Gonzaga essentially traded Mario Kasun for Ronny Turiaf. The difference could be better team chemistry, not to mention a legitimate shot at a Final Four berth in the right bracket.
The Bulldogs wouldn't have had the 6-foot-9 Turiaf had Kasun been eligible. The 7-1 Croatian sat out last season while he tried to get his academics in order. Then, in July, the Bulldogs staff was told he would likely have to sit 35 games, his whole sophomore season, because of the NCAA's crackdown on foreign amateurism violations. The Bulldogs were unaware that the NCAA management council and board of directors would eventually reduce the penalty to a maximum of eight games and as a result sent Kasun home. He's now playing in Germany and might end up on an NBA roster in the near future.
|  | | Cory Violette is part of Gonzaga's formitable frontline. |
"If we had Mario, we don't have Ronny," Gonzaga assistant Billy Grier said. "Mario was further along than Ronny, but in the long run Ronny will be a better player and he's got a better attitude. Mario was high maintenance."
Enter Turiaf, one of the lowest maintenance players on the roster, according to Gonzaga head coach Mark Few. Few said the staff, teachers and players love being around Turiaf, who is like a sponge absorbing the game as well as the American culture. The native of Martinique by way of INSEP, an Institute for Sport in Paris, is the steal of the late additions last spring/summer, even more so than Pittsburgh's 6-6 Ontario Lett (8.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg), who signed with the Panthers in August out of a Pensacola (Fla.) JC.
"He's as athletic as hell," said one NBA executive of Turiaf. "He runs the floor so hard and is so eager to play and learn. He has so much energy. He's a much better scorer than people thought. He's their best pro prospect by far."
And he's one of the main reasons why the Bulldogs believe they have as good a shot to get to the Elite Eight (or beyond), like they did in 1999 when they lost to eventual national champion Connecticut in the Elite Eight.
Every opposing coach has said Turiaf is the best talent on the roster, and that includes stud senior point Dan Dickau. Turiaf, his wild bouncing Afro adding to his overall charisma on the floor, loves the game so much he looks like he's enjoying every possession.
"When I'm on the court, I give all my energy," said Turiaf, who averages 8.7 points and 6.1 rebounds in just under 21 minutes of action a game. "I don't care if I score 20 points or get 10 rebounds. I love basketball. I think I'm a surprise because nobody knew me. Nobody knew what I could do."
But word got out last winter. INSEP isn't exactly uncharted territory, but it could be the place to find French talent without the amateurism penalty. The school is similar to an Olympic training center, according to Few and Turiaf. The players are in school for part of the day while also spending a fair amount of time playing basketball. NBA players Jerome Moiso and Tony Parker went through INSEP and, at least for Moiso (Parker played professionally), the players don't have to sit games in the NCAA. It's not a league and they're not playing with professionals.
Grier went to Paris to check out Turiaf, but he wasn't alone. Boston College, Connecticut, Georgia, Pepperdine, LSU, New Mexico and Miami all wanted him. But Turiaf said he chose Gonzaga because of its NCAA Tournament success -- three straight trips to the Sweet 16, not to mention its Elite Eight appearance in '99 -- as well as its reputation for developing players (Sort of shows how far the Gonzaga program has come in the past five seasons, huh?)
Turiaf's (57 percent FGs) activity on the backboard makes it tough to box him out. He's got the long arms, doesn't go over a defender's back too often, and is starting to take his game further from the basket. The Gonzaga staff is encouraging him to be more of a shooting forward, like Casey Calvary was last season, but he doesn't feel comfortable outside the shadow of the basket just yet. Turiaf's rebounding totals are third on the team behind Zach Gourde (8.0 rpg) and Cory Violette (7.3 rpg). Add Anthony Reason (4.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg), Jay Sherrell and at times Alex Hernandez (5.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg), and the Bulldogs have a rotation of rebounding forwards and wings that they haven't seen in Spokane, Wash., recently.
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The great thing for us in our league is that we know if we have an off night and lose to a team we're not supposed to, then that could hurt us for the NCAA Tournament. We know that ,and we know we've got more riding on these games than the other team. ” |
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— Dan Dickau,
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But they all seem to feed off of Turiaf's boundless joy for the game.
"It's a good trade Mario for Ronny," Dickau said. "Mario was extremely talented, but Ronny in the long run is going to be pretty amazing. He learns so fast and the way he comes off the bench to work the defensive glass and get up in transition makes a big difference. Most 6-9 guys can't run as well as he does. He runs with the guards the whole time. He just keeps getting better."
So, too, do the Bulldogs. Gonzaga is coming off what Few termed their toughest road swing of his tenure, going to Monmouth (N.J.), Saint Joseph's (Pa.) and New Mexico -- sweeping all three before the West Coast Conference race begins this weekend.
"I don't see top 25 teams going to gyms like Monmouth or even Saint Joe's or New Mexico," Few said.
The timing of Blake Stepp finally feeling healthy after battling a knee injury is immeasurable because of a new hole on the perimeter. While Stepp isn't the best defender, he can at least take some pressure off of Dickau to score. The Bulldogs, however, lost guard Winston Brooks for the next 10 weeks or, at the earliest for the WCC and/or NCAA Tournament, with a broken right shooting wrist. Brooks was the Bulldogs' best on-the-ball defender and would have likely defended New Mexico's Marlon Parmer instead of the chore being handed to Dickau. Dickau couldn't stop Parmer's dribble-penetration en route to his 30 points on the Bulldogs. Dickau played 44 minutes in the overtime win, but with Brooks, might have played closer to 38 and been fresher toward the end of the game.
"It's a bigger blow than people think," Dickau said of losing Brooks. "He allowed us to wear down point guards and gave me a breather on the defensive end."
But that hasn't dampened the Bulldogs chances, not with Turiaf infusing emotion both in practice and during games, or the sight of Stepp cutting to the basket easier for the first time since the spring. The Bulldogs are on a roll and will be the target for every WCC team, hoping to knock them down a peg. The Bulldogs understand the respect they've earned with a 13-2 record, but the top-20 ranking doesn't mean they'll get a deserved top-five seed instead of the ridiculous 12 they were handed last season. (Just ask Virginia about how unfair that was for the Cavs, as a No. 5 seed, to play 12th-seeded Gonzaga in the first round -- and lose.)
"The great thing for us in our league is that we know if we have an off night and lose to a team we're not supposed to, then that could hurt us for the NCAA Tournament," Dickau said. "We know that and we know we've got more riding on these games than the other team."
Favorites falling fast in their divisions
Virginia (ACC), Georgetown (Big East West), Kentucky (SEC East), Michigan State (Big Ten) and Illinois (Big Ten) were all picked to finish at or near the top of their respective conferences. Less than two weeks into the conference season, however, they've all got two losses and have dug themselves a hole they might not be able to get out of to win their respective titles.
What's going on?
First off, what this proves is that few teams, if any in the major conferences, will be able to put together undefeated conference records. One, or even two losses, over the next two months will commonplace for the best teams. Even Duke will have a hard time going the rest of the way without another loss, considering they fell to what should be one of the three easiest (and even that's a reach) road stops in the ACC -- Tallahassee, Fla. (Florida State).
Virginia had the most surprising 0-2 record to start the conference season, with losses to N.C. State at home and at Clemson. The Cavs will have to pull off a win or two where they're not supposed to leave with a win (Duke, and or Maryland?) get back in the race.
But how did Virginia put itself in this predicament? "We went 2-for-25 on 3s and Chris Williams didn't score a point," Virginia assistant coach Tom Herrion said of the loss at Clemson.
Virginia couldn't press because it couldn't score enough in either game to unleash their defensive pressure. Clemson played zone against Virginia and the Cavs were simply off from the perimeter (see the above 3-point shooting).
N.C. State backcut and sliced Virginia well enough that the Cavs' heads were spinning trying to defend the Princeton-type offense the Wolfpack is running this season. N.C. State is shooting quicker than Princeton, but the cuts and spacing is based on the Princeton principles.
Virginia heads to North Carolina on Saturday knowing that going 0-3 would essentially put them out of the ACC race.
"We can't panic," Herrion said. "We were ambushed early and we can't lose sight of the fact that we haven't controlled the tempo in a game yet. But we will."
The one thing Herrion might not want to admit, but looks like is a reality, is Virginia's inability to handle being a top-five team. The Cavs weren't intimidating and weren't composed in losing to N.C. State or Clemson.
On the opposite spectrum, Oklahoma was a top-five team that relished its role as the hunted. The Sooners took every shot Connecticut gave out and still prevailed in Hartford last Monday, responding to each run the Huskies made before Ebi Ere converted the money shot in the final possession. Defensively, the Sooners made the stop on Connecticut with Hollis Price forcing a turnover on the Huskies before Quannas White fell on the loose ball.
Now, Kentucky's 0-2 start can be traced to its inability to close out NCAA Tournament worthy teams (see: Mississippi State and Georgia). It doesn't mean the Wildcats aren't Final Four material, just that they aren't ready to reach that level, yet.
Point Cliff Hawkins looked off Tayshaun Prince, who had an open 3-pointer at the top of the circle, in the second-to-last possession against Georgia. Hawkins then continued to make poor decisions on the final possession, going solo against three defenders instead of driving and dishing to the corner for a Keith Bogans' 3-point attempt. While Hawkins got loads of praise (including in this space) for his play against Duke, he still needs to make better playmaking decisions. His scoring isn't the question, but Kentucky has at least two more effective scoring options than a rushed Hawkins' mid-range floater. The winless start puts Florida and Georgia in a commanding position over Kentucky in the race for the top seed out of the SEC East Division.
Michigan State's problems can be traced to a harsh schedule and Marcus Taylor's aching back. The Spartans had to open up at Minnesota (loss) and then at Indiana (loss). Taylor didn't play against the Gophers because of back spasms. He was spotty in the game against the Hoosiers, although no one could do much in defending Indiana's Tom Coverdale from the perimeter or Jared Jeffries inside or out.
The Spartans will likely continue to roll at home, and dropping their first two two road games within the conference shouldn't discount them from winning the Big Ten. That's because Iowa already lost at Ohio State and Illinois has two losses at Wisconsin and Purdue.
Speaking of the Illini, they have played four straight games without reserve forward Damir Krupalija because of a sore foot. Taking Krupalija and Lucas Johnson (out all year with an ACL) means the Illini are thin up front and lack the consistent frontcourt scoring. Having Frank Williams coast at times at the point doesn't help, either. Indiana has gotten off to its 3-0 start in part to a schedule that saw the Hoosiers travel to Northwestern (8-5, 0-2), then host Penn State and Michigan State.
Georgetown, meanwhile, isn't about to panic with its 0-2 start because the Big East appears to be wide open. But the reality is the Hoyas lost one home game, even if it was to Miami, and then squandered a win at Rutgers. Georgetown was up 19, only to lose to the Scarlet Knights by one in overtime. The Hoyas are facing a possible 0-3 start should they lose at Boston College on Saturday.
"We're not playing bad, we just need a win," Georgetown assistant Ronnie Thompson said. "We just keep telling our guys how wide open the league is. Pitt is on a roll, Miami is good and so we can't panic."
The Hoyas, however, had lost four in a row -- three to ranked teams. One positive during the skid? Georgetown isn't getting beat to the boards as much as they did when Georgia dominated them to open the season. But their shot selection and lack of consistent production from the bench is a concern. If there is one area where the Hoyas could make a leap and still be a contender it is inside where Michael Sweetney needs help from Wesley Wilson.
"If Wesley hits a groove and finds a comfort level that will really help," Thompson said. "He's been up and down and plays well one game and not the next. We know big Mike will be there for us and the freshmen have been fairly consistent (Drew Hall and Tony Bethel), Kevin is there for us, and so too, has Gerald Riley lately.
Weekly Chatter
Miami's arena is actually being built with the target opening Jan. 4, 2003. The Big East and the school are trying to secure North Carolina to open the Hurricanes new on-campus facility. The Tar Heels owe Miami a return, game but the series was put off this season.
Miami desperately needs an on-campus facility, evident by the poor fan turnout to the downtown Miami Arena and the second-class status the team is granted when other events are in town. That's why Miami is on the road for the first four Big East games. The players already don't feel like they have any kind of homecourt edge, but that could conceivably change when the new arena is finished. Student support should rise dramatically.
The Big East will be relieved to rid itself of another pro arena, which causes scheduling conflicts and is one of the reasons the league holds off on announcing its league schedule until the NBA and NHL decide on their dates.
NBA scouts continue to flock to Brown Mackey College in Salina, Kan., to see 27-year old forward Lee Benson. Benson, who spent seven years in prison prior to junior college, is projected in the late first or early second round of the June NBA draft. Background checks are expected to be thorough, but his age isn't scaring off teams.
Meanwhile, two underclassmen - juniors Drew Gooden of Kansas and Curtis Borchardt of Stanford -- are seeing their stock soar if they choose to bolt after this season. Gooden has apparently moved into the lottery and Borchardt would be a lock for the first round at this stage in the draft process.
Gooden's versatility, scoring inside and out, his tenacity on working his second and third shots to a bucket, and his agility as a big men make him a tantalizing pick. Borchardt's oft-injured feet haven't been an issue this season and his shot-blocking and finishing skills are intriguing to a number of teams. An argument can be made that he's more developed than Joel Przybilla was when he entered the draft out of Minnesota before he was taken by Milwaukee in the lottery.
UMass took a gamble in redshirting forward Jackie Rogers after he was one of Bruiser Flint's better scorers last season. The Minutemen are struggling to score (see: 38 points against Saint Joseph's) this season up front and on the perimeter. While Rogers gives them a scoring forward next season, the Minutemen need just as much help for the rest of the Atlantic 10.
Saint Joseph's coach Phil Martelli says late freshman pick up Jamal Nichols could still get eligible for the second semester, but he's still inclined to redshirt him for the whole season. Nichols could be the replacement for senior Damian Reid next season.
North Carolina still doesn't expect point guard and quarterback Ronald Curry to return to the basketball court after taking some time to rest following the Tar Heels' bowl game. Curry doesn't have the same relationship with this Tar Heels' coaching staff, considering they didn't recruit him. While Curry would help the Tar Heels settle the point, they might be better served to see if freshman Melvin Scott can play the position before Raymond Felton arrives in the fall.
Gonzaga wanted to renew its series with New Mexico, but said the Lobos declined. The Bulldogs are looking for another home-and-home series to start and wouldn't mind starting on the road.
The Fordham staff denied that Jeff McMillan is shopping, but that was before Cori Spencer bolted for Albany most likely. Coaches in the Northeast are spreading the word that McMillan will look to bolt to the Big East, possibly Pittsburgh at the end of the season. The Rams will have to spend hours dealing with damage control as they try to keep one of their best talents from being shopped, tampered with, or perhaps content to stay in the Bronx.
One benefit of watching as many games as we do in preparing for College Hoops Tonight is checking out the local ads involving coaches to see if there is any humor. In a deadpan way, the best one might be with Iowa State's Larry Eustachy and former Bulls and Cyclones coach Tim Floyd for First American Bank.
The ad shows Eustachy and Floyd sitting behind what appears to be Eustachy's house, which was actually Floyd's before he left for the NBA. Floyd jokingly tells Eustachy about burying his money in the backyard, only to see Eustachy standing in a hole digging for the cash. Sounds basic, but Eustachy's deadpan expressions, especially when he's using a metal detector looking for coins is worth a laugh.
Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com. His Weekly Word on college basketball is updated Thursdays/Fridays throughout the year.
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