses on certain teams and how they fit into the national scene, this show will focus on the many other various topics and issues that are impacting college basketball.  Unfortunately Kyle could not be here this evening, which perhaps makes him the first person in history to miss the debut of his own show.  Chad and David discuss the Year in Residency Rule, and touch briefly on the idea of playing regular season games overseas.

 

Audio only for this show.  Our radio lovers are happy, but our TV lovers will just have to deal with it.

Posted in Kyle Lamb Show, News and Notes, Podcasts | 1 Comment

Season Preview: HoopsHD interviews SMU head coach Tim Jankovich

Posted on November 9, 2017 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon’s interviews, and the rest of our extensive and continuous preseason coverage

The history of SMU basketball coaches contains a little bit of everything: a Final 4 coach (Doc Hayes), a coach who later received a show-cause penalty (Dave Bliss), a coach who helped end UCLA’s record 88-game winning streak when he played for Notre Dame (John Shumate), a coach who previously was named national COY (Matt Doherty), and a Hall of Famer (Larry Brown).  All Tim Jankovich brings to the table is being 1 of the winningest players in Kansas State history, an assistant to some of the best coaches in NCAA history, and a 39-5 record as head coach at SMU.  The reigning AAC COY will try to get his team back to the NCAA tourney and see if he can remain undefeated at Moody Coliseum.  HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Jankovich about working for great coaches and how his own coaching style has changed over the past couple of decades.  

You were a 3-time Academic All-American as a PG at Washington State/Kansas State: how were you able to balance your work on the court with your work in the classroom? I was probably like almost every player/coach who I know.  I did not love hearing a lecture every day because my heart was on the court but my family upbringing helped make it a big priority.

In the 1980 NCAA tourney Tony Branch made an off-balance banked 15-footer with 1 second left in a 2-PT OT win by Louisville: where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? It was a little devastating but we were all very young at the time (I was a sophomore) and Louisville ended up winning it all. There were a couple of other losses that were much more painful.

In the 1981 NCAA tourney Rolando Blackmon made a 15-foot baseline jumper with 2 seconds left to clinch a 2-PT upset of Oregon State: what was the feeling like in your locker room afterward? It was absolutely incredible but when you are in the middle of the tourney it is probably more exciting for the fans. It did not hit me until the following week when I was getting taped up 1 day and saw that we were on the cover of Sports Illustrated, which was surreal.

You have served as an assistant to many successful head coaches including Lon Kruger/Eddie Sutton/Kevin Stallings/Bill Self/Larry Brown: what is the most important thing that you learned from any of them? I carry every single thing I can from all of them. I would match my teachers in this game against anyone who has ever lived: I might be the most fortunate student in the history of the game! You do not have time to hear every single thing that I have learned but I loved them all. Several of them have retired but I had good fortune to work for all of them.

You previously served as head coach at North Texas/Illinois State: how has your coaching style changed at all from the start of your career to now? I would say that it has changed a lot because I have learned so much. When you are young you know what you know but as you get older you study the game more and use your brain to figure out new ways to do things. What changed a great deal was my approach to coaching, which has changed my love for the profession. After my son was born I felt a different responsibility because everyone I coached was somebody else’s son, so I tried to talk to/coach them as if they were my own son. It made my life so much more rewarding because it is not just about trying to win games: it goes far deeper than that.

You finished your 1st season as SMU head coach by winning a school-record 30 games and being named conference COY: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It certainly makes me proud but I have done this long enough to not get too carried away. We had outstanding players that could not have been more fun to coach and we have a tremendous staff.  It is a program honor that means your full group had a heck of a year.

In the 2017 NCAA tourney you had a 1-PT loss to USC after the Trojans overcame a double-digit deficit: what do you think that your team learned from that game that will help them this year? If we had more guys back there would be a lot of lessons but I think we lead the nation by only having 3 players back due to limited scholarships. We are not playing with a full deck but those 3 have experience. What hurt us in the tourney last year is that the postseason ban from a couple of years ago meant that we did not have anyone with postseason experience. It is like playing golf with your buddies vs. entering a professional golf tourney. As a player, I know that the more tourney games I played, the more comfortable I felt.

You lost 3 of your top-4 scorers from last year (Semi Ojeleye/Sterling Brown/Ben Moore): how are you going to try to replace all of that offense? Ouch! The 3 returning guys will have their production go up and we will see how many of our young players can be productive on offense. Experienced talent is where you want to go so I am sure that their aggressiveness will be amplified.

You will spend Thanksgiving at the Battle 4 Atlantis: how do you prepare to possibly face Arizona/Villanova on consecutive nights? I have tried my best to not think about it because it only makes my days longer! Right now we need to be optimistic yet realistic. We have 9 scholarship players so it is a pretty tall order but I intentionally try not to think about our future opponents. I just want to expedite our development as soon as I can.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? I hope it does not sound like I am avoiding your question but I learned a long time ago not to set any specific number of wins as a goal. I think that every single team should have the goal of winning a national title.  It might sound crazy but it is possible so why not have that be your goal…but do not get caught up in numbers. We ask our guys the same question and they always say national championship: I guess we have brainwashed them well!

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Season Preview: HoopsHD interviews SMU G Ben Emelogu II

Posted on November 8, 2017 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon’s interviews, and the rest of our extensive and continuous preseason coverage

Only 9 teams lost 5 or fewer games last season: 1 of them made the NCAA title game (Gonzaga) and 2 others were #1 seeds (Villanova/Kansas).  SMU was 1 of the other 6, but after losing a few seniors as well as Semi Ojeleye they will need a strong season out of Ben Emelogu II.  He missed the entire 2016 season due to injury and only started 3 games last year but was such a force off the bench that he was named AAC Co-6th Man of the Year.  If his performance during the Mustangs’ Canadian tour this past August is any indication (11.3 PPG, 13-26 FG, 7-15 3PM), perhaps another conference championship will be within reach.  HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Ben about why he transferred to Dallas and what it meant to get his degree last spring.

You grew up in Texas but originally signed with Virginia Tech: how did it feel to be named team captain as a freshman? It was huge. It was a big load to carry as a freshman but was an exciting moment.

Why did you decide to transfer in 2014, and what made you choose SMU? I found out that my grandmother had cancer so we talked it out with everyone and I just decided to come back home.

You won a pair of AAC tourneys in 2015/2017: what did it mean to you to win a pair of titles? It was a big payoff and a big momentum-builder going into the NCAA tourney. It put a stamp on our whole season.

In the 2015 NCAA tourney you had a 1-PT loss to UCLA (on a questionable goaltending call) and in the 2017 NCAA tourney you had a 1-PT loss to USC (who overcame a double-digit deficit): how sick are you of playing Pac-12 teams from Los Angeles in the postseason?! I cannot stand it but we get USC again this year so I am looking forward to that game. Hopefully this season we can go deeper in the tourney.

Last year you were named conference co-6th Man of the Year: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? I give the credit to my teammates/coaches who helped me out throughout the season after I was coming off of an injury. Even if I am not scoring points I am still helping the team win.

You got your degree in Sports Performance Leadership with a minor in Sport Management last May: does it feel any different to enter the season with a degree under your belt? It has not hit me yet because I am still taking sports management classes but my family is very happy for me.

You are 1 of only 2 seniors on the roster: how much pressure is there on you to be a leader this season? There is a lot of pressure but I can deal with it. We have a great culture here so we will teach the young guys and get everyone on the same page.

You will spend Thanksgiving at the Battle 4 Atlantis: how do you prepare to possibly face Arizona/Villanova on consecutive nights? We are just trying to get better as a team right now and get ready to compete. We have a tough schedule and the conference has gotten better as well.

Your brother Lindsey played basketball at Weber State and your cousin Cedrick played basketball at Washington State: who is the best athlete in the family? That is a tough 1. I want to say me but my brother/cousin were also good so pick your poison with any of us!

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? Just to win and have fun doing it. Each year we play with a chip on our shoulder and try to prove everyone wrong.

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Hoops HD Bracket Rundown: Preseason Edition

Posted on November 7, 2017 by David Griggs

Chad reveals his preseason NCAA Tournament Bracket!  And the rest of the panel banters back and forth with him as it is revealed line by line!  Some of the picks are conventional and consistent with the preseason rankings.  Others are way out on a limb.  At the end of the show the panel discusses who is in and should be out, and who is out and should be in.  We also each give our Final Four and national champion picks, and in closing we reveal this year’s Team of the People!!

 

Below is Chad’s Bracket.  Be sure to watch the show to see how he explains it and how everyone else argues with him.

 

And for all you radio lovers, below is an mp3 version of the show…

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Season Preview: HoopsHD interviews Central Arkansas head coach Russ Pennell

Posted on November 6, 2017 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon’s interviews, and the rest of our extensive and continuous preseason coverage

We are great fans of GCU but realize that even though Dan Majerle is currently running the show it was Russ Pennell who 1st helped get the Lopes going.  After making the Sweet 16 as head coach at Arizona in 2009, Pennell traveled a couple of hours north up I-10 from Tucson to Phoenix and had 4 straight winning seasons at Grand Canyon from 2010-2013, then took the Phoenix Mercury to the Western Conference Finals that final summer.  It has been slow-going after he was hired at Central Arkansas in 2014 but we have faith in him.  HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Pennell about 1 of the most famous shots in NCAA tourney history and getting to coach his alma mater.  We also with him a happy early birthday a few weeks in advance!

You played basketball at Arkansas/were an assistant at Oklahoma State to Eddie Sutton and were an assistant to Lute Olson at Arizona: what was it like to learn the game from these Hall of Famers? It was an unbelievable opportunity that helped me immensely. In many respects they revolutionizd the game: Henry Iba, the father of motion offense, was Coach Sutton’s college coach at Oklahoma A&M, and Coach Olson put Arizona on the map.

In the 1991 NCAA tourney as an assistant at Oklahoma State, Corey Williams scored 17 PTS including what he thought was a game-winning 3-PT shot from the top of the key with 2 seconds left in regulation…but his right foot was on the line and you ended up with a 9-PT OT loss to Temple: did you think the shot was going in, and did everyone think that the game was over? We thought the game was over when Corey made the shot. Temple called a timeout and we ran out to celebrate with Corey, but the refs immediately called it a 2. We looked at the tape later and his toes were clearly on the line. The following year the same thing darn near happened to us again when we lost to the Fab 5 by 3 PTS: we were close 2 years in a row.

In the 1998 NCAA tourney as an assistant to Rob Evans at Mississippi, Bryce Drew scored 22 PTS including an ESPY-winning 23-footer at the buzzer in a 1-PT win by Valparaiso: what kind of defense did you draw up, and where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? It is probably the most devastating loss because I thought that we had the team to go a long way. Florida State beat TCU before our game so we would have had a good chance in the next game against the Seminoles but so many things went wrong. Ansu Sesay was the SEC POY but missed a FT at the end and then we knocked the ball out of bounds: it was a 50-50 play for us. Destiny stepped in and it was a heck of a play by Valpo.

In 2013 you were hired by the Phoenix Mercury and ended up taking the team to the Western Conference Finals before losing to eventual champion Minnesota: what is the biggest difference between coaching men vs. coaching women? I did not see a big difference at all in terms of gender: the biggest difference was coaching pros vs. coaching college kids. The WNBA was a great place to coach: the pros were so intelligent that you could draw up any play and they could execute it. We drew up a play against Los Angeles in Game 3 of the Semifinals but when I saw their defense on the court I told our inbounder to look to Brittany Griner instead, and she made the shot to win the series. I loved that we were smart enough to make that work but do not know if college kids could do that. I also missed the family environment of a college team where the coaches become their surrogate dads. Some guys do not like recruiting but I do.

In 2014 you were hired as coach at Central Arkansas: what did it mean to you to become coach at your alma mater? It was kind of a delayed effect but once I stepped into the locker room a lot of good memories came flooding back into my mind. What you miss the most is the struggle to succeed: the daily practices, the sore knees, and of course the big wins. We cleaned house the 1st year but I look at it as part of the process, which means a lot to me. I left my blood/sweat on that court during my playing days.

Last year G Jordan Howard was a 3rd-team Academic All-American: how much importance do you place on academics? I put a premium on it: the reason I am talking to you is that I have a college/Masters’ degree. It is an important aspect of college athletics that we have missed: it used to be about getting an education but now it is more about chasing your NBA dreams. I have always found that the kids who are most competitive on the court are also the ones who are most competitive in the classroom. We currently have a combined 3.2 GPA and had 10 guys on the honor roll last semester, which has also helped us recruit better. If you do not take care of your business in the classroom then you do not need to worry about the NCAA: I will just suspend you myself.

Last year your 84.1 PPG allowed was in the bottom-10 in the nation: do you feel that you need a radical change on the defensive end, or just reinforcement of the fundamentals, or other? Depth has been the biggest issue for us: we had 3 guys last year who played 35+ MPG and you cannot play the kind of defense we want when you are playing so many minutes. You have to hold your positioning and be strong on the inside. We switched to a matchup zone for a short time and our opponents just lit us up from the 3-PT line. Coach Sutton was 1 of the best defensive coaches in the country and at GCU we were 1 of the best defensive teams in the nation, but last year we actually led our conference in scoring. I also want to use the bench as motivation if the starters are not defending well.

You have 5 players on the roster from Arkansas as well as players from New York/California/Canada: what sort of recruiting philosophy do you have? We are looking for a certain type of player but everything starts with being able to shoot the basketball. We look for guys who also play unselfish basketball. Since I have been in so many different leagues I still have good contacts that help us bring in good players. Our program was not highly thought of in the past and it was hard to recruit in-state kids, but that is starting to turn around with guys like SK Shittu (who is from Rogers, AR). However, it was those out-of-state kids who got us over the hump.

Your non-conference schedule includes road games at Baylor/UCLA/Cal/Oregon: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? 3 of those 4 teams are ranked and they will all give us a good test. I am okay with guarantee games because they are much-needed to help the entire university. When you are in a 1-bid league it gives your kids an NCAA tourney experience because guess who we will be paired with if we make it to March?! 1 of the 1st things I get asked by recruits is who we will play: they want to be playing the best teams in full arenas rather than just beating up on a bunch of D-2 teams in front of small crowds. We have been in some of those games..but have been rocked in a few as well.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? I think that we can make big strides this year and I believe we will be in the mix and make a run toward the conference title. I think we have enough bullets in the gun as well as 2 of the best players in the league. We can score and have been building for this: year 4 is when people can really see what you have been doing. Almost everywhere I have been has been a building process: when you have gone through it then you will know what is coming up.

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