Reed Should Note That Crum Is Slipping
Columnist Picking Up On Denny's 350
Last fall, this column devoted some time to talking about how Billy Reed, a sports columnist for the Louisville Courier-Journal, went out of his way in years past to be nasty towards ex-Kentucky basketball coach Joe B. Hall, and how Reed seemed to go out of his way towards being extra sweet and nice to good ole Denny Crum, the basketball figurehead at the University of Louisville.
Ole Billy's at it again, folks.
Right after U of L fell on its face last month in losing at home to Cincinnati, scant hours after pulling off an upset of top-ten rated, but faltering, Syracuse; Reed, in his wisdom and lack of good sense, came up with a real gem of a morale booster for Crum.
He noted in a 48-point headed story on January 23 that the next U of L victory would be Crum's 350th at the school.
Nice try. Since U of L's next game after that was on the road in Lawrence. Kan., against nationally-ranked Kansas, it looked like just the kind of "positive plant" designed to help the morale around the Belknap campus.
				
			Jim Griesch Cats' Pause Columnist	
				
Not to worry, UK fans. In the Kansas game, U of L's vast pool of talent belched out to an 11-point lead in the first half, only to choke down the stretch, losing by two.
Kansas stayed within howitzer range without its big, slow, center, Greg Dreiling.
He played less than a minute in the first half, after picking up two fouls, but came back to terrorize all those sleek, gifted, wonderous athletes Crum can run in and out, at a moment's whim.
Since Billy Thompson once again disappeared in the clutch, U of L went bye bye.
No Respect After 13 Straight 20-Win Seaons
But, back to Billy and the boys.
Reed dutifully rattled off the company line, noting how Crum had won (them) 349 games, lost only 112, for a winning percentage of .757, and how he'd had 13 concecutive 20-win years. Will and good, folks.
But, he also said some other things. He noted that Crum has never been national coach of the year. (Maybe the guys who vote tor that don't read Billy's columns, or don't listen to Billy Packer on CBS.)
He also noted that Crum could possibly win number 350 in the 17th game of his 15th year, and compared the win mark to other coaches.
To make Crum look better. Reed pointed out that Crum would get his 350th before such notables as Indiana's Bobby Knight (17th season, 26th game); North Carolina's own diety. Dean Smith (17th year. 12th game); and present UK coach Eddie Sutton (17th season, eighth game). ,
Billy even noted that Adolph Rupp, the Kentucky legend, who is the winningest college coach of all time, with 875 wins, over 42 seasons, did not get his 350th win until his 35th game of his 17th season.
Does Crum really fly with the eagles, or does he merely tread water in a farm pond?
To listen to Billy, you'd think ole Denny could only fly with the eagles, but he could whip up such a wind that he'd form typhoon and drown all the others.
Not so.
Crum is slipping. Perhaps badly.
Is Denny Crum's Magic Disappearing?
Mr. Dynasty Builder, himself, is staring at his fourth 10-loss (or more) season in the last five years.
That's right. Crum is wearing thin quickly. In 1980-81, his team was 2-7 the season after his 1979-80 team went 33-3 and won U of L's only NCAA championship. In fact, that 1980-81 team finished strong, at 21-9, but at 2-7, a nationl magazine noted in a big headline "The Champs are Chumps."
Billy went whole hog to defend the Cards of Crum.
But, that season seemed to set the trend for the '80's. The next season, U of L went 23-10, faltering at inopportune moments.
His 1982-83 team was a very good one. They posted a 32-4 mark, were ranked second in the nation, and went to the NCAA Final Four in Albuquerque, New Mexico, only to fall completely on its face, blowing a 10-point lead over Houston in the final 10 minutes of play, to lose 94-81. That represents one of the worst, quickest collapses in the Final Four history.
Since then, U of L has gone 24-11, 19-18, and now 14-6, and maybe headed for another 10-loss season.
Such mediocrity does not a dynasty make.
In fact, only in the 1982-83 season has a Crum-coached team surpassed his all-time winning percentages since his 1980 title season are: .700, .889, .686, and .514.
Crum's philosophy includes playing a lot of games each season.
U of L seems to go to some sort of in-season tournament, somewhere, that doesn't count against the NCAA limit of 27 (it would be 28. but the Metro Conference requires a season-ending tournament, limiting each team to 27 games in the continental United States).
Check it out, see for yourself.
Crum Loves Lots Of Games To Get 20 Wins
Since stepping in as U of L's head coach, Crum's teams have played 30 games or more in 11 of 14 possible seasons. Some of those years,-U of L has done so ONLY because of post-season tournament competition.
But, in the last several years, the game totals have risen as U of L has sought out as many games as possible in Hawaii, Alaska, now the pre-season NTT.
The more games you play, the more you have an opportunity to win.
But, U of L has won only one Great Alaska Shootout, never the Rainbow Tournament in Honolulu, and has been upset in back-to-back years by mighty Chaminade, which is an NAIA school which has made a name for itself by those two wins, plus upsets of Virginia and Oklahoma.
As for beating Rupp to the magic number win 350. he should have.
Crum has coached U of L in 466 games since taking over. In Rupp's first 15 years at UK. he only coached in 318 games overall, and won 255 of them. His 255-63 mark firgures out to an 83.3 winning percentage.
Crum not only has won more games than Rupp did in his first 15 years, he coached in more than 150 more games.
What's the big deal?
For one thing, you cannot compare the great (Rupp) with the great pretender (Crum).
In fact, while Crum seems headed into a career eclipse. Rupp did not reach his zenith for another decade or so.
Rupp's first 15 years coincided with the end of the second World War. After the war. Rupp's teams climbed into levels upon which legends are made.
Cannot Compare Crum and Rupp
You simply cannot compare Crum to Rupp. Actually, it is unfair to both.
But to compare further, however, we've examined Rupp's five years from the 194041 season to the 1944-45 cruise. He won 119. lost 52. That's a record of 78.3.
In Crum's last five years (not counting this one. but including his Final Four team of 1982-83, and not the title team of 1979-80), Crum's Birdies won 119 of 171. for a 119-52 mark. The winning percentage is only 69.6 percent, far below Crum's 75.7 mark all-time.
Rupp's percentage is lower, too, but his 17-8 mark in 1940-41 was his worst until the 1960-61 season, when UK went 19-9, a .679 percentage.
In fact. Rupp had only five seasons EVER in which his teams won less than 70 percent of the games.
Even as a sick man towards the end of his career, his teams posted winning percentages of 81.5, 82.1, 92.9, 78.6, and 75.0 percent.
That's not too bad for a man many publically said or wrote was to ill to continue coaching.
Incidentally, those last five years were spent in modern times, after basketball had begun to be a big deal all over the land, and at a time after blacks began flocking into SEC schools.
Even at the end of his time, he could compete successfully.
Of course, detractors will argue that his assistants, such as Harry Lancaster, Dicky Parsons, and Joe Hall, really won many of those games.
That's a story that may live forever, with the truth known only to those who were on the teams, or around Rupp.
Comparing The SEC And The Metro
Any detractor could also say that the SEC was a weak league. Maybe.
But. has anyone looked at the Metro lately. Only Memphis State has been constantly rank: ed highly over the past several years. Virginia Tech has tried, but hasn't quite made it. Most of the rest of the league is a joke.
And, this is during the modern times, when everyone goes around talking to the media about how tough their league really is.
Crum's backers can point to his half dozen trips to the Final Four. College basketball didn't even have a Final Four at the end of the season during Rupp's first decade at UK. How many NCAA's could he have gone to?
Now days, almost any team can make the NCAA tourney field, which automatically presents an opportunity to go to the Final Four.
In 1950. Rupp's team was 25-5, and two-time defending national champion. But, you had to be invited then, much as now. Only then, very few teams were invited. North Carolina State got the invitation, Rupp stayed home and fumed.
A 25-5 record now would guarantee an NCAA trip, with a seed no worse than third in whatever regional a team is placed.
NIT Invitation With A So-So 16-16 Record
Last year, Louisville went to the NIT with a 16-16 mark.
That was the worst record of any team in any post-season tournament which did not automatically qualify for post-season play through a conference tourney which guaranteed an NCAA berth to its winner.
U of L also was allowed to play at home (big gates) despite its record. That's the only reason U of L did not finish at .500.
Of course, there is still time this season for U of L to come together as a unit, play inspired ball, and travel far in post-season play.
Here's a hunch. They won't.
Reasons?
One. Crum is not doing that good a job of coaching. He has three senior starters, two of whom were all-world in high school, and who have continued to draw rave notices in the media even when the reason is not readily apparent.
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