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1 BLACK E10 DAILY 03-22-07 MD M2 E10 BLACK E10 Thursday, March M2 The Washington Post 22, 2007 NCAA Tournament WEST & EAST REGION NOTEBOOK UCLA’s Howland Is Mentor Illini Official To His Pupil, Pitt Coach Dixon Will Not Be By Marc Carig to one another like football coach- until a frightening collision with an Washington Post Staff Writer es,” former Pittsburgh athletic di- opposing player nearly killed him rector Steve Pederson said. and ruptured his spleen. Dixon Disciplined SAN JOSE, March 21 — A few “That’s how in sync they were with was laid up for nearly three years ago, when Ben Howland was one another. And that’s what months, and he used the time to Associated Press the coach at Pittsburgh, he trav- makes this especially unique.” think about his future. He soon BY PAUL SAKUMA — ASSOCIATED PRESS BY RICH PEDRONCELLI — ASSOCIATED PRESS eled home to Santa Barbara, Calif., Howland and Dixon formed joined Howland on Jerry Pimm’s Pitt Coach Jamie Dixon, left, and UCLA Coach Ben Howland, right, worked The University of Illinois will to be with his ailing father and left their bond over two decades as col- staff at UC-Santa Barbara. together at three college programs. “We’re very close,” Dixon said. not discipline Athletic Director the coaching duties to assistant Ja- leagues, then best friends. They When Howland caught his first Ron Guenther for yelling at men’s mie Dixon. Howland watched the cut their teeth in the coaching pro- head coaching break at Northern on the new coach’s contract when said. “I was touched by that.” basketball coach Bruce Weber and Panthers play at then-No. 9 Syra- fession together, revived a mori- Arizona in 1994, he persuaded he submitted demand No. 1 — lur- When Howland left Pittsburgh, the Fighting Illini players during cuse on television from a restau- bund program at Northern Ari- Dixon to join the staff. The two im- ing Dixon, then on the staff at Ha- his daughter Meredith remained at the team’s NCAA tournament loss rant. Despite being an entire conti- zona and later did the same at mediately hit the road together waii, to Pittsburgh. the university as a student. She Friday. nent away, when Howland reacted Pittsburgh. with a shoestring budget, staying “That was one of the greatest re- babysat Dixon’s two children and Guenther yelled substitution ad- to the images on the screen, his as- When Howland’s second-seeded with Dixon’s parents during cruiting jobs of all time,” Howland is still a frequent visitor to Dixon’s vice to Weber — who was just a few sistant coach responded. UCLA Bruins face Dixon’s third- Southern California recruiting said. home, where she uses the coach’s feet away — and also yelled “War- “Okay, Jamie, you’ve got to call seeded Pittsburgh Panthers in the trips. After two seasons in Flag- The relationship grew to anoth- satellite dish to catch UCLA ren, you idiot” after a play by Illini timeout,” Howland said. Within West Region semifinals Thursday staff, Ariz., the Lumberjacks went er level in Pittsburgh. As the Pan- games. forward Warren Carter, according seconds, Dixon called timeout. night, the basketball soul mates from afterthoughts to winners of at thers flourished on the court, How- “It’s obvious we’re very close,” to a report on Sportsline.com. “Okay, we’ve got to get so-and-so will face off for the first time. least 20 games three seasons in a land and Dixon grew even closer. Dixon said. “But our families are Guenther also pounded the table back in the game,” Howland said. “I think it’s inevitable it was go- row. Most importantly, their families even closer. It’s about a friend- throughout Illinois’ 54-52 loss to Within seconds, Dixon made the ing to happen,” said Dixon, who Howland’s work at Northern became intertwined, a link that ship more so than a basketball Virginia Tech in Columbus, Ohio. switch. “So-and-so is killing us on took over three years ago, after Arizona caught the attention of Pe- still exists today. business relationship. I think it’s a Richard Herman, chancellor at defense; you’ve got to get him out Howland left for Westwood. derson, who wanted to revive When Jamie’s sister, Maggie family friendship, two guys that the Urbana-Champaign campus, of there,” Howland said. Within Dixon, whom Howland first saw Pittsburgh’s ailing basketball pro- Dixon, died suddenly 11 months have been there through some dif- said yesterday that Guenther — in seconds, Dixon pulled the player. as a player while recruiting as an gram. ago, the Dixon family asked How- ficult times in recent years be- his 15th year as AD at Illinois — “You would have thought they assistant at UC-Santa Barbara, Pederson hired Howland in land to serve as a pallbearer. tween the both of us. We’ve both would not be disciplined. He said were wearing headphones, talking played professionally in Europe 1999, and the ink was still drying “It really meant a lot,” Howland been there for each other.” Guenther had apologized to Weber and Carter. UNC’s Terry Ailing The Hoyas’ North Carolina senior Reyshawn Terry has strep throat, but was ex- pected to play against Southern Success California in tomorrow’s East Re- gion semifinal. Terry has been sick for nearly a Starts With week, starting when he missed the shoot-around because of a head- ache and fever before the Tar Defense Heels’ second-round win against Michigan State. HOYAS, From E1 Terry followed that by missing two days of practice. The school backbone. Georgetown, which said Terry was improving and faces Vanderbilt on Friday, ranks didn’t have a fever yesterday. fifth in the nation in field goal de- The 6-foot-8 Terry is averaging fense, limiting opponents to just 9.8 points for the Tar Heels (30-6). 38.2 percent shooting. Hall of Fame Coach John All Aboard Thompson Jr., who took the Hoyas to 20 NCAA tournaments, Coming off the school’s worst turned defense into a weapon in finish in the Ivy League, Joe Scott the 1980s. His Georgetown teams left Princeton and signed a five- used full-court pressure to wear year contract to become the new down and intimidate opponents; coach at Denver. they were aggressive, smothering, Scott had a 38-45 record in three attacking. seasons at Princeton, including an “We used our defense to score,” 11-17 record this past season. Thompson Jr. said. “That’s what Scott replaces Terry Carroll, pressure defense does: They go af- who was fired after six seasons at ter you, they go after steals, they Denver after taking an extended try to force you to play at a tempo leave of absence. The Pioneers where they can get up and down in went 4-25 this season and finished transition. [Coach John Thomp- last in the Sun Belt West Division son III’s] Georgetown is not a at 3-15. transition team. But it plays solid, BY JOHN MCDONNELL — THE WASHINGTON POST Former Kansas star Danny Man- sound defense, and very good de- The Hoyas, who rank 5th in the nation in field goal defense, can turn a blocked shot by Roy Hibbert (55) into a fast break, here started by Jonathan Wallace. ning will become an assistant for fense.” the Jayhawks next season. These Hoyas occasionally use players — Hibbert, Green (6-9), The key is communicating with father and Dikembe [Mutombo], ponent gets. They’re great defen- Manning, who led the Jayhawks full-court presses, and they will freshman DaJuan Summers (6-8), each other and staying disci- but we feel that if we make teams sively because they really distract to their last national NCAA cham- sometimes trap out of their half- junior reserve Patrick Ewing Jr. plined. Sapp is quick and strong take tough, contested twos in- and minimize the quality of shot pionship in 1988, is wrapping up court man-to-man. The one thing (6-8) and freshman reserve Ver- — two of his career-high five stead of wide-open threes, that that their opponent gets.” his fourth season at Kansas as team this team has in common with the non Macklin (6-9) — and they try steals against Boston College were helps us out a lot.” That kind of defense, combined manager and director of student- great ones of the 1980s and early to take advantage of that by con- the result of stripping the ball In the past 13 games, only one with such an efficient and deliber- athlete development. His will re- 1990s is a big man in the middle. stantly keeping their arms up on from 6-7 Jared Dudley — but Sapp team has shot better than 40 per- ate offense, makes it difficult for place Tim Jankovich, who will be- Roy Hibbert, a 7-foot-2 junior, is defense. says he carefully picks his spots to cent against the Hoyas; Syracuse opposing teams. The Hoyas are come head coach at Illinois State. not yet in the same class as Patrick “Maybe they don’t have that go for steals, because he doesn’t made 44.4 percent of its shots in shooting 50.5 percent (fourth in Ewing Sr., Alonzo Mourning and [defensive] swagger in a 1980s want to be out of position and put its 72-58 win on Feb. 26. Pitts- the country), and they are willing Drake Coach Retiring Dikembe Mutombo — each of Big East sort of way, but in a new his teammates at a disadvantage.