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Checking In With Old Coaches...
Since Jack has gone through two coaches, I figured, why not see what they're up to. Was leaving the right call for their career?
Arlie Jennings
Left GW for Bucknell after 1981-82 (28-5, Elite Eight appearance)
Since: 30-42, 1-8 this season
To be fair, Jennings has no seniors on this team, and had a reclamation project from his first team. But Bucknell had the momentum of back-to-back NCAA appearances, and suddenly got the coach who coached the Golden Boy. And he has failed to do anything with it. His first two recruiting classes ranked 121st and 133rd, lower-mid tier of the ECC. He has pulled in two three-star players with it, but he's supposed to be better at this.
This year's club has played an ambitious schedule. They got blown out at Rice, and again at Cornell. They just got taken apart by Columbia. Truth is, they're getting beat by an average of 80-59 this season. And they have games at Penn (on NYE, actually), and, on January 9th, they head to GW for Jack's senior tour. Parting is such sweet sorrow.
Soon, Bucknell will be saying that to him.
Marty Reed
Went 53-4, won a national championship last season
Left For Murray State: 5-9 this season
Reed gained a lot quickly, though he is putrid at coaching defense. But his first head coaching stint couldn't have gone better. He won a national title and was known as a player's coach (though other coaches did not like him inserting Jack back into games late, after the outcome was decided...they didn't tell their kids to hurt Jack, out of respect to him. But they let Reed know it. Reed said that he was helping the younger players get some experience...nobody bought that). This year, he inherited a solid Murray State team, and has proceeded to run them into the ground. His two best players, SG Alec Shaw (8.9 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.8 apg, 1.3 spg) and SF Chris Gaffney (17.8 ppg in just 29.7 mpg) are woefully underused. Chris Freeman, a solid-enough post player, is averaging 13.9 points a game, but on just 49% shooting. Why is he taking that many shots? Sure, Shaw is shooting 38%, but he's relying on the three (28% on 71 shots). If Reed would let him drive, which is what he's best at, he'd go up quickly. Reed's already got more losses this year than he had in two at GW, and he is learning quickly that it's not all glitter and rainbows.
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