Irvine Has the Green Light in New Alignment

The Big West Conference, no stranger to adding and subtracting members, has been reconfigured again. The league had a 12-team, two-division setup in 1999-2000 and a nine-team alignment with no divisions last season.

With the exit of Boise State to the Western Athletic Conference and the addition of Cal State Northridge and UC Riverside, the Big West is now a 10-team league with a heavy California influence. Utah State and Idaho are the only outsiders.

“The conference is better than it has been in a long time,” Long Beach State Coach Wayne Morgan said.

Coaches and reporters have picked UC Irvine to win the conference title, with Utah State, UC Santa Barbara, Long Beach State and Pacific as the primary challengers. Irvine finished 25-4 overall and 15-1 in the Big West last season, but lost to Pacific in the conference tournament semifinals and did not receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament or the National Invitation Tournament.

The Anteaters got a huge boost when guard Jerry Green returned for his senior year. Green, a 6-foot-3 guard who averaged 19 points as a junior, made himself available for the NBA draft but was not selected and had not hired an agent, making him eligible to return. Green’s presence, along with the improved play of 7-foot sophomore Adam Parada, 7-2 senior Dave Korfman and 6-11 sophomore Stanislav Zuzak, make the Anteaters the team to beat.

Utah State is reloading after consecutive 28-6 seasons and last March’s victory over Ohio State in the first-round of the NCAA tournament. The Aggies have won 23 consecutive home games.

Santa Barbara has all five starters back from a team that finished 13-15 last season. Adama Ndiaye, a 6-9 forward who averaged 9.3 points and 7.5 rebounds in 1999-2000, also returns after missing last season because of a broken finger.

Long Beach State’s optimism about improving upon last season’s 18-13 record has been tempered by the loss of senior forward Lemi Williams, who will miss the season because of stress fractures in his shins.

Northridge lost its top three scorers from last season’s Big Sky Conference championship team that earned the school’s first berth in the NCAA tournament. The Matadors, however, have talented point guard Markus Carr and are expected to make an immediate impact under Coach Bobby Braswell.

Riverside, in its first full season as a Division I school, is looking to improve upon last season’s 8-17 record. The Highlanders went 2-10 against Big West teams.

A look at the teams from schools outside the Southland:

CAL POLY SAN LUIS OBISPO

Coach: Kevin Bromley.

2000-2001: 9-19 overall, 3-13 (in the Big West, eighth place).

Returning starters: One.

Top players: Varnie Dennis (8.7 points), Brandon Beeson (8.2 points, 7.5 rebounds).

Outlook: Bromley is in his first full season after taking over 12 games into last season when the Mustangs were 5-7. Beeson, a 6-6 senior from Irvine, is the lone returning starter. Dennis plays bigger than his 6-7 frame but must stay out of foul trouble for the Mustangs to be competitive. Point guard Jason Allen, a transfer from Eastern Oklahoma Junior College, is a top newcomer for a program that has led the conference in scoring four of the last five seasons.

IDAHO

Coach: Leonard Perry.

2000-2001: 6-21, 3-13 (ninth).

Returning starters: Four.

Top players: Matt Gerschefske (11 points), Jerald Jenkins (10.6 points).

Outlook: Perry, a former Idaho player, returns to the school after serving as associate head coach at Iowa State the last two seasons. He has a challenge. The Vandals went 18-38 the last two seasons and have no players taller than 6-6. Point guard Bethuel Fletcher is one of the conference’s best defensive players.

PACIFIC

Coach: Bob Thomason.

2000-2001: 18-12, 8-8 (fifth).

Returning starters: Four.

Top players: Mike Hahn (10.2 points, 4.9 rebounds), Maurice McLemore (9.9 points).

Outlook: The Tigers are deep and experienced with eight seniors back from a team that advanced to the final of the Big West tournament last season. Hahn, a 6-7 senior, led the conference in shooting at 59.6%. Guard Demetrius Jackson averaged 24 points and nine assists last season at Shasta College.

UTAH STATE

Coach: Stew Morrill.

2000-2001: 28-6, 13-3 (second).

Returning starters: One.

Top player: Tony Brown (11.7 points).

Outlook: The Aggies established credibility for the conference by knocking off Ohio State in the NCAA tournament last season. Morrill, who has a new 10-year contract, brought in several junior college transfers, one of them being 6-7 forward Desmond Penigar, who averaged 27.8 points last season at Ventura College.