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Hoosiers try to get over Knight
Mike Davis and Bob Knight still have not spoken since Davis took over at Indiana, and Davis told me he will not answer questions about Knight when the Hoosiers are in New York this week for the preseason NIT. Davis does hope to address other pressing issues, especially his team's foul shooting problems. The Hoosiers made less than half of their free throws during their two wins last week, which Davis believes is a result of excess pressure his players are putting on themselves in light of all that has happened. As for his own future, Davis sounded confident that if the Hoosiers have a successful season, he has a very good chance at being named permanent coach next spring. "The players want me here," he told me. "If we continue to move in the right direction, I think the school will do the right thing by me."
No letting upTemple is in the midst of a scheduling grind that is masochistic even by John Chaney's standards. The Owls played at Memphis last Friday despite still being alive in the NIT. Next month features dates with Duke, Villanova, Wisconsin and Wake Forest, all of which are probable NCAA tournament teams. But the Owls might be much better than the preseason polls would indicate. Junior point guard Lynn Greer is a much bigger offensive threat than Pepe Sanchez was. Greer had six assists to just one turnover during the win over Memphis. Chaney told me he believes junior center Kevin Lyde is better off without Lamont Barnes getting in his way. The Owls also have something Chaney's teams rarely have: depth. If freshman guard David Hawkins continues to produce off the bench, Temple should emerge from this grueling stretch as the team to beat in the Atlantic-10.
How does it feel?When Arizona coach Lute Olson successfully recruited Tom Tolbert and Matt Othick in the late 1980s after they had orally committed to UNLV, Jerry Tarkanian famously labeled him "Midnight Lute." Last week, however, Minnesota's Dan Monson turned the clock back on Olson when he landed in-state forward Rick Rickert, who had committed to the Wildcats on Oct. 25. Rickert wanted to play for Olson, but he caved to pressure from his parents to stay close to home. Rickert even wore an Arizona hat to the press conference at which he signed his letter of intent. Ironically, Monson's father, Don, once received a verbal commitment from Damon Stoudamire when he was the coach at Oregon, only to lose the future lottery pick to Olson. It's all business as usual in the recruiting game. As Lefty Driesell once said, "When a player commits to another school, that just lets you know who you gotta beat." Sports Illustrated staff writer Seth Davis covers the college basketball beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.
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