A weekly round-up of the latest comings and goings of Atlantic 10 men’s basketball.
Mack, Mooney make waves by staying put
It hasn’t just been on the floor where college basketball’s little guys have been chalking up some victories this March.
Butler and VCU will carry the banner for programs outside of the traditional BCS alignment at the Final Four in Houston, and at least two coaches from a non-power league have made statements of their own with decisions that they reached over the weekend. Chris Mack’s stunning rejection of Tennessee and Chris Mooney’s mammoth contract extension to prevent a move to Georgia Tech left at least two major programs with coaching searches to finish and kept Xavier and Richmond firmly in their current places as regular contenders for Atlantic 10 titles and NCAA bids.
RTC’s conference report card
2011 was business as usual it seems as two teams, Temple and Xavier, combined to represent the conference in the AP Poll for 11 of the poll’s 19 weeks. Three teams (Richmond, Temple and Xavier) were invited to the NCAA for the fourth consecutive year with two advancing to the second round and one advancing to the Sweet 16 before bowing out. The steady progress, if not the deeper advancement, into the NCAA Tournament field should give the conference cause for celebration. If the A-10 has not gained ground, it certainly hasn’t lost any ground either. The conference beat its Performance Against Seed Expectation (PASE – the number of wins earned in the NCAA versus the historic record for the assigned seed), 2.57, by winning a total of three games in tournament play. This year also marked the sixth consecutive postseason where the conference received at least one at-large bid.
St. Bonaventure mourns the passing of Sam Urzetta
ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – The St. Bonaventure University community is mourning the passing of Sam Urzetta, a 1950 graduate who died April 8 in Rochester, N.Y., at the age of 85.
Urzetta was best known for his abilities in the sports of golf and basketball. He captained the St. Bonaventure basketball team and led the nation in free throw shooting his junior season.
Sam Urzetta’s 1950 win withstands the test of time
The late Sammy Urzetta’s victory in the 1950 U.S. Amateur Golf Championship has withstood the test of time as one of the greatest stories in Rochester’s sports history.In May 1976, with the help of a distinguished panel of local sports historians (including Henry Clune, George Beahon, Rocky Scott, Bruce Koch and Jean Giambrone), I posted my first list of the Top 15 Sports Stories in Rochester’s history in the Times-Union.
Miller names Kevin Kuwik to Dayton Men’s Basketball Staff
University of Dayton head men’s basketball coach Archie Miller has named the first member of his coaching staff. Miller, who was named UD’s coach on April 3, has selected Kevin Kuwik to join the Flyer basketball staff as an assistant coach.
“I am so excited to add Kevin to our staff here at the University of Dayton, “Miller said. “He brings tremendous character, and knowledge of what it takes to be successful to our program. The winning environments he has been in, the coaches he’s worked for, and the players he’s impacted will help us create that culture of excellence we are after.”
Some players want to show they can keep their heads while turning scouts’ heads at PIT
Bill Clark wants to prove he can play.
He also wants to show he’s a changed person.
Clark, a 6-foot-5, 210-pound swing player who averaged 16.3 points as a senior at Duquesne, is one of several players at this year’s Portsmouth Invitational Tournament trying to turn NBA heads while demonstrating they can keep theirs.
Impressive introduction
The most impressive individual effort so far at the 59th Portsmouth Invitational Tournament has come from Duquesne senior guard Bill Clark, who poured in 19 points on 7-for-7 shooting, drilling five 3-pointers, in 11 minutes in his Portsmouth Sports Club’s 52-point first half.
Clark, 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds, led Duquesne with 16.3 points per game and averaged 6.2 rebounds in a senior season that ended with a 19-13 record for the Dukes. But Clark’s story goes beyond stats.
Fran Dunphy Named Eastern College Coach Of The Year
PHILADELPHIA – For the second straight year Temple University head coach Fran Dunphy has been named the recipient of the Harry Litwack Award given to the Eastern College Coach of the Year while junior forward Scootie Randall will be honored with the George Paulll Award given to the Big Five’s Most Improved Player. The awards will be presented at the Philadelphia Big Five Banquet, Monday, April 25 in the Fox-Gittis Room at the Liacouras Center.
Weingarten Named Philadelphia Big 5 Scholar-Athlete of the Year
PHILADELPHIA – La Salle senior men’s basketball player Steve Weingarten has been named the Philadelphia Big 5 Scholar-Athlete of the Year, it was announced today by the Herb Good Club. He will receive the award at the Big 5 Awards Banquet on April 25, 2011 at the Liacouras Center Fox-Gittis Room at Temple University at 6:30 PM.
Gibson still considering Dayton, mother says
Percy Gibson might still end up being a Dayton Flyer.
I just had a lengthy conversation with Sandy Gibson, the mother of Detroit Southeastern basketball star who asked to be released from his letter-of-intent Tuesday.
She said Dayton is still very much in the picture and Percy still wants to be recruited by new coach Archie Miller and his staff.
Reed no longer enrolled, SLU says
Willie Reed’s playing days at St. Louis University have come to an end after the forward, one of SLU’s stars in 2009-10 before missing last season because of a suspension, stopped attending classes and was “administratively withdrawn” by the university.
Coming soon
Stay tuned for the first annual Pickin’ Splinters rundown of the A10′s incoming class. Fans can get an in-depth look at the new student-athletes to play next season in the Atlantic 10.
Pass it on
Pickin’ Splinters wants to build its readership. Please forward this article on to any basketball and/or A10 fans. Make sure you don’t miss any updates – join the Pickin’ Splinters email list by commenting on this article or by emailing Paul at caseysclipboard@gmail.com.
Thanks for the update! My beloved SLU lost their star center for good..Willie Reed…”administratively removed”
How’s that for politically correct? A new euphemism is born. Willie has not been expelled; he has been administratively removed.