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Men's Basketball
Division II Coaching Report
Feb. 6, 2003
By Gary Rubin Bentley College men's basketball coach Jay Lawson notched win number 200 last month when his Falcons edged Merrimack College, 75-71. The second coach in the program's history to reach that milestone (Al Shields was 258-106 from 1963-78), Lawson has amassed a 200-130 record (.606) during his 12 seasons at the helm and has this year's club headed for a school record eighth consecutive winning season. Lawson reached another milestone on Feb. 5, when he coached his 500th game as part of the Bentley coaching staff, including six years as an assistant to Frank Sullivan. Lawson's 200th win was truly a family affair as his son, Danny Lawson, was on the bench for the milestone victory. A freshman, Danny is currently red-shirting and will have four years of eligibility beginning next season.
First-Year Coaches Coming on Strong Cal State San Bernardino head coach Jeff Oliver has one of the hottest teams in the country right now. Since starting out with four straight losses to nationally ranked teams, the Coyotes have rattled off 13 straight wins and find themselves atop the Western region rankings and in the national Top 25. At age 29, Oliver is the youngest head coach in the sport in the California Collegiate Athletic Association and one of the youngest among the nation's Division II programs. Oliver, the program's top assistant for three years, replaced his former boss, Larry Reynolds, who took the Division I Long Beach State job after last year. The pressure was on Oliver to continue the success at CSUSB, where Reynolds compiled a 110-35 win-loss record in five years with the Coyotes and led the team to three straight CCAA titles and two West Region championships and two appearances in the NCAA Elite Eight tournament. Oliver's coaching debut was one he'll always remember, as Cal State San Bernardino rallied from a three-point halftime deficit to defeat Long Beach State (coached by Reynolds) in an exhibition game in November. New Central Oklahoma head coach Terry Evans guided his team on an 11-game winning streak recently that was halted by No. 8 Northeastern State on Feb. 4. A former college standout at the University of Oklahoma, Evans is the second member of his family to lead the Bronchos: his father, Eddie Evans, coached at UCO from 1978-82. Evans took the helm at UCO last April after the resignation of Jim Seward, who retired as UCO's all-time winningest coach with a 261-165 record in 15 years. Evans came to UCO after serving as director of basketball operations at the University of Oklahoma in 2001-02. From 1989-93, he started for head coach Billy Tubbs in the Sooners' backcourt. It won't be an easy road for the Bronchos the rest of the season, as No. 1 Tarleton State and Northeastern State are both in their division of the Lone Star Conference.
Second Time a Charm The head basketball coach at the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse for two seasons before moving to Minneosta, Engen replaced Mike Olson, who resigned in June after three seasons at Minnesota State Moorhead to accept an assistant post at Dartmouth College. So far, Engen is utilizing the wealth of returning talent that is on his first roster at Moorhead. Last year, the Dragons collection of 17 victories was the highest single season mark since the 1995-96 Dragons finished 19-8. "If you look at most of the experience I've had in the past, it was to turn teams around," he said. "Now this is a different challenge, hitting a program in midstream. . . I have to be careful inheriting a program of upperclassmen."
Climbing the Ladder Hironaka, the second Japanese-American head coach of a four-year collegiate program, has SPU in position for a postseason bid. The Falcons have won five of their last six games and stood at 7-2 in Great Northwest Conference play the first week of February. A former aide at Idaho State and The Master's, Hironaka joined Bone in 1991 and from there the Falcons won 236 of 253 games, claimed five outright or shared conference championships and qualified for the NCAA tournament eight of the last nine years, including a Final Four advancement in 2000.
Breaking Bread Together "We have had several insances when we at our pregame meal with our opponent," Ackerman shared recently. "The first time it happened, it was a little strange. But it has actually been a good thing since. While the teams haven't sat down with each other, the (coaching) staffs did and it was thoroughly enjoyable."
Tip-Ins
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