COLLEGE BASKETBALL / GENE WOJCIECHOWSKI : Maybe They Can Call It the Pac-Tex

As the Pacific 10 Conference slowly--perhaps too slowly for its own good--positions itself for inevitable expansion, the question of who, when and how many becomes an issue.

The league has to expand. If it doesn’t, the Pac-10 soon will find itself choking on the exhaust fumes of the Southeastern, Big Ten and Atlantic Coast conferences.

After all, this isn’t about pride, it’s about money. The stronger the conference, the stronger the clout. The stronger the clout, the better chance of athletic directors hearing that magical sound: cha-ching .

As usual, Pac-10 Commissioner Tom Hansen isn’t saying much about expansion, other than it remains a possible priority. But others, including a high-ranking athletic department official at the University of Texas, are talking, albeit off the record.

According to the Longhorn official, two factors could hasten Texas’ departure, possibly to the Pac-10: 1) The NCAA’s recent decision to place Texas A&M; on five years’ probation, including next season without TV and bowl appearances; 2) The upcoming College Football Assn. deal with the TV networks.

Without Texas A&M;, the Southwest Conference, of which Texas is a member, loses precious TV revenue and publicity. “I think it could open the door,” the Texas official said. “And the CFA TV deal is going to be crucial.”

That’s because Texas has about a $20-million athletic department budget. Someone has to pay for it and it isn’t going to be Bevo.

“(SWC Commissioner Steve) Hatchell is trying to avoid (losing Texas),” the Longhorn official said. “He says, ‘You guys are staying.’ I know we’re definitely committed for two years (through 1995).”

After that, who knows? Texas vs. UCLA at Pauley for the Pac-10 championship?

There are problems, of course. Texas might not be interested in a partnership, especially when it comes to football. Oregon State vs. Texas doesn’t do much for the Longhorn sensibilities.

And then there is this matter of approval. According to the Texas official, at least one Pac-10 school has made it previously clear that it wouldn’t be in favor of adding the Longhorns.

In the end, Texas might stay put because of Hatchell’s longstanding friendship with Longhorn Athletic Director DeLoss Dodds.

“Hatchell and DeLoss are tight,” said another source familiar with the situation. “That might be enough to save Texas from leaving.”

For now.

PLENTY OF SEATS AVAILABLE

After conducting a detailed examination of the Tennessee basketball program last year, Athletic Director Doug Dickey proclaimed the patient in good health, so much so that he extended the contract of Coach Wade Houston through the 1995-96 season.

Yes, well, perhaps it’s time to check the pulse again.

Not only are the Volunteers 2-9 (0-3 in Southeastern Conference play), but the school isn’t being helped financially, either. So dreadful has been the attendance at massive Thompson-Boling Arena that you could take the combined crowd counts from Tennessee’s first four home games and it still wouldn’t be enough to fill the 24,535-seat facility.

At last check, the Volunteers were averaging a turnstile count of 5,449 through their first six games. As recently as the 1987-88 season, the average turnstile attendance was 14,993.

Meanwhile, the Lady Volunteers, ranked No. 1 in the country, recently drew a crowd of 15,312 at Thompson-Boling for a game against Louisiana State. In fact, the women’s team has a higher per-game turnstile average than the men: 5,481 (through seven games) to 5,449.

“The players have to generate the enthusiasm,” said Houston, a decent man who happens to be caught between a rock and a pink slip. “If that happens, I think the crowd will get behind the team, make a lot of noise and support the team.”

Houston shouldn’t hold his breath. The story goes that someone recently called the Tennessee basketball ticket office in search of a starting time for an upcoming game.

“What time is tipoff?” the caller asked.

“What time can you be here?” came the reply.

Barring a miracle turnaround, Dickey has some sticky decisions to make. He can stand by his man, but risk seeing more empty seats. He can jettison Houston at season’s end, but risk incurring the wrath of the Black Coaches Assn.

If he fires Houston, the possible candidates are endless. Does Dickey make another run at Florida State’s Pat Kennedy, who turned down the job to begin with? Does he go after Tulane’s Perry Clark? Or, in a daring try, does he court longtime Tennessee recruiting nemesis Larry Finch of Memphis State?

PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES

St. Joseph’s loss to Rhode Island last Sunday shouldn’t come as a surprise. After all, this was the only team in America with train lag.

The original travel itinerary called for St. Joseph’s to leave Friday for Saturday’s game against the Rams. Instead. . . .

The Hawks arrived at the Philadelphia airport for their 4 p.m. flight. It was delayed once, twice, and then canceled because of the snowstorm that hit the Northeast.

St. Joseph’s Coach John Griffin and his team returned to the airport the next morning for a 10 o’clock flight. It was canceled. They booked seats on the 1 p.m. flight. It was canceled.

With no way to make the Saturday game in time, the contest was rescheduled for Sunday. To get to Kingston, R.I., the Hawks boarded a 1:30 p.m. train, arriving about six hours later.

“It’s kind of the way teams used to travel years ago, when planes weren’t so accessible,” Griffin said.

Griffin wasn’t in such a nostalgic mood during the trip. Because every seat was taken, the coaches, players, trainers and managers spent nearly the first two hours of the ride stuck between cars with all their equipment and luggage. It wasn’t until later that the team was able to store its baggage and actually sit down.

“It wasn’t exactly what you’d call first-class travel,” Griffin said.

Which brings us to Griffin’s newest request to Atlantic 10 Conference executives. “I’m waiting for the league to bring in a southern team so we don’t have to worry about these things,” he said.

Last year, during a trip to St. Bonaventure, Griffin watched in amazement as the team bus left the Buffalo Airport without the team. A replacement bus was ordered, but its windshield was shattered by heavy clumps of snow, the result of an over-efficient snowplow driver who cleared the stuff from an overpass just as the St. Joseph’s vehicle approached.

THE TOPS AND FLOPS

Five early-season surprises:

STANFORD--Seven victories last season, nine already this season.

WEST VIRGINIA--Upset of Temple was no fluke. Better yet, whiner extraordinaire Don Nehlen isn’t the coach.

MONTANA--A polite round of applause, please, for the Grizzlies’ 13-0 start.

ST. LOUIS--Last year, Coach Charlie Spoonhour’s first at St. Louis, he more than doubled the number of Billiken victories, from five to 12. This season, his team is 12-0, which means he might double the victories again.

PURDUE--With Glenn Robinson, the Boilermakers are off to a 14-0 start. Without him, they’re Oswego State.

HONORABLE MENTION: Northwestern.

Five early-season disappointments:

GEORGETOWN--The Hoyas, the preseason choice to win the Big East title, are off to an uninspired start.

TEXAS--Lots of talent, but only 7-6.

TEXAS A&M--So; much for the Aggie renaissance.

THE PATRIOT LEAGUE--Earlier in the week, seven of the eight teams had losing overall records. Only Navy had a .500 mark.

MEMPHIS STATE--A penny for Larry Finch’s thoughts. Finch knew he would miss Anfernee Hardaway, but not this much.

HONORABLE MENTION: Miami.

THE REST

Connecticut’s victory over Syracuse on Monday night gave the Huskies their first 4-0 start in the Big East Conference. UConn, 13-1 overall, is still trying to figure out how it lost to Ohio of the Mid-American Conference. . . . The SEC schedule is only about three games old, but already there is a groundswell of support for Georgia as the team most capable of unseating Kentucky as the Eastern Division champion. All things considered, the Bulldogs might have the most talent in the league, as evidenced by their recent upset of the Wildcats. “We’re going to find out if we can handle prosperity,” Georgia Coach Hugh Durham said. “There’s one thing you have to understand about the Kentuckys and Arkansas: they can handle prosperity because they keep winning.”

Chris Webber, he isn’t, but 6-foot-8 freshman forward Makhtar Ndiaye will be a welcome addition at Michigan. The Wolverines are in dire need of rebounding and depth on the inside. Ndiaye, who chose Michigan over UCLA, originally signed with Wake Forest, but was later ruled ineligible there because of NCAA recruiting violations. . . . North Carolina was the preseason No. 1, lost it and got it back, but is likely to lose it again after being routed by Georgia Tech, 89-69, Wednesday night. Kentucky Coach Rick Pitino said earlier in the week that he sees upsets aplenty for the nation’s top teams, now that conference schedules have begun. “Unless you play in a weak league, where you can dominate a league, (the upsets) are going to happen every week,” he said. “I think Duke and Carolina will get beat in the league. Indiana, Purdue, Wisconsin . . . will get beat in the league.” The same goes for teams in the Big East and all the major conferences, Pitino said. “I think you will see lots of changes (in the rankings),” he said. “The key is not to lose at home. That’s the key to playing in a league.”

Top 10

As selected by staff writer Gene Wojciechowski

No. Team Record 1. Duke 10-0 2. North Carolina 12-2 3. Kansas 16-1 4. UCLA 9-0 5. Arkansas 11-1 6. Purdue 14-0 7. Arizona 12-1 8. Kentucky 12-2 9. Massachusetts 11-1 10. Indiana 9-2

Waiting list: Wisconsin (11-1), Georgia Tech (10-3), Connecticut (13-1), West Virginia (9-1), Michigan (10-2)