LONG BEACH STATE NOTEBOOK / JASON REID : Pyramid Is Only the Tip of 49ers’ Success

Summer hiatus is upon us. We expect this to be our last look at the 49ers for a while.

Thus, it seems a good time to look at where the 49ers have been, where they are and where they might be going. Without question, this has been a seminal year for the athletic department and the university. The long-awaited opening of the Pyramid helped unite the campus.

The multipurpose arena immediately catapulted Long Beach to respectability among Southland Division I programs. Its importance should not be overlooked.

Long Beach has won conference championships in several sports and been a perennial power at the national level in others. But the school was previously facility poor for basketball and volleyball--the sports Long Beach relies upon for revenue and prestige.

No matter how much success it enjoyed, Long Beach was just another state school playing in a glorified high school gym. That ended when the Pyramid opened to the public for a men’s basketball game Nov. 30.

The unique 5,000-seat pyramid-shaped structure, soon to be expanded to almost 7,500, enabled Long Beach to distance itself from other schools in the area. And the Pyramid has improved the school’s self-image.

Many doubted whether a seemingly “small-time” university such as Long Beach could put together a first-rate project. It clearly did.

True, the Pyramid isn’t Pauley Pavilion. For the 49ers, though, it’s as impressive as it gets.

A strong argument can be made that Long Beach has the third best overall athletic program in the Southland. It still is far behind UCLA and USC, but being No. 3 in this group carries no shame. There are several schools that wish they were in the 49ers’ position.

Such growth and accomplishment requires a dedicated group. Not coincidentally, the people charged with developing 49er athletics had a good year.

But as important as the team is, the efforts of two men, Athletic Director Dave O’Brien and men’s basketball Coach Seth Greenberg, had the biggest impact on the 49ers’ year.

O’Brien continually pushed the right buttons, even when the decisions weren’t always popular. Most important were retaining women’s volleyball Coach Brian Gimmillaro and Greenberg.

Gimmillaro is the 49ers’ best coach. He basically received a “blank check” to become the coach at Cal but wanted to stay at Long Beach.

O’Brien recognized Gimmillaro’s worth and immediately put together an upgraded package that, although not as lucrative as the Cal offer, was enough to persuade Gimmillaro to stick around.

The Greenberg situation--uh, situations --were more complex and frustrating for O’Brien, but he still took care of business. USC briefly wooed Greenberg, and Nevada Las Vegas also wanted to talk, sort of.

Success in men’s basketball is the paramount concern at Long Beach, so O’Brien again moved quickly. Greenberg will be back--at least for next season.

O’Brien also made a tough call and reassigned women’s basketball Coach Glenn McDonald. The well-liked McDonald cares about academics and works hard, but the once-successful program fell hard under his watch. O’Brien also took the lead in the hiring of coveted Purdue assistant Dallas Boychuk.

O’Brien’s hot streak actually started long before this year with his decision to drop football. He was vilified in parts of the community, but he believed Long Beach couldn’t compete successfully with its resources.

Continuing the program, he thought, would have prevented Long Beach from moving forward in other sports.

Like the guy or not, he is decisive.

*

The Pyramid’s opening heaped more pressure on Greenberg than any coach at Long Beach.

Men’s basketball is the 49ers’ only big-time money maker, so it was imperative the team have a good-to-great season in the new building. It did, largely because of Greenberg’s coaching.

Greenberg guided the team to the NCAA tournament for the second time in three seasons, along the way doing one of the best coaching jobs on the West Coast. Greenberg managed to get Long Beach back in the tournament despite losing a key player to injury and almost having a full-scale mutiny to cope with.

He didn’t please his bosses much with how he handled pursuing other coaching opportunities, but he did what his superiors wanted most: Win.

*

Brotherly love: Don’t be shocked if basketball standout Schea Cotton, brother of guard James and arguably the best high school sophomore in the nation, also ends up in a 49er uniform.

Schea, who recently transferred from Mater Dei High to Bellflower St. John Bosco, has always wanted to play with his brother. The Cottons missed each other by one year in high school, but they have the opportunity to become college teammates for one season.

James was a medical redshirt this season because he severely sprained his left ankle in the 49ers’ final exhibition Nov. 18. If James completes his eligibility, he will be a senior when Schea is a freshman.

49er Notes

James Cotton has recovered nicely from the injury and is playing pickup games during the week with teammates. “James is doing fine,” guard Rasul Salahuddin said. “He’ll be ready [for the season].”