May 19, 2006
Each Friday I will write about the sport I love, college basketball
My sympathies go out to the family, friends, teammates and coaching staff of USC over the tragic passing of guard Ryan Francis. The 19-year old was killed in Baton Rouge on May 13th, the victim of a shooting. He was in Louisiana to visit his mother. It is a sad, sad story.
New Kansas State coach Bob Huggins continues to make news. He signed 6-10, 260-pounder Luis Colon, a Miami high school star. Colon will team up with 7-3 Jason Bennett to form a dynamic duo up front. Huggins also added Brad Underwood to his staff as director of basketball operations. Underwood had been head coach of Daytona Beach CC, the school which guard Blake Young attended before signing with the Wildcats.
Already new Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez has hit the recruiting trail and he has hit it hard. It was only a matter of time before he scored big-time because he has a way of communicating with the modern-day athlete. He did it as an assistant at Providence and Virginia, and as a head coach at Manhattan. He struck gold when he got a commitment from guard Eugene Harvey of St. Benedict's HS in New Jersey, the same place that sent Lance Thomas to Duke. The guru, Howard Garfinkel, said Harvey will step in from day one as a factor for the Pirates. Gonzalez also added Joey Cameron, a 6-8 transfer from Auburn. There's also talk that NC State recruit Larry Davis may change his mind and consider Seton Hall as well. Davis was given a release from his letter of intent by the Wolfpack.
Mike Davis is having an impact at UAB, with the signing of 6-10 Jeremy Mayfield. That's right, you may remember Mayfield originally signed with Oklahoma. He was released from his scholarship commitment when Kelvin Sampson went to Indiana and the Sooners hired Jeff Capel as their new coach. Davis has also made the non-conference schedule tougher so that the RPI won't be an issue in the future when the NCAA tournament selection committee meets to look at the Blazers. UAB will face defending national champion Florida at the Orange Bowl on December 30. The Blazers also have games scheduled at Cincinnati, at Old Dominion, at Virginia Commonwealth and may add Connecticut in the future too.
Often times players are comfortable performing for a certain coach. That was the case with talented big man Shawn James, one of the nation's premier defenders and shot blockers. The 6-10 James decided to leave Northeastern to join up with coach Ron Everhart at Duquesne. He had five games with double-figure blocks last season.
In a move that was expected, Vanderbilt transfer DeMarre Carroll (10.9 ppg. last season) transferred to Missouri, where he will play for Mike Anderson. Carroll has to sit out next season, but he will be a welcomed addition for the Tigers.
Conference USA is looking at expanding its league schedule to 16 games. One coach affected by that is John Calipari. The Memphis coach probably could have scheduled another marquee non-conference game if the league didn't change its philosophy.
New Sooners coach Jeff Capel got some great news with a verbal commitment from 6-8 Blake Griffin, one of the premier high school players in the state of Oklahoma. Griffin passed on scholarship offers from a number of big-time programs to become a plum addition to Oklahoma's Class of 2007.
NC State hired Levi Watkins to its staff. He was an aggressive player for the Wolfpack and he should help Sidney Lowe's squad.
Dick Vitale coached the Pistons and the University of Detroit before broadcasting ESPN's first college basketball game in 1979. Send a question for Vitale for possible use on ESPNEWS.
