UCI, Baker Negotiating

UC Irvine was continuing contract negotiations with Seton Hall assistant Rod Baker on Tuesday, a day when the school had hoped to announce Baker as its men’s basketball coach.

Baker was offered the job and flew to Southern California on Monday to formally accept, sources said. UC Irvine had moved to reserve a room on campus for a news conference Tuesday, but by Tuesday morning the request had been canceled, a school official said.

Contract proposals had been submitted, but not finalized. Some issues were still being negotiated Tuesday.

A mandatory team meeting also was called for Tuesday, but players expecting to meet their new coach were told no one had been hired.

Baker, a former head coach at Tufts University, was one of at least 12 candidates Irvine met with, and one of at least two who was interviewed twice. Baker met with school officials once late last month, and once last Thursday.

Arizona assistant Jessie Evans, one of four finalists, also interviewed twice, but had not been contacted Monday or Tuesday.

Another finalist, Princeton assistant Jan van Breda Kolff, declined to comment Tuesday when reached in New Jersey, but said he had not been told he was out of the running when Irvine called him this week.