24	97i& (jots' (au&&	
When No.	1 Everybody Wants A I	*iece Of You
	Losing Coaches, Though, Need Friends, Too	
What's it mean to be ranked No. 1? Well, on the morning that Temple was elevated to that lonely and lofty position in the polls there were 100 copies of USA Today at the front door of McGonicle Gym to greet the team as it arrived for a 5:30 a.m. practice. And one day later coach John Chaney was swamped with calls from well-wishers including
Larry Donald
Cats' Pause Columnist
boxing's Sugar Ray Leonard. Asked if he knew Leonard, Chaney smiled and said, "not until now." Everyone loves the bandwagon. . .
Pro scouts give high marks to Eastern Michigan's Grant Long. They project him as a high second-round draft pick who has a good chance to play in the NBA. In a sense that would be history repeating itself since it was just a few years ago when Long's uncle John was taken in the second round by Detroit and is still in the league today. . .
By appearing in the NBA All-Star game former North Carolina All-American Brad Daugherty has finally put to rest all those accusations that he was "too soft" to make it with the play for payers. . .That Ohio State remains very much in the tournament picture at this point suggests to me that Gary Williams has done his finest coaching job ever. . .
By the way, have I mentioned that Pitt's Paul Evans should be seriously considered in Coach of the Year balloting?. . .Despite its impressive record and rush into the Top Twenty, I can't forget the awful game Kansas State played at Purdue during the Christmas holidays. Obviously it isn't fair to judge on one game, but that performance was so anemic it just won't leave my memory. . .
Villanova's Rollie Massimino calls this his most satisfying year in coaching. Bedeviled by the Gary McLain story in Sports Illustrated and a team which won only 15 of 31 games last year, Massimino has presided over a major tournaround by the Wildcats this year. 'Nova crawled into the Top Twenty in early February and seems certain of an NCAA tournament bid. . .
Lamar has emerged as the surprise early leader in the new American South Conference. Former North Carolina State assistant Tom Abatemarco's team is on course for a 20-win season behind the efforts of 6-foot-10 center James "Hully" Gully. It will be interesting to see the fate of the champion in this league and perhaps that of the runner-up. Because it is a new conference there's no automatic invite for the winner. It's hard to imagine the champion in this grouping wouldn't get one of the at-large bids, but with the squeeze of teams with legit tournament credentials an oversight is possible. . .
After a modest two-game losing streak in mid-season, Oklahoma seems to have regained
In 1987-88 Plenty Of Good Times Have Rolled Massimino's Way...
its earlier form. The Sooners are an improved defensive team, but as LSU showed, if you can control the tempo and handle their pressure coach Billy Tubbs' team can be had. Still you can't automatically eliminate OU as a Final Four possibility. . .
UNLV's Gerald Paddio had an interesting observation recently when he said the team's goal was to convince the coaching staff it was better than they thought. Usually those things work the" other way don't they?. . .Wonder if Vincent Askew, now out of basketball, has ^rty/.
regrets about his decision to depart Memphis State early for a career in the NBA? And what might have been for the Tigers had only Askew stayed around and two others, Marvin Alexander and Sylvester Gray, not become involved with an agent?
Personal history was made recently when I saw a Big Five doubleheader in Philadelphia's Palestra. Never before, in 18 years knocking around the college basketball world, had I seen a game in this venerable building. LaSalle, with talented sophomore Lionel Simmons bested St. Peter's in the opening game and then Princeton beat Penn by three in the second game. The Tigers and Quakers have a long and deep rivalry in the Ivy League, but this year Penn's retooling while coach Pete Carril's team, again, has dead aim on a
. . .So Is North Carolina Charlotte's Mentor Jeff Mullins
league title and another NCAA tournament spot.
Is this basketball comparable to the big time world of the ACC, Big Ten or SEC? No, but it is basketball in the sort of perspective which used to surround the game and that's refreshing. . .Incidentally there were a couple of recognizeable names on the rosters. Walt Fraizer (son of the ex-NBA star) plays for Penn while John Thompson (son of the Georgetown coach) is a starter for Princeton. . .
In a year where tournament unpredictability will reach new levels, a team which bears watching is North Carolina State. Coach Jim Valvano has, along with Louisville's Denny Crum, been the most successful tournament coach of the decade. He has the capacity to get his club hyped up for a short run and this time around Valvano probably has as much pure talent on the floor as he's had since 1983. We all know what happened then. . .
The race for this year's biggest bust among college players has come down to Missouri's Derrick Chievous and Wyoming's Fennis Dembo. You might keep their performances in mind the next time you read about a player who overcomes his flaky persona with sheer talent. It doesn't work that way. . .New Orleans' LaDell Eackles ought to be in that category as well. . .
He won't win the award, but yet another deserving candidate for Coach of the Year is North Carolina Charlotte's Jeff Mullins. The old Duke sharpshooter has taken this moribund program, which had fallen dramatically from the glory days of 1977's Final Four, and has put it atop the Sun Belt standings. The 49'ers, despite a good record last year were shut out of postseason play. That won't happen this March. . .
No collegian has improved his game more this season than Villanova's Tom Greis. The 7-2 sophomore has an amazing shooting touch. He's also a rarity among big men because once he receives the pass he's not often inclined to bring the basketball down below his waist where the little guys can slap at it. . .
The end is in sight for Rutgers' Craig Littiepage as another long, losing season droans on. Interestingly Marquette's Bob Dukiet is listed as a prime candidate to replace him. Dukiet, of course, is under heat in Milwaukee because the Warriors' program has slipped badly and he's shown no capacity to recruit. Rutgers, as you might have guessed, needs some players. . .
At Seton Hall, the student faculty voted 8-4 to have basketball coach P.J. Carlesimo fired. Although it means nothing officially there seems to be a growing chorus of those in favor of not renewing his contract which expires at season's end. Carlesimo has done an outstanding job attracting talent here, but simply has not been able to put the program over the top. The Pirates continue to be no factor in the Big East. Chances seem good that he'll be gone. . .
Friends of Jim Webb, runner-up to Kent Benson as Indiana's Mr. Basketball in 1973, are putting together a benefit for him. The 33-year old Webb has cancer, is out of a job and has no insurance. Donations may be sent to the Jim Webb Benefit Fund, Box 354, South'-Bend, Ind. . Xv.'v