COLLEGE NOTEBOOK

He transformed Cal State Fullerton’s basketball program into a winner, capping his debut season as head coach with an upset of then 25th-ranked Nevada Las Vegas at Fullerton in the Titans’ final game of the season.

In the process, former Crescenta Valley High and UCLA standout Brad Holland earned consideration for Big West Conference coach of the year. The rookie coach with a Woodenesque approach looked like an old pro.

Coming to the Titans after a four-year stint as an assistant to Jim Harrick at UCLA, Holland, 36, knew much of what to expect--pressure, long days, long nights.

He didn’t know about the graveyard shift.

“Head coaches don’t sleep very much--or very well,” said Holland, who led Fullerton to its first winning season in four years with a 15-12 record. “The pressure is much different, the focus is much different.

“The game planning, the practice planning, the recruiting, the different venues and different coaching styles you’re competing against. You feel like the entire program is on your shoulders.

“I couldn’t get my mind to shut down at night. I was constantly thinking about our team and how to better ourselves.”

The Titans were picked to finish ninth in a Big West preseason poll. They tied UC Santa Barbara for fifth with a 10-8 record, beating every team in the conference with the exception of New Mexico State.

In addition to insomnia, Holland was beset with other problems. Two of his starters played despite stress fractures in their feet. And, in keeping with former UCLA Coach John Wooden’s staunch regard for discipline, Holland suspended four players--three of them starters--in the midst of a winning streak.

“I believe so much in his philosophies and his principals that I’ve definitely blended them with my own,” said Holland, who played for Gene Bartow and Gary Cunningham at UCLA. “Our team was hungry. They were very open to the new leadership and direction.”

After his playing career in the NBA was cut short because of knee injuries, Holland went into business as a commercial printer and later as executive director of the National Athletic Health Institute, a subsidiary of Centinela Hospital Medical Center.

But the coaching bug hit him during a stint as a college basketball color commentator for Prime Ticket between 1985 and ’88. Then Harrick hired him.

“I’m really glad I made that move,” Holland said. “It’s nice to be in the game. I feel like I’m doing what I was meant to be doing.”

Diaper dandy?: Jeff Garner (Rio Mesa) led Hawaii-Hilo in scoring for the second season in a row, but his average dipped from 21.4 points to 18.2.

“Opponents guarded me closer,” Garner said. “Plus, I had a better supporting cast.”

He didn’t mention one other possible factor for the drop-off: Kelsey, his 9-month-old daughter. Garner, a senior, has had to balance basketball and fatherhood while adjusting to island life, frequent trips to the mainland and tougher academics.

At home, Garner and his wife, Melissa, feed and care for the baby in shifts. “Luckily, she’s a really good baby,” Garner said. “She sleeps at night and I get my rest.”

Checking the fax: With his final two games coming in the NCAA tournament last weekend, New Mexico State’s Sam Crawford (Moorpark College) moved into fourth place on the Big West Conference all-time assists list with 592. . . .

Freshman reserve Tim Sebek (Nordhoff) sparked Azusa Pacific en route to the NAIA District 3 championship. He averaged 21 minutes, six points, five rebounds and 2.5 assists in the District 3 tournament. . . . Senior Kenny Hicks (Notre Dame) was a substitute at Stanford but he appeared in 104 games in his career. This season, he averaged 5.5 points and 15.1 minutes.