The College Basketball Post

[pauliepeppas]

Georgetown...ehhh u looked iight, it was a must win for you guys and you couldn't afford to go to 1-3 in the conference....I expected Cuse to play a lotbetter and Rautins was a big loss if u want to believe it or not.

Well take the rematch in the Dome no problem and well handle Notre Dame this weekend......Dajuan Summers

......how convienent for you to go after the Belgian import, I wonder what thereaction would have been if Harris or Flynn did that to some Gtown guy....#++# gtown

 

[tmay407]

Originally Posted by Nowitness41Dirk

If Elonu plays like that every night, they're gonna be tough to beat... He was an animal inside tonight...

He's gotta be at the top of the list for the Big Xii's Most Improved Player award...

[table][tr][td]Season Averages[/td] [/tr][tr][td]SEASON[/td] [td]MIN[/td] [td]PTS[/td] [td]REB[/td] [td]AST[/td] [td]TO[/td] [td]A/T[/td] [td]STL[/td] [td]BLK[/td] [td]PF[/td] [td]FG%[/td] [td]FT%[/td] [td]3P%[/td] [td]PPS[/td] [/tr][tr][td]2007-2008[/td] [td]9.3[/td] [td]2.7[/td] [td]3.0[/td] [td].2[/td] [td].9[/td] [td].21[/td] [td].1[/td] [td].5[/td] [td]1.2[/td] [td].530[/td] [td].512[/td] [td].000[/td] [td]1.38[/td] [/tr][tr][td]2008-2009[/td] [td]23.4[/td] [td]10.1[/td] [td]7.3[/td] [td].3[/td] [td]1.1[/td] [td].22[/td] [td].3[/td] [td]1.5[/td] [td]2.6[/td] [td].700[/td] [td].632[/td] [td].000[/td] [td]1.80[/td] [/tr][/table]
Through 2 conference games so far he's averaging: 18.5 points, 14 rebounds (8.5 offensive), 1.5 blocks, 62% FG, 63% FT...

 

[worldbeefreeg]

Originally Posted by MDterps4

Originally Posted by RetroBaller

Maryland

My anger is going to prevent me from sleeping tonight.

McClinton from Baltimore too

Gary recruits his !++ off, that's for sure

 

[wildkycat]

found an article in ESPNMag that really pisses me off...

i'll put the article as it's written in the quotes, seperated by my thoughts.

Just as it was last night during his record-setting performance, 2005 was was a fine time for Jodie Meeks. That was when he signed on to play for Kentucky, and gave a shout out to the Kentucky faithful. "They have great fans. It's a great atmosphere. I came up for my visit this past weekend, and I was really amazed how the fans really appreciate basketball."

Of course, those same fans tend to ignore the other part of the Meeks equation, the stunningly successful coach the kid came to play for. As Meeks said back then, "Coach (Tubby) Smith is a great guy. Who wouldn't want to play for coach Smith? He's one of the best coaches in the country."

Meeks had a point. Who wouldn't want to play for Tubby Smith?


Tyler Hansbrough, OJ Mayo, Brandan Wright, Damion James, Korvotney Barber, Tasmin Mitchell, Thaddeus Young, Willie Kemp, Julian Wright, Uche Echefu...

At Kentucky, all Smith did was win a national title in 1998, a season in which the team had not one All-American or a future NBA lottery pick, the first team in 20 years to say as much. In his 10 seasons at Kentucky, he dominated the SEC, with six regular season titles and five tourney titles. He averaged over 26 wins per year, an absurd total by any standard. He was as good or better in his first ten years at Kentucky-which was preceded by time spent as an assistant with Rick Pitino rebuilding the program from a deserved state of rubble-as Lute Olson at Arizona, Coach K at Duke, Roy Williams at Kansas, Jim Boeheim at Syracuse, Tom Izzo at Michigan State or Mark Few at Gonzaga in terms of winning games and winning titles.

Tubby was handed the keys to a Bentley. Lute Olson is Arizona basketball, Coach K is Duke basketball, same thing with Boeheim, Izzo, and Few.

But he wasn't cut from the same cloth as those guys, and we mean that in precisely the manner it looks and sounds.

yeah, he's black, we know.

Smith had his supporters at UK, the kind of people who could see a more recent trip to the Final Four was almost flukey based on on his level of success, but they were drowned out by the worst kind of mob fervor, the kind of fans who give message boards their "cesspool" rep. He couldn't get it done, they said. Or his teams played too slow. Or they weren't as good as Billy Donovan's. Or they couldn't recruit a one-and-done rental like Carmelo Anthony. Or even a player-of-the-year talent.

most recent FF? you mean 10 years ago?

his teams weren't as good as Billy D's team near the end of Tubby's tenure.

name a one-and-done under Tubby.

Which is exactly the kind of player Jodie Meeks is, a kid who came to play for Smith.

yes, Meeks is doing his thing. but Tubby's had better players who produced less.

Smith is, we know, doing just fine. He turned around Minnesota-from 8-22 in 2006-2007 before he arrived to 20-14 in 2007-2008, to now ranked #17 and with one loss (15-1) this season-in far faster time than Billy Gillespie has (ahem) salvaged some supposed mess at UK.

supposed mess? three 10-loss seasons in a row with no SEC titles and no 2nd weekend games in the NCAA tourney is a "mess" at Kentucky.

In fact, he's well on his way to doing for Minnesota what he maintained at Kentucky. We doubt long-suffering Gopher fans will forget it.

We hope Kentucky doesn't either.

no offense to the Minnesota guys on here, but the day Kentucky basketball's goals and expectations equal those at Minnesota, i will killmyself.


what a horse !!#+ article.

 

[tmukg21]

its late night I'm a little confused about that article and your comments, i'll re-read

do you like Tubby smith or really hate that he left the program (or the way he left it)?

Mayo wasn't going to UK, he had his own agenda

, etc

Tubby took little and made a lot....now TWICE

 

[wildkycat]

I was and still am a huge Tubby fan. didn't want him to leave. but it was time for a change. he gave us a great 10 years, that's a long time. i'm not going to list all the great things and memories Tubby gave to UK fans, i've done that many times before on here. Chuck Hayes and TayshaunPrince are two UK LEGENDS, and by that i mean sorta "fan-favorites." Tubby put a lot of players in the pro's too. but the basketball program atUK is bigger than it's head coach, unlike a lot of the big-time programs...and it was just time to go.

but Tubby took little??? seriously? a new coach couldn't ask for a better situation to step into. Rick Pitino made the dumbest mistake of his lifeleaving UK. i don't even want to think of what his resume would look like now had he not left.

and i know Mayo wasn't going to UK, but why was a program like Kentucky not even getting looked at by the OJ Mayo's, Durant's, Oden"s, etc...

 

[johnnyredstorm]

Originally Posted by wildKYcat

found an article in ESPNMag that really pisses me off...

i'll put the article as it's written in the quotes, seperated by my thoughts.

Just as it was last night during his record-setting performance, 2005 was was a fine time for Jodie Meeks. That was when he signed on to play for Kentucky, and gave a shout out to the Kentucky faithful. "They have great fans. It's a great atmosphere. I came up for my visit this past weekend, and I was really amazed how the fans really appreciate basketball."

Of course, those same fans tend to ignore the other part of the Meeks equation, the stunningly successful coach the kid came to play for. As Meeks said back then, "Coach (Tubby) Smith is a great guy. Who wouldn't want to play for coach Smith? He's one of the best coaches in the country."

Meeks had a point. Who wouldn't want to play for Tubby Smith?

Tyler Hansbrough, OJ Mayo, Brandan Wright, Damion James, Korvotney Barber, Tasmin Mitchell, Thaddeus Young, Willie Kemp, Julian Wright, Uche Echefu...

At Kentucky, all Smith did was win a national title in 1998, a season in which the team had not one All-American or a future NBA lottery pick, the first team in 20 years to say as much. In his 10 seasons at Kentucky, he dominated the SEC, with six regular season titles and five tourney titles. He averaged over 26 wins per year, an absurd total by any standard. He was as good or better in his first ten years at Kentucky-which was preceded by time spent as an assistant with Rick Pitino rebuilding the program from a deserved state of rubble-as Lute Olson at Arizona, Coach K at Duke, Roy Williams at Kansas, Jim Boeheim at Syracuse, Tom Izzo at Michigan State or Mark Few at Gonzaga in terms of winning games and winning titles.

Tubby was handed the keys to a Bentley. Lute Olson is Arizona basketball, Coach K is Duke basketball, same thing with Boeheim, Izzo, and Few.

But he wasn't cut from the same cloth as those guys, and we mean that in precisely the manner it looks and sounds.

yeah, he's black, we know.

Smith had his supporters at UK, the kind of people who could see a more recent trip to the Final Four was almost flukey based on on his level of success, but they were drowned out by the worst kind of mob fervor, the kind of fans who give message boards their "cesspool" rep. He couldn't get it done, they said. Or his teams played too slow. Or they weren't as good as Billy Donovan's. Or they couldn't recruit a one-and-done rental like Carmelo Anthony. Or even a player-of-the-year talent.

most recent FF? you mean 10 years ago?

his teams weren't as good as Billy D's team near the end of Tubby's tenure.

name a one-and-done under Tubby.

Which is exactly the kind of player Jodie Meeks is, a kid who came to play for Smith.

yes, Meeks is doing his thing. but Tubby's had better players who produced less.

Smith is, we know, doing just fine. He turned around Minnesota-from 8-22 in 2006-2007 before he arrived to 20-14 in 2007-2008, to now ranked #17 and with one loss (15-1) this season-in far faster time than Billy Gillespie has (ahem) salvaged some supposed mess at UK.

supposed mess? three 10-loss seasons in a row with no SEC titles and no 2nd weekend games in the NCAA tourney is a "mess" at Kentucky.

In fact, he's well on his way to doing for Minnesota what he maintained at Kentucky. We doubt long-suffering Gopher fans will forget it.

We hope Kentucky doesn't either.

no offense to the Minnesota guys on here, but the day Kentucky basketball's goals and expectations equal those at Minnesota, i will kill myself.


what a horse !!#+ article.
I wish St. John's had the type of commitment that Kentucky has.

 

[tmukg21]

wildKYcat wrote:
but Tubby took little??? seriously? a new coach couldn't ask for a better situation to step into. Rick Pitino made the dumbest mistake of his life leaving UK. i don't even want to think of what his resume would look like now had he not left.

and i know Mayo wasn't going to UK, but why was a program like Kentucky not even getting looked at by the OJ Mayo's, Durant's, Oden"s, etc...
true on tubby picking up where pitino left off

At time of the last couple of recruiting class time, UK was not at the top top (memphis,duke,unc, KU,texas,pitt,unconn,a few more); still a very respectedprogram top 25 program/history (not necessarily team) Plus it was one and done situations so it made sense to go to schools that were on ESPN every night

Mayo was going to USC (agents) Beasley (agents) Rose (eh?) Oden (ohio state big man school)
about many other players you can send a lengthy email of complaints to Wes Wesley

 

[wildkycat]

and Gillispie's name is spelled wrong in the article.

but Tubby's system didn't allow guys to put up #'s that warrant accolades, which is fine by me. i don't care what style of ball we play, aslong as that system produces victories and *ahem* Final Fours and titles.

i loved Tubby-Ball, and it's perfect for the Big Ten.

At time of the last couple of recruiting class time, UK was not at the top top (memphis,duke,unc, KU,texas,pitt,unconn,a few more); still a very respected program top 25 program/history (not necessarily team) Plus it was one and done situations so it made sense to go to schools that were on ESPN every night

at the time Tubby got here, UK was at the top...so that would mean the program was going downhill, correct?

you know how many times we're on National TV a year? 14 times this season alone between ESPN/2 and CBS.

Mayo was going to USC (agents) Beasley (agents) Rose (eh?) Oden (ohio state big man school)
about many other players you can send a lengthy email of complaints to Wes Wesley

ugh, forget the actual names "Mayo" and "Beasley," etc...i'm just talking about players of their caliber.

 

[ThaxbyChamblis]

Originally Posted by lnMyMind

My boy Lump (C-Wright) got something to prove tonight going up against another top flight guard. People seem to forget his rep coming out of HS as one of the top PG's in the country

I know that's your man and all, but I haven't really been impressed by the boy C. Wright this year.

He had a pretty good game last night tho.

I like that lineup III threw out there w/ Wright, Clark, Fat Boy, Summers and One and Done.

Fat Boy seemed to get his stroke back last night.

 

[scuse7]

Originally Posted by dreClark


Fat Boy seemed to get his stroke back last night.

Yea really. Who didn't get their %%+##!@ stroke back last night.

I swear I have never seen you guys shoot so good in my life. We didn't play good defense and gave some open looks. But wait for us to start shooting good.Freeman played really good. Same with Clark. He's a player. The defensive slides were crazy. Some of the best defense I've seen in a while.

I can see the Monroe slurpfest increasing. Announcers who think a bounce pass is incredible....but he had a nice game passing and defense. He just needs towork on his 10 to 15 game.

The Summers T was priceless. He went crazy after that. Just wish he did it to Devo or Harris. They would have done something.

Shuges covered a lot of our problems....

-We missed to many easy ones to start the game. Missed layups. Missed dunks. Some easy and 1s. AO is AWFUL against any good center. He is like a robot with hismoves. One dribble left. One dribble right, then a hook shot.
-Rick Jackson played great on the offensive boards. He just can't jump or make a %%+##!@ free throw.
-Jonny struggled. It seemed like he wasn't even there. Once he drove you guys made him pass it out which hurt him. You could tell he was getting pissed.
-Missing Rautins hurt because he is one of our best defenders, but I don't think it would have mattered too much. The whole team played awful defense. Devoplayed one of his best games. He can just score for us.

The defense was the worst I have seen it. We got murdered in the 2-3. Never seen it that bad. It seemed once the ball got in the high post or baseline it waskicked for a WIDE OPEN 3. You guys not missing many shots hurt us. We got embarrased though.

Just time to beat ND. Which we should be able to do. 30,000+ on Saturday.

 

[shannonscrooks]

I haven't really been impressed by the boy C. Wright this year.


Likewise

 

[allen3xis]

Originally Posted by PauliePeppas

Georgetown...ehhh u looked iight, it was a must win for you guys and you couldn't afford to go to 1-3 in the conference....I expected Cuse to play a lot better and Rautins was a big loss if u want to believe it or not.

Well take the rematch in the Dome no problem and well handle Notre Dame this weekend......Dajuan Summers

......how convienent for you to go after the Belgian import, I wonder what the reaction would have been if Harris or Flynn did that to some Gtown guy....#++# gtown

1-3? no.

Your guys got outworked, outplayed and outcoached.


..

this talk about Dajuan...did yall watch the Pitt game or watched him in the past...

And would he have got an open hand slap or closed fist from Devo?


As far as shooting goes...

Lately, I had never seen some of these guys shoot so bad...and Sapp still was nowhere last night...things even out



....

ON TAP TODAY:: It's not exactly what it used to be, but Arizona faces UCLA at Pauley Pavilion tonight. I'll be at the Xavier-Rhode Island game, but there are a few other interesting matchups: Minnesota at Wisconsin and Arizona State at USC.

 

[jamesonnt]

Can we please excommunicate this MDTerps character?
Go start an official Maryland basketball thread and stay in there.
Your posts are annoying as $*%# and I hate them. Thanks.

Yes, I woke up this morning mad.

 

[DeadsetAce]

why are people clownin' on dajaun. the belgian dude took him down, he got up and just yelled in his face for making the dunk. he wasn't trying to startanything. and this jazz about "conveniently going after the belgian import"? get outta here. what's he supposed to do, get taken down by thebelgian, and then go look for devo? relax with that nonsense.

and why do people think devo is so tough to begin with? is it the tatts and the tendancy to assault syracuse coeds?

 

[shannonscrooks]

 

[pauliepeppas]

^all im saying is....if flynn or harris did what dajuan did, people would be all over them....but for Dajuan its no big deal

 

[lnmymind]

/\ because DeJuan isn't a criminal probably...

 

[messiahchild]

Walker part of a point-guard monster

Former Rice star hopes to be next great Husky general

Before Kemba Walker ever played a game at UConn, he met with Huskies coach Jim Calhoun and made a unique request.
"He said he didn't want to just be good, he wanted to be great," Calhoun said recently.

"When any kid tells you that, it's a big price tag," Calhoun added. "It means I can get on you every day at practice. It gives me license because you say you want to be great, and I wouldn't want you to lie to yourself, and therefore we're going to try to get you to where you can because he does have great physical attributes."

Walker, the 6-foot-1, 172-pound former Manhattan Rice star, may not be great quite yet, but he could be on his way.

He is averaging 9.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists for the No. 4 Huskies (14-1, 3-1), who visit St. John's on Thursday in Big East (10-5, 1-2) action at Madison Square Garden.

"He's really been a great bolt of energy for us in a lot of different ways," Calhoun said. "His quickness defensively helps us because he gets at balls and kicks them away. Secondly, he accelerates the pace of the game. He gives us seven or eight more fast-break opportunities. He's making his 3's, making his foul shots and he's always going to have a couple coast-to-coast layups.

"He's been a needed lift for the Huskies, certainly."

Walker, a Bronx native, initially chose UConn because he liked what Calhoun demanded from his players. It didn't hurt that the program has sent a slew of players to the NBA.

"Coach Calhoun told me I was going to have to work for what I want, and I was willing to do it," Walker said. "And no other school really told me that. Every other school told me I was going to come in and play right away. But Coach, he wasn't like that.

"He has a lot of pictures in his office of guys who have been through it, and guys who are great. I told him I wanted to be like those guys, and he told me 'Hard work,' and that's what I'm trying to do now."

A.J. Price, UConn's senior point guard and Walker's mentor, says Walker is making the most of his opportunity.

"He's usually one of the first guys in the gym," Price said. "He does his shooting after. He's one of the last guys to leave. And once he does, he's right in the weight room. Some guys tend to back off a little bit during the season as far as weights. Kemba's been in there every day to get stronger."

On the court, Walker and Price have combined to become UConn's latest two-headed point-guard monster. The Huskies' national championship teams of 1999 and 2004 both featured two point guards. Khalid El-Amin and Ricky Moore led UConn to the '99 crown and Taliek Brown and Ben Gordon did the same in '04. Doron Sheffer and Kevin Ollie also enjoyed great success in the mid-90s.

"I like having two guys that can run a team," Calhoun told the New Haven Register. Referring to a longtime Celtics scout, he added, "I just think it makes it easier. [Longtime Boston Celtics scout] Kevin Stacom said to me the one thing we didn't have in 2006 was another guard. We had Taliek and Ben, but that was it. Now, we have sometimes three guys on the court who can [run a team], because Craig Austrie will play with them, too."

On days when one player is not playing his best, the other can pick him up.

"That's what we lacked last year, another point guard on the team other than myself," Price said. "With Kemba, that just gives us a whole other dimension, having another point guard. There are times when we're running a two-point guard offense, and the ball handling doesn't have to rely on my shoulders so much. He does a great job controlling it and not turning the ball over. And it just makes our team so much better when you got two guards out there who can create for others, and for themselves."

Said Walker: "A.J. has some off nights, but he's fortunate to have me here just to pick him up. But some nights I didn't have a good night, and A.J. picked me up, so it's great to have that. Right now, me and A.J. are both trying to have some good games out there."

Price said he's encouraged Walker to become more "vocal" on the floor.

"He's going to be a leader regardless if he wants to or not because he's a point guard here at Connecticut, and that's what Coach Calhoun demands of a point guard," Price said. "But I just want him to be a little more vocal and just try to tell people what to do, moreso than just expect him to be able to do it."

Just a year ago, Walker was playing high school ball in the New York City Catholic League, where he became a McDonald's All-American.

Now he's got 7-foot-3 Hasheem Thabeet, 6-9 Stanley Robinson and 6-7 Jeff Adrien to feed the basketball to down low. Quite a change.

"It's a big adjustment," he said. "I've got to learn how to throw alleyoop passes because I never really got a chance to play with any big men. Most of my life I've been playing with a lot of guards, so I'm definitely having fun out there. Just having the ability to give it to a 7-3 kid and he dunks it. Jeff and Stanley are guys who can jump out of the gym."

Walker benefited from his experience over the summer when he played for the United States' under-18 national team that reached the finals of the FIBA Americas Championship in Formosa, Argentina. Though the U.S. lost in the title game, Walker was named MVP of the event.

"It was a good experience, just the physical toughness out there," Walker said. "Those guys play a different type of game out there. It's more of a football game. The guys from Argentina were more physical."

Davidson coach Bob McKillop, who coached the U.S. team, was especially impressed with Walker's instincts last summer.

"Kemba is emerging as a leader of this team," McKillop said then. "He talks. He communicates. He gets the ball to people in the right position. You can see he's got the great instincts of a city guard."

One knock on Walker has been his shooting stroke, but Calhoun said that was improving and even compared Walker to NBA All-Star Chris Paul.

"I think he's a Chris Paul-type player," Calhoun said. "He's been making 3's as he works harder on his shooting. He's been making 80 percent of his foul shots. He made 60-something percent in high school just to show you his dedication and work ethic. He's really, really been a hard working kid for us."


My Young N'

BRONX....

 

[allen3xis]

Former Memphis guard Jeff Robinson has officially committed to Seton Hall and is enrolled in the university.

 

[allen3xis]

[h2]Richardson returns to Arkansas[/h2]
Comment http://sendtofriend.espn....l_dana&id=3831933&title=O\'Neil:%20Time%20allows%20wounds%20between%20Richardson%20and%20A&id=3831933','sendtofriend','noresizable,noscrollbars,width=400,height=500');return false;">Email Print
By Dana O'Neil
ESPN.com
Archive

For 17 years, Nolan Richardson made the same drive each day, turning his car onto the Arkansas campus to go to work.

http://sports.espn.go.com...?id=3832244&story=3831933','Popup','width=640,height=550,scrollbars=no,noresize'); return false;">[+] Enlarge

AP Photo/Ed ZurgaNolan Richardson left Arkansas in March of 2002 after a dispute with the athletic department.
His first office, the one equipped with the same furniture Eddie Sutton used, was in Barnhill Arena, known as The Barn. The second, just down RazorbackRoad, was in a building he helped to fill, the swanky 22,000-seat Bud Walton Arena.
On March 1, 2002, Richardson backed his car out of his reserved parking space, turned away from the arena and left campus.

For six years, he never went back.

"Never even drove on the street, to tell you the truth," said Richardson, 67, who still lives in Fayetteville.

Anger and distrust is a volatile cocktail in a man who grew up feeling the biting sting of discrimination. For Richardson, those emotions served as thebackdrop to a lawsuit he brought against the university he loved. Even after it was dismissed, the legal action drew a sharp line down between a coach and auniversity community that once idolized Richardson. So rather than cross it, Richardson chose to stay away, the line growing into an awkward and painful chasmwith each passing year, turning the coach who led the Razorbacks to a national championship into a pariah.

Time heals, but more, change heals.

A year ago, long-time athletic director Frank Broyles retired, followed six months later by university chancellor John White. With the two key players fromRichardson's lawsuit now in the Razorback shadows, Arkansas' new administrators extended the olive branch.

Richardson reached back.

On March 1, seven years to the day since the school announced his buyout, Richardson will take the Bud Walton Arena court. He and his 1994 team will befeted and honored in this, the 15th anniversary of their championship.

"This had nothing to do with the people or the university; it had to do with some people at the university," Richardson said. "People saychange isn't good. Well, sometimes change is good."

Aside from Bob Knight at Indiana, championship-winning coaches are rarely allowed to disappear into the hardwood crevices. Players and coaches are trottedout for halftime honors and banquets, brought in to meet new players and charm old alumni, used as the perfect bridge between past and present for programsthat recognize old champions never die; their stories just get better.

At fiercely loyal Arkansas, where rabid fans calling the Hogs gathered at a midnight press conference to welcome Bobby Petrino, Richardson was a missingpuzzle piece.

On the outskirts he made his inroads, privately talking with his successors, Stan Heath and John Pelphrey. But publicly he stayed away. The 10th anniversaryof that championship season came and went without fanfare. As the years passed, Richardson slipped further and further away.

"He's our greatest coach. He coached the greatest team in Arkansas history," Pelphrey said. "He put his hard work, his life, into thisplace and it's very important to me that he feels the connection. He never needs to feel far away. We want him very close."

Divorce is rarely easy and never uncomplicated, and Richardson's separation from Arkansas was no different. Much like other coaches of his generation --John Chaney and John Thompson leap to mind -- Richardson spoke his mind, even if saying his piece made others uncomfortable. He once used a pair of memorablyderogatory terms to describe fans and battled Broyles on everything from shoe contracts to coaches' salaries.

Mark Zerof/US PresswireJohn Pelphrey has Arkansas back in contention in the SEC this season.
The coach and the athletic director are cut of the same cloth, two children of the Old South, albeit raised on opposite sides. Proud, loyal and equallystubborn, they co-existed rather than co-worked, their less-than-collegial relationship overshadowing the fact Broyles made a bold move when he hiredRichardson in 1985. Richardson was the first black head coach hired at Arkansas, a pioneer in a state forever pockmarked by the struggles of the Little RockNine to desegregate the schools.
"To me, you have to look at the background of each man," said Dr. Gordon Morgan, a longtime sociology professor at Arkansas, who more than oncetried to mediate a reconciliation between his two friends, Richardson and Broyles. "They were coming from the same place, but Nolan was going uphill andFrank was coming downhill. Would they ever reach a level playing field? During the years that Nolan was prominent, I don't think they had much to do witheach other and that made reaching that level playing field hard."

Together yet separately, both grew to bigger-than-life proportions in Arkansas. They still call Broyles 'Coach' there, though he hasn't pickedup a whistle in 32 years. He is considered the Razorbacks' architect, the 84-year-old, iconic face of a university.

And though his abrasive comments occasionally made people uncomfortable, Richardson and his 40 Minutes of Hell were equally adored as they racked uptrophies. Along with the national title, the Razorbacks made two other Final Four appearances under Richardson, won three Southwest Conference titles, two SECtitles and made 13 trips to the NCAA tournament.

John Pelphrey was a Kentucky senior the first year Arkansas played in the SEC tournament and recalled standing on the fringe of the court at theBirmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex when he heard a roar.

"We were being interviewed," Pelphry said, "and there was this disturbance, like a chant, and I thought, 'What in the world?' Thewhole place stopped and turned. The Razorbacks were in the building and the fans were calling the Hogs. They were like rock stars.

[h3]He's our greatest coach. He coached the greatest team in Arkansas history. He put his hard work, his life, into this place and it's very important to me that he feels the connection. He never needs to feel far away. We want him very close.

[/h3]
--John Pelphrey
"Being at Kentucky, we were used to that sort of being our tournament, but they announced their presence with authority andcertainly changed our league."
Considering each man's personality, it probably shouldn't be surprising that when it ended, it ended in a fireball instead of a flicker. But theabruptness and acrimony was nonetheless stunning.

On Feb. 23, 2002, mired in a sub-.500 season and feeling the heat from a dissatisfied fan base, a frustrated and angry Richardson ranted following a loss toKentucky, "If they go ahead and pay me my money, they can take this job tomorrow."

Two days later, he backed up his position, asserting that, "My great-great grandfather came over on the ship, not Nolan Richardson. I didn't comeover on that ship so I expect to be treated a little bit differently. Because I know for a fact that I do not play on the same level as the other coachesaround this school play on."

Though Richardson eventually backed off, insisting he was happy with his job, he met with Broyles and White. Broyles later said he interpretedRichardson's initial comments as a lack of confidence in the program.

By March 1, before the season was over, Richardson was gone. He agreed to a buyout that would be negated if he took another job.

"[Former football coach] Houston Nutt got the golden chains taken off of him," Richardson recalled this week. "That was paid and he receiveda job. They didn't want to pay, didn't take the ball and chain off me so I could get a smaller job. If I did, I had to pay them. What does that tellyou? I'm different."

That alone would have been an ugly end, but nine months later it turned even uglier when Richardson sued the university. He claimed Chancellor White andBroyles had denied him his right to free speech and treated him differently because he was black. A parade of witnesses took the stand -- including Broyles,who testified for an entire day -- laying out Arkansas' dirty laundry for all to see.

In the end the judge dismissed the case, but the damage was done. Richardson disappeared from the school and the program he helped define -- and fans foundthemselves choosing sides between two of their most revered men.

Morgan tried twice to mend the faces between Broyles and Richardson, asking if the three men could meet up somewhere out of town to hash it out. ConsideringRichardson and Broyles remain steadfast in their opinions, even five years after the lawsuit was dismissed, it's no surprise Morgan couldn't organizethe ceasefire.

"It wasn't difficult for me at all," Broyles said of the lawsuit. "Why? Because I knew I wasn't guilty."

Said Richardson, "My grandmother raised me to believe if you can't stand up for what's right, then don't stand up at all."

But Broyles retired in December 2007 and White resigned six months later.

When new athletic director Jeff Long arrived on campus from Pittsburgh, he was aware of the lawsuit and tension and figured he'd find a campus communitynot interested in reconnecting with Richardson.

He found just the opposite.

http://sports.espn.go.com...?id=3832483&story=3831933','Popup','width=640,height=550,scrollbars=no,noresize'); return false;">[+] Enlarge

Getty ImagesRichardson, who guided the Razorbacks to a national championship in 1994, was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008.
"I frankly expected people not to like him, but instead I found a university that by and large, loved and adored him," Long said. "Noteveryone, but by and large that was the sentiment."
With the 15th anniversary of the championship team fast approaching and Long believing strongly that Richardson's place in Arkansas history was tooimportant to erase, he took action to welcome the old coach back into the fold.

He knew Pelphrey and Richardson had spoken and got along, knowing also that Richardson would be at a non-university-sponsored tipoff luncheon.

What he didn't know was how it would sit with his predecessor. Broyles remains on campus, working with the Razorback Foundation, Arkansas' athleticsfundraising arm.

"I have no grudge or animosity toward Nolan at all," Broyles said. "Nolan did what he thought he had to do. I don't go through lifeholding grudges."

Finally, Richardson is of the same mind.

In November the two took their first formal baby steps. Broyles, at Morgan's urging, attended Richardson's induction into the College BasketballHall of Fame. The two men shook hands and spoke briefly.

"I see no reason for Frank not to be with the university until he dies," Richardson said. "To me, he deserves that. I don't have any illfeelings toward him."

Richardson said the impetus to come back is not for himself, but rather for his players. The university had tried to honor the '94 team previously, aswell as some of Richardson's other squads, but players balked. They didn't want to go if their coach wouldn't go.

"You could hear in their voices that some of them didn't care much for the institution they graduated from," Richardson said. "I wouldtell them to go on, it's not about me. But they'd always say, 'But you brought us here, coach.' So to me, this is a healing process."

There will be a "Celebration of a Championship" reception and dinner on Feb. 28 and an on-court ceremony the next night.

The details are still being finalized, but Morgan has a vision he'd like to offer. He would love, he said, to see Richardson and Broyles side-by-side inmatching red blazers … accepting the honor together.

"Nolan couldn't have gotten where he is without Frank and Frank couldn't have gotten where he is without Nolan," Morgan said. "Onthis campus and with our teams, we teach citizenship. So I say let's practice some of that ourselves.

"We know all of this is psychologically destabilizing. If they came out, shook hands and kissed and made up, so to speak, the entire campus would bemuch improved for it. It's time."

Last month, Richardson returned to The Barn, attending a press conference with Pelphrey and Long to lay out the plans for the celebration. Things hadchanged -- the offices were stocked with much nicer furniture than he had, for one thing.

He took his time walking around, greeted old and familiar faces, enjoying a moment he wasn't sure would ever come. It was like revisiting a childhoodhome, where the good memories finally outweighed the bad.

When he turned off Razorback Road this time, he did so with a smile.

This time he'll be back.

Dana O'Neil covers college basketball for ESPN.com

 

[shannonscrooks]

Originally Posted by allen3xis

Former Memphis guard Jeff Robinson has officially committed to Seton Hall and is enrolled in the university.

I thought he would have bounced last season or at least once the season ended, writing was on the wall early.

 

[zs05wc]

Michigan needs a big man bad.

 

[ricardo malta]

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this Devo/Harris thing, as if Summers would have got murked right there on the court if he did it to them

And you right, if Devo or Harris had did that then people would have been all over them because it would have been yet another notch under their belt ofknucklehead incidents.

I used to hate when Ewing Jr used to do that %#+# the last 2 years cause he did it constantly. Summers doing it aint as bad cause dude usually goes out thereand just plays his game, so it's actually good to see him showing some emotion, which is what the entire Georgetown team is lacking.

I'm pretty sure Dejuan would put hands on both Devo and Harris.

"You know the type/loud as a motorbike/but wouldn't bust a grape in a fruit fight" = Devo/Harris

 

[bigmike23]

Originally Posted by PauliePeppas

^all im saying is....if flynn or harris did what dajuan did, people allen would be all over them....but for Dajuan its no big deal

i hope we beat the living @*%! out of bum #@# zona