March 8, 2001

By Steve Richardson

ACC Coaching Gems

North Carolina coach Matt Doherty became the first coach in Atlantic Coast Conference history to win or tie for the regular-season title in his first season as an ACC head coach.

Doherty, 39, did it his way, with a rah-rah style and more intensity on the bench than his predecessors Bill Guthridge and Dean Smith.

"Well, whether you like it or not, that's just me," Doherty said. "I like to think they have responded and played fairly well, knock on wood. We are playing hard. It is not like I am getting in their faces all time. It is more postive energy. There are different ways to skin a cat. That's me for now. Maybe in 20 years when I am 58, I will be sitting on the bench more."

Doherty got the students more involved in home games by moving them down to behind the basket nearest the Tar Heels bench. He lit a fire under center Brendan Haywood, who is playing much more aggressively this season on both ends of the court. North Carolina's entire defense looks more inspired with Doherty's constant prodding.

Still, Doherty has a rival for even ACC coach of the Year - Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt, who succeeded Bobby Cremins.

Doherty and Hewitt are two of only eight coaches in league history to post a .500-or-better record in their first season as ACC head coaches. Hewitt's team was 8-8, while Doherty's Tar Heels finished 13-3 and in a tie with Duke for the ACC regular-season title.

"Hewitt has done an outstanding coaching job," said Wake Forest coach Dave Odom. "I think you will have a hard time finding a coach in the country who has done as good a job...They are playing very hard and they are playing with a mission. Those are very dangerous qualities. They do things to keep you off stride."

Georgia Tech, which defeated UCLA and Kentucky during the season, finished at .500 in the ACC for the first time since the Yellow Jackets won the regular-season title in 1996.

"I haven't been surprised," said Hewitt. "We have five seniors and a junior point guard who has started every game of his career....When you have a solid point guard and the best center in the league, I felt it like it was a realistic goal to go to post-season."

Self Makes Mark

Illinois coach Bill Self became the first coach in the Big Ten to win the league's regular-season title in his rookie campaign since Lee Rose did at Purdue in 1979.

Self's Illini tied with Michigan State for the title, both with 13-3 records.

The Illinois job came with high expectations, because the Illini returned five starters from a team which lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Florida last season.

"Everywhere you go there are expectations," Self said. "As much pressure and outside influence as there is, that is probably not as much pressure as you put on yourself. I don't mind being at a place with expectations, because that means you have good players.

Sometimes when you win a game, though, and it is a relief. Having expectations puts a different spin on the psyche of coaching, even if you don't want it to."

Self said he is fortunate because he has worked his way up from the bottom of Division I at Oral Roberts. Then it was on to Tulsa. Then, finally, to the big-time at Illinois.

"One good thing, my first year at ORU, we had no fans," Self said. "It wasn't that big of deal. Mistakes were not magnified like if it was at a major school. We had moved from NAIA... in my first year. We eventually had great success at ORU. I was compliance person, the marketing person, sold all the ads and the tickets. But it made me an administrator."

Driesell Ties Sutton

Coach Lefty Driesell has joined Eddie Sutton as the only coach in Division I history to take four different teams to the NCAA Tournament. Georgia State beat Troy State, 79-55, on March 2 and claimed the Trans America Tournament title. The Panthers (28-4) became the first team to snare a berth in the 65-team NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament last week.

Driesell, who now ranks No. 6 in career coaching victories (761) on the Division I level, has taken Davidson, Maryland and James Madison to the tournament during his 39-year career. His last NCAA Tournament appearance was in 1994 when he was coach at James Madison. Sutton has taken Creighton, Arkansas, Kentucky and Oklahoma State to the NCAA Tournament

Driesell,69, is not content that Georgia State, which beat Georgia in its season opener (91-79), has made the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1991. He wants to add to his 761 career victories.

"We're going to give some people some problems," said Driesell.

Two of Georgia State's losses occurred at Creighton and at New Mexico. And the Panthers, who lost their only other NCAA appearance to Arkansas in the first round in 1991, are on a seven-game winning streak since the loss at The Pit.

Driesell has molded a group of transfers - all but two players are either from junior colleges are from other Division I schools - into winners. This was his first team to win as many as 28 games in a season, his 39th. "Coach Driesell is the last of a dying breed, that you just don't see in coaching anymore" said Troy State coach Don Maestri said.

Tip-Ins

Pitino to Louisiville? It's just a matter of time. Sources close to the negotiations indicate that Rick Pitino's deal at Louisville will be worth $2.7 million annually, making him by far the highest paid coach in college basketball...Tex Winter has been named the 2001 Naismith Men's Outstanding Contribution to Basketball Award winner by the Atlanta Tip-Off club. The award honors a coach, a promoter, media person or someone very close to the game who has greatly impacted the game in a positive way. Winter is in his second season as assistant coach with the Los Angeles Lakers. It is his 54th consecutive season of coaching basketball on either the Division I or professional level - the longest tenure of any active coach in college or professional basketball... - Northern Iowa coach Sam Weaver has resigned after compiling a 30-57 record in three seasons. The Panthers finished 7-24 overall this past season and won only three Missouri Valley Conference games...Illinois assistant coach Ron Judson accepted the head coaching position at Northern Illinois Judson, 43, who had spent the last five seasons with the Illini, will continue with the Illinois program through the post-season before taking over the Huskies' head position....Portland coach Rob Chavez was fired moments after the Pilots lost in the first-round of the West Coast Conference Tournament. Chavez, 43, who had a 93-102 record in seven seasons at Portland, had refused to resign earlier when asked to do so by school officials...Old Dominion coach Jeff Capel resigned after a 13-18 season.