No idea how we missed this Dave Jones column when it was originally printed almost a month ago. I mean, hell, my day job is for the news side of the same paper.

But as the headline says, better late than never.

Jones caught up with Pat Flannery shortly after the ESPYs and talked with the Bucknell coach about his summer efforts to teach his kids and their friends the old school art of pick-up games.

An interesting note:

Flannery was inspired by the rough draft of a book being written by his old friend, Pottsville Nativity High School coach Dave Holland. In it, Holland tells stories about the essence of the game -- pickup basketball.

What Jones didn't mention -- and why would he, writing for a Central Pa. audience -- is that Dave Holland played his college ball at Holy Cross, winning three letters (1973, 74, 75).

Readers who have been with us since the very beginning might also recall that Holland is one of Randolph Macon coach Mike Rhoades' uncles.

Of course the post just below this one talked more about Rhoades and the Bucknell-Randolph Macon connection.

It really is a small world, eh?

Also of note in the Jones column are Flannery's memories of Muhammad Ali and his old training camp in Deer Lake, Pa.
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Former Bucknell player Dan Bowen has joined Mike Rhoades' staff at Division III Randolph Macon.

Rhoades, for those who either are new to this site or didn't pay attention during the winter, was the point guard on Bucknell coach Pat Flannery's 1994 D-III national championship team at Lebanon Valley. Current Bucknell assistant Nathan Davis is a R-M grad who played and served as a student assistant coach while Rhoades was an assistant there before taking over the head coaching job.

For those who don't remember Bowen, here's some background from the Randolph Macon release on his hiring:

As a college player, Bowen had a stellar four-year career at Division I Bucknell University in Pennsylvania from 1996 through 2000. His honors included: 1997 Patriot League Rookie of the Year; first-team all-league twice; two-time team most valuable player; MVP of the 1999 Pepsi Marist Classic tournament; and 1999-2000 Bucknell team captain. In 2000, Bowen played professional basketball in Bosnia.

In related news, off the success of last year's NCAA Tournament season, Bucknell has moved to a new flagship radio station for football and basketball.

This won't mean much to most of you. But to those in the Lewisburg area, it should mean a much stronger signal.
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Our favorite thing about the
Holy Cross release announcing the 2005-2006 schedule? No, it is not this nifty quote that sounds nothing at all like Ralph (but every bit like the thing say, an SID, or better yet, an sports info intern, might write:

"Once again, I think we have a very challenging schedule this season,' said Willard. 'It will be highlighted by games against Boston College at the DCU Center, at Cincinnati and at the San Juan Shootout, which will give All-America candidate Kevin Hamilton a chance to visit his family in Puerto Rico. I also feel that the Patriot League is looking as good as it has been during my tenure at Holy Cross, so this year's schedule should be one of the toughest we have faced."

No, my favorite thing is the December 27 game at George Mason, which should give me a chance to see the Crusaders before the PL season tips in January.
It's a strong schedule. As the release points out:

The Crusaders could play up seven games against teams which advanced to the NCAA Tournament last season (Boston College, Cincinnati, Mississippi State, Tennessee-Chattanooga, Vermont and two games against Bucknell), plus as many as three contests against squads which took part in the National Invitation Tournament (Boston University, Clemson and Northeastern).

A non-league game to circle is the San Juan Shootout opener against Tennessee-Chattanooga. A win will likely give the 'Saders a second-round meeting with Clemson, an RPI plus (for the whole league, actually). A loss would set up a consolation bracket game with Puerto Rico-Mayaguez, a fate worse than playing Savannah State from an RPI standpoint.

Another game with tangental Patriot League interest will be the opener against Juco Joe Knight's old team, Furniture (High Point) U.
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Sometimes you just have to scratch your head and wonder what the hell are these people thinking.

Case in point:

Colgate head basketball coach Emmett Davis has announced the addition of Daniel Waddy, from Tucson, Arizona, to the program.

Waddy, a 6-foot-3 combo guard, is a transfer from St. Mary?s College in California. He will sit out the 2005-06 season due to the NCAA transfer rule, and will have two years of eligibility remaining.

. . .

Waddy played in 22 games his freshman year and 16 games for the Gaels this past season. He averaged 6.1 minutes per game and scored 15 points in 2004-05. St. Mary's received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament last season, while finishing 25-9 and had a RPI rating of 30 among all Division I programs.

Guess you just have to give Davis credit for being an incredibly talented recruiter. How else do you explain a kid from Arizona leaving California (O.K., St. Mary's is in the Bay Area, not the sub-tropics of LAO, but still . . . ) for Hamilton?

Of course Colgate's roster last year included three Californians, a Floridian and another kid from Arizona. Just imagine what kind of recruits Davis might get if he were not trying to lure kids to a remote outpost on the tundra.
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Some familiar names helped Navy win the the Armed Forces Basketball Championship late last month.

According to the Air Force Times:

Behind the strong play of all-tournament selections Francis Ebong and Taj Matthews, the Navy won its final three games to capture the tournament for the first time since 1996.

Recent Navy grad George O'Garro was also a member of that team.

Ebong, who scored 14 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in the gold-medal win over defending champion Army, and Matthews were both named to the All-Armed Forces team that will compete in next month’s International Miltary Sports Council (CISM) tournament and the Supreme Headquarters, Allied Powers Europe tournament in December.

Interestingly, as best we can tell from comparing all-time letter winner lists in media guides to the roster, none of the other Army or Navy players named to the All-Armed Forces team played at either of the academies.
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