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Georgetown Basketball: May 2006 News Archive

Early Draft Talk 5/30/06

The 2006 NBA draft is still four weeks away, but the online press is already speculating on the 2007 draft, according to this item from CBS Sportsline.com.

Staff writer Greg Doyel suggests that rising juniors Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert may be 2007 draft candidates. "Both have a ways to go to become good pros...but with their NBA size and solid tools, they'd be silly not to at least gauge their draft stock in 2007."

Class of 2006 5/28/06

A recap of the graduation ceremonies of the Class of 2006 is found at this link to GUHoyas.com.

The article updates a long-running statistic used in previous years by the basketball office, that all but two basketball players that completed their eligibility at Georgetown have graduated since 1972.

ESPN: Text Messaging Raising Concerns 5/28/06

An ESPN broadcast this past weekend discusses the issue of recruiting and text messaging. At issue is an NCAA rule against telephone conversations between a coach and a recruit (or his parents), but not text messaging, which is a form of contact specifically excluded from the definition in the NCAA rule book. Georgetown, cited in the article, declined comment for the story.

Discussions to changing NCAA rules with regard to text messaging may come as soon as next month, according to the online article.

Big East Nears TV Deal 5/26/06

Three seasons ago, doom and gloom were a twin bill on the Big East scene.

Three schools were leaving for the ACC, while Syracuse fell one vote short of an invitation. Schools in the football half of the league began meetings in an ill-fated attempt to dissolve the conference. Other schools like Georgetown were caught in a precarious position for its entire athletic program.

Three years later, with five new schools and a year of the 16 team configuration in the record books, the outlook is markedly more upbeat.

"If we brought our presidents in and told them all that they could leave tomorrow with no obligations, they wouldn't leave and neither would any of the ADs," Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese said Thursday in this link from ESPN.com. "There is a renewed sense of optimism with the success we've had in football, basketball and the contract negotiations [for TV rights] that we're all excited about."

TV rights are expected to reach an all-time high for the conference, according to the article. Among the games noted as attracting renewed TV rights interest was the conference semifinal between Georgetown and Syracuse, which drew the highest rating for a conference tournament semifinal in 10 years.

Jackson Named Coaching Candidate At UNO 5/24/06

Georgetown alumnus and former assistant coach Jaren Jackson is among the candidates for the vacant coaching post at the University of New Orleans, reports the New Orleans Times Picayune.

Following his year as a Georgetown assistant (2003-04), Jackson has coached in the American Basketball Association and Continental Basketball Association, and was named CBA coach of the year following the 2005-06 season.

"Jaren is a very impressive young man. He's got a lot of great qualities," said UNO athletic director Jim Miller. "We're going to have five great choices. You could put the five against a wall, throw a dart, and I would be happy with any of the five."

Tagliabue Speaks At Commencement 5/19/06

The extended commencement ceremonies for the Class of 2006 opened with an address from alumnus Paul Tagliabue (C'62), who is nearing retirement as NFL commissioner.

"How you and your generation deal with change, and the pace of change -- how you deal with diversity and human differences around the globe -- these will profoundly shape your life, and the life of our nation and the world in this new century," said Tagliabue in this article from the Associated Press.

A copy of Tagliabue's speech was posted at NFL.com. Recommended reading.

Rienzo Selected To NACDA Hall of Fame 5/17/06

Congratulations to Director of Athletics Emeritus Frank Rienzo, who has been selected for the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Hall of Fame, it was announced Tuesday.

Rienzo has been a part of the Georgetown family since 1969, when he joined the department as its track and field coach. He served as athletic director from 1972-1995, a period of unprecedented growth and development for athletics at the University. Rienzo remains active within the department as well as with efforts for the Georgetown Scholarship Program, an alumni-based initiative to promote annual giving to fund need-based financial aid.

Rienzo will be honored next month at NACDA's annual convention.

2006-07 Big East Women's Scheduling 5/12/06

The Big East conference has announced the rotation of games for for the 2006-07 women's basketball season.

Unlike the men's schedule, women's basketball teams play all 15 schools with one school played both home away. Georgetown will play Cincinnati home and away, with additional home games against Connecticut, Louisville, Marquette, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Villanova, and West Virginia. Road games will be at DePaul, Notre Dame, Providence, Rutgers, St. John's, Seton Hall, and South Florida.

While the average records of home and road opponents are comparable (an average record of 19-11 for home opponents, 18-12 on the road), the road schedule could be considerably tougher for a Georgetown team looking to improve on a 3-13 Big East mark. Five of the eight road games are against teams which qualified for the 2005 NCAA tournament.

Driesell Considered For Md. Coaching Staff 5/8/06

Chuck Driesell, who was an assistant coach at Georgetown in the 2003-04 season, is a candidate to become an assistant at Maryland, reports the Maryland Diamondback. Driesell is a 1985 graduate of Maryland, where his father coached the men's basketball team from 1969 through 1986.

Big East Schedule Changes 5/4/06

The Big East may consider a more balanced men's schedule in 2007-08, per this item at ESPN.com.

Georgetown played 13 of 15 Big East opponents in 2005-06, skipping games with Seton Hall and Louisville under the current scheduling formula, and will follow a similar setup in 2006-07. The proposed changes would have each school play once with one home and away game for 16 games, or possibly expanding the conference schedule to 18 games with three home and away games.

Basketball's Top 100 5/1/06

A recent topic on the HoyaTalk board discussed who would be included on an all-time Georgetown team, owing to the upcoming centennial of the program in 2007. With the anniversary in mind, the Basketball History Project will debut an six month series beginning in July to count down (unofficially, of course) the 100 greatest players of the last 100 years, complete with extended career statistics and a recap of these players' finest moments as a player for the Hoyas. More on this project as it develops.

Thompson's WTEM Show Expands 5/1/06

Two months after his 1999 resignation, John Thompson was asked to host a one hour show on WTEM-AM called "Time Out with Thompson". That part-time assignment has grown into a local ratings phenomenon in afternoon radio, where The John Thompson Show will now expand from two to four hours daily beginning today, according to the Washington Business Journal.

"John brings more than just scores, it is his personal relationships with players and his innate ability to humanize the overall athletic experience that has earned him the respect of so many sports fans," said Gabe Hobbs, a Clear Channel Radio vice president, in a February press release on the show. Thompson was signed to a lifetime contract by WTEM earlier this year in recognition of his work over the last six years at the station.

Hoyas On The Court 5/1/06

Over the weekend, the Chicago Tribune provides a look at two Georgetown big men in the NBA playoffs: Chicago Bulls center Mike Sweetney (ex '04) and Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning (C'92).

"He ran into the post and I gave him a nudge in the back," Sweetney said on their first meeting on the court in a recent game. "He missed the ball well over his head. He got mad."

Mourning helped Sweetney develop his game during off-seasons at Georgetown and told the Tribune it was important for him to pass along the teaching that he had learned from another alumnus, Patrick Ewing (C'85).

"I remember when Patrick instilled some good habits in me," said Mourning earlier this season. "He helped me understand how to approach the professional game...I think a lot of young players don't understand that your body is your livelihood. "It's important you do all the proper things to take care of it, whether it's stretching, lifting or working on your game all around. Having someone like Patrick [helping] me, I wanted to share it with the next person."

HOYA Year In Review 5/1/06

Friday's issue of The HOYA featured its Year In Review, with plenty of coverage on the basketball season just concluded. Check it out.

 
 

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