MBB BLOG
Head Coach Gary Edwards' column for 3-6-10
We all played poorly. It wasn't just one guy's fault. It was a real team effort.
Arnette Hallman
The season is over for the men's basketball team at Francis Marion University. February was a rough month for the Patriots, and March was no better.
At 18-10, we finished with our second-best overall record in 17 years. But we lost seven of our last nine games and were bounced from the Peach Belt Conference Tournament in the first round.
My returning players and I are left with a vile taste in our mouths. Our seniors are left with tears and a sense of what might have been. For they have no more practices, no more games, no more hoop dreams to help cleanse the pallet.
Players don't realize how quickly their time passes. They take the practices and games for granted until one night they find themselves crying into their hands.
Old heads like me try to tell them. You need to work on that jump shot instead of going to that party tonight. I know everyone is going to the mall but don't you have a paper due tomorrow? If you have to hit a free throw down the stretch do you have "True Confidence"?
If young people could fast forward to their last game, then they would perhaps make the necessary sacrifices along the way to insure they would have no regrets. Look at your career and look in the mirror and be able to say, "I did my best." Only then will your tears have meaning.
Unfortunately, our society tends to bail out folks who don't do their best and our young people pick up on these mixed messages. For example, the NCAA is looking at expanding the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament from 65 teams to over 120.
If that happens a team won't need a great season, just a mediocre one, to get rewarded with a trip to the "Big Dance". It will be just like the college football bowl system. Just go 6-6 and you too can go bowling.
Fortunately, the NCAA will not expand the Division II Basketball Tournament because it will not make any more money for them. Make no mistake; the NCAA is all about money.
I am glad our tournament will stay at 64 teams. As much as I would have loved for the Patriots to be in the tournament this year, we did not deserve it. It remains a challenge for us and a goal that we will continue to work toward.
We will work with a renewed sense of purpose and with the end in mind. We will work with a better understanding that nothing lasts forever.
Not even this column. I'll hit the recruiting trail now, and look forward to continuing our little chats next season. It has been a pleasure.
Head Coach Gary Edwards' column for 2-27-10
When I was named Head Basketball Coach at Francis Marion University a little less than four years ago, I said I hoped to help the Patriots make history on the hardwood. While steady progress has been made, my teams have not made any major historical contributions to the record book.
That is, until the Flagler College game this past week. Friends, for the first time in 567 games the Patriots did not make a three-point shot. We were 0-18. Couldn't hit our rear with both hands. Couldn't hit the ocean from the shore. We did make history.
For the first time since Francis Marion has been a member of NCAA Division II and the Peach Belt Conference its men's basketball team did not hit a trifecta. The last time the Patriots were shut out from behind the three-point line was a February 8, 1990 game at Erskine College when they went 0-3.
And I had a great seat to watch it all. Flagler is in St. Augustine, Florida, which is America's oldest city. Did you know the fort there was once named Fort Marion after the old Swamp Fox himself? I think the historic setting inspired us a little.
It would have been nice if it had inspired us in a positive way, but hey, history is history.
And as lousy shooting goes, it was a very solid performance. We didn't come close to making one.
We've had other poor shooting nights this season. We are only shooting .298 from behind the three-point line for the year. That's not too good, but it is not the worst in NCAA Division II. That "honor" goes to Stillman College from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Tigers shoot the three-ball at a frigid .268 pace.
The worst shooting team in Division I is Duquesne at .254. and the worst in Division III is Hilbert at .269. I didn't check with the Florence County rec league but I am sure their percentages are higher.
By the way, our women's team made eight of 10 three-pointers in the second half alone against Flagler and for the year they are shooting at a .368 clip. But, hey, their three-point line is a couple of inches closer and they play with a smaller ball.
Our balls are small enough, though. Did you know you can fit two basketballs side-by-side within the circumference of a basketball rim? There is more than enough room for a single ball to get through there. We just haven't quite found the range yet.
In preparation for our game against Armstrong Atlantic today, we all went to the eye doctor. It seems that several of our players have been shooting at two rims and the adjustments made should help our percentage significantly. I hope.
Interestingly enough, we defend the three-point shot very well. We are holding our opponents to a .295 shooting percentage from behind the arc which is 10th best in the country. The Patriots are either defending the shot well or our poor shooting is contagious.
So tonight we will try to make a little more history. If we beat Armstrong Atlantic, Francis Marion will host USC-Aiken Wednesday night in the first-round of the Peach Belt Conference Tournament. It would be the first time the Patriots have hosted a Peach Belt Conference Tournament game.
Now that is the kind of history General Francis Marion could be proud of. I've got to think he was a pretty good shooter.
Head Coach Gary Edwards' column for 2-20-10
The Francis Marion University men's basketball team hosts the Augusta Jaguars this afternoon in an important Peach Belt Conference game. Augusta is currently ranked #5 in the nation, has an overall record of 23-2, and beat the Patriots 89-62 earlier in the season.
There hasn't been a bigger underdog since Lt. Colonel George Custer moseyed over to the Little Bighorn. But my teams have faced long odds before.
On the night of December 30, 1987, tiny Atlantic Christian College went into UNC-Wilmington's Trask Coliseum and beat the Division I Seahawks, 62-59. You can read about it on page 85 of the January 12, 1987, edition of Sports Illustrated.
Brian Rowsom, UNC-Wilmington's 6'9" center, had just scored 35 points against Bobby Knight's Indiana Hoosiers and had also scored 18 points and hauled down 19 rebounds against Navy's David Robinson. But Sports Illustrated asked,
"But what was Rowsom doing when he missed five of seven shots and was held to a paltry five points in the Seahawks 62-59 loss to ACC? The league? No, the school: Atlantic Christian College."
On December 18, 1995, Charleston Southern University ventured into UNLV's Thomas and Mack Center to take on the Runnin' Rebels. This game was seen as such a mismatch that no Las Vegas bookie would even publish a betting line.
Before the game our band of wide-eyed Buccaneers stood and watched UNLV retire the jerseys of NBA stars Stacey Augman and Larry Johnson. Fireworks blazed from the top of the backboards as long-time coach Jerry Tarkanian made his triumphant return. The place was packed and it was loud.
Charleston Southern, who by the way entered the game with a 1-6 record, beat the Rebels 63-55, in one of the biggest wins in Charleston Southern history. What happened in Vegas did not stay in Vegas that night because the college basketball world was abuzz about this huge upset.
A year before that game, Charleston Southern entered the Big South Championship game as huge underdogs. We had lost to our championship game opponent, UNC-Greensboro, twice during the regular season, with the latest setback a 98-70 thrashing only a week earlier.
But you guessed it. As ESPN's Jay Bilas counted down the seconds, Charleston Southern's Eric Burks made a bucket as time expired and the Buccaneers won the championship, 68-67.
Finally, one of the greatest upsets I have ever been involved in occurred during only my second year as a head coach. Again, tiny Atlantic Christian College was involved as the Bulldogs traveled to Belmont-Abbey College to take on Eddie Payne's Crusaders in the NAIA District 26 Championship.
At that time Belmont Abbey was a national power. They came into the game with a 24-6 overall record and the #1 ranking in the region. Atlantic Christian was only one year removed from a 4-19 season.
The Wilson Daily Times called them the "Dawgs of Destiny" when the Bulldogs came away with a thrilling 60-52 win. The championship earned them a trip to the NAIA National Tournament in Kansas City.
I will never forget that win, and a guy named Darren "Dip" Metress will never forget that loss. "Dip" was the starting point guard on that talented Belmont Abbey team.
In fact, if you have the chance you might mention it to him this afternoon. You'll find him on the sidelines coaching the Augusta State Jaguars.
Head Coach Gary Edwards' column for 2-13-10
The Winter Olympics have started and it is snowing outside. It almost makes me want to curl up in front of the fire with a cup of hot chocolate and watch the Belgian bobsled team.
But the snows will soon thaw around here and so will my interest in the Winter Olympics. Growing up in Virginia Beach, Virginia, I didn't own a pair of skates. I tried to ski one time, but I couldn't stop without purposely falling.
But I do remember "Wild Bill" Johnson. He won the men's downhill at the Sarajevo Olympics in 1984. No American had ever won an Olympic skiing gold medal, but I remember how cocky and confident he was.
"I don't know why everyone else is here," he said. "Everyone else can fight for second."
And like Joe Namath, he made good on his promise. The European skiing establishment mocked him, but they soon learned he was fearless. I remember watching him fly down that hill toward the gold in 1984.
With his good looks and flashy style, he became an instant celebrity. He was literally and figuratively on the top of a mountain. But like a skier tumbling out of control on an icy downhill curve, so too did Bill Johnson's life.
Because of knee and back injuries, Johnson became out of shape and never again won another World Cup race. He did not even make the Olympic team in 1988 and retired from racing in 1989.
Then in 1991, he and his wife, Gina, lost their one-year-old-son, Ryan. It seems Ryan somehow climbed under the cover of the couple's hot tub at their home in Lake Tahoe. They both thought the other was watching him and before they knew it he had drowned.
He and Gina would have two more sons, but the marriage would collapse in 1999. In 2002, at the age of 40, he attempted a comeback to make the Salt Lake Olympic Team.
"I was broke," he explains. "I needed to get back my wife and kids."
As a 40-year-old competing against 20-year-olds, Johnson still was fearless as he flew down the mountain. At the national championships in Montana he was the 34th ranked skier in a field of 63. He needed to go just a little faster.
On a training run he went too fast and careened out of control. He crashed into a fence and was in a coma for three weeks. This once golden boy had sustained severe head injuries and would never be the same.
And now, almost a decade later, he lives in a tiny trailer in Oregon and can hardly walk. Two recent fund raisers were held to raise money for an electric scooter for him.
He was given two tickets to the Vancouver Games, but he is selling them on EBay. He needs the money to make the tiny bathroom in his trailer handicapped accessible. His 15-year-old son is going to come and visit soon.
So if you watch the Winter Olympics think about "Wild Bill" Johnson and his descent down the mountain. It has been a rough trip for him.
Be thankful if your's has been smoother.
Head Coach Gary Edwards' column for 2-6-10
It is Super Bowl Weekend! Who do you like, The Indianapolis Colts or the New Orleans Saints? I don't really care. People ask me about my favorite team. I proudly tell them the Northwestern University women's lacrosse team. Go Wildcats!
The Colts and the Saints only wish they could win as often as the Wildcats. Northwestern has won five consecutive NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championships and are favored to win a sixth this year. They are ranked #1 in the country in most pre-season polls.
My admiration does not really involve on the field success, though. Heck, I don't know a lacrosse ball from a hockey puck. Is it even called a lacrosse ball? I know they use a pole with webbing attached to it to sling something.
No, my support for the Wildcat women centers on their support of a little girl. Her name is Jaclyn Murphy and she lives in Hopewell Junction, New York. She is 14 now, but five years ago she was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.
Jaclyn loved to play lacrosse and her youth coach just happened to know Kelly Amonte. I guess Kelly Amonte is the best women's lacrosse player to ever toss around a lacrosse ball, but she is also the women's lacrosse coach at Northwestern.
When Coach Amonte heard about Jaclyn Murphy, she and her team sent a bunch of Wildcat gear to Hopewell Junction. They started writing Jaclyn, and texting, and in Jaclyn's own words, quickly became "a second-family" to her.
Jaclyn's father, Dennis, said the Wildcat players were remarkably supportive of Jaclyn. When his little daughter would have a down day, he could contact a few of the Wildcat players and they would call Jaclyn to boost her spirits.
When Northwestern traveled to Baltimore to play Johns Hopkins that year, Jaclyn had her father drive her down to the game. She said, "I wanted to let the team know how much they meant to me." The bond was sealed and Jaclyn's father had to get unlimited text messaging on her phone.
A few months after meeting Jaclyn, the Northwestern women's lacrosse team won the National Championship. Of course Jaclyn was there to cheer them on. And on. And on.
For Northwestern kept winning championships and Jaclyn kept getting better from her debilitating illness.
In 2007, Jaclyn was getting treatment next to another little girl. When the girl left the room, Dennis Murphy's remarkable daughter turned to him and said, "We need to find her a team." And so the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation was born.
The mission of the foundation is to improve the quality of life for children living each day with pediatric brain tumors by matching patients with college teams. Currently there are over 200 kids matched up with teams at all levels in 24 sports.
I feel blessed to have been contacted by the organization to see if my team might be willing to adopt a child. We lost to UNC-Pembroke that same night and driving home I considered what the future may hold for us. Perhaps a better understanding of purpose will replace a victory over the Braves.
I urge you to go the website www.friendsofjaclyn.org and watch the HBO piece that is on the home page. It will bring a tear to your eye and I guarantee it will get your mind off the Super Bowl...if only for just a few moments.
Head Coach Gary Edwards' column for 1-30-10
