The first half was not good, but the final twenty-minutes was
very good. That about sums up our effort against
Louisiana-Lafayette. Defensively, we didn't play as well as we
are capable of in the first half, but we picked up our
intensity in the second half, holding UL-Lafayette to 19
points. We have to learn how to compete for a full
forty-minutes. At times we have played a little too
nonchalant. We have been fortunate in that our players know
how to win close games, but that is only because we are in so
many close contests. We can't expect to just turn it on. We
have to play good-solid basketball for forty-minutes.
-Brian Gregory, Dayton
"Dances with Wolves" is coach John Beilein's (West
Virginia) favorite western. Kevin Costner is excellent in his
dual role as actor and director. The cinematography is tremendous,
especially the buffalo sequences. It's hard to believe, but many in
Hollywood thought this film would flop. Running over budget, Costner
came up with money from his own pocket to see it through. The film won
an Oscar for best picture, becoming the first western since
Cimarron (1931) to earn such a distinction.
>>> BUY IT
It doesn't appear that the Cincinnati Reds or
Cleveland Indians will be very active in the open market. Second
baseman PokeyReese, who spent last season in
Pittsburgh, may return to the Reds and the Indians are exploring the
possibilities of signing pitchers Bobby Howry and Tanyon
Sturtze. Howry, once a great closer for the White Sox, spent much
of last season at Boston's Triple-A affiliate, Pawtucket... Both Ohio
clubs have good-solid young cores, but are probably another year or so
away.
-- ALL COACH
NETWORK
--
Coming in
December 2003
MARCH TO MADNESS
2003-04
Akron
has two terrific freshmen in Dru Joyce III and Jeremiah Wood.
Joyce has provide the Zips with excellent point guard play, while Wood
has been a monster on the glass, averaging over eight per game. The
combination of Wood and Andy Hipsher has been solid in the
paint and senior Derrick Tarver (left) has provided the scoring
punch, averaging 27 per contest.
PLAYER PROFILE
Juby
Johnson, a 6-foot-5 senior at Miami, was a second team All-MAC
selection and the team's top scorer last year (14.8 and 3.0rpg). A
bedrock player who has started every league game (54 total), since he
set foot in Oxford. Johnson played all 40 minutes eight times last
year.
RANTS AND RAVES
with
Dan Dakich, BGSU
Those
who know me well will assume that this ongoing feature will produce
more rants than raves, but that is a myth. What is not a myth is the
strength of the Mid-American Conference, in regards to putting
players into the NBA. Did you know that since 1995 the MAC has
produced as many lottery picks (five) as the Big Ten? Angela
Lento will do more on this in the upcoming issue of Basketball
Times.
As for the present-day MAC, I am not sure if the conference has that
"one" marquee player, but from top to bottom the league is as evenly
matched as ever. I would be surprised if the league champion posts a
record better than 14-4 or 13-5. I do not think you will see someone
run the table this season. Which ever team does win the regular season
will win a lot of very close games. Large margins of victory should
not be common place in 2003-04.
This is now my seventh year in the league and it is easily the most
level it has been. Where do we stack up? I will let you know in a few
weeks.
CONFIDENCE
LEVEL
We continue compete, but we continue to come up a little
short. Building confidence can be a very delicate process,
when you haven't been able to attain success on the
basketball court. When I coached at Hampton, I saw
first-hand how many of my conference piers tried to deal
with maintaining their team's confidence level. In many
cases it was difficult because of the difficult non-league
schedules that teams played. Florida A&M did not win a
single non-league game, during the 1998-99 season, but the
Rattlers went on to win the MEAC tournament and advance to
the NCAA tournament. Coach Mickey Clayton did a phenomenal
job of keeping his team up, despite a very tough
beginning. That is what we face, here at Evansville. Our
kids have worked hard and competed, but have yet to reap
the fruits of their labor. But the effort is there.
-
Steve Merfeld, Evansville
MAGARITY:
What is the best book you have ever read?
HUNTER:
The prayer of Jabez by Bruce Wilkerson.
MAGARITY:
Now for a most important question. Were you deserving of
Mid-Continent's best dressed coach?
HUNTER:
Absolutely, I love our coaches but I did not have to go
far to win that award
Throughout the season I will be going five-on-five with
coaches all across the country. Five questions, ranging
from team insight, the state of the game, the state of
coaching to some off the wall questions.
DAVE MAGARITY:Pardon the pun, but how tough will it be to go from the hunter to
the hunted this season?
RON HUNTER (IUPUI):
It will be a challenge and
a different perspective for our program. But I have been building my
program for this situation for years.
MAGARITY:
Was the NCAA Tournament everything you thought it would be?
HUNTER:
As a player I enjoyed
the tournament and the atmosphere, but as a coach it was so much more
rewarding. Maybe the very expensive suit I received helped the cause.
MAGARITY: In a
game of one-on-one with your good friend Mike Davis (Indiana), who
would win?
HUNTER:
Mike would have no shot at beating me one on one. He has no jump shot
and I am better looking that?s always good for a few more points. He
knows I love him like a brother.
A
product of St. Louis,
Cuonzo Martin
is now in his fourth season as an assistant under
Gene Keady at Purdue. Magnificent Martin had a
standout career, as a player under Keady, and has
quickly made a name for himself with X's and O's and
GQ. Martin, who undoubtedly refined his dapper look
in the professional ranks, is a relative newcomer to
the fashion scene, but he appears to have all the
makings of a perennial contender. MORE
FASHION
- Angela Lento
IUPUI's
Matt Crenshaw (pictured) is not your typical college senior. In
fact, he is currently the oldest player in division I college
basketball at 28-years of age. After graduating high school, Crenshaw
joined the Navy in 1994. Along the way his naval ports of call have
included Cuba, Egypt and Washington D.C. After his stint in the Armed
Services, only three schools offered him a scholarship, George
Mason,
Tennessee-Martin and IUPUI. Jaguars coach Ron Hunter looked
like a genius when Crenshaw's jump shot lifted IUPUI over Valparaiso
in the Mid-Continent Conference championship. It was that shot that
lifted the Jags into the Big Dance. But for Crenshaw it has been the
shots of conflict, which have hit so close to home. He still has
friends in the Middle East and another, Kevin Wayne Yokum died in
the September 11 attack on the Pentagon. The Matt Crenshaw story is
truly what college athletics is all about [more on Crenshaw in an
upcoming CollegeInsider.com feature]... Former Kent State
star Antonio Gates is now playing professionally with the
San Diego Chargers. He is a tight end... And West Virginia's
Drew Schifino, the Big East's leading returning scorer, has a
brother, Jake who plays for the Tennessee Titans. MORE LIFE & STYLES
Akron
has two terrific freshmen in Dru Joyce III and Jeremiah Wood.
Joyce has provide the Zips with excellent point guard play, while Wood
has been a monster on the glass, averaging over eight per game. The
combination of Wood and Andy Hipsher has been solid in the
paint and senior Derrick Tarver (left) has provided the scoring
punch, averaging 27 per contest. 
Juby
Johnson, a 6-foot-5 senior at Miami, was a second team All-MAC
selection and the team's top scorer last year (14.8 and 3.0rpg). A
bedrock player who has started every league game (54 total), since he
set foot in Oxford. Johnson played all 40 minutes eight times last
year. 
Those
who know me well will assume that this ongoing feature will produce
more rants than raves, but that is a myth. What is not a myth is the
strength of the Mid-American Conference, in regards to putting
players into the NBA. Did you know that since 1995 the MAC has
produced as many lottery picks (five) as the Big Ten? Angela
Lento will do more on this in the upcoming issue of Basketball
Times.
A
product of St. Louis,
Cuonzo Martin
is now in his fourth season as an assistant under
Gene Keady at Purdue. Magnificent Martin had a
standout career, as a player under Keady, and has
quickly made a name for himself with X's and O's and
GQ. Martin, who undoubtedly refined his dapper look
in the professional ranks, is a relative newcomer to
the fashion scene, but he appears to have all the
makings of a perennial contender. 
IUPUI's
Matt Crenshaw (pictured) is not your typical college senior. In
fact, he is currently the oldest player in division I college
basketball at 28-years of age. After graduating high school, Crenshaw
joined the Navy in 1994. Along the way his naval ports of call have
included Cuba, Egypt and Washington D.C. After his stint in the Armed
Services, only three schools offered him a scholarship, George 
