Calhoun's title comes with a snub

Sporting News, The, April 19, 2004 by Mike DeCourcy's

The game has been over for 80 minutes, almost as long as it took for Connecticut to win its second NCAA championship, but coach Jim Calhoun still is fighting. He has a long memory and a short fuse, which makes his time in the interview room far more compelling than UConn's absurdly easy title-game victory over Georgia Tech.

First to be duked out, metaphorically, is the misguided ESPN announcer who, in late February, ranked UConn among the most disappointing teams of the season. "I would like to tell that person, I hope they're not disappointed in the fact that we won a national championship," he says.

Then there is Georgia Tech wing Marvin Lewis. He and his teammates shot a combined 7-of-22 from 3-point range in the title game and explained it as a night when "the ball didn't fall in our hole." Calhoun has heard this before. "It wasn't air-conditioning blowing the balls down," he says. "It wasn't 'one of those nights: It was the kids at UConn that played great, great defense."

So Calhoun scores three knockouts and still doesn't finish April 5, 2004, undefeated. That day, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced its class of inductees. Calhoun wasn't among them. He was nominated for the first time but didn't receive enough votes.

It would be easy to declare that UConn's victory over Georgia Tech--which gave Calhoun as many titles as Dean Smith, Henry Iba and Denny Crum--made the panel look bad. The voters, of course, did not have the luxury of waiting to see how that game turned out. They got it wrong, regardless.

The most significant difference between Calhoun and the coaches he now can call his peers is where his success was constructed. Unlike Smith, Crum and Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, Calhoun did not have a Hall-worthy mentor to help launch his career. Indiana won two national championships before Bob Knight arrived. When Calhoun took over at Connecticut, the program had won four NCAA Tournament games, and none since joining the Big East Conference. Everything UConn is today, Calhoun has built.

Although the Huskies were rated No. 1 in the preseason by a majority of polls and publications--perhaps because they were--the trek to a second title in six seasons was vexing and exhausting. Freshman forward Charlie Villanueva was not permitted to play the first six games as the NCAA considered his eligibility. All-American center Emeka Okafor struggled with a back injury. Gifted shooting guard Ben Gordon was so laid back that his coaches called him "Gentle Ben" to coax some dominance from him.

During the NCAA Tournament, the excellence of Okafor and Gordon and the tenacity of freshman power forward Josh Boone mitigated the challenges. But even in the Tech game there were significant obstacles to overcome. In the first two minutes, senior Taliek Brown committed a foolish foul that enraged his coaches. Calhoun sent in reserve Denham Brown and moved Gordon to the point; while Taliek Brown sat on the bench, he was reminded of his responsibilities as a veteran point guard. Brown returned, and Tech star point guard Jarrett Jack was held to 1-of-8 shooting and seven points.

"I think that's our job as coaches," Calhoun says. "We recognize the problem. You know it's there. You know you're going to have to overcome it, one way or another.

"It's so difficult to have people expect you to win every single game. These kids were able to kind of just shuck that off, have fun, play basketball. The result was a national championship."

Calhoun will have to wait another year for the Hall of Fame to get it right. Meanwhile, he can figure out what to do with that second ring.

SPEED READ

* The TV ratings for the UConn-Georgia Tech NCAA title game were low for one reason: It was a lousy game. The tournament's early-round ratings demonstrated a healthy audience for college basketball. Whether it's large enough for CBS to make money is a stockholder's concern, not a fan's.

INSIDE DISH

Coaches were told at the Final Four that support is increasing in the NBA for a collectively bargained draft rule that would require players to wait until three years after their high school class graduates before entering the draft.... The National Association of Basketball Coaches is working with the NCAA to create a new rules category called "lack of coach control." That would make it tougher for a head coach to claim ignorance and try to pin violations on assistants or other employees. As the rules are written now, a coach can be cited as part of a "lack of institutional control" violation, but that rarely happens.... The end of Kansas' season allowed some injured players to begin their recoveries. SG Keith Langford, PF Wayne Simien and SF J.R. Giddens finished the year hurt and will need all or part of April to heal before beginning work on conditioning and skill development.... After C LaMarcus Aldridge struggled during practices and in the McDonald's All American game, he said he would play for Texas rather than enter the NBA draft. Aldridge committed to UT but did not sign a letter of intent in the fall.... The departures of SG Rashid Al-Kaleem and PG Ryan Appleby from Florida are evidence of weak recruiting but shouldn't hurt the Gators on the floor. Appleby was physically overmatched at the 2002 Nike All-American Camp. Al-Kaleem figured to be a role player but wanted a larger role.... Mississippi State will adjust its offense to use PG Gary Ervin's talents as he takes over for Timmy Bowers. Ervin is a fast playmaker, and the Bulldogs will open up their attack accordingly. Ervin must improve as a shooter and decision-maker.--M.D.