March 2, 2001

By Steve Richardson

Departing schools banned from CAA Tournament; Richmond's postseason hopes hang in the balance

Richmond University coach John Beilein left on a recruiting trip on Wednesday. His Spiders won the Colonial Athletic Association regular season with a victory earlier this week over arch-rival Virginia Commonwealth, but won't be competing in the league's tournament at nearby Richmond Coliseum March 3-5. Neither will East Carolina nor American University.

Beilein, who is a 23-year head coaching veteran at four different college levels, won't attend any of the tournament games. His players will still be practicing, however, in hopes their season will be extended by an NCAA Tournament at-large bid or an invitation to the National Invitation Tournament on March 11.

They have been black-balled from their own tournament.

The reason Beilein and the Spiders can't play in league's post-season tournament to determine the league's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament? Richmond is moving up the ladder to the Atlantic 10 Conference next season. And because the school didn't give the Colonial Athletic Association the required three years' notice that it would be leaving, Richmond has been barred from the tournament. East Carolina is leaving for Conference USA next season. And American University is jumping to the Patriot League. Those schools received the same treatment: no post-season tournament in 2001.

"A coach can't do a whole lot," said Beilein. "I tried to lobby. American University tried a lawsuit but failed in the lawsuit. The conference can do what it wanted to do. "It's a very unique situation," Beilein continued "My contention all along has not to be blaming anyone. But we have been a tremendous member of the CAA and it shouldn't end this way."

Beilein led the Spiders to a 21-6 regular-season record and a 12-4 league mark. Richmond won at Mississippi State and at George Washington. The Spiders also beat UMass on a neutral floor and lost at Wake Forest in overtime. They finished 9-2 in non-conference games, with the only other loss to Charleston They have won 10 of their 11 last 11 games.

"We wanted to win everything we could win in the non-conference," said Beilein, who has a 77-38 record in four seasons at Richmond. "We got some good road wins. So then we say, let's win the league, and we did that. The goal was to win the regular-season championship."

Now, sitting with an RPI (Rating Percentage Index) of 45 it is nail-biting time. There are no more games to play. Beilein, says the only bubble he has been on in the past was the NIT bubble. But it's not out of the question that Richmond could get an NCAA at-large bid. Richmond did go as an NCAA at-large entry in 1986 when Navy and David Robinson captured the league's automatic bid.

Belein took Richmond, winner of the CAA Tournament in 1998, to the NCAAs, in his first season at the school. The Spiders upset South Carolina in the first round before losing to Washington in the second. Belein also took Canisius to the big dance in 1996.

"Things have to break right," Beilein said. "We have been on the NIT bubble several times Certain things have to happen." He will be watching the post-season tournaments with great interest and hoping all the favorites win.

Ironically, if Richmond would get an NCAA at-large berth, the Colonial Athletic Association would stand to gain the most. The units in coming years would remain in the CAA. The scenario will cause 11 days of uncertainty for Beilein, who is the only coach in college basketball who has posted 20 victory seasons on four different levels: junior college, NAIA and NCAA Divisions I and II.

"I don't hold a grudge against anybody at all," Beilein said. "But in 10 years everybody is going to look back at this and say: 'Why did that ever happen?' "It is just too bad. It is like a divorce. There isn't great way to end it."

Georgia's Schedule on Harrick's Mind
If he had to do it over again, Georgia coach Jim Harrick would have put together a different schedule for his Bulldogs this season. Georgia has a 16-12 overall record after playing a non-conference schedule which included Stanford, Wake Forest, California, Minnesota, Georgia Tech, Fresno State, North Carolina State, Villanova and Utah. It helped Georgia's power ranking, but not its record. Against those teams, the Bulldogs went 4-5, and may not record enough victories to get into the NCAA Tournament..

"I really have begun to think it is probably not in our best interest to do that," Harrick said of playing a tough schedule. "We are struggling to get enough wins to get into this thing. I think this league (Southeastern Conference) will be the strongest in the country. I am going to have to rethink this tremendously.... Our guys don't have enough emotion every night out...We used so much in December."

Lavin Realizes His Wrongs
UCLA coach Steve Lavin was reprimanded and put on probation for the remainder of the season by the Pac-10 Conference esult of his actions and comments during UCLA's 68-65 overtime victory over Oregon State on Feb.24. Lavin shouted and gestured at Pac-10 coordinator of basketball officials Lou Campanelli during the game as well as made inappropriate comments about the game officials.

"Basically at this stage of the season, obviously in a conference race and my competitive juices were flowing," Lavin said. " My emotion got the better of me. In hindsight, calmer or cooler heads prevailed, I understand my conduct was out of bounds. It was a poor example for the kids...It was more frustration with one of the officials. And I didn't handle it that well."