COLLEGE BASKETBALL 1995-96 : BIG WEST CONFERENCE THE OTHER TEAMS : TV Exposure a Major Concern

With the chances of catching East Coast insomniacs’ eyes greatly reduced because ESPN pulled the plug on much of the Big West’s exposure on Big Monday telecasts, the conference has to rely on proving its worth on the court.

And that has proven to be a losing proposition all too often.

“It hurts quite a bit,” said Jerry Pimm, embarking on his 13th season as UC Santa Barbara coach and conference ambassador. “We earned our way onto Monday night TV and now we have to go get the players and the significant wins to earn our way back. It seems we have to prove ourselves over and over and over.”

Utah State is the Big West coaches’ favorite to win the conference again this season. Coach Larry Eustachy, a leading candidate for the Nevada Las Vegas job before turning it down, has all three front-court players returning, including Big West player of the year Eric Franson.

Franson is a blue-collar big man, often diving for loose balls when he’s not scoring (18.4 points a game) or rebounding (9.8).

Here’s a look at the Big West, excluding Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State and UC Irvine:

NEVADA

* 1994-95 Records: 18-11 overall, 12-6 conference.

* Conference Finish: Fourth.

The Wolf Pack hopes to ride momentum gained last year when it won eight of its final 10 games and lost the Big West tournament title game to Long Beach State in overtime. Nevada has two honorable-mention all-conference picks returning--guard Brian Green (15.1 points a game) and forward Faron Hand (13.7 points, 5.3 rebounds). Hand, 6-7 and 275 pounds, has problems with his surgically repaired knee, but center Daniel Watts (7.6 points, 6.2 rebounds a game) and swingman Damien Edwards (7.5 points, four rebounds) provide depth.

NEVADA LAS VEGAS

* 1994-95 Records: 12-16, 7-11.

* Conference Finish: Seventh.

“Some people thought I was crazy, but I fought for this job,” first-year Coach Bill Bayno said. Bayno, who was an assistant to P.J. Carlesimo at Seton Hall, Larry Brown at Kansas and John Calipari at Massachusetts, says he “couldn’t have been better prepared.” Good thing. This team had four head coaches in six months before Bayno signed on in March. Returning guards Damian Smith and Jermaine (Sunshine) Smith (no relation), who combined for 18 points a game, forward Clayton Johnson (13 points, four rebounds) and 6-10 center Eric Lee give the Rebels a nucleus, but depth is a problem.

NEW MEXICO STATE

* 1994-95 Records: 25-10, 13-5.

* Conference Finish: Second (tie).

Buy a program if you plan to watch the Aggies play. Coach Neil McCarthy, who brought in 13 players, including nine community college transfers, says he “can’t remember all the names yet.” The only players who have scored a basket in an Aggie uniform are walk-ons who totaled 10 points. Transfers Spelling Davis, a 6-8 forward from Utah’s Dixie College, Enoch Davis, a 6-7 junior from Iowa Western Junior College who scored 32 points a game, and guard Marquis Burns, who left UCLA’s national championship team last December, are likely candidates to start. The players and coaches involved in the current NCAA investigation are gone. Prospects are dim for an eighth consecutive 20-victory season.

PACIFIC

* 1994-95 Records: 14-13, 9-9.

* Conference Finish: Fifth.

The Tigers made a conference-high 8.1 three-point shots a game last season and they return four starters who accounted for 70% of the team’s points. All-Big West forward Charles Jones scored in double figures in all but one game and was the league’s No. 2 scorer (18 points a game). Guard Adam Jacobsen was 10th in the nation in three-point shots (3.5 per game) and fifth in the Big West in scoring (16.7). Guard Corey Anders (11.4 points and 5.7 rebounds a game), and center Vic Trierweiler (5.1 points, 4.8 rebounds) are expected to improve on last season’s performances.

SAN JOSE STATE

* 1994-95 Records: 4-23, 3-15.

* Conference Finish: 10th.

The Spartans sank like a rock last season and now it’s the old good news/bad news thing: Four starters are back, but then they were all there for a 1-17 start last season. San Jose State needs to improve on its woeful shooting percentage (last in the Big West at .387) and defense (opponents shot 47%). Darren Greene, a 6-6 senior, will play all five positions this season.

UC SANTA BARBARA

* 1994-95 record: 13-14, 8-10.

* Conference finish: Sixth.

The tallest player on the roster, 6-8 Mark Flick, does most of his scoring from the perimeter. He led the team with 38 three-point baskets last season. Freshman B.J. Bunton Jr. (6-7, 225) is the only real post player. “We changed the system,” Pimm said. “We don’t have inside and outside spots, we just have five spots and we’ll try to get to them quickly and make something happen.” Guard Ben Jefferson, a transfer from Southwestern Iowa Community College where he averaged 23 points a game, will be counted on to provide offense.

UTAH STATE

* 1994-95 Records: 21-8, 14-4.

* Conference Finish: First.

Only five teams in the country shot better from the field than the Aggies (.504) last season. Joining Franson up front will be Silas Mills, who averaged 12.4 points and 7.1 rebounds and shot 56%, and Jon Wickizer, a 59% shooter. “We’re blessed with a great front line, but we have to replace two all-league guards [Corwin Woodard and Roddie Anderson],” Eustachy said, “and that’s scary.” Nobody else in the Big West is weeping for the Aggies.