FBCB: Start at the Bottom--2003 Stephen F. Austin

[Wolfpack]

A new dynasty to peruse. I have given in to my college basketball appetite and picked up FBCB. Right out of the gate, I'll make it interesting. I have created a level 4 coach (180 points) which is basically what new coaches and coaches at the lower level programs in the game get rated at. I set his background somewhat at random (kleimo.com for a name, RNG to determine the individual ratings, random zip codes to determine HS and alma mater). So, this person has no relation to the real me whatsoever, other that I'm role-playing him.

With regard to the universe, as I am a stickler for such things, while the coach names are the random ones generated by the game, their records are in fact based on real life (IOW, the Duke coach gets Coach K's records) and also are aged roughly similar. I found a page that listed head coaching records for all D-I coaches as well as number of seasons they've been coaching. I then RNG'ed numbers between 26 and 45 for them and added seasons to the number to come up with approximate ages that mimick the real-life counterparts. In this way, I hope to keep the "shadowy reflection" idea I like working during the course of the dynasty. One other thing I did to the opposing coaches was that if a coach changed jobs last year, he brought his ratings with him (based on the number of points the head coaches get assigned for the school's reputation), so the UNC coach will actually have Kansas's total points (380) while the Illinois coach will take over Kansas with Illinois's points. (There are rules that modify it somewhat based on how much of a difference there is between the two schools.) All assistants that became coaches start at 180 or 200 (if they took over at a high rep school like Pittsburgh).

Beyond that, the world is as created by the game. I haven't totally settled on how I'm delivering this dynasty. I'd like to do it Chief Rum-style with news reports and the like, but I'm not sure yet. The initial posts will be in that vein, though, to set up the table.

On with our story....

[Wolfpack]

Excerpts from the Nacogdoches, Texas Daily Herald, April 15, 2003

LUND RETIRES AT SFA

Nacodoches, TX--Head basketball coach Henry Lund announced his retirement at a press conference on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University yesterday. He stated the retirement was due to health reasons. He missed several games during 2002-03 because of a heart condition that kept him off the sideline, but he returned in time for the Southland Conference tournament and lead his team to the finals, where they lost to Sam Houston State in overtime.

Lund, 61, spent 3 years on the SFA bench, achieving a 43-40 record during his stint. Prior to SFA, he coached at NCAA Division II University of the Immaculate Word in San Antonio and compiled a lifetime record of 262-92 over 12 years.

"I do not wish this had happened," said Lund. "However, I feel it is best for all concerned. I don't want my health to become an issue for the university or the kids on the team.

"Don't feel too sorry for me. I have enjoyed my time here in Nacogdoches and we accomplished a lot in a very short time. I now look forward to a new chapter in my life, being home with my wife and looking forward to having lots of time with our grandkids. Sounds like a horrible life, doesn't it?"

"He has been a great coach and a great representative of our university," said SFA athletics director Tony Strode. "It is unfortunate that he leaves us so soon after arriving here. His teams were constantly improving year after year."

Strode has not laid down a timetable for hiring a new head coach. "We are at the very beginning of the process now," he said. "Of course, we'll consider many candidates, including the current roster of assistants." Current associate head coach Charles Nevarez, who accompanied Lund to SFA from Immaculate Word, is considered to be the front-runner for the job.

[Wolfpack]

Excerpts from the Nacogdoches, Texas Daily Herald, April 22, 2003

NEVAREZ HIRED AS NEW SFA HEAD COACH

Nacogdoches, TX--Stephen F. Austin moved quickly to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Henry Lund on April 15th. They did so by replacing him with his top assistant, Charles Nevarez.

At a press conference held on campus yesterday, Nevarez was introduced to the media. "I intend to continue the upward progress this program experienced under Coach Lund," he said. "Our short-term goal is to get the first NCAA tournament bid in school history. Our long-term goal is to make sure it isn't the only one in school history." Stephen F. Austin has come close to winning the Southland Conference championship and the NCAA invitation that goes with it, but have not succeeded yet, most recently falling to Sam Houston State in overtime in the 2003 final.

Stressing the continuity them, Nevarez stated that the two remaining assistants, Shaun Josey and Sal Lopez, were going to be retained with contract extensions for both finalized by the beginning of May. A new assistant will have to be sought to fill the fourth coaching slot.

QUICK FACTS ON CHARLES NEVAREZ

Age: 38 (born August 18, 1964)
Family: married, one child
Alma Mater: Tulsa University, graduated in 1986
High School: Marshall High School, San Antonio, Texas
Coaching History: Tulsa Graduate Assistant, 1986-87, Tulsa Assistant, 1987-91, Immaculate Word assistant 1991-2000, Stephen F. Austin assistant, 2000-2003

[Wolfpack]

Excerpt from the Nacogdoches, Texas Daily Herald, May 2, 2003

SFA STAFF NEARLY FILLED OUT

Nacogdoches, TX--Stephen F. Austin formally announced the retention and contract extension of both Shaun Josey and Sal Lopez who were already part of the Lumberjack staff. Terms were not announced but were expected to be four-year deals at about $125,000 total for each assistant, essentially competitive with salaries of assistants at other institutions of similar prestige in Division I. Shaun Josey has been designated the assistant head coach.

The search continues for a fourth assistant for new head coach Charles Nevarez's staff. Speculation has centered on a number of younger assistant coaches at various Texas Division I and Division II schools.

[Wolfpack]

excerpt from the Nacogdoches, Texas Daily Herald, May 26, 2003

LUMBERJACKS HIRE GOSS

Nacogdoches, TX--In a press release yesterday, Stephen F. Austin announced the hiring of Carl Goss as the fourth and final assistant to coach Charles Nevarez's staff. Goss, 31, comes to SFA from Texas Southern, a member of the Southwest Athletic Conference, where he served as an assistant. Terms of the contract were similar to the terms negotiated for both SFA assistants that were retained by the university earlier this month. Goss is expected to become the lead recruiter for the program.

[Wolfpack]

Side note: Yes, for those of you who are familiar with Stephen F. Austin, I am borrowing Danny Kaspar's background for the background of the retiring coach. Saved the headache of coming up with a new one.

[Radii]

Nacogdoches, TX

Am I the only one who cannot look at Nacogdoches without thinking "Mmmm, nachodocious" ?

I'm following along, looking forward to having another FBCB dynasty to read on those slow days at work :)

[Wolfpack]

Thanks. I have to check my spelling on "Nacogdoches" every time I put it in. (Not to be confused with, I think, "Natchidoches", Louisiana where one of the other Southland Conference teams play.

I had meant to put up a news release describing the best recruits in America, but I forgot the disk at home. Maybe tonight.

I forgot to mention a couple of other universe rules. There will be no conference movement (knowing my penchant for realism, this isn't a surprise), however, there will be adjustments to conference prestige based on team prestige.

I'm currently toying with trying to provide a news report from a different newspaper during each day of the season (except day-after reports from games I play in which will be covered by the Nacogdoches paper, since I looked at the big-city papers in Texas and no one gives a hoot about anyone below the Big XII, it seems). In this way, I hope to show what's going on elsewhere beyond my little world in the Southland. For example, I randomly choose, say, the Richmond Times-Dispatch. If Virginia or Virginia Tech or another school in Virginia played the night before, I will make a writeup about it, along with a "Top 25 in brief" kind of bit if any of them played the night before as well. It will likely slow my dynasty down quite a bit to do this, but could make it more interesting in the end.

I haven't decided whether I should reveal ratings and such on my players and coaches since those are not common knowledge in the real world, just the results of those ratings.

[Wolfpack]

Press Release on FastBreakRecruitingService.com, July 1, 2003

FAST BREAK RECRUITING ANNOUNCES THE BEST RECRUITING PROSPECTS FOR 2003

Spokane, WA--The Fast Break Recruiting Service has compiled a list of what it considers the best senior prep and junior college prospects for the 2003-04 basketball season. Following is a list of the ten best overall prospects, followed by a separate list at each position of the five best at those positions.

Overall 10 Best
1. Olen Cress, C, 6'9"/243, Mount Si High School/Snoqualmie, Washington
2. Warren Armentrout, SG, 6'5"/210, Central High School/Memphis, Tennessee
3. George Garcia, SF, 6'8"/236, Cheyenne High School/North Las Vegas, Nevada
4. Chris August, C, 6'11"/236, Pima High School/Pima, Arizona
5. Brian Warnke, C, 6'10"/233, Gates County High School/Gatesville, North Carolina
6. Charles Weiner, SF, 6'8"/221, Fairmont High School/Fairmont, Minnesota
7. James Carrell, PG, 5'7"/153, Mine Centre, Canada (Junior College)
8. Charles Day, PF, 6'10"/224, Radford High School/Honolulu, Hawaii
9. Charlie Gaston, C, 6'10"/242, McBee High School/McBee, South Carolina
10. Joel Childs, PF, 6'7"/227, Knox, Pennsylvania (Junior College)

Centers
1. Olen Cress
2. Chris August
3. Brian Warnke
4. Charlie Gaston
5. Gregory Frey, 6'11"/234, Selden, New York (Junior College)

Power Forwards
1. Charles Day
2. Joel Childs
3. Chris Driver, 6'9"/213, Warrensburg High School/Warrensburg, Ohio
4. Ted Johnson, 6'8"/257, Sahuaro High School/Tucson, Arizona
5. Russell Balzer, 6'8"/237, North Central High School/Russell, Louisiana

Small Forwards
1. George Garcia
2. Charles Weiner
3. Xavier Crossland, 6'9"/220, Lowell High School/Lowell, Oregon
4. Steve Carlin, 6'8"/245, Paonia High School/Paonia, Colorado
5. William Turner, 6'7"/240, Elba High School/Elba, Alabama

Shooting Guards
1. Warren Armentrout
2. Joseph Patterson, 6'4"/202, Franklin-Monroe High School/Pitsburg, Ohio
3. Efrain Puga, 6'4"/190, Platte Valley Senior High School/Kersey, Colorado
4. Gregory Chiu, 6'2"/175, East High School/Salt Lake City, Utah
5. Jason Boland, 6'3"/184, Lakeview High School/Stoneboro, Pennsylvania

Point Guards
1. James Carrell
2. Emmanuel Frost, 5'8"/164, Clayton High School/Clayton, New Mexico
3. Julian Drummond, 6'0"/172, El Paso High School/El Paso, Illinois
4. Richard Jefferson, 6'1"/192, John Stark High School/Weare, New Hampshire
5. Martin Magnuson, 6'3"/187, Hagerman High School/Hagerman, New Mexico

Analysis
*The rising seniors and available junior college players are deep along the frontline positions with four centers rated in the top 10 overall, plus two each at both forward positions.

*The Western Region (defined for our purposes as the region of states bounded on the east by New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana, including Alaska and Hawaii) is very strong at the top, with 11 players out of the 25 listed above.

*As has been the case for several years now, it should be expected that three to five of the top prospects we have listed here will skip college entirely and go to the NBA. As recruiting progresses this year, we will be able to better project which ones above will do so. Of the rest, the vast majority will likely end up in the so-called "power conferences", though surprises can and do occur.

[Wolfpack]

From The Seattle Times, July 6, 2003

CRESS OF THE WAVE

Snoqualmie--To look at him, you wouldn't think he's the number one high school prospect in the United States. Sure, he looks like a basketball player. He is 6'9" and a fairly muscular 240 pounds, but the best in America? Come on. That's usually reserved for some playground star who takes over high school games in places like New York or Chicago. Not here.

Yet, that is what one recruiting service, FastBreakRecruitingService.com, did last week, and it looks like others will follow suit, rating Mount Si High School rising senior Olen Cress amongst the best players on their lists. "When I was told about it (the ranking), I was kind of surprised. I hadn't realized anyone would be watching me. They're usually paying attention to guys coming out of schools closer in to Seattle."

He points to a stack of letters he's been receiving since the start of his 11th grade year at Mount Si. Most all of these have come from various basketball programs across the western United States. With this ranking, that stack figures to grow rapidly and will likely include offers to the most prestigious basketball schools across the country. Some people are even saying he's good enough to go pro. "I'm not sure about that. It has crossed my mind, though."

As a junior, he helped Mount Si to the King County 3-A title, but his team was upset in the state playoffs. "He was huge for us last year," said his coach, Matt Rathbone. "Without his size and strength down low, I don't think we contend in our conference, let alone win it."

He says he hasn't really sat down to figure out where he'd like to go. Press him to pick a few schools, and he'll say the big names like Stanford or Kentucky. What about a school here? "I'm not sure any of them are the right fit. I kind of want to see a different part of the country, as well." That, he says, is down the road. "I just want to enjoy my senior year. When the time comes, I'll talk it over with my parents and we'll come to a decision."

[Wolfpack]

July, 2003

Through this point I have been wildly successful in setting up my schedule (got all my choices on the first try). I'll reveal the sked (weak and pitiful that it is) later on in the calendar.

For now, it's time to see what's out there recruiting-wise. My general philosophy is to go after locals as much as possible and pretty much rule out anyone below a three-star and average interest. Due to staff costs, my recruiting budget is a little over $8,200 dollars. Not too bad for a small-time school. I have four scholies to hand out for the next class, so I'm going to use up my full 20 "call" options to cast my net as wide as possible. I'm losing one from each position except PG, but with a school rep of 9, any help I can find will only improve things, so I'm not excluding PGs.

Call List

NAME POS HEIGHT WEIGHT HOME ALL POS REG POS
Gregory Bales SG 6- 4 185 LA 211 43 51 11
Harold Bobb PF 6- 8 211 TX 168 29 40 8
Thomas Bogard SF 6- 6 241 LA 203 41 30 6
William Daniel PG 6- 3 197 FL 307 62 73 11
Britt Eckstein SG 6- 3 199 NM 248 74 58 16
Columbus Fortune C 6- 9 250 MS 272 53 60 12
Truman Goodsell SG 6- 3 196 TX 266 64 66 18
Joshua Lucero SG 6- 4 194 IL 174 39 41 11
Mario Murphy C 6-10 263 FL 110 24 20 6
Chris Palmer C 7- 0 258 IA 314 78 70 13
Gary Patton PF 6- 8 267 TX 240 56 36 11
Daniel Pearcy SF 6- 6 223 TX 196 28 47 5
Andre Rego C 6- 9 211 AR 319 66 73 14
Jermaine Rook C 7- 5 246 TN 275 54 61 13
Daniel Runion SG 6- 4 201 OK 295 72 71 20
Franklin Sandstrom SG 6- 2 187 OK 274 69 67 19
Tom Tessin PF 6-10 255 AL 170 30 35 9
Robert Tilley SF 6- 6 212 MS 322 68 50 13
Fritz Wester SG 6- 3 188 IA 215 52 54 14
James Wilson C 6-10 238 AL 261 50 56 11

*Bales, Runion, and Wester are JuCos
*All recruits are ***-rated

Evaluate
Bobb, Bogard, Eckstein, Fortune, Goodsell, Lucero, Patton, Pearcy, Rego, Sandstrom, Tessin, Tilley, Wilson

The remaining players are just "called" this month.

[tucker342]

good luck! I'll be reading:)

[mtaystl03]

Yeah, good luck.

Just a quick question. Are you looking to bring SFA to the top or just looking to do well enough to get a bigger job and work your way up? Or do you even know yet?

-Mark

[Wolfpack]

I'm playing by ear, mostly. (BTW, sorry for lack of updates. I've been spending time setting up Excel sheets that give me a more tailored view of my players and recruiting targets)

Since I've turned off conference movement and since I am allowing conference reps to change over time, I'd say that at least initially, it will be very difficult to take SFA to a national title. I think realistically I expect to try to just make the NCAAs at some point.

I'm considering a house rule whereby I have to stay at least 3 or 4 years at one school and cannot move until I have doubled the current school's reputation (or some percentage multiplier like that).

In light of that, yes, this will be a coach's career, rather than a school's history I'm reporting. I haven't decided what the ultimate goal should be yet. Should it be to get back to Tulsa and become head man there, or to reach a coaching job in a Level 5 conference and win a national title, or something else? Should be interesting and see where the story carries me nonetheless.

Thanks for checking in, guys. Feel free to ask questions about anything in this little universe.

[Wolfpack]

July, 2003

Preseason tournament invites go out. Here are the announced fields:

2003 Coaches vs. Cancer Classic
1. Duke Blue Devils
2. Oklahoma Sooners
3. Connecticut Huskies
4. Arkansas Razorbacks

2003 Great Alaska Shootout
1. Arizona Wildcats
2. Cincinnati Bearcats
3. Indiana Hoosiers
4. Temple Owls
5. Iowa State Cyclones
6. Mississippi State Bulldogs
7. Ball State Cardinals
8. Hofstra Pride

2003 Preseason NIT
1. Kansas Jayhawks
2. Florida Gators
3. Ohio State Buckeyes
4. Gonzaga Bulldogs
5. Virginia Cavaliers
6. Dayton Flyers
7. Bowling Green Falcons
8. Marquette Golden Eagles
9. Southern Methodist Mustangs
10. Ohio Bobcats
11. Colorado State Rams
12. Murray State Racers
13. Southwest Missouri State Bears
14. California-Santa Barbara Gauchos
15. Wofford Terriers
16. Idaho Vandals

2003 Maui Invitational
1. Kentucky Wildcats
2. Stanford Cardinal
3. UCLA Bruins
4. Utah State Aggies
5. Oregon Ducks
6. Missouri Tigers
7. Hawaii Warriors
8. Seton Hall Pirates


2003 Top of the World Shootout
1. Texas Longhorns
2. Michigan State Spartans
3. Maryland Terrapins
4. Saint John's Red Storm
5. Tulsa Golden Hurricane
6. Villanova Wildcats
7. Louisville Cardinals
8. South Florida Bulls

2003 Rainbow Classic
1. Illinois Fighting Illini
2. Syracuse Orangemen
3. Oklahoma State Cowboys
4. Brigham Young Cougars
5. North Carolina Tar Heels
6. South Carolina Gamecocks
7. Saint Joseph's Hawks
8. Memphis Tigers


2003 Las Vegas Invitational
1. Fresno State Bulldogs
2. Tennessee Volunteers
3. Wake Forest Demon Deacons
4. Iowa Hawkeyes
5. Miami (FL) Hurricanes
6. Purdue Boilermakers
7. Georgetown Hoyas
8. Providence Friars

2003 San Juan Shootout
1. Utah Runnin' Utes
2. Mississippi Rebels
3. Southern California Trojans
4. California Golden Bears
5. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
6. Auburn Tigers
7. Massachusetts Minutemen
8. Nevada-Las Vegas Runnin' Rebels

[Wolfpack]

From the Nacogdoches, Texas Daily Herald dated July 27, 2003

SFA ANNOUNCES 03-04 MEN'S HOOPS SCHEDULE

Nacogdoches--The Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks announced the full 2003-04 men's basketball schedule today in a press release. The 'Jacks will open with a home date against Birmingham Southern of the Big South Conference on November 21. SFA will start the Southland Conference portion of the schedule with a road game at Texas State December 6. Texas State will also be the final game of the season on March 6. There is one matchup with a power conference member, December 20 at LSU.

The full Stephen F. Austin schedule for 2003-04:
11/21/03 Birmingham Southern
11/27/03 at Evansville
12/02/03 Grambling
12/06/03 at Texas State
12/11/03 Texas-Arlington
12/13/03 Texas-San Antonio
12/17/03 Gardner Webb
12/20/03 at Louisiana State
12/25/03 at Texas-Arlington
12/27/03 Sam Houston State
01/01/04 Nicholls State
01/05/04 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
01/08/04 at Texas-San Antonio
01/17/04 Southeastern Louisiana
01/22/04 Texas Southern
01/29/04 at Lamar
01/31/04 Lamar
02/03/04 at Louisiana-Monroe
02/05/04 McNeese State
02/07/04 at McNeese State
02/10/04 Savannah State
02/12/04 at Nicholls State
02/19/04 Northwestern State
02/21/04 at Northwestern State
02/26/04 Louisiana-Monroe
02/28/04 at Sam Houston State
03/04/04 at Southeastern Louisiana
03/06/04 Texas State

[Wolfpack]

August, 2003

On the Recruiting Trail
Evaluations are in on our first batch of recruits we checked out. Some we like, some we don't like, some we're not sure about. We spend the bulk of the August budget evaluating the players we didn't get to in July.

July Evaluations

Name Pos All Pos Sco BH Reb Def
Harold Bobb PF 33.8 34.2 30.3? 34.2 37.2! 40.4
1.67 1.72 0.25? 1.00 1.50 3.50!

Thomas Bogard SF 41.9 39.0 43.2 36.7? 46.7! 40.8?
2.00 1.94 2.50! 1.00? 1.50 2.25

Britt Eckstein SG 39.7 42.9 51.8! 38.0 39.5 32.5?
1.58 1.83 2.75! 1.50 1.00 0.75?

C. Fortune C 31.5 34.0 37.2 27.7? 39.5! 31.8
1.58 1.78 2.00 0.50? 2.50! 1.25

Truman Goodsell SG 40.8 42.4 48.3! 40.5 35.0? 38.7
1.75 1.72 1.75 2.00! 1.50? 1.75

Joshua Lucero SG 33.3 37.5 48.3! 24.5? 37.3 29.1
1.67 1.78 1.75 1.00? 1.50 2.00!

Gary Patton PF 35.3 35.6 38.5 31.8? 42.3! 37.9
1.75 1.72 1.75 1.00? 2.00 2.00!

Daniel Pearcy SF 36.8 36.2 38.7 36.2? 41.7! 40.6
1.83 1.61 2.25! 2.00 1.00? 1.75

Andre Rego C 34.3 35.7 27.6? 38.3 48.7! 36.2
1.42 1.56 1.00? 1.00? 3.00! 1.25

F. Sandstrom SG 39.5 40.8 50.1! 22.8? 41.5 37.8
1.75 1.78 2.25! 1.50? 1.50? 1.50?

Tom Tessin PF 38.4 38.2 28.7? 38.8 46.2! 42.5
1.83 1.94 1.50? 2.00 1.50? 2.25!

Robert Tilley SF 32.3 30.4 36.6 37.7 43.7! 29.3?
1.58 1.67 1.25 1.00? 2.00! 2.00!

James Wilson C 27.5 28.6 23.4 24.3? 36.5! 32.5
1.58 1.78 0.75? 2.00! 2.00! 2.00!

NOTE: these are my own ratings based on what's presented in the game. Rather than listing out all 17 ratings, I've averaged them out in various ways based on criteria. The second line of numbers is a "GPA" average of their letter grade potentials, averaged in a similar way minus the physical skills since they have no potential grades. "!" denotes the best skill subset rating or potential of the four, while "?" denotes the worst. The four skill subsets are scoring, ball handling, rebounding, and defense.

Our evaluations turn up some interesting prospects. However, since we are going to go ahead and evaluate the remaining players on our call list, we are pretty much precluded from making further efforts on these players. There is one exception. We have a SF prospect, Thomas Bogard, who seems to be clearly better than the other two SF prospects, so we're going to work on him some more this month.

Evaluations
Bales, Daniel, Murphy, Palmer, Rook, Runion, and Wester

Head Coach Visit
Bogard

No action taken on remaining players

[Wolfpack]

From FastBreakRecruitingService.com, August 1, 2003

Recruiting Tidbits
#1 overall player Olen Cress has begun to look further afield than the west coast. Sources in Seattle say he's now leaning to Oklahoma.

#2 Warren Armentrout is pretty much leaving no doubt he's NBA-bound as only a few schools, Florida particularly, have contacted him lately.

#3 George Garcia has been getting a lot of attention from the west coast schools. He seems to have flip-flopped from UCLA to USC as his favorite, with his remaining leaders mostly in the Pac-10, though Ole Miss has suddenly made a strong play for him this month.

#4 Chris August continues to keep UCLA at the top of his list, with some minor shuffling among his remaining leaders, all Pac-10 schools.

#5 Brian Warnke seems to be having a difficult time deciding who his leader is. Last month it was Kentucky, but now it's apparently Cincinnati as UK slid back to the pack. Local schools Duke and Wake Forest along with Kansas are also on his list.

#6 Charles Weiner has re-arranged his two leading candidates, with Oklahoma in front over Kentucky this month.

#7 James Carrell, the JuCo transfer from Canada, has moved Texas to his favorite, bumping last month's leader Duke down to number two.

#8 Charles Day has been getting lots of attention from the closer-to-home west coast schools and info out of Honolulu suggests it's working as Stanford, followed by Arizona, have bumped Texas out of his lead spot.

#9 Charlie Gaston is also changing his mind by the day. Last we checked, he was looking at Kentucky, but now he seems to be leaning towards Cincinnati.

#10 Joel Childs, another Junior College player, seems to have a clear favorite in Oklahoma at this point, with Cincinnati a firm second choice.

Among the position Top 5 recruits...Gregory Frey (#5 center) is favoring UConn...Chris Driver (#3 PF) is leaning heavily to Oklahoma...Ted Johnson (#4 PF) continues to have Arizona as his favorite...Russell Balzer (#5 PF) has dropped early leader Kentucky from his list and put the Bearcats in first...Xavier Crossland (#3 SF) continues to have west coast schools, led by home favorite Oregon, on his list...Steve Carlin (#4 SF) is keeping Oklahoma slightly ahead of Arizona...William Turner (#5 SF) says it's Michigan State and then everybody else...Joseph Patterson (#2 SG) has switched to Kentucky from Cincinnati, exactly the opposite of Balzer...Efrain Puga (#3 SG) got lots of attention from Arizona and has moved them to his top spot...Gregory Chiu (#4 SG) has not altered his Top 5 with Arizona in the lead...Jason Boland (#5 SG) is now considering Kentucky his leader...Emmanuel Frost (#2 PG) has kept Kansas number one, but Oklahoma State has made a strong play to move behind them...Julian Drummond (#3 PG) has displaced Duke with Illinois at the top of his list...Richard Jefferson (#4 PG) apparently was why Drummond changed as Duke remains his favorite...Martin Magnuson (#5 PG) completely reshuffled his list from July and Illinois now leads for his services.

[Wolfpack]

September, 2003

On the Recruiting Trail
The evaluations are in on the remainder of our call list. Many have received our interest positively. As expected, the devotion to evaluation has diminished somewhat our relations with those we evaluated in July.

August Evaluations

Name Pos All Pos Sco BH Reb Def
Gregory Bales SG 44.4 46.8 49.5 44.8 39.2 44.8
1.67 1.67 2.00 3.00! 1.50 0.75?

William Daniel PG 36.8 38.5 36.5 45.2! 20.3? 39.7
1.83 2.11 2.25 3.00! 1.00? 1.25

Mario Murphy C 34.4 36.5 39.5 37.8 51.8! 30.5?
1.83 1.89 1.75 1.50? 3.00! 1.50?

Chris Palmer C 36.9 38.7 43.5! 30.2? 42.8 35.0
2.25 2.28 2.75! 2.00 1.50? 2.25

Jermaine Rook C 30.3 32.5 35.3 28.5? 44.8! 31.4
1.67 1.83 2.25! 0.50? 2.00 1.50

Daniel Runion SG 43.5 46.4 56.1! 44.2 46.5 38.7?
1.50 1.61 2.25! 1.50 1.00? 1.00?

Fritz Wester SG 46.0 47.8 60.2! 30.3? 37.8 47.1
1.50 1.72 2.50! 0.50? 0.50? 1.50

This group has some pretty good players in it, but many aren't interested in us. We are intrigued, however, by a rare possibility. Chris Palmer looks to be a great possibility for center at 7'0" and strong. What has us thinking is we also got a "very high" interest from Jermaine Rook, who is all of 7'5". Though we're not in his Top 5, he seems willing to listen to us. Rook is a bit more of a project than Palmer, but the possibility of shifting Palmer to PF and putting Rook at center is a unique potential combination that might make us the toughest inside team in the conference to play against. (Our current roster already has a bevy of 6'10"-6'11" guys, though we lose a couple to graduation this year.)

With evaluations done, we can now fully concentrate our budget on specific targets.

Scholarship Offers Outstanding
Thomas Bogard, SF

Campus Visits
Bogard

Assistant Coach Visits
Daniel, Palmer, Rook, Tessin

Our first offer goes out to Thomas Bogard. He's the best small forward we're looking at and has strong interest in us, so we think we can pull him in once the November signing day arrives.

Otherwise, to keep costs down but to maintain interest from as many people as we'd like to, we resort to assigning assistant coach visits to the four listed. In addition to Palmer and Rook, we also take a liking to point guard William Daniel from Florida, who has a very high assist/turnover ratio, and a solid-looking power forward in Tom Tessin, as at this point we are uncertain if we like Rook enough to go after him really hard yet.

[Wolfpack]

From FastBreakRecruitingService.com, September 1, 2003

Recruiting Tidbits
As the time for early commitments draws ever closer, the top recruits on our list continue to shuffle their favorites and schools jockey hard down the stretch for their services. We are hearing from various sources, though, that some schools may be working for naught as perhaps as many as five recruits are contemplating a jump to the NBA. The only player who seems certain to go right now is Warren Armentrout, the sweet-shooting guard from Memphis. However, we can make stabs about the remainder and will probably know for sure when the early signings are completed in November. If any of the top 10 haven't signed, it's a fair bet they'll be skipping to the NBA.

#1 Olen Cress continues to keep Oklahoma as his top school, but Stanford is moving up again. We've now heard that a few NBA scouts have dropped in to see him personally, so his chances of an NBA jump have gone up a little. Still too early to tell.

#2 Warren Armentrout continues to say he's pretty much going to the NBA after high school, though that hasn't stopped Kentucky or Illinois from contacting him, hoping against hope he'll change his mind.

#3 George Garcia has again changed his leader, now Arizona. Curiously, the two LA schools seem to have backed off of him. Perhaps they sense he may be contemplating a jump to the NBA?

#4 Chris August has also seen a drop in interest from his former leader, UCLA. Stanford has now taken the lead for him, with a surprise for his second choice in Alabama.

#5 Brian Warnke has changed horses again, now leaning to Michigan State, who wasn't even on the radar last month. However, his constant changes in his favorites (none of the current leaders were even on his list two months ago) seems to indicate indecision about his future and schools may be backing off a bit to see what he'll do.

#6 Charles Weiner has apparently said that Oklahoma is going for other players, leaving him to bring Kentucky back to the top with Duke behind them.

#7 James Carrell is getting lots of attention from Oklahoma State and he has reciprocated, pushing the Cowboys ahead of conference rival Texas.

#8 Charles Day is beginning to look more and more like he's NBA-bound as mainland schools have backed away from him, though Hawaii is now making an earnest push to keep him home.

#9 Charlie Gaston told us he has a surprise front-runner now in the University of Oregon, though he still says he really likes Cincinnati and says those two schools are pretty much his final choices right now.

#10 Joel Childs is now leaning to Michigan State, who made a serious push this month as Oklahoma and Cincinnati, his prior front runners, have decided to concentrate efforts elsewhere.

Among the Top 5 position recruits...Gregory Frey (#5 C) now has Mississippi State at the top...Chris Driver (#3 PF) is pretty much set to head to Norman, Oklahoma, though he's still getting interest from others...Ted Johnson (#4 PF) is now listing Stanford ahead of Arizona...Russell Balzer (#5 PF) seems likely to commit to Cincinnati...Xavier Crossland (#3 SF) has surprisingly dropped Oregon down the list and Vanderbilt (of all schools) now leads for him...Steve Carlin (#4 SF) has switched to Arizona after Oklahoma backed off of him...William Turner (#5 SF) declared his intention to go to Michigan State on August 2nd...Joseph Patterson (#2 SG) keeps Kentucky as his favorite, though Ohio State is making a push...Efrain Puga (#3 SG) has moved Oklahoma to the top, but has several high profile schools interested...Gregory Chiu (#4 SG) is almost a sure bet at this point for going to Arizona, but he's being mum right now about when he may commit...Jason Boland (#5 SG) continues to lean towards Kentucky, but he says Florida has been showing a lot of interest of late...Emmanuel Frost (#2 PG) has Oklahoma State first, surprising considering #1 PG James Carrell also is leaning to the Cowboys...Julian Drummond (#3 PG) has Kansas in the lead now with Cincinnati a close second...Richard Jefferson (#4 PG) says he's now looking at Ohio State as several of his favorites last month have backed off...Martin Magnuson (#5 PG) says Iowa State has shot to the top of his list, with other Big 12 members also courting him.

[Wolfpack]

October, 2003

On the Recruiting Trail
We've pretty much narrowed down our list of candidates to five players: Bogard (who already has a scholarship), William Daniel (PG from FLA with a 4-to-1 assist/turnover ratio), Chris Palmer (7-0 C from Iowa), Jermaine Rook (7-5 C from TN), and Tom Tessin (PF from Bama). However, we're still juggling a limited budget, so we can't go after all of them hard at once.

Scholarship Offers
William Daniel, PG
Chris Palmer, C
Jermaine Rook, C

Campus Visits
Palmer

Assistant Coach Visits
Daniel, Rook, Tessin

We now have all four offers outstanding as we ultimately decide to go for both big men and hope. If either rejects, Tessin is a fallback choice. We think Daniel has great possibilities and, frankly, is better than any of the point guards we currently have, so he gets the remaining offer.

We feel comfortable enough leading for Bogard that we don't give him serious attention this month and hope that he will commit anyway.

[Wolfpack]

From FastBreakRecruitingService.com, October 1, 2003

Recruiting Tidbits
The final 45 days (roughly) of recruiting are ahead, leading to the early signing period in mid-November. Some players seem pretty sure of where they're going. Others are still undecided. At this point, only Warren Armentrout continues to state his commitment to skipping college and going to the NBA, but with each passing day, it's becoming more likely that he'll be joined by a few others.

#1 Olen Cress still lists Oklahoma on top, but he's still getting interest from NBA scouts. He still may sign in November, though. He's gotten offered by everybody on his list.

#2 Warren Armentrout officially declared he's NBA bound by beginning the process of finding an agent, so we won't bother updating him further after this month.

#3 George Garcia continues to struggle with his choice as Arizona has now slid down his list and two SEC schools, Kentucky and surprising Mississippi (which has offered) lead for him now. He's also getting an earful from NBA scouts and agents.

#4 Chris August has a surprise leader, Alabama. The Crimson Tide have been hot after him for a couple of months now and he apparently visited Tuscaloosa last month and was very impressed. Previous leader Stanford has dropped back in the pack. The Tide, Arkansas, Southern Cal, and Iowa have offered.

#5 Brian Warnke has gone mum all of the sudden about his plans. He still mentions Michigan State and a batch of ACC schools and that they've all offered him, but he's also thinking about the NBA.

#6 Charles Weiner has moved Duke to the top of his list, but Kentucky and Florida are still right there. Illinois has made an offer, but he doesn't seem as interested in them.

#7 James Carrell has kept Okie State and Texas on top of his list. No offers, though, so there may be some possibility he's thinking about the NBA as well.

#8 Charles Day continues to keep hometown school Hawaii atop his list, but being touted as the best basketball player the state of Hawaii has produced in years is giving him NBA notions, which seem reflected in that he's not gotten any offers except from the Warriors.

#9 Charlie Gaston has definitely narrowed the list to two, between Cincinnati and Oregon. Both have offered, as has Georgia, but he's really only considering the first two, with Cincinnati slightly ahead at this point.

#10 Joel Childs got an offer from Ohio State, which was enough to bump them to the top of his list ahead of Michigan State. Kansas and Tennessee have also offered, but unless Michigan State makes an offer, he's probably going to Columbus.

Among the Top 5 position recruits...Gregory Frey (#5 C) has offers from Mississippi State, UNC, South Carolina, Kansas, and Notre Dame...Chris Driver (#3 PF) has offers from heavy favorite Oklahoma, Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa...Ted Johnson (#4 PF) has offers from Stanford, Arizona, and Cal, with Stanford in front...Russell Balzer (#5 PF) has offers from Cincinnati and Virginia, but is pretty much certain to be a Bearcat...Xavier Crossland (#3 SF) has offers from Vanderbilt and Gonzaga...Steve Carlin (#4 SF) only has an offer from Arizona and is probably heading there...William Turner (#5 SF) has offers from four schools but will sign with Michigan State after committing to them in August...Joseph Patterson (#2 SG)has offers from Kentucky, Virginia, Ohio State, and Syracuse...Efrain Puga (#3 SG) only has an offer from Oklahoma and will likely be in Norman next year...Gregory Chiu (#4 SG) has no offers yet, but still favors Arizona, though in-state school Utah is making a heavy push late...Jason Boland (#5 SG) has offers from Georgia, Villanova, and Maryland, though he seems to be waiting on an offer from Florida before deciding...Emmanuel Frost (#2 PG) has no offers yet, but continues to have Oklahoma State leading, though the Cowboys seem intent on #1 PG James Carrell...Julian Drummond (#3 PG) received an offer from Cincinnati this month, which has displaced Kansas on top of his list...Richard Jefferson (#4 PG) has three offers from Temple, Georgetown, and UConn, but is awaiting word on an offer from Ohio State...Martin Magnuson (#5 PG) has only an offer from Iowa State and seems likely to take it.

[Wolfpack]

November, 2003

On the Recruiting Trail
We have landed our first recruit of the year. Surprisingly, it's not Thomas Bogard, whom we've been after hard from the start. It's...Chris Palmer. Splendid. We'll take it.

Committed to Stephen F. Austin
*NEW* Chris Palmer, C, 7'0"/258, West Des Moines (IA) Valley

Going Elsewhere
SG Gregory Bales commits to New Orleans
SG Britt Eckstein commits to Colorado State
SG Truman Goodsell commits to Rice
C Mario Murphy commits to Charlotte
PF Gary Patton commits to New Mexico State
C Andre Rego commits to Birmingham Southern
PF Tom Tessin commits to Louisiana-Monroe
SF Robert Tilley commits to Jacksonville State
SG Fritz Wester commits to Nebraska

Head Coach Visit
Bogard, Daniel, Rook

Tessin turns us down in favor of conference rival ULM. We don't consider it a great loss as we now know who we want for our last three spots, Rook, Bogard, and Daniel. With our limited resources, it's hard to make an earnest push for one particular player without short-changing the other targets. (I am aware that the recruiting cycle doesn't officially go through until the end of the month, but I'll go ahead and list my plans at the start of the month anyway)

[Wolfpack]

From FastBreakRecruitingService.com, November 1, 2003

Recruiting Tidbits
October has seen a flurry of activity and commits from players all across America. Many players in the Top 100 have now announced verbally where they want to be next year, though nothings official until signing day in a couple of weeks. There are still a few holdouts and time is winding down on them. If they fail to make up their minds, they will have to wait until the Spring period next year to sign. With that in mind, here's the update:

#1 Olen Cress is slowly, inexorably, moving towards skipping college and heading to the NBA. He's mentioned to us that his contacts with colleges have gone down in the last month as they've taken note of NBA interest and started to cut bait. He hopes to decide this month, but doesn't think it will be until after the signing period.

#2 Warren Armentrout--NBA.

#3 George Garcia made a surprise announcement on October 13 that he is heading to Ole Miss.

#4 Chris August confirmed speculation by committing October 6 to the Crimson Tide, so the SEC West has two of the top four players in America coming in next year.

#5 Brian Warnke has told suitors that he probably won't decide by the November signing period what his future is, but many of those schools we've talked to say he's probably NBA-bound.

#6 Charles Weiner has not committed yet. Illinois is no longer interested, which seems to indicate he's thinking about the NBA, though Duke, Florida, and Kentucky haven't given up yet.

#7 James Carrell announced October 21 that he was heading for Oklahoma State, but seemed to indicate it was a "soft" verbal. Nonetheless the Cowboys are hoping he'll make it official on signing day.

#8 Charles Day is heading to the mainland to play basketball, but that's about the only certain thing. Will it be in a Warrior uniform for the University of Hawaii for road games, or will it possibly be another Warrior uniform, depending on how the draft progresses?

#9 Charlie Gaston also made his announcement October 6. Much to the surprise of everyone in his small hometown of McBee, South Carolina, he decided to head west to Oregon.

#10 Joel Childs just announced on October 27 that he will indeed head to Ohio State next year.

Among the Top 5 position recruits...Gregory Frey (#5 C) concluded a whirlwind courtship with Notre Dame by announcing for the Irish yesterday...Chris Driver (#3 PF) made official what's been known for a while by committing to Oklahoma 10/16...Ted Johnson (#4 PF) also confirmed long-standing rumor by selecting Stanford 10/15...Russell Balzer (#5 PF) announced for Cincinnati 10/20...Xavier Crossland (#3 SF) disappointed hometown fans of Oregon by deciding to go to Vanderbilt 10/24...Steve Carlin (#4 SF) is Pac-10 bound, committing to Arizona 10/15...William Turner (#5 SF) has been heading to East Lansing since August...Joseph Patterson (#2 SG) announced 10/7 he is going to play at Kentucky...Efrain Puga (#3 SG) will join Chris Driver at OU after announcing for the Sooners 10/26...Gregory Chiu (#4 SG) says he has made a "soft" commit to play at Arizona, but he is having a hard time turning down in-state school Utah...Jason Boland (#5 SG) decided for the Georgia Bulldogs 10/25...Emmanuel Frost (#2 PG) seems to want to go to Oklahoma State, but the uncertainty surrounding #1 PG James Carrell is preventing him from making it official...Julian Drummond (#3 PG) is joining Russell Balzer in Cincinnati after verballing two days ago...Richard Jefferson (#4 PG) is staying in the northeast, committing to legendary coach Isias Brunet and Temple 10/23...Martin Magnuson (#5 PG) is heading to Iowa State after committing at the start of the month.

Complete Fast Break Recruiting Top 100

1. Olen Cress C 6' 9" 243 Snoqualmie (WA) Mount Si OU*, STAN*, ORE*
2. Warren Armentrout SG 6' 5" 210 Memphis (TN) Central NBA
3. George Garcia SF 6' 8" 236 North Las Vegas (NV) Cheyenne Mississippi
4. Chris August C 6'11" 236 Pima (AZ) Alabama
5. Brian Warnke C 6'10" 233 Gatesville (NC) Gates Co. Sr. MSU*, WAKE*, UVA*
6. Charles Weiner SF 6' 8" 221 Fairmont (MN) FLA, DUKE, UK
7. James Carrell PG 5' 7" 153 Mine Centre, Canada (JuCo) OK ST, TEXAS, SYR
8. Charles Day PF 6'10" 224 Honolulu (HI) Radford HAW*, ZONA, STAN
9. Charlie Gaston C 6'10" 242 McBee (SC) Oregon
10. Joel Childs PF 6' 7" 227 Knox, PA (JuCo) Ohio State
11. Joseph Patterson SG 6' 4" 202 Pitsburg (OH) Franklin-Monroe Kentucky
12. Efrain Puga SG 6' 4" 190 Kersey (CO) Platte Valley Sr. Oklahoma
13. Xavier Crossland SF 6' 9" 220 Lowell (OR) Vanderbilt
14. Gregory Chiu SG 6' 2" 175 Salt Lake City (UT) East ZONA, UTAH, UK
15. Chris Driver PF 6' 9" 213 Warrensburg (MO) Oklahoma
16. Steve Carlin SF 6' 8" 245 Paonia (CO) Arizona
17. Ted Johnson PF 6' 8" 257 Tucson (AZ) Sahuaro Stanford
18. Russell Balzer PF 6' 8" 237 Washington (LA) North Central Cincinnati
19. William Turner SF 6' 7" 240 Elba (AL) Michigan State
20. Buford Sink PF 6' 9" 246 Desert Hot Springs (CA) USC
21. Charles Moreland SF 6' 6" 230 Ocala, FL (JuCo) Duke
22.!!Joe Kile PF 6'11" 293 Buffalo (NY) Kensington MSU*, PURD*, ILL
23. Jason Boland SG 6' 3" 184 Stoneboro (PA) Lakeview Georgia
24. Gregory Frey C 6'11" 234 Selden, NY (JuCo) Notre Dame
25. Emmanuel Frost PG 5' 8" 164 Clayton (NM) OK ST, KU, UK
26. Matthew McLaren SF 6' 6" 229 Baltimore (MD) Dundalk PURD*, NOVA, ND
27. Shannon Murillo SG 6' 4" 185 Colorado Springs (CO) Widefield Texas
28. Julian Drummond PG 6' 0" 172 El Paso (IL) Cincinnati
29. Charles Willard SG 6' 3" 197 Gig Harbor (WA) Peninsula Oregon
30. Daniel Roderick SF 6' 7" 222 Grandview (TX) Oklahoma
31. Dudley Ramsey SG 6' 4" 210 Bunker Hill (IL) UK, XU*, TEXAS
32. Denny Phan C 6' 9" 223 Glenn Falls (NY) Indiana
33. Richard Jefferson PG 6' 1" 192 Weare (NH) John Stark Temple
34. Martin Magnuson PG 6' 3" 187 Hagerman (NM) Iowa State
35. Eddie Willis PF 6' 9" 210 Pittsfield (IL) UGA*, OSU, ND
36.!!Stewart Whitman PF 6' 8" 244 Chicago (IL) Bowen ILL, MSU, UCLA
37. Dallas Baumgartner PF 6'11" 229 Lake Charles (LA) Sam Houston Alabama
38. Frank Dixon SG 6' 2" 172 New Brockton, AL (JuCo) North Carolina
39. Eric Brewton SG 6' 3" 189 Bristol (VA) Virginia Illinois
40. Robert Schweitzer SF 6' 7" 213 Ottawa Township (IL) Wisconsin
41. Rafa Lopez SG 6' 2" 182 Donostia-San Sebastian (Spain) TEXAS, UK, ISU
42. Charles Melancon PG 6' 1" 177 Newburgh (IN) Castle Duke
43. Adrian Frasier PG 6' 1" 177 Wayland (IA) Waco Oklahoma State
44. Josh Crocker SG 6' 3" 179 Annandale (VA) UCONN*, DUKE, SYR
45.!!Elwood Montes PG 6' 0" 179 Barker (NY) UK, GTOWN, IN ST
46. Steffen Haeussel PG 6' 0" 185 Heidelberg (Germany) MICH*, OHIO*, SDSU*
47. Don Harris PF 6' 9" 243 St. Cloud (FL) Florida
48. Normand Cannon PF 6' 9" 242 Woodland (CA) Senior Wyoming
49. Aron Stovall SG 6' 4" 193 Tyrone (GA) Sandy Creek WVU*, ARK*, WICH*
50. Clifton Hammond PG 6' 3" 188 Medford, WI (JuCo) Nebraska
51. Tyree Maxwell SG 6' 1" 192 Kershaw (SC) Andrew Jackson Michigan
52. Everette Farber PG 5' 9" 165 Johnsonburg (PA) Area NOVA*, OSU*, MEM*
53.!!James Morgan C 6'11" 306 Belmont (MA) SLU, GTOWN, AR ST
54. Richard Coakley C 6' 9" 213 Stroud (OK) Houston
55. Jordan Williams PG 5' 7" 162 Sellersburg (IN) Silver Creek MISS
56. Hayden Ellison SG 6' 3" 185 Concord (CA) Ygnacio Valley KSU*, FR ST*, UTEP*
57. Erwin Pierce PG 6' 1" 173 Hackensack (NJ) DePaul
58. Jimmy Brady SG 6' 4" 202 Granville (IL) Putnam County Louisiana State
59. Curt Lieberman PG 6' 0" 173 Mesa (AZ) Westwood PEPP*, ASU*, UTAH
60. John Monzon C 7' 0" 216 Mountain Home (ID) Vanderbilt
61. Claude Morgan C 6' 9" 203 llwood (PA) Belloddd Anttis WVU*, VOLS*, HOF*
62. Chris Reichel SF 6' 5" 221 New Brockton (AL) Florida
63. Paul Bouchard PG 6' 1" 174 Tishomingo (OK) Texas
64.!!Raphael Ellis PG 6' 3" 184 Jamaica (NY) August Martin HERD, GTOWN, DUKE
65. Shannon Bennett SG 6' 4" 187 Los Angeles (CA) Fremont Senior ZONA*, ASU, FR ST
66. Jorge Weber C 6' 9" 240 Bellevue (WA) WASH*, LBSU*, UCLA
67. Aubrey Lunn SF 6' 6" 214 Burlington (CO) WISC, TCU*, UTSA*
68. Willard Perrin SF 6' 5" 198 Washington (DC) Ballou NOVA*, BRAD*, TN TC*
69. Quinton Williams PG 6' 3" 219 Panama (OK) Indiana State
70. Kendrick Addison C 6'11" 208 Hattiesburg (MS) Oak Grove Michigan
71. Henry Lewis SG 6' 3" 194 Westville (IN) Wisconsin
72. Damon Kimbro SG 6' 1" 186 Washington (DC) Banneker USF*, HOF*, TULN*
73. Wes Edington SF 6' 7" 227 Santa Clara (CA) Wilcox USC*, OHIO*, BGSU*
74. Andrew Pickard SF 6' 6" 251 Point-Lebel (Canada) ZONA, BGSU, TAMU
75. James Lopez C 6'10" 215 Henderson (TN) Chester County GTOWN, NIOWA*, XU*
76.!!Joshua Lopez C 6' 9" 257 Berne (IN) South Adams BALL, FORD, CINCY
77. James Watanabe SF 6' 7" 229 Beaumont (CA) Senior Baylor
78. Albert Williams PG 6' 2" 190 Dos Palos, CA (JuCo) Utah State
79. Robert Alverson PF 6' 9" 212 Wilmington (DE) Concord NCSU*, SJU*, LSU
80. Casey Wallace SG 6' 4" 189 Elk Grove Village (IL) UK, WRGHT*, SYR
81. Robert Salley PF 6' 9" 231 Rochester (NY) Gates-Chili GTOWN, TCU*, BONA
82. Charles Cofield SG 6' 5" 186 Seward (AK) OR ST, UMD, KU
83.!!Mitchell Templin PG 6' 0" 179 Cromwell (CT) UK, S CAR, FORD
84.!!Eric Cofer PG 6' 3" 182 Dalton (GA) UK, IN ST, ILL
85. Christ. Wendling SG 6' 5" 189 Aledo (IL) ISU*, VALPO*, WISC
86. Matthew Harper PF 6' 9" 255 Gray (NH) Gray-New Gloucester South Alabama
87. Phillip Carvajal PF 6' 6" 205 Bryan (OH) GTOWN, MINN, TCU
88. Cedrick Echeverria PG 6' 3" 197 Arcola (IL) SW Missouri State
89. Michael Murray SG 6' 3" 181 Waldeck (Canada) SIU, NMSU, OK ST
90. Robert Casto SG 6' 3" 198 Mendham (NJ) W. Morris Mendham LASAL*, CCSU*, SHU*
91. Robert Harrod PG 6' 0" 178 Sebring (FL) AUB, S CAR, USF
92. Edgar Swart PF 6'10" 208 Louisville, KY (JuCo) Syracuse
93. Cesar Steck PF 6' 9" 223 Panama (NY) Memphis
94. John Moreno PF 6' 8" 222 Morocco (IN) North Newton Butler
95. Irvin McGlynn SF 6' 7" 221 Salida (CO) CREI*, WASH*, HERD*
96. Bernard O'Rourke C 6'10" 217 Belmont (NH) Villanova
97. Stuart Rusch C 6'11" 258 Norwood, OH (JuCo) Pennsylvania
98.!!Dwain Chouinard PG 6' 0" 185 Starke (FL) Bradford S CAR, HERD, UK
99. Scott Cervantes SG 6' 3" 174 Middletown (DE) Southern Illinois
100.!Wilburn Brown C 6'11" 231 Cedar Grove (NJ) FORD, UNC, GTOWN

!!--player not academically eligible yet

[Wolfpack]

From the Nacogdoches, Texas Daily Herald, November 2 2003

2003-04 'JACKS DEBUT WITH PURPLE-WHITE EXHIBITION

Nacogdoches--Stephen F. Austin kicked off the 2003-04 men's basketball season Saturday with a "Meet the Team" session, followed by an entertaining split-squad exhibition at William R. Johnson Coliseum. "Our guys were eager to get some real play in with real officials and real plays," said new Lumberjack head coach Charles Nevarez. "It's been a few weeks since we started with Midnight Mardi Gras and guys are wanting to do more than just drills and scrimmages. They want the season to start."

In the exhibition, the Purple Team, lead by 21 points from point guard Stanford Symons and 20 points by Herbert Mair, defeated the White Team 80-76, even though the White team had more projected starters on its side. Power forward Kyle Linderman was given game honors for scoring 17 points, pulling down 14 boards, and even dishing six assists, though all were in a losing effort.

The exhibition was a high-scoring affair mainly because Nevarez instructed both teams to play a loose zone so the players wouldn't wear out or foul out with short benches to work with.

The White Team surged to an early 8-2 lead only to watch Purple come roaring back. Purple outscored White 28-9 over the following eight minutes to push out to a 30-17 lead with 8:25 left. White kept itself in the game with some timely baskets and good defense. A dunk by Rohan Webber at the 2:30 mark drew White to within 38-33, but Purple pushed the lead to 47-37 by halftime.

White chopped the lead in half by scoring the first five points of the second period, but Purple didn't buckle and resolutely pushed the lead to 54-42 on a Brad Williams dunk with 15 minutes left. The game would fluctuate in this way for much of the second half, with White pecking at the lead, but never really drawing close, while Purple could not put the game away.

A David Thurman basket with 6:38 left left Purple up 69-60, but from that point, White would make it a serious contest to the end. Center David Giddens hit a basket in close, followed by a Rohan Webber jumper, and then Linderman stuffed a missed shot and suddenly it was 69-66 with 4:58 to go. Purple would fight back, getting the lead to 73-67, but White hit two more baskets, the last by Elton Garver to make it 73-71 with 2:08 left. Purple called time-out to regroup. On the next possession coming out of the time out, Purple point guard Symons attacked the basket and kicked out to Thurman, who was open beyond the arc. Thurman calmly drained the three and that seemed to take the heart out of White. A White turnover lead to a Symons basket and a steal by Purple lead to a Williams lay-up and the lead ballooned to 80-71. Purple did get sloppy against a pressing, fouling defense at the end, committing a couple of turnovers, but there wasn't enough time to make a comeback on White's part.


Purple 80, White 76

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Purple Stats:
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
David Thurman SF 40 5-7 0-0 1 8 6 4 12
Sanford Symons PG 40 9-18 0-0 1 2 4 3 21
Bradley Williams PF 40 6-8 2-2 0 3 1 2 15
Herbert Mair SG 40 10-18 0-0 2 7 5 2 20
Henry Gooch C 40 6-8 0-0 0 4 4 4 12

Turnovers: 18 (D.Thurman 1, S.Symons 6, B.Williams 2,
H.Mair 7, H.Gooch 2)
Blocked Shots: 1 (H.Gooch 1)
Steals: 12 (S.Symons 4, B.Williams 3, H.Mair 3, H.Gooch
2)
3P FGs: 6-14 (D.Thurman 2-4, S.Symons 3-6, B.Williams
1-2, H.Mair 0-2)

White Stats:
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
David Giddens C 40 8-11 0-0 6 12 4 1 16
Kyle Linderman PF 40 8-15 1-2 8 14 6 4 17
Elton Garver SG 40 7-13 0-0 2 7 1 0 18
Rohan Webber SF 40 7-14 0-0 1 2 2 4 16
Cordell Enos PG 40 3-15 3-6 1 2 6 2 9

Turnovers: 19 (D.Giddens 2, E.Garver 5, R.Webber 4,
C.Enos 8)
Blocked Shots: 0
Steals: 9 (K.Linderman 2, E.Garver 1, R.Webber 4,
C.Enos 2)
3P FGs: 6-16 (E.Garver 4-8, R.Webber 2-3, C.Enos 0-5)

Player of Game: PF Kyle Linderman (PURPL)

[Wolfpack]

From ESPN.com, November 2, 2003

ORANGEMEN PICK UP WHERE THEY LEFT OFF

(AP)

New York, NY--Defending national champion Syracuse swept all first-place votes in the first men's basketball poll released by the Associated Press Sunday. A strong core of returning players was enough to keep them ahead of everyone else. Syracuse will open the season with a challenge, though, taking on #8 Kentucky.

Duke, which was eliminated fairly early in last year's tournament, has been pegged the #2 team, while surprising Indiana came out of nowhere to land in the #3 slot.

Rounding out the top 5 are a pair of Oklahoma teams, Oklahoma State and, not Oklahoma, but Tulsa. The #5 ranking is the highest in the school's history. The last time the Golden Hurricane were ranked so highly was the week of February 16, 1982, where they were ranked sixth.

Cincinnati is sixth, followed by Oklahoma, Kentucky, Maryland, and Illinois to complete the Top 10.

Kansas heads the second ten at number eleven and Michigan State is twelfth. Three Pac-10 schools, Stanford, UCLA, and Arizona are stacked together behind them. Arkansas is sixteenth. Big 12 rivals Iowa State and Texas are 17th and 18th respectively, while SEC rivals Georgia and Florida are in the last two slots of the Top 20.

The final five slots in the preseason poll go to Missouri, Alabama, Temple, Ohio State, and St. John's.

The 2003-04 NCAA men's basketball season officially begins with the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at Madison Square Garden in New York on November 13. #2 Duke will take on #16 Arkansas in the opener, while #7 Oklahoma will play Connecticut in the nightcap.


Top 25 Poll

# School FPV Record Points Previous
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Syracuse (72) 0-0 1800 NR
2. Duke 0-0 1723 NR
3. Indiana 0-0 1656 NR
4. Oklahoma State 0-0 1587 NR
5. Tulsa 0-0 1490 NR
6. Cincinnati 0-0 1453 NR
7. Oklahoma 0-0 1350 NR
8. Kentucky 0-0 1307 NR
9. Maryland 0-0 1223 NR
10. Illinois 0-0 1149 NR
11. Kansas 0-0 1072 NR
12. Michigan State 0-0 997 NR
13. Stanford 0-0 975 NR
14. Arizona 0-0 854 NR
15. UCLA 0-0 789 NR
16. Arkansas 0-0 685 NR
17. Iowa State 0-0 638 NR
18. Texas 0-0 561 NR
19. Georgia 0-0 511 NR
20. Florida 0-0 484 NR
21. Missouri 0-0 342 NR
22. Alabama 0-0 206 NR
23. Temple 0-0 148 NR
24. Ohio State 0-0 145 NR
25. Saint John's 0-0 92 NR

Others Receiving Votes:
Creighton 0-0 53
Utah State 0-0 39
Iowa 0-0 35
Mississippi State 0-0 18
Boston College 0-0 17
Notre Dame 0-0 1

[Wolfpack]

Stephen F. Austin 2003-04 Men's Basketball Roster

Point Guard

Sanford Symons So 6' 2" 207 Wichita Falls (TX) Rider
Cordell Enos So 6' 3" 192 Wyoming (MI) Lee
Ismael Dillard Fr& 6' 2" 195 Paradise (TX)

Symons and Enos are very close in skill to one another. Symons is the better scorer, while Enos is the better handler and defender. Symons gets the nod as he has been more impressive to us in exhibition play. However, Enos is very capable of stepping into the starting role if Symons struggles. Dillard is not nearly as talented as the other two and is going to red-shirt this year.

Shooting Guards

Elton Garver Sr* 6' 3" 204 White Settlement (TX) Brewer
Rohan Webber Jr* 6' 8" 229 Brisbane, Australia
Coleman Jaco So* 6' 7" 202 Schertz (TX) Samuel Clemens

Another close positional battle as Garver and Webber are both among the best players on the team, let alone at shooting guard. Both are very capable scorers, with Webber being slightly better, while Garver is the better defender. Garver had a great camp which allowed him to nose ahead of Webber. Webber is definitely a sixth man, though as he has the second-best ball-handling skills on the team, making him suitable to run point if needed and also his 6'8" size means he could also switch to small forward.

Small Forward

David Thurman Jr 6'10" 243 Tyler (TX) Chapel Hill
Herbert Mair Sr* 6'11" 248 Kingwood (TX)
Chris White Fr* 6' 7" 224 San Antonio (TX) Virginia Allred Stacey

We have size in spades. When your starting small forward is 6'10" and his backup is 6'11", size is not an issue. Thurman had an outstanding camp and leaped over Mair, who was projected as the starter going in. Thurman is the better scorer, ball-handler, and defender, but Mair is much better on the glass. Chris White is just going to have to wait another year for any chance to play, especially as Webber can shift over from shooting guard.

Power Forward

Kyle Linderman Sr 6'10" 231 Portland (TX) Gregory-Portland
Bradley Williams So* 6' 9" 233 Seagoville (TX)
Pedro Rodrigue Fr$ 6' 6" 226 Hitchcock (TX)

Linderman and Williams are another pair of players that give solid depth. Williams is a better overall talent and can run a marathon without a care, but Linderman has better skills for the position. Linderman is better at scoring, rebounding, and blocking shots, but Williams's ability to go hard for all forty minutes enables him to be a tougher defender. Rodrigue is a walk-on that is clearly roster filler. He'll red-shirt the year and may or may not be here next year.

Center

David Giddens Sr* 6'11" 276 Celina (TX)
Henry Gooch Jr* 6'11" 272 Rowlett (TX)
John Williams Jr$ 6'10" 251 Kemp (TX)

If a senior leader can be found on the team, it's probably David Giddens. He's also the only player who doesn't really have a challenger at his position for playing time. He is a vastly superior rebounder to the other two centers and is the best on the team at it (only Linderman can claim to be in the same ZIP code). He is also the most offensively adept center of the group. Gooch does handle the ball better and is a little better at defense, but his other categories are too deficient to merit starting consideration. Williams is a walk-on, but is not necessarily roster filler. He does have some skill to work with and can be called upon if needed, but probably only gets serious PT if injury or foul trouble hits the team.

[Wolfpack]

Finally, at long last, I'm getting to the games...

November 13, 2003

Schedule
No game, next game November 21 vs. Birmingham Southern (0-0)

Top 25 Headline
(from the Raleigh News & Observer)

DUKE PLAYS THE GARDEN

New York--If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere, so the Sinatra song goes. Defending Atlantic Coast Conference champion Duke certainly hopes so. The Blue Devils, ranked second in the preseason AP poll, start the 2003-04 men's basketball season tonight with a game against #16 Arkansas at Madison Square Garden as one part of a double-header that makes up the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic (7 PM, ESPN). The nightcap game features #7 Oklahoma taking on local favorite Connecticut.

"We didn't finish out last year as we would have liked," said Duke coach Chris Smith, referring to Duke's early exit from the NCAA tournament last March. "It's a tough pair of games to open the year with, but we feel it will strengthen us come March."

Top 25 Schedule
#16 Arkansas vs. #2 Duke at New York, NY (Coaches vs. Cancer Classic)
Connecticut vs. #7 Oklahoma at New York, NY (Coaches vs. Cancer Classic)

Southland Conference Schedule
No games tonight

[Wolfpack]

If anyone wants me to track how their favorite team is doing (I'll list it under an "Other Scores of Note" section or something like that), let me know.

[C-Bailey]

If it's not too much trouble i'd like you to follow Hampton University for me just for the simple fact that it is my almer mater. Thanks.

[Wolfpack]

You're the only signup thus far, so I'm pretty sure I can squeeze Hampton in right now. :)

[Wolfpack]

November 14, 2003

Schedule
No game today, next game November 21 vs. Birmingham Southern (0-0)

Top 25 Headline
(from the Winston-Salem Journal)

DUKE DUMPS RAZORBACKS IN OPENER

NEW YORK--"Gritty."

That's how Duke head coach Chris Smith described his team's effort in the opening game of the 2003 Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at Madison Square Garden. That effort earned the second-ranked Devils a 76-71 victory over sixteenth-ranked Arkansas. Duke plays again tonight, where an even sterner test is expected as they play #7 Oklahoma, 95-79 winners over Connecticut in the second game of last night's double-header.

Duke was paced by sensational shooting from point guard James Fraley, who connected on 4 of 7 three point attempts and ended up with 22 points. Shaun Laughlin added 21 off the bench. Except for center David Lee (11), no other Duke player scored in double-figures. Duke needed every point to get by Arkansas, which was led by a strong performance from forward Frank Gatling, who put up 24 points to lead all scorers.


Duke 76, Arkansas 71

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Arkansas (0-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Aurel Schmelz C 24 4-6 2-4 4 9 0 1 10
Gordon Cooper PF 29 0-6 3-4 2 6 2 0 3
Frank Gatling SF 29 9-17 2-2 1 4 3 2 24
Wade Wheeler SG 32 2-9 3-4 0 3 8 5 8
Tod Burgess PG 21 3-5 0-0 0 1 0 2 7
Rod Lozada SG 15 5-7 0-0 0 0 1 0 11
Randell Mena PG 12 1-5 1-1 0 0 1 1 3
Rickey Hauser PF 19 0-1 0-0 0 3 0 0 0
Thomas Lark C 8 0-0 0-2 0 1 0 2 0
Nicolas Stcyr SF 5 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 2
Wilford Swindell SF 5 1-1 0-0 0 3 0 0 3

Turnovers: 13 (A.Schmelz 2, F.Gatling 1, W.Wheeler 4,
R.Lozada 4, R.Mena 2)
Blocked Shots: 8 (G.Cooper 4, R.Hauser 2, T.Lark 2)
Steals: 5 (W.Wheeler 2, R.Lozada 2, R.Mena 1)
3P FGs: 8-21 (F.Gatling 4-9, W.Wheeler 1-6, T.Burgess
1-1, R.Lozada 1-2, R.Mena 0-2, W.Swindell 1-1)

Duke (1-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
David Lee C 33 5-9 1-1 4 12 4 2 11
R. Littlefield PF 29 3-9 0-0 1 4 1 2 6
Kester Brock SF 16 2-3 0-0 0 1 1 1 4
Dominic Augustus SG 19 2-3 0-0 0 3 4 1 5
James Fraley PG 25 6-13 6-6 1 3 4 4 22
Shaun Laughlin SG 20 7-16 3-4 2 2 0 0 21
Gaston Haro SF 14 3-4 0-0 1 4 0 1 7
John Rodriguez SF 9 0-1 0-0 0 1 0 1 0
Brian Cottingham PG 15 0-1 0-0 0 1 2 4 0
Coy Collin C 7 0-2 0-0 2 5 0 1 0
Rex Runyon PF 5 0-0 0-0 0 2 1 1 0
Woodrow Ritz SF 7 0-2 0-0 1 2 0 0 0

Turnovers: 16 (D.Lee 4, R.Littlefield 1, K.Brock 2,
D.Augustus 1, J.Fraley 3, S.Laughlin 2, B.Cottingham 3)
Blocked Shots: 2 (R.Littlefield 2)
Steals: 7 (D.Lee 1, K.Brock 2, S.Laughlin 1, G.Haro 2,
C.Collin 1)
3P FGs: 10-27 (R.Littlefield 0-2, K.Brock 0-1,
D.Augustus 1-2, J.Fraley 4-7, S.Laughlin 4-10, G.Haro
1-1, J.Rodriguez 0-1, C.Collin 0-1, W.Ritz 0-2)

Player of Game: PG James Fraley (DUKE)

Game Summary:

Game Stats ARK DUKE
FGM-FGA 26-58 28-63
FG% .448 .444
FTM-FTA 11-17 10-11
FT% .647 .909
3PM-3PA 8-21 10-27
3P% .381 .370
Rebounds 30 40
Assists 15 17
Steals 5 7
Blocks 8 2
Turnovers 13 16
Team Fouls 13 18

Score Snapshots ARK DUKE
15:00 1st Score 7 7
10:00 1st Score 12 13
05:00 1st Score 20 24
Halftime Score 33 34
15:00 2nd Score 43 49
10:00 2nd Score 53 57
05:00 2nd Score 60 63
Final Score 71 76


Top 25 Results
#2 Duke 76, #16 Arkansas 71
James Fraley scores 22 and Shaun Laughlin adds 21 to lead Devils past Arkansas
#7 Oklahoma 95, Connecticut 79
Sooner guard Alden Gravely is unstoppable, pouring in 34 as Oklahoma overcomes an initial 21-7 deficit and blows open a game they lead only 69-67 with 8:53 left. Ollie Hafer scored 29 for UConn in the losing effort.

Top 25 Schedule
Connecticut (0-1) vs. #16 Arkansas (0-1) at New York, NY (Coaches vs. Cancer Classic)
#7 Oklahoma (1-0) vs. #2 Duke (1-0) at New York, NY (Coaches vs. Cancer Classic)

Southland Conference Schedule
No games today

Other Games of Interest Today
No games today

[Wolfpack]

November 15, 2003

Schedule
No game tonight, next game is November 21 vs. Birmingham Southern (0-0)

Top 25 News
(from the Oklahoma City Oklahoman)

SOONERS RUN OUT OF STEAM

NEW YORK--Second-ranked Duke used an 18-8 run over the last 8:21 to turn a 57-53 deficit into a 75-69 victory over Oklahoma in the final of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at Madison Square Garden. "We just seemed to run out of steam there at the end," said Oklahoma coach Frank McKellar.

The Sooners nearly prevailed despite only 2 points from Alden Gravely, who torched Connecticut last night for 34 points. Center Keith Kell led the Sooners with 17 points, while Ryan Huerta gathered in 13 rebounds. But, it wasn't enough to overcome Duke guard James Fraley, who put up more than 20 points for the second night in a row, tallying 21, and some very cold shooting by Oklahoma, who finished 22-of-61 (36.1%) from the floor.


Duke 71, Oklahoma 65

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oklahoma (1-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Keith Kell C 24 6-9 5-8 1 6 1 3 17
Ryan Huerta PF 33 1-3 2-2 4 13 2 1 4
Elden Pinero SF 33 4-13 0-0 2 8 2 2 10
Alden Gravely SG 30 1-16 0-0 0 3 2 1 2
James Amador PG 24 4-6 4-5 1 3 4 0 15
Wilbur Childs PG 25 2-6 0-1 0 4 4 3 6
Alexander Reed C 4 2-3 0-0 2 5 0 0 4
Joshua Raynor C 11 0-1 2-2 1 2 0 0 2
Zachary Smith PF 7 1-1 1-1 0 0 0 0 3
Brian Ballard SF 2 1-1 0-0 0 2 0 2 2
Jorge Bowers C 5 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 17 (K.Kell 2, R.Huerta 1, E.Pinero 3,
A.Gravely 2, J.Amador 4, W.Childs 2, J.Raynor 2,
Z.Smith 1)
Blocked Shots: 9 (R.Huerta 5, E.Pinero 2, J.Raynor 2)
Steals: 6 (R.Huerta 1, E.Pinero 2, A.Gravely 3)
3P FGs: 7-22 (E.Pinero 2-7, A.Gravely 0-6, J.Amador
3-5, W.Childs 2-4)

Duke (2-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
David Lee C 6 0-0 0-0 0 4 1 1 0
R. Littlefield PF 29 3-9 2-3 1 4 3 3 8
Kester Brock SF 16 2-3 0-0 1 4 0 1 4
Dominic Augustus SG 19 2-5 3-4 1 3 3 0 9
James Fraley PG 29 9-21 1-1 0 3 6 1 21
Shaun Laughlin SG 21 5-14 0-1 1 2 0 2 12
Gaston Haro C 18 2-4 0-0 1 7 3 3 4
John Rodriguez SF 13 2-3 0-0 0 3 0 1 5
Brian Cottingham PG 11 1-3 0-0 0 1 2 1 3
Coy Collin C 18 0-3 0-0 2 4 1 4 0
Rex Runyon PF 7 1-2 0-0 0 2 1 1 3
Woodrow Ritz SF 11 1-2 0-0 1 2 0 0 2
Mark Shaw C 3 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0

Turnovers: 11 (R.Littlefield 2, K.Brock 1, J.Fraley 3,
S.Laughlin 2, C.Collin 2, W.Ritz 1)
Blocked Shots: 2 (R.Littlefield 1, K.Brock 1)
Steals: 13 (K.Brock 1, D.Augustus 2, J.Fraley 4,
S.Laughlin 2, B.Cottingham 2, C.Collin 2)
3P FGs: 9-24 (D.Augustus 2-4, J.Fraley 2-5, S.Laughlin
2-8, J.Rodriguez 1-2, B.Cottingham 1-2, C.Collin 0-1,
R.Runyon 1-2)

Player of Game: PG James Fraley (DUKE)

Game Summary:

Game Stats OU DUKE
FGM-FGA 22-61 28-69
FG% .361 .406
FTM-FTA 14-19 6-9
FT% .737 .667
3PM-3PA 7-22 9-24
3P% .318 .375
Rebounds 46 39
Assists 15 20
Steals 6 13
Blocks 9 2
Turnovers 17 11
Team Fouls 12 19

Score Snapshots OU DUKE
15:00 1st Score 5 9
10:00 1st Score 12 13
05:00 1st Score 18 16
Halftime Score 25 23
15:00 2nd Score 37 38
10:00 2nd Score 52 47
05:00 2nd Score 60 61
Final Score 65 71


Top 25 Results
Connecticut 78, #16 Arkansas 68
Ollie Hafer turns in a second stellar performance in as many nights, scoring 33 as the Huskies hand Arkansas their second loss to start the year.
#2 Duke 71, #7 Oklahoma 65
James Fraley scores over 20 for the second night in a row, putting up 21 as Duke outscores the Sooners 18-8 over the final 8:21 to win the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic championship.

Top 25 Schedule
No games today

Southland Conference Schedule
No games today

Other Games of Interest on the Schedule
No games today

[Wolfpack]

November 16, 2003

Schedule
No game today, next game is November 21 vs. Birmingham Southern (0-0)

Top 25 News
(From the Syracuse Post-Standard)

CHAMPS HOST 'CATS

SYRACUSE--The atmosphere at the Carrier Dome figures to be electrifying, scintillating, and every other "-ing" imaginable as the defending national champion Orangemen prepare to take on one of the most storied programs in college basketball, the Wildcats of Kentucky, in the season opener for both clubs. It was already a well-hyped affair when the game was scheduled, became even more so with Syracuse winning the national title, and reached absurd proportions whent the preseason AP poll was announced. In that poll, Syracuse was ranked #1 and claimed all 72 first place votes, while Kentucky was ranked eigth.

"The calendar may say 'November 16,' but it seems like March already," said Syracuse head coach Harold Amundson. "What a way to start the year."

Top 25 Schedule
#8 Kentucky (0-0) at #1 Syracuse (0-0)
#6 Cincinnati (0-0) at Wright State (0-0)
Creighton (0-0) at #11 Kansas (0-0)
#20 Florida (0-0) at #14 Arizona (0-0)
#21 Missouri (0-0) at North Carolina (0-0)
Cleveland State (0-0) at #23 Temple (0-0)
Troy State (0-0) at #24 Ohio State (0-0)

Southland Conference Schedule
Centenary (0-0) at Southeast Louisiana (0-0)
Sam Houston State (0-0) at Southern Methodist (0-0)
UT-San Antonio (0-0) at Albany (0-0)

Other Games of Interest
Hampton (0-0) at Pittsburgh (0-0)

[Wolfpack]

November 17, 2003

Schedule
No game today, next game is November 21 vs. Birmingham Southern (0-0)

Top 25 News
(From the Lexington Herald-Leader)

CATS SQUEEZE BY THE ORANGE

SYRACUSE--Kentucky guard Joe Catlin drained a three-pointer from the right wing with 0:49 left in the game to break a 94-94 tie and lift the visiting Wildcats to victory Sunday at the Carrier Dome.

It is rare to have such a clash of titans for the first game of the year. It is rarer still for any early clash to produce one of the best games of the year. Yet, that is what happened as the Wildcats and Orangement dueled in a game of superb offensive basketball. Kentucky connected on 50% of their shots while Syracuse did even better, making 54.5% from the field. However, when the dust settled, the Wildcats had silenced the raucous Syracuse crowd and walked off the court winners.

"What a game," said UK coach Jonah Pittman. "It sounds cliche to say that it was unfortunate that someone had to lose, but, well, it is unfortunate. Every kid out their busted their tails off for forty minutes. We were just fortunate to win this."

Kentucky rode the strong play of their backcourt, as Abram Maggard lead all scorers with 28 points, and guards Jeremy Velarde and Joe Catlin combined for 34 points. It was just enough to overcome stellar efforts by the Syracuse backcourt of Thomas Croy and Maurice Davis, who tallied 25 and 21 points, respectively.


Kentucky 98, Syracuse 94

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kentucky (1-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Tony Johnson C 19 1-2 0-0 0 3 2 2 2
A. Killingsworth PF 34 4-7 0-0 2 10 1 2 9
Abram Maggard SF 35 8-16 10-13 0 2 6 3 28
Jeremy Velarde SG 30 6-11 2-2 0 1 9 4 18
Joe Catlin PG 32 5-13 3-4 1 4 2 1 16
Timothy Grigsby PF 2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
Don Ranson C 10 2-4 2-2 0 4 0 0 6
Körbl Kaufmann SG 5 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0
Miles Henderson C 10 2-3 2-2 1 1 0 2 6
Jame Cloud SF 8 1-2 0-1 1 1 1 1 2
Wes Rankins PG 5 1-1 4-4 0 0 1 1 6
Charles Jimenez SG 5 1-3 1-2 0 1 0 1 4
Wyatt Seale PF 4 0-0 1-2 0 0 0 2 1

Turnovers: 11 (A.Killingsworth 1, A.Maggard 1,
J.Velarde 3, J.Catlin 3, M.Henderson 1, J.Cloud 1,
W.Seale 1)
Blocked Shots: 5 (T.Johnson 1, A.Maggard 3, D.Ranson 1)
Steals: 10 (A.Maggard 3, J.Velarde 4, K.Kaufmann 1,
M.Henderson 1, W.Rankins 1)
3P FGs: 11-21 (A.Killingsworth 1-1, A.Maggard 2-4,
J.Velarde 4-5, J.Catlin 3-7, J.Cloud 0-1, C.Jimenez
1-3)

Syracuse (0-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Dillon Lheureux C 20 1-2 4-4 1 5 1 4 6
Benito Garcia PF 34 7-11 2-5 3 11 6 2 16
Larry Dawkins SF 28 4-9 1-1 1 5 4 4 9
Thomas Croy SG 35 9-16 4-4 2 8 4 2 25
Maurice Davis PG 35 9-14 0-0 1 3 9 5 21
Woodrow Sherrod SF 13 1-2 0-0 1 3 3 2 2
David Fetter SG 5 0-0 0-0 0 1 0 0 0
Brian Heald PG 5 2-3 2-2 0 0 0 0 6
William Gaylor C 20 3-8 3-4 0 4 0 4 9
Paul Reid SF 4 0-1 0-0 2 3 0 3 0

Turnovers: 15 (D.Lheureux 2, B.Garcia 1, L.Dawkins 3,
T.Croy 1, M.Davis 4, W.Gaylor 3, P.Reid 1)
Blocked Shots: 5 (D.Lheureux 1, L.Dawkins 3, P.Reid 1)
Steals: 10 (D.Lheureux 1, L.Dawkins 2, T.Croy 3,
M.Davis 1, W.Sherrod 1, B.Heald 1, P.Reid 1)
3P FGs: 6-19 (L.Dawkins 0-5, T.Croy 3-6, M.Davis 3-6,
W.Sherrod 0-1, B.Heald 0-1)

Player of Game: SF Abram Maggard (UK)

Game Summary:

Game Stats UK SYR
FGM-FGA 31-62 36-66
FG% .500 .545
FTM-FTA 25-32 16-20
FT% .781 .800
3PM-3PA 11-21 6-19
3P% .524 .316
Rebounds 27 43
Assists 22 27
Steals 10 10
Blocks 5 5
Turnovers 11 15
Team Fouls 20 26

Score Snapshots UK SYR
15:00 1st Score 14 13
10:00 1st Score 23 20
05:00 1st Score 33 37
Halftime Score 50 47
15:00 2nd Score 60 63
10:00 2nd Score 75 72
05:00 2nd Score 87 85
Final Score 98 94


Top 25 Results
#8 Kentucky 98, #1 Syracuse 94
Joe Catlin hits the go-ahead three-pointer with :49 left to lift Kentucky over Syracuse at the Carrier Dome. Abram Maggard of Kentucky led all scorers with 28, outdueling Syracuse's Thomas Croy, who scored 25.
#6 Cincinnati 96, Wright State 75
Douglas Pinkney and Marion Menjivar each scored 20 as the Bearcats overcame a somewhat sloppy performance at the start of the second half to cruise to the win. Wright State had drawn to within 59-55, but a 14-2 run by the Bearcats after that sealed the game.
#11 Kansas 75, Creighton 68
Creighton guard Ira Lindstrom scored 26 but it wasn't enough as the Jayhawks fended off Creighton in Lawrence. Kansas center Christian Kennedy led the Jayhawks with 19.
#14 Arizona 66, #20 Florida 56
The Wildcats win the season opener for both teams, a tight, low-scoring affair that saw Arizona pull away late after Florida closed to 50-47 with nine minutes left. James Damon led the Wildcats with 14 points and Pierre Palmer scored 18 to lead all scorers in a losing effort for Florida.
#21 Missouri 97, North Carolina 81
Charles Pollock's return to his alma mater is a rough one as #21 Missouri comes into the Dean Smith Center and downs the Tar Heels. Mizzou guard William Jablonski goes for 22 points, including 10-10 from the free throw line. Jeremiah Braddock and Vaughn Halter put up 18 each for the Tigers. Carolina is lead by forward Mike Dunn's double-double of 19 points and 10 boards, but not even all five starters scoring in double-figures is enough to win.
#23 Temple 81, Cleveland State 55
Owl guard Robin St. Louis scores 18 points on 7-10 shooting to lead Temple in a rout of the visiting Vikings. Temple scored the game's first 13 points and lead 22-2 at one point and cruised to the win.
Troy State 65, #24 Ohio State 63
Darrick Jensen sank a 15-foot jumper from the left wing as time expired and Troy State shocked #24 Ohio State at Value City Arena. Daniel Kimura of Troy State lead all scorers with 25, while Cletus Miller scored 20 to lead the Buckeyes.

AP Top 25 for Week of November 17-23, 2003
(from ESPN.com)

DUKE ASCENDS TO THE TOP SPOT

(AP)

NEW YORK--Duke's two victories at the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic combined with Syracuse's loss at home to Kentucky yesterday moved the Blue Devils to the top of the newly announced AP poll. Duke picked up 62 of the 72 available first place votes. Syracuse managed to retain the other 10 first place votes. In spite of this, the Orangemen slid back to number three in this week's poll.

Sandwiched in between at number two is Cincinnati. The Bearcats started their season yesterday with a fairly easy victory over Wright State.

Indiana dropped a notch to fourth. The Hoosiers will start their season at home Wednesday against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Kentucky rounds out the top 5 by jumping from eighth to fifth after yesterday's win against Syracuse.

Oklahoma State and Tulsa each dropped back two places to sixth and seventh, respectively, though neither has played yet. Kansas stepped up three places to eighth, Maryland remains in ninth, and Oklahoma fell to tenth after splitting its two games in New York.

Illinois dropped one place to eleventh, while Arizona moved up two places to twelfth after beating Florida at home Sunday. Michigan State and Stanford also fell back a place each, and UCLA remains fifteenth.

Interestingly, Iowa State is one of only two teams that didn't play a game, yet went up a spot. In their case they moved up to sixteenth. Missouri's defeat of North Carolina in Chapel Hill netted them a four-spot gain to seventeenth. Texas and Georgia maintained their spots at eighteen and nineteen. Temple moved up three places to complete the second ten after crushing Cleveland State.

The bottom five begins with Alabama, which like Iowa State didn't play, but moved up one place, followed by three newcomers to the polls. Notre Dame comes in at twenty-second after eeking out a tough 80-78 win against Detroit-Mercy at home. Charlotte is twenty-third, a result of crushing Howard 92-41, and Tennessee is the last newcomer, taking twenty-fourth after handing Georgia Tech one of its worst home losses ever, 118-74. St. John's remains unchanged in the last spot in the poll.

Arkansas, Florida, and Ohio State all dropped out of this week's poll.


Top 25 Poll

# School FPV Record Points Previous
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Duke (62) 2-0 1790 2
2. Cincinnati 1-0 1674 6
3. Syracuse (10) 0-1 1620 1
4. Indiana 0-0 1575 3
5. Kentucky 1-0 1511 8
6. Oklahoma State 0-0 1491 4
7. Tulsa 0-0 1397 5
8. Kansas 1-0 1259 11
9. Maryland 0-0 1229 9
10. Oklahoma 1-1 1118 7
11. Illinois 0-0 1070 10
12. Arizona 1-0 1057 14
13. Michigan State 0-0 945 12
14. Stanford 0-0 910 13
15. UCLA 0-0 782 15
16. Iowa State 0-0 665 17
17. Missouri 1-0 623 21
18. Texas 0-0 583 18
19. Georgia 0-0 550 19
20. Temple 1-0 452 23
21. Alabama 0-0 227 22
22. Notre Dame 1-0 192 NR
23. Charlotte 1-0 185 NR
24. Tennessee 1-0 139 NR
25. Saint John's 0-0 127 25

Others Receiving Votes:
Utah State 0-0 81
Arkansas 0-2 52
Iowa 0-0 48
Florida 0-1 20
Boston College 0-0 17
Mississippi State 0-0 8
Virginia 1-0 3


Top 25 Schedule
#1 Duke (2-0) at UNC-Greensboro (0-0)
Georgia State (0-0) at #14 Stanford (0-0)
#15 UCLA (0-0) at Boston College
Toledo (0-0) at #16 Iowa State (0-0)
Elon (0-0) at #19 Georgia (0-0)

Southland Conference Results
Centenary 59, Southeast Louisiana 50
Centenary leaders: Ken Collins-16 pts; C. Jimenez-11 rebs; Andre Meyer-3 assts
SE Louisiana leaders: Conrad Brownfield-14 pts, 12 rebs; Bart Day-5 assts
Sam Houston State 88, Southern Methodist 82
Sam Houston leaders: Alvaro Trotter-15 pts; Brian Goff-9 rebs; Alton Swanson-5 assts
SMU leaders: Onesime Moucque-15 pts, 5 assts; Floyd Chumley-12 rebs
Albany 69, UT-San Antonio 54
UTSA leaders: Steven Julius-15 pts; Robert Monge-9 rebs; Sammy Johnson-4 assts
Albany leaders: Ty Nason-15 pts, 3 assts; Freddie Delgado-11 rebs

Southland Conference Schedule
No games today

Other Scores of Interest
Pittsburgh 94, Hampton 77
Hampton leaders: Deandre Funk-27 pts; Chris Thomas-11 rebs; Marshall Burris-7 assts
Pittsburgh leaders: Neville Kingston-29 pts; Tyron Beavers-9 rebs; Isaias Probst-4 assts

Other Games of Interest on the Schedule
No games today

[Wolfpack]

November 18, 2003

Schedule
No game today, next game is November 21 vs. Birmingham Southern (0-0)

Top 25 News
(from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

PANTHERS LOSE HEARTBREAKER

PALO ALTO, CA--Cardinal forward Chris Lefebvre knocked down a three-pointer from the top of the key with 1:27 left to put Stanford ahead by a point and the Cardinal survived a last-second shot from the hot hand of Panther guard Willian Searles to take a wild 86-85 win at Maples Pavilion. The win nullified a spectacular effort by Searles, who racked up 30 points on 11-of-17 shooting, including a staggering 6-of-9 from three-point range. Peter Hager lead Stanford scorers with 22 points on 7-of-12 shooting.

"I just feel sick," said Panther coach Jeff Findlay. "We should have won this one going away. We had them. We had them, and we let them get away."

Findlay has good reason to bemoan the loss as Georgia State lead by double-digit margins for much of the game, stunning the partisan crowd at Maples into silence. The Panthers lead by as much as 14 early, and with five minutes left in the half were ahead 44-32. However, the Cardinal fought back and outscored the Panthers 16-2 to close the half to take a 48-46 lead.

Georgia State refused to collapse and even rebuilt their 12-point cushion, surging ahead 72-60 with just over ten minutes left. Again, the Cardinal rallied and wiped out the deficit over the next few minutes and tied it at 74, setting up the dramatic finish.


Stanford 86, Georgia State 85

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Georgia State (0-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Bai Feng C 22 2-5 0-0 0 1 2 1 4
David Johnson PF 19 1-1 0-0 1 5 0 2 2
Grady Plant SF 22 4-7 0-0 0 4 3 1 9
Chris Bush SG 35 5-14 0-0 0 3 1 3 13
William Searles PG 35 11-17 2-2 2 4 6 3 30
Frankie Oxford C 10 2-3 0-0 1 1 1 2 4
G. Nightingale SF 9 0-2 0-1 0 0 0 1 0
Billy Pettis PF 19 4-5 0-0 0 1 1 1 8
Gary Franco SG 10 1-2 1-1 1 1 3 2 3
Gabriel Lacey C 10 2-2 0-0 0 1 0 1 4
Marty Rooks SF 9 3-4 0-0 0 1 1 0 8

Turnovers: 17 (B.Feng 2, G.Plant 3, C.Bush 1, W.Searles
7, F.Oxford 1, G.Franco 1, G.Lacey 1, M.Rooks 1)
Blocked Shots: 3 (B.Feng 1, C.Bush 1, G.Nightingale 1)
Steals: 10 (B.Feng 1, G.Plant 2, C.Bush 3, B.Pettis 3,
M.Rooks 1)
3P FGs: 12-22 (B.Feng 0-1, G.Plant 1-2, C.Bush 3-6,
W.Searles 6-9, G.Nightingale 0-1, M.Rooks 2-3)

Stanford (1-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Gary Petersson C 28 3-4 1-3 2 8 3 2 7
Herman Stcyr PF 35 9-13 0-0 2 12 4 2 18
Chris Lefebvre SF 33 5-7 1-1 0 1 2 1 14
Peter Hager SG 35 7-12 7-10 1 3 5 1 22
Bo Scott PG 26 3-9 1-2 1 2 2 2 8
Ralph Welch PG 14 0-2 0-0 1 2 3 0 0
Broderick Fagan C 11 1-2 1-1 2 4 1 2 3
Joesph Joubert PF 5 1-2 1-2 1 1 0 0 3
Jacob Lundy SF 7 2-3 0-0 0 0 1 0 4
Brian Carson SG 5 3-4 0-0 1 1 1 1 7
Erik Greaves PF 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0

Turnovers: 19 (G.Peterson 5, H.Stcyr 4, C.Lefebvre 2,
P.Hager 1, B.Scott 3, R.Welch 1, B.Fagan 2, B.Carson 1)
Blocked Shots: 8 (G.Peterson 2, H.Stcyr 3, C.Lefebvre
1, P.Hager 1, J.Lundy 1)
Steals: 9 (H.Stcyr 1, C.Lefebvre 1, P.Hager 3, B.Scott
2, B.Fagan 1, B.Carson 1)
3P FGs: 6-17 (C.Lefebvre 3-5, P.Hager 1-5, B.Scott 1-4,
R.Welch 0-2, B.Carson 1-1)

Player of Game: SG Peter Hager (STAN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats GA ST STAN
FGM-FGA 35-62 34-58
FG% .565 .586
FTM-FTA 3-4 12-19
FT% .750 .632
3PM-3PA 12-22 6-17
3P% .545 .353
Rebounds 22 34
Assists 18 22
Steals 10 9
Blocks 3 8
Turnovers 17 19
Team Fouls 17 12

Score Snapshots GA ST STAN
15:00 1st Score 13 10
10:00 1st Score 28 14
05:00 1st Score 44 32
Halftime Score 46 48
15:00 2nd Score 60 54
10:00 2nd Score 72 60
05:00 2nd Score 78 74
Final Score 85 86


Top 25 Results
#1 Duke 93, UNC-Greensboro 80
The guard combo of Shaun Laughlin and James Fraley combined for 53 points as Duke jumped on the Spartans early and cruised to the win.
#14 Stanford 86, Georgia State 85
A Chris Lefebvre three-pointer with 1:27 lifted Stanford over an upset-minded Georgia State squad led by Willian Searle's 30 points.
#15 UCLA 96, Boston College 86
A balanced scoring effort that saw six players reach double-figures and a 25-8 run during the second half allowed UCLA to take a win at Boston College. BC's Gordon Lebrun scored 26 in the losing effort.
#16 Iowa State 78, Toledo 66
The Cyclones knocked down 10-of-22 three-pointers and forced 23 Rocket turnovers to keep Toledo at arm's reach for much of the contest and win.
#19 Georgia 73, Elon 37
Georgia used stellar defense to crush the Elon Phoenix in Athens. The Bulldogs scored the first 14 points of the game and lead at the half by a mind-boggling score of 39-5. Elon did not break double-digits until 17:36 in the second half.

Top 25 Schedule
#2 Cincinnati (1-0) at Eastern Illinois (0-0)
Florida (0-1) at #6 Oklahoma State (0-0)
#8 Kansas (1-0) at Alabama-Birmingham (0-0)
#17 Missouri (1-0) at Robert Morris (0-0)
Austin Peay (0-0) at #11 Illinois (0-0)
George Mason (0-0) at #20 Temple (1-0)

Southland Conference Schedule
Lamar (0-0) at Oral Roberts (0-0)
Arkansas-Little Rock (0-0) at Louisiana-Monroe (0-0)

Other Games of Interest on the Schedule
Charleston Southern (0-0) at Hampton (0-1)