NCAA Basketball FanHouse

Seton Hall's Lawrence Facing DWI, Suspended Indefinitely

Chas Rich — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:27:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall, Big East, Police Blotter

The only good news in this story is that somehow Seton Hall's Keon Lawrence did not kill anyone. This, despite causing a two-car accident while driving the wrong way in the express lanes of the Garden State Parkway.

Lawrence's blood-alcohol level was over the .08 limit -- the exact level not known -- and was charged with driving while intoxicated. Not only that, but Lawrence was driving with a suspended license and had two traffic warrants outstanding. The accident occurred after 3AM Monday morning.

Head coach Bobby Gonzalez suspended Lawrence, who was expected to play this season after transferring from Missouri, indefinitely.
Somehow, Lawrence claims to be as ignorant of the DWI charge and anything other than being in an accident.

Reached on his cellphone late Monday, he acknowledged that he had been in an accident early Monday, but denied that he had been charged with driving while intoxicated.

"They didn't tell me that, and they didn't tell my mother that, either," he said. "I was in an accident. That's about it."

Lawrence transferred from Missouri and sat out last season. He has been seen as a talented player, but with character issues that caused a conflict in Missouri. This action, along with the suspended license only gives credence to the character perception.

Seton Hall was widely believed to be a potential "dark horse" team in the Big East. They had added some depth and talent with transfers like Lawrence and Herb Pope from New Mexico State. The question was whether the character issues with both and some of the other players would sabotage this team. The early returns indicate that the team are not looking favorable for the talent trumping character.

Seton Hall's Lawrence Facing DWI, Suspended Indefinitely originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:27:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Big East Tournament Preview: Everyone Is Playing, Except Bubble Teams

Chas Rich — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 08:01:00 EST

Filed under: Cincinnati, Connecticut, DePaul, Georgetown, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Seton Hall, Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia, Big East

The Big East Tournament gets underway Tuesday, and this year the Big East Tournament (BET) matches the construction of the conference -- oversized, a bit confusing and very clearly divided.

The Big East at this point has seven teams that are definitely going to the NCAA tournament and one team that lies way out on the fringe of the bubble. This year, the BET is all about teams trying to improve or maintain their projected seeding for the Big Dance.For the first time, the BET includes all 16 teams. The Big East, though, did not want the top teams to have to play too many games in a row before the NCAA Tournament or risk damaging their seed with the possibility of a really bad loss. To protect the top teams, the top four get a double-bye and do not play until Thursday. The next four teams seeded from No. 5 to No. 8 get a first-day bye. That leaves teams No. 9 through 16 to face each other.

Those teams in the bottom half have no chance of going to the NCAA Tournament, and to win the BET they would have to win five games in five days. The odds are prohibitively stacked against that. So much so, that the opening day is not televised anywhere. There are free webcasts at the Big East site.

Matchups

Tuesday: DePaul (16) vs. Cinci (9); St. John's (13) vs. Georgetown (12); Rutgers (15) vs. Notre Dame (10); USF (14) vs. Seton Hall (11).
Wednesday: 16/9 Winner vs. Providence (8); 13/12 Winner vs. Marquette (5); 15/10 Winner vs. West Virginia (7); 14/11 Winner vs. Syracuse (6)

You can view the bracket and times here (PDF).

What Teams Want

Playing for No. 1 Seed: Pitt, UConn and Louisville
Trying to improve seed: Villanova, Syracuse, Marquette and West Virginia
Hoping to find a golden ticket: Providence
Next stop, NIT: Notre Dame, Georgetown, Cinci
Where is the CBI: Seton Hall, St. John's
Just stopping by to say hello: USF, Rutgers, DePaul

Storylines

The Bubble is an Illusion for Providence
Every conference is supposed to have a bubble team. The Big East really does not. Nonetheless, for purposes of keeping punditry with standard storylines, Providence will be proffered as a Big East bubble team.

The Friars' RPI is hovering around 70. With the exception of knocking off Pitt and Syracuse, they were the beneficiary of an unbalanced schedule that gave them six five games against the bottom four of the Big East. That gave them the edge in finishing above .500 in the conference. They did beat Cincinnati twice, which only made the Big East bubble more barren.

Will the Big East Get Three No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament?
That will be the most discussed issue in the BET. Pitt seems like a virtual lock for a No. 1 seed even if it goes out and loses its first game. They have the No. 1 RPI, they are No. 2 in both polls. They have been a top-five team all season. UConn was considered another lock, but how do you deny the regular season Big East Champion in Louisville? It just does not seem possible that the NCAA selection committee would pick three No. 1 seeds from the same conference. UConn and Louisville do not meet unless both get to the championship game. If so, that could decide the issue.

How Far Will Marquette slide?
The injury to Dominic James has been devastating. Before that, the Golden Eagles were looking like a No. 2 or 3 seed and seemed like a guard-heavy team that could go far in the NCAA Tournament. The Golden Eagles played tough against UConn, Louisville and Pitt but still lost. That was not so bad, even encouraging. But then Marquette lost at home, on senior day to Syracuse. That was damaging. If Marquette does not win a couple games, they could see themselves as a No. 6 or 7 seed by Sunday night.

The Big East is a Beast: It is the biggest and was supposed to be the toughest conference. With four teams in the top 10 and six teams ranked in the Top 25, there is plenty of quality in the conference. The issue is that the bottom is so weak. DePaul went 0-18 in the Big East. Rutgers is a wreck. South Florida is very slowly improving. The sheer size is the issue. Teams at the bottom have a hard time getting out from under the pile.

Predictions

Day one: Cincinnati over DePaul; Georgetown over St. John's; Notre Dame over Rutgers; and USF surprises Seton Hall.
Day two: Providence over Cincinnati; Marquette over Georgetown; WVU over ND; and Syracuse beats USF.
Quarterfinals: Louisville over Providence; Villanova over Marquette; Pitt over WVU; and UConn over Syracuse.
Semifinals: Villanova upsets Louisville and UConn finally beats Pitt.
Championship: UConn

Big East Tournament Preview: Everyone Is Playing, Except Bubble Teams originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 10 Mar 2009 08:01:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seton Hall Too Cheap to Be in Big East

Chas Rich — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 21:10:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall, Big East, Campus

Yes, times are tough. Everyone is looking to cut costs anywhere. Even athletic departments are not immune. That said, there are efficient cost reductions and there's being just plain cheap. Seton Hall has long been considered on the cheap side with their athletic department. They have skimped on academic support. They play their games off-campus. The college has been known to tap the athletic department budget to make up other budget shortfalls.

This move, however, takes the (undoubtedly moderately-priced and purchased from the supermarket) cake.

The university has decided not to send the pep band and cheerleaders to the Big East Tournament to save money. Apparently the cost of chartering a bus or maybe two to take that group of students barely nineteen miles to and from Madison Square Garden, was just too much money to spend.

According to Jerry Carino, a New Jersey sports writer and journalism professor, the school decided to do this after finding out that Cincinnati and maybe DePaul were not going to send their pep bands to the Big East Tournament, because of the cost of the flight and hotel for the band. All other programs in the Big East are sending their cheer squads and pep bands.

Apparently, Seton Hall felt that Cincinnati's absence provided sufficient cover not to send its own pep band and cheerleaders, despite only having to provide bus service. In the Seton Hall administration's collective mind, there was little difference between paying for airline tickets and hotel accommodations in New York City, as Cincinnati would have to do, and a local bus charter.

Yes, Seton Hall is a small school, and the present economic climate is difficult. If, however, they find that they can't afford to have their band and cheerleaders go to the conference tournament within easy driving distance, then it might be time for Seton Hall to reconsider if it should be playing Division I basketball in a major conference. Clearly the costs must outweigh the money they are making.

Seton Hall Too Cheap to Be in Big East originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 21:10:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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UConn Goes Big on Seton Hall

Chas Rich — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 14:25:00 EST

Filed under: Connecticut, Seton Hall, Big East

There was really little doubt that UConn would win this game. Even if Seton Hall was at home, and had been on a five-game winning streak. The wins had come entirely against the bottom five teams in the Big East -- St. John's, Rutgers (twice), DePaul and Georgetown.

The question about this game was: how would the Huskies look without the injured Jerome Dyson? The answer: decently, as UConn coasted to a 62-54 win.

UConn spent the first 10 minutes or so battling a bit with the Pirates. Then UConn started pulling away and never let Seton Hall get closer than five for the rest of the game. Hasheem Thabeet had a career game with 25 points, 20 rebounds and nine blocks. Jeff Adrien added a double-double of his own for UConn with 14 points and 15 rebounds.

Perhaps most importantly for UConn was that they shut down Seton Hall's most dangerous player, Jeremy Hazell. The Pirate guard has averaged 23 points, but was held to only 14 on 5-of-22 shooting. He was blanketed by UConn's guards all game and given no room to work. Center John Garcia actually was effective inside banging with Thabeet, as he produced 22 points and 13 rebounds, but no one else on the Seton Hall team could produce any reliable offense. Garcia shot 10-of-13, but the rest of the team shot 14-of-64 (21.9 percent).

UConn does have to be somewhat concerned, as they only went six deep in this game. Gavin Edwards only saw four minutes. Guards Donnell Beverly and Scottie Haralson never made it on the court. The Huskies still have some very tough games in the conference and little time to give the other reserves anything but a baptism by fire.

UConn Goes Big on Seton Hall originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 14 Feb 2009 14:25:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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USC Leaves Its Offense In LA

Chas Rich — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall, USC, Big East, Pac-10

An embarrassing loss for USC to Seton Hall, 63-61 (PDF). USC was up by 15 at halftime, but could only score 18 points in the final 20 minutes. USC could not score in the second half, shooting 7-29 and making only 4-10 on free throws.

Seton Hall was not that good, but they were consistent in both halves. Shooting around 40% overall and 50% on free throws. The Pirates did play a strong interior defense in the second half that kept the athletic forwards of USC on the perimeter.

Rather than working it inside, the Trojan forwards settled for jumpshots and had no chance for rebounds. USC struggled throughout with Seton Hall's defense. USC turned the ball over nineteen times with Seton Hall getting 14 steals.

Seton Hall was especially impressive as they only played with seven scholarship players, and only six played in double digit minutes. Center/Forward John Garcia was a force inside with 18 rebounds and 11 points. He and Mike Davis completely neutralized the Trojans inside.

USC's guards had a horrible night on offense. Daniel Hackett and Dwight Lewis shot a combined 4-20 and turned the ball over seven times. The concerns noted in the preview of USC really came out in this game. With no depth in the backcourt, there was no one else to help when the starting guards were struggling. The defense was decent, but they couldn't score enough points. There was a lot of standing around as the Trojan players clearly were uncomfortable with each other.

USC Leaves Its Offense In LA originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seton Hall's Gonzo Channels His Inner-Nixon

Chas Rich — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:51:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall, Big East, Coaches, Media Watch

"The press is the enemy." President Richard M. Nixon.

There is no poll declaring the least popular coach in the Big East. That doesn't stop most from assuming that it would be Seton Hall head coach Bobby Gonzalez in a runaway. The excitable, brash and often obnoxious Gonzo is loathed by fans of other teams, disliked by most of his peers, continually berating refs, been chastised by the Big East Commissioner, and suspended for the start of the Big East season this year by his own athletic director.

Really that's quite a list in a little more than two years at Seton Hall.

Now it appears Gonzalez can add the media to that list of those with a distaste for him.
Okay, the paranoid Gonzalez already felt the media was against him, but with this broadside by Adam Zagoria there is little doubt.

Twice in recent days Gonzalez has openly threatened to cut off this reporter and SNY from covering his team because of comments I made during a recent interview with WSOU, Seton Hall's student radio station, the full transcript of which is available on my blog for anyone to read.

Gonzo made these threats once in an expletive-filled, three-way phone call with one of his assistants last Friday, and a second time in front of several Seton Hall staff members in a hallway at the Prudential Center after the Pirates beat Columbia on Sunday.

"Who the f--- are you?" Gonzalez screamed into the phone at me last week, with his assistant on the line. "Who the f--- do you think you are? I'll cut you off. I'll cut you off from my players." He also said he would somehow find a way to cut me off from the AAU coaches whose players consider Seton Hall.

That same scene was essentially repeated after the Columbia game with Gonzalez threatening to cut off SNY, the official home of the Big East Conference, with several staff members looking on.

But it's par for the course for Gonzo. He has also verbally abused and threatened my colleagues at SNY as well as writers from ESPN.com, SI.com, The Star-Ledger and the Courier News.

And that doesn't even cover what he says openly about The New York Post, which he tells everyone has an "agenda."

Zagoria is a reporter for SNY.tv, and a regular personality on SNY -- which has an exclusive deal with the Big East.

So far Bobby Gonzalez and Seton Hall have had no comment on something that has been getting more and more attention.

As is typical for any team where the coach or the program does not get positive treatment, the Seton Hall fans are behind Gonzalez and blame Zagoria for this. They accuse Zagoria for being unprofessional and running a hit piece on the coach. They point to coaches like Bobby Knight, Jim Calhoun and Rick Pitino as coaches who have engaged in similar behavior.

On the latter point, one commentor had a good response (a la Bull Durham) to that sort of argument.

Bottom line is this: Act like Gonzo and win, and you're 'colorful' and 'passionate.' Act like Gonzo and don't win, and you might find yourself looking for a job fairly soon. . .

Gonzo is definitely not winning.

As for the issue of Zagoria's professionalism, frankly this is refreshing. Everyone now knows what happened between the reporter and Gonzo. He didn't cover it up and then just take passive shots every time he would write about Gonzalez as many other writers do with a person they dislike.

Gonzalez had to labor for many years at Manhattan of the MAAC. This despite getting a squad to the NCAA Tournament a couple times and even upsetting Florida before getting a shot with Seton Hall. The stories have always been that his personality and behavior has held him back. Since he was in the MAAC, though, few took note. He's on a much bigger stage in the biggest conference. People notice now.

Seton Hall's Gonzo Channels His Inner-Nixon originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:51:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seton Hall Keeping Busy With the NCAA

Chas Rich — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 14:25:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall, Big East, Campus

For such a small school, they sure are forcing the NCAA to give them a lot of attention.

There was Michael Glover, being denied academic clearance by the NCAA after enrolling at Seton Hall. Glover decided to file a lawsuit against the NCAA. That went about as expected and has been dismissed.

Then there is the limbo status of Melvyn Oliver. Another academically shaky player that Bobby Gonzalez and Seton Hall signed. The NCAA Clearinghouse has yet to rule on him, and all leaked information suggests that he won't get eligible.

As if that wasn't enough, the Pirates took two transfers and are applying to get both waivers to play this season rather than sit out the season. Herb Pope, formerly of New Mexico State, and Keon Lawrence who used to be with Missouri.

While Lawrence is from New Jersey and has legitimate issues with a seriously ill parent, his academic status will not let him play until at least the second-half of the season, even if he does get the waiver.

As for Herb Pope, he has already had his application denied. So the Pirates are going to be very thin. Well, at least they have Robert "Stix" Mitchell -- a Duquesne transfer -- eligible this year.

As noted by others, all of these appeals and petitions to the NCAA by Seton Hall -- well players that are trying to get eligible to play at Seton Hall -- may be working against the school in the long term. While it's true that every case is treated on its individual merits, Seton Hall is in the middle of far too many of them not to attract extra scrutiny. While they may be treated fairly, they will also be examined much closer.

Seton Hall Keeping Busy With the NCAA originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Thu, 06 Nov 2008 14:25:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How I Spent My Summer Vacation: The Big East Conference (Part 1)

Chas Rich — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 09:36:00 EST

Filed under: Cincinnati, DePaul, Seton Hall, Syracuse, Big East

With the fall beginning and college basketball just around the corner, it's time to look back at what our favorite teams did during their summer vacations. Some did some good things; some had a bad time. So let's look back at who did what in our How I Spent My Summer Vacation series.

Today's look is the Big East Conference. Since the conference is a 16-team beast, this will be in two parts. Part 1 looks at the group of teams that missed the NCAA Tournament last season. Part 2 will look at the teams that made the NCAA Tournament.

The Big East sent half its teams to the NCAA Tournament. That was the good news. The bad news was that not a one made it to the Final Four, and even worse only two made it out of the opening weekend.

This year the Big East looks to be even better, with four teams being discussed as legitimate Final Four teams, and a lot of strong teams behind them. Some of these teams will make the NCAA Tournament, or at least be perched precariously on the bubble in March.

South Florida
It's been relatively quiet in Tampa. Stan Heath will be in his second year, and has to contend with the loss of center Kantrell Gransberry and a reliable double-double every night. The attrition that naturally occurs when a new coach takes over means an incoming class of six freshmen and two junior college players. Most intriguing among the new faces will be Gus Gilchrist, who may or may not be available. Gilchrist committed to VT but got his release after the tragic shooting because he decided to be closer to his family. He chose Maryland, but didn't realize that the ACC required him to sit out the first half of the season. He ended up never seeing a minute of playing time and transferred to USF, and is now seeking a hardship waiver.

Seton Hall
Bobby Gonzalez is still the head coach after an offseason that had tons of rumors suggesting the combustible Gonzo would be fired. He and his athletic director have a distinct distaste for each other. Gonzalez will serve a one-game suspension when Big East play begins for some of his antics. He's been unable to build any depth on the team because he takes chances on academically shaky kids, and several have been unable to qualify. That's led to one player filing a lawsuit against the NCAA. Gonzalez has also brought in a couple transfers -- Keon Lawrence, late of Missouri, and Herb Pope, from New Mexico State. Both planned to seek hardship waivers for family reasons, but Lawrence has academic issues that would prevent him from playing until the winter semester. Pope's hardship waiver is also shaky since he is going to a school nearly 500 miles from his family.

Rutgers
There's optimism that Rutgers is headed in the right direction, as they're actually bringing in talented players under Mike Hill. They have their first McDonalds All-American recruit in Mike Rosario coming in this season. Rosario, along with Greg Echenique, is going to see plenty of action early -- if he's not starting right away.

St. John's
To the surprise of many, Norm Roberts remains the head coach at St. John's. Even more surprising, he was given a new five-year extension. Granted, another bad season and that contract will be irrelevant, but it provided some security. The extension provided excitement on the recruiting front as four-star recruit Omari Lawrence chose the Red Storm over UConn, Arizona, Memphis, Louisville among many others. They are also in contention to land another top player in Durand Scott.

DePaul
Every year it seems, DePaul has a couple of potential star players, but little else around them to provide any consistent help. This has resulted in an annual struggle in the conference, and diminishing crowds at the Allstate Arena. Coach Jerry Wainwright gets talent, is respected as a coach, and is a media favorite. He also knows he has to win this season or else.

Cincinnati
This is year Mick Cronin is supposed to move to above .500, both overall and in the Big East. The depth and talent issues appear to be resolved. Last year, they struggled early in the season, but became a better and more dangerous team in the grind of conference play. They have Deonta Vaughn at the point to lead and score. Freshman forward Yancy Gates should start almost immediately, plus they have Mike Williams healthy this season.

Providence
The main thing Providence wanted to do was find a coach, after finally giving up on the Tim Welsh project. It took a lot longer than expected. First Providence alum and George Mason coach Jim Larranaga turned them down to stay at Mason for less money. Then they failed to lure Travis Ford from UMass, though after Ford got a raise from UMass he got more money to jump to Oklahoma State anyway. The third time was a charm with a coach who received several national coach of the year honors. Keno Davis was lured from Drake. There is talent on this squad and they can score. The challenge will be to get the players to understand the concept of stopping the other team -- an unfamiliar idea most call "playing defense."

Syracuse
Coach Jim Boeheim spent the summer in China as an assistant coach for the 2008 US Olympic basketball team. No doubt trying to forget a second consecutive missed trip to the NCAA Tournament. This team, however, seems unlikely to miss a third time. The Orange had addition-by-subtraction with the departure of talented but ball-hogging, defense-free Donte Greene. They also get addition by the return of guards Andy Rautins and Eric Devendorf. Rautins will help with depth and occasionally give point guard Jonny Flynn a breather. Devendorf will provide the energy and source of annoyance to opposing fans. As usual, Syracuse has an outstanding group of recruits led by forwards Mookie Jones and Wesley Johnson.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation: The Big East Conference (Part 1) originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Mon, 13 Oct 2008 09:36:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pope Reverses Course -- Again -- Now He Will Transfer to Seton Hall

Chas Rich — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:15:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall, Big East, Mid-Majors, Recruiting

Herb Pope has reversed course once more -- in just the space of a weekend -- and decided that yes, he will transfer from New Mexico State to Seton Hall. This is fascinating insofar as the three major perspectives of the decision: NMSU, Seton Hall and Herb Pope

The good news for New Mexico State and Marvin Menzies is that they won't have to wonder when Pope will consider another transfer or decide to turn pro. They don't have to be the team worried that he will do something else really stupid, and make them look like a program that will take any player with talent regardless of the baggage. On-the-court, another talented sophomore, Wendell McKines, is staying in Las Cruces after contemplating a transfer. So, there is that.

The downside is obviously losing a very talented, athletic power forward in Pope. After finally getting eligible, Pope immediately improved the Aggies and was very good. The Aggies also stood by Pope when he had to fight the NCAA over his academic eligibility. They didn't flinch when he got a charged with a DUI while still waiting to get approval from the NCAA. New Mexico State put a lot into getting Pope eligible to play, and only got 16 games out of it.
For Seton Hall, given Pope's history it is risk, but for Coach Bobby Gonzalez, it is desperately needed gamble. They are getting a very talented and athletic front court player -- one of their weakest areas. He has his eligibility issues squared away. This is Gonzalez's third year at Seton Hall, and the performance and recruiting have yet to match his proclamations. The fans seem firmly behind him -- on the message boards, though, not in the realm of filling the arena -- but the administration is less so. Gonzalez's big talk, confrontational and abrasive style is a lot less pleasant for those dealing directly with him.

He's also taken a lot of chances with academically shaky players. Power Forward/Center Mike Davis was originally a Pitt verbal for the 2005 season, but couldn't get academically eligible until 2007 -- as a freshman. Another, Michael Glover completely failed all NCAA eligibility requirements, and lost his longshot motion to get an injunction against the NCAA to let him play this year failed..

Seton Hall has to hope that Pope is as mature as he claims to be at this point. History says otherwise, but people do change. Plus, Pope has NBA potential so it is deeply in his interest to show he has more than a 10-cent-brain to go with the million-dollar-talent.

Gonzalez is hoping to get Pope eligible this year rather than waiting with a claim of family hardship, along with another transfer, Keon Lawrence, late of Missouri. Lawrence is from New Jersey and has a severely ill father.

So what is the hardship that pulls Pope from Las Cruces, New Mexico to East Orange, New Jersey?

"I have family matters back home and I wanted to get closer to the east coast," Pope said. "I am a father and I want to get closer to my daughter because I don't want her to go through the same things that I went through."

Foster homes were a part of Pope's life that he didn't want to share with his daughter. He is also close to his younger brother and sister in Aliquippa.

"I don't want them to go through foster care and endure some of the things that I had to," Pope said. "I'm a patriarch of my family, and whether I wanted to or not, I have excelled at that role."

That sounds good and noble. Until you realize that that family of which he speaks is in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania -- nearly 400 miles from Seton Hall's campus. Yes, it's closer than New Mexico State, but it's hardly playing in Pittsburgh (Robert Morris or Duquesne) or even Penn State. Suddenly it seems less about the family responsibility and more about the exposure of playing on the East Coast and in the Big East.

Pope Reverses Course -- Again -- Now He Will Transfer to Seton Hall originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seton Hall Is Not Firing Bobby Gonzalez

Charles Rich — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 23:43:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball, NCAA Basketball Coaches, NCAA Basketball Rumors, NCAA Basketball Video

At least not this week. Probably not this season.

Still it's never good when the school feels a need to issue a press release saying they have not fired their coach.

Seton Hall University President Monsignor Robert Sheeran issued the following statement on Monday regarding men's basketball head coach Bobby Gonzalez.
"Bobby Gonzalez is Seton Hall's Coach and will continue to be our coach as we move ahead.

"I can assure you all that Coach Gonzalez will continue to strengthen our men's basketball program and will be successful in all those areas that matter to the University, the student-athletes and the fans. He has the full support of my administration in doing this."

Well isn't that reassuring? There were rumors swirling of an imminent firing, that ostensibly prompted the need to comment.

This sort of thing always comes off like the NBC press conference in the 90s to announce Jay Leno was still the host of the Tonight Show after Letterman headed to CBS.

All this comes about after Seton Hall suspended Gonzalez for the first Big East game of the 2008-09 season. A sophomore guard who played in all 61 games in the two years of Gonzalez (and one of Gonzalez's first recruits) has decided to transfer. The AD and the coach seem to be at odds.

It's also a lousy time for this with the jockeying for the late signing period for 2008 recruits is underway. Gonzalez addressed the issues in an interview with MSG.

It is noticeable that Seton Hall Athletic Directer Joe Quinlan is not mentioned as someone who supports him.

The interview is part of why the Seton Hall fans love the guy. He's cocky, arrogant, more than a little bit of a jerk, but he also seems determined to win.

He also comes off as more than a little paranoid. Of course, I might be paranoid too if there were tons of rumors and stories swirling of my demise.

Seton Hall Is Not Firing Bobby Gonzalez originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 08 Apr 2008 23:43:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seton Hall Suspends Bobby Gonzalez for First Big East Game of Next Season

Josh Alper — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 18:20:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball, NCAA Basketball Coaches

It's another bad week for Bobby Gonzalez. Yesterday he got ripped by his athletic director for writing a column analyzing the NCAA tournament, which came on the heels of getting ripped by his athletic director for driving the wrong way down one-way streets near Seton Hall's campus, and today he got ripped for his behavior during the final Big East game of the year against Rutgers.

He also got suspended by the university for the first Big East game of next season and AD Joe Quinlan pulled no punches when explaining his decision.

"Bobby Gonzalez's criticism of Big East officials following the Seton Hall-Rutgers game on March 9 is unacceptable and is not representative of Seton Hall University athletics. The Big East provides the best roster of game officials for our students in the country. They represent the game and the conference with great integrity and dignity. We regret any embarrassment this episode may have brought to the Big East and our fellow institutions."

It certainly doesn't sound like Quinlan did a lot of tossing and turning over the decision. He and Gonzalez aren't destined for a long-term relationship. Unless he starts winning mighty quickly, I wouldn't put my money on Gonzalez as the last man standing either. You can get away with a lot when you win but Gonzalez hasn't done that and, given the strength of the Big East, it doesn't look like he's poised for a great leap forward.

Seton Hall Suspends Bobby Gonzalez for First Big East Game of Next Season originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 19 Mar 2008 18:20:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seton Hall Isn't Happy With Bobby Gonzalez

Josh Alper — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 17:55:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball

The first two years of the Bobby Gonzalez era haven't gone all that well for the coach or for Seton Hall. He's only managed a 30-31 record, reportedly exchanged punches with an assistant coach and could face a suspension, the first in Big East history, for his conduct in a late-season loss to Rutgers. Now comes word that the school is angry with their coach but not for any of the things previously listed. It's because he wrote a column for the New York Times with his thoughts on this year's tournament. Seton Hall AD Joe Quinlan explains:

"It could put the individual and the university in a less than favorable position. That's the equivalent of bulletin board material."

What might Pirate opponents use to motivate them next season? Well he picked Georgetown to go to the Final Four, said UConn could upset UCLA and mentioned that Syracuse should have made the field. Hard to see how that ruffles feathers. Honestly, Gonzalez's piece was a run of the mill insider piece that offered about as much bulletin board material as a bus schedule.

If teams pay attention to anything about this year's Seton Hall team, it will be their inability to make or defend shots. They finished 231st and 227th, respectively, in those percentages and are losing Brian Laing, by far their best player. All of which is far more damaging than picking UCLA over North Carolina in the finals.

Seton Hall Isn't Happy With Bobby Gonzalez originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 18 Mar 2008 17:55:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bobby Gonzalez Won't Get by on His Personality at Seton Hall

Charles Rich — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 10:35:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball, NCAA Basketball Coaches

There's a reason why it took Seton Hall Coach Bobby Gonzalez several years of laboring at Manhattan before getting a chance at a school in a major program. It isn't because he is a bad coach. In 8 years at Manhattan, he won 129 games, won the MAAC regular season title 3 times and the conference tourney twice. In 2004, his Jasper team knocked off 5 seed Florida. That's the sort of thing that usually gets a coach from a smaller program on a lot of "hot lists."

It wasn't because he didn't have the coaching connections. He was a longtime assistant of Pete Gillen at Xavier, Providence and Virginia. He even had famed sneaker camp legend, Sonny Vaccaro pushing him for major jobs as far back as 2003.

It wasn't because he can't recruit. He's tireless and dogged at that.

No, the reason Bobby Gonzalez couldn't get a better offer for years, is simply that the guy comes off as a complete and utter jerk. Maybe he really isn't, but his behavior suggests otherwise.

The season finale against Rutgers completely captured all aspects of why Gonzalez is so intensely disliked by other coaches and fans. Or at least his words after Seton Hall fell 64-61.
Rutgers won on a buzzer-beater 3 by J.R. Inman. Gonzalez handled it well.

Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez called it "the most crushing, disappointing loss in my life."
...
"I thought it was easier for them (Rutgers) to play today with no pressure, with nothing to lose," Gonzalez said. "Even though we're the better team and we've had a better season, it's a bad loss for us."

He was gracious about Inman.

"It was a miracle shot by Inman," said Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez, whose team dropped three straight and eight of 10 to close the regular season despite the bright blue blazor he wore. "He got lucky, he made the shot."

There was his typical on-the-court hysterics. Pounding the floor, screaming non-stop at the refs, charging out on the court. It landed him with a technical with 7:25 in the second half, ostensibly for leaving the coaches box. Rutgers Coach Fred Hill apparently left the coaches box himself a few minutes later but did not receive a technical. After the game, that was one of several things about which he complained after the game.

He also has this weird bit where he says he doesn't say something -- while saying it.

"Now again, I don't make excuses when we get beat. We didn't lose because of the officials. RUtgers won the game. JR Inman is a class kid. From what I understand, that kid has been maligned all year. He's had his ups and downs. I don't want to talk about someone else's players, I gotta worry about my own players."

Huh? Then he thought it was a good idea to question whether a Rutgers player was faking an injury -- while saying he wasn't questioning it.

Rutgers led, 60-59, with 43.7 seconds remaining, when Rutgers center Hamady Ndiaye was fouled by Laing while attempting a shot. Laing and John Garcia had left their feet to try to block the shot and Ndiaye's head appeared to bang off Garcia's and Laing's thighs. Ndiaye lay on the court for a moment and was removed from the game. Anthony Farmer, Rutgers' best free-throw shooter, came in to take the free throws.

Gonzalez implied that Ndiaye, who didn't return to the game, wasn't legitimately hurt and that Rutgers took advantage of the opportunity to replace a poor foul shooter with a player who shot 77.1 percent.

"I can't infer that someone faked an injury," Gonzalez said. "I don't want to infer that, because I'm not a doctor. So how do I know that somebody hurt their neck, and they happen to be a 53.8 percent free-throw shooter and they happen to sit down and they sub in Anthony Farmer for two free throws and he happens to be the best free-throw shooter on the team."

Thank goodness he didn't want to infer anything.

I mean, wow. That is accusing a college sophomore of faking a head and neck injury in the final minute of a game. All to avoid free throws. That's just crap behavior.

This is why Bobby Gonzalez has to win, and win soon at Seton Hall.

If you win and are a jerk, you get away with it. You are considered passionate, perhaps colorful. Maybe excitable. You "wear your emotions on your sleeve." The crappy behavior swept away because the wins are there.

If you are barely over .500 for the season and below that in conference, well the act wears thin quickly. The media may enjoy the show, but they will be taking shots at you and the school the entire time. The fans won't be able to stomach being painted as being like their coach and losing.

Bobby Gonzalez Won't Get by on His Personality at Seton Hall originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 11 Mar 2008 10:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bobby Gonzalez's Bad Week

Charles Rich — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 10:08:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball, NCAA Basketball Video

It wasn't a good week for Bobby Gonzalez. Reports surfaced that he got into an altercation with one of his assistants a couple weeks earlier -- with fists flying. Despite other sources saying the same thing, the Seton Hall Athletic Department stated they found no truth to the reports that Gonzalez got physical with assistant Scott Adabato.

Then came the St. John's game on Saturday. The Pirates were up 10 with under 5 minutes to go. They not only end up blowing the game to one of the most offensively anemic teams in the Big East, but are kept from clinching a spot in the Big East Tournament with a 65-62 loss. The final injury to the insult of the loss came at the very end where Seton Hall appeared to tie it up with a 60-foot heave from Jeremy Hazell. Except that Gonzalez had called time out, to draw up a play. Whoops.

Bobby Gonzalez's Bad Week originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Mon, 03 Mar 2008 10:08:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Seton Hall Coach Bobby Gonzalez Fought With Assistant at Halftime of Game

Michael David Smith — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 17:45:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball, NCAA Basketball Coaches

Citing "two independent sources," The Big Lead is reporting that Seton Hall head basketball coach Bobby Gonzalez had a halftime fight with an assistant coach during a game last weekend. The Big Lead's report follows up on an ESPN.com report that "a Big East coach who shall remain nameless" had a fight with an assistant.

I spoke with Seton Hall Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Communications Matt Sweeney this afternoon; he had no formal comment about the reports but told me that he attends every Seton Hall men's basketball game and had never heard anything about it.

The ESPN.com report, from the well regarded college sports writer Pat Forde, said that the unnamed coach "recently got into a halftime argument with one of his assistants in a hallway outside the locker room. According to a source, it escalated to the point where punches were thrown."

The Big Lead says two sources confirmed a confrontation between Gonzalez and an assistant on February 17, as Seton Hall was headed to the locker room for halftime, trailing West Virginia 45-30. But the report said the sources disagreed on the extent of the confrontation:

one source claims it was a very heated argument and other assistants intervened before punches were thrown; the other source claims punches were thrown

As The Big Lead notes, Gonzalez is a personable coach who is well liked by the media, and that could keep this bizarre story from having legs. But it sure sounds like a story that the college basketball media should be all over.

Report: Seton Hall Coach Bobby Gonzalez Fought With Assistant at Halftime of Game originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Thu, 28 Feb 2008 17:45:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Georgetown Wears Down Seton Hall

Charles Rich — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 14:07:00 EST

Filed under: Georgetown Basketball, Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball

Seton Hall has been one of the hottest teams in the Big East for the past two weeks. The big issue for them has been a lack of depth. They have some young talent and a good coach in Bobby Gonzalez, but they only go about 7 deep. They have two players who average over 36 minutes per game. The other problem for the Pirates is that they have no real inside presence. Against teams that play in the paint and have size, they just can't compete. It happened earlier against Pitt and Georgetown was more of the same. Georgetown won 73-61.

The Hoyas just pounded it inside. Seton Hall just kept falling further and further behind as the game continued. Trying to stay close, but didn't have the shooting.

Jeremy Hazell, who lit up Louisville last week from outside, couldn't find a bucket but kept firing (2-12 on 3s). Brian Laing and Eugene Harvey did what they could with 37 points combined, but the rest of the Pirates could only contribute 24 points on 7-29 shooting.

For Georgetown, it was workmanlike efforts from Roy Hibbert who had 16 points and 8 rebounds. Patrick Ewing, Jr. also had 16 and played great defense. Georgetown's one issue was struggling again on outside shooting, but didn't need to worry about it today.

Georgetown Wears Down Seton Hall originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 02 Feb 2008 14:07:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Big East Power Poll: Widening Mid-Section

Charles Rich — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 08:01:00 EST

Filed under: Georgetown Basketball, Pittsburgh Basketball, Connecticut Basketball, Louisville Basketball, Villanova Basketball, Syracuse Basketball, Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball

There are 10 teams in the Big East that are + or - 1 game of .500 in conference play through Sunday. Georgetown has been the only team near the top to start getting some real separation. On the other end, USF and St. John's are well on their way to assuring themselves of not making a trip to Madison Square Garden for the Big East Tournament.

Teams having the best week: Rutgers and UConn. The Scarlet Knights knocked off two top-25 teams for the first time in 5 years. The Huskies beat Marquette and #7 Indiana on the road showing that the potential of the young team is starting to be scratched.

Teams having the worst week: Villanova and St. John's. Blitzed by Rutgers and then lost at home to Notre Dame to slide below .500 in the conference. St. John's just doesn't look like they even want to compete after a certain point.
This ranking was composed before the Monday night Louisville-UConn game (otherwise, the Cards and Huskies would switch spots).

Georgetown -- They take every team's best shot. The games have been close, but they keep winning.
Louisville -- A very easy week with the two worst teams: USF and St. John's to let the young kids get some experience.
UConn -- After losing 3 straight, they then win 3 straight with two of the wins coming on the road. Huge week.
Notre Dame -- A road win, a road win. At long last, a road win.
Pitt -- Just hanging by a thread here. That Rutgers loss looked like a team wearing down from not enough bodies to play.
WVU -- I still can't be sure if it was a block or a goaltend. It's probably the difference between here or a few spots higher.
Syracuse -- They nearly took out the Hoyas in DC, then got past the only team that plays less defense than they do.
Marquette -- Win at home lose on the road. They have another surge in them, but right now they look confused.
Seton Hall -- They can score and play defense. They just don't have much depth.
Villanova -- A really bad week. Losing at the RAC badly and then not able to run with ND at home. Gave Rutgers their first BE win and ND their first road win of the season.
Cinci -- They had that UConn win before the dumb foul. Now, they have to show they can move past it. They didn't against Seton Hall.
DePaul -- A patsy non-con in late January? Okay. No shame in losing at the Bradley Center.
Rutgers -- Their best week in at least 5 years. The Scarlet Knights are shooting 55% in their past 3 games.
Providence -- Defense optional and Tim Welsh's assistants should update their resumes.
USF -- The deeper the schedule goes, the worse they look.
St. John's -- Norm Roberts got the Isiah Thomas treatment at MSG as they were destroyed by Pitt.

This was they way the rankings looked last week. The full power poll of all Big East bloggers is here.

Big East Power Poll: Widening Mid-Section originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 29 Jan 2008 08:01:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Interviewer Wishes Seton Hall Coach 'Continued Good Sex in the Big East'

Michael David Smith — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 11:19:00 EST

Filed under: Seton Hall Basketball, NCAA Basketball Media Watch

We all have slips of the tongue at times, but announcer Jim Spanarkel, speaking with Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez commits a rather bad one:

It sounds like a typical post-game interview, as Gonzalez says about Seton Hall's fans, "The emotion, the energy, the buzz in the building, just spectacular, they were our sixth man, and it really was a special, special win for them."

And then Spanarkel says, "Congratulations. Continued good sex in the -- ugh, sex -- in the Big East." He was trying to say "success," but he never did quite manage to say it.

Video via Ballhype.

UPDATE: Thanks to the commenter who informed me of the announcer's name.
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Interviewer Wishes Seton Hall Coach 'Continued Good Sex in the Big East' originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 25 Jan 2008 11:19:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nothing Is Certain on the Big East Road

Charles Rich — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 22:44:00 EST

Filed under: Louisville Basketball, Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball

A Rick Pitino coached team has never suffered a loss to Seton Hall. Wherever he was coaching, if his team played Seton Hall it would be a win. The Cardinals looked like they were rounding into form on both ends of the court. They had won 4 straight and in their last 3 games, they held opponents to just over 51 points per game.

Seton Hall hardly looked good. They had finally gotten their first conference win against woeful USF, but outside of a November win over Virginia they had 0 wins over quality opponents. The Pirates lack of size inside has killed them against teams like Pitt and UConn. Now they had to face Louisville with Palacios, Padgett and Caracter.

Several times it looked like Louisville was going to blow the game wide open. They had 12 point leads twice in the first half, and a 14 point lead with a little more than 12 minutes left in the game. Each time, the Pirates made big charges to get close. At halftime, the Cardinals only had a two point lead.
Louisville showed remarkable inconsistency on the defense, when they built a lead. Louisville inexplicably get lazy on defense. Leaving the lanes open for penetration and inexplicably sagging off the perimeter to let Seton Hall get good looks on 3s. This, despite little inside presence by Seton Hall -- the Cardinals completely controlled the boards.

Wing forward Brian Laing brought Seton Hall back he would go inside and attack mostly, but also sank a couple threes to keep the defense from crowding him. The Pirates closed to within 5 and then Freshman guard Jeremy Hazell couldn't miss. He took and made four straight 3s from all around the arc. By the time Louisville was able to defend him, they were down 4 with 3 minutes remaining.

Louisville absolutely collapsed offensively. They looked panicked and rushed. They turned the ball over a few times, missed all of their shots and suddenly couldn't get an offensive rebound. Despite that, the Pirates gave the Cardinals a chance by making only 4-12 free throws in the final minutes. Seton Hall still got the big win over Louisville, 92-82.

Nothing Is Certain on the Big East Road originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 19 Jan 2008 22:44:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seton Hall Bruises but Loses to Marquette

Charles Rich — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 00:45:00 EST

Filed under: Marquette Basketball, Seton Hall Basketball, Big East Basketball

In a very physical and surprisingly defensive battle, Marquette was able to get past Seton Hall 61-56. Marquette spent most of the game trailing Seton Hall, before taking the lead with under 6. The Golden Eagles briefly were able to break out and get baskets in transition, while Seton Hall went cold. Marquette went on a 16-6 run over 8 minutes about halfway through the second half to take the lead and the game.

It should have been easier for Marquette. Seton Hall was without guard Paul Gause, the Pirates best defender. Gause broke a knuckle in his not-shooting hand last week. Marquette with its trio of guards plus Acker and Cubillan off the bench should have been able to overwhelm Seton Hall on the perimeter and off the dribble.

Instead, the Golden Eagles had a second straight game of poor shooting. They shot below 33% and showed little flow or consistency. Marquette's guards shot 14-45. Marquette also struggled with the way the game was called. The officials spent most of the game letting the teams play and not calling much contact inside. That allowed Seton Hall to stay in the game. The Pirates were able to clog the inside with their big men without picking up too many fouls off of drives or dishes inside when the shots were contested.

Ultimately, the short bench of Seton Hall caught up to them. Jamar Nutter fouled out before the 4 minute mark . Nutter was the only Seton Hall player to make a three in the game, which meant Marquette was able to crowd inside on defense to prevent Seton Hall from getting the ball in the paint.

Seton Hall Bruises but Loses to Marquette originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 09 Jan 2008 00:45:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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