The Goat Pen

Fuck off

Hide the tablet!

Ole Miss's new basketball arena virtual tour..... pretty nice place.

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I miss the ole place. Get it? Ol Miss? MISS the OLE place?? BWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!!! Ahem...

The old Tad Pad was one of the worst college gyms I've ever been in. Anything, including setting up temp goals in a parking lot, woulda been better. Ole Miss fans have deserved an upgrade for a long time.

OK, well it would've worked just as well if I'd said "I won't miss the ole place"...

Moving on.....

Did Hedge try to make a funny??

No, that's what you made in your diaper...

another fail. Starting to feel sorry for you.

Wait, I thought I was talking to you...

I can see a coach by default taking up for a player - or at least publicly supporting a player with some carefully chosen words. I guess Alford was caught off guard.

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basketball program of unmatched pedigree led by a former prodigy who became a national champion and Olympic gold medalist before making a steady climb up the coaching ladder.

On paper, a harmonic convergence.

How they came together, a choreography of those themes, would make for a dazzling introduction, which UCLA held at center court in historic Pauley Pavilion last month.

The aura of John Wooden, his contributions to sports and society — and those 10 national titles — was thick. Alford mentioned Wooden three times in his first three minutes at the microphone.

"We found a coach that not only represents and honors the treasured history of UCLA's place in college basketball, but also a coach who will bring a brand of unselfish basketball," Athletic Director Dan Guerrero gushed.

What could go wrong?

Plenty.

When the news conference was over, what was supposed to be a breezy, feel-good event quickly turned sticky and uncomfortable.

During a one-on-one interview, Iowa came up. Alford, who coached the Hawkeyes for eight seasons, was asked about his staunch defense of Pierre Pierce, a player accused of sexually assaulting another student in 2002.

"I totally believe he's innocent," Alford had said at the Big Ten Conference's basketball media day that year. "I believed it from Day One, and I still believe it." Days later, Pierce, a star guard, agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor assault and also sit out one basketball season.

Three years later, Pierce would go to prison after assaulting another woman. He pleaded guilty to two charges of first-degree burglary, assault with intent to commit sexual assault and fourth-degree criminal mischief.

Now, asked to explain his actions and comments so many years later, Alford took a defensive stance after the news conference last month.

He said he had handled the situation the way his bosses at Iowa had instructed him to. "I really didn't do anything," he said. "The university made the call on everything."

So, they told him to say Pierce was innocent?

"When those comments came out, it was just about supporting your player," he said sternly. "But you have no idea what's going on."

UCLA athletic administrators were stunned. They had signed Alford to a seven-year, $18.2-million contract with the expectation that his hiring would invigorate an apathetic fan base. They expected him to be greeted with open arms.

Guerrero was also questioned — about whether UCLA had properly vetted its new coach and investigated what happened at Iowa. He said he "clearly discussed" the Pierce situation with Alford before hiring him.

However, when Alford was asked a similar question, he said the topic never came up.

Guerrero later amended his comment, saying he discussed Pierce with his staff and Alford's representatives, but not with Alford.

That doesn't seem like a very big deal to me...

yea that was kinda my take. I mean Alford could have been more diplomatic in supporting a player - its a natural reaction to defend or assume a friend is innocent until guilt is apparent.

The actual story makes Alford look kinda bad...but not particularly bad for a big time NCAA basketball coach (sadly enough).

Roundtable discussion on ESPN.com of the future of Golden State, I found this part interesting"

3. What does the future look like for Harrison Barnes?

Abbott: Whatever playing time worries he once had have evaporated -- not just because he's a shooter but because he might be the only athletic guy on a team starved for athleticism. They could use three of him.

Adande: It feels as if he could double his rookie scoring average of 9.2 points a game within a year or two. He wasn't far off in the playoffs, when he averaged 16.1 points a contest. After producing two 20-point games during the regular season, he had four 20-point games during two rounds of the playoffs. He can already score in a variety of ways. If he adds a couple of countermoves, watch out.

McMenamin: James Harden-esque. Curry and Klay Thompson seem to be the one-two punch that the Warriors are building around, much like Durant and Russell Westbrook in Oklahoma City. If Barnes continues to improve as rapidly as he did in the playoffs -- increasing his regular-season averages of 9.2 points and 4.2 rebounds to 16.1 points and 6.4 rebounds -- it will be hard for Golden State to keep him in the long run.

Strauss: It looks like he should play more power forward. Barnes was better in the postseason, in part, because Golden State finally went small and stuck him at the 4. Thanks to the rebounding and defense Andrew Bogut provides, the Warriors can benefit from playing an athletic 3-point shooter alongside him at power forward. Such a lineup helps Barnes because it provides him more space for his drives and more room for his shot.

Thorpe: I'm the wrong guy to ask that, seeing as how I first thought he could be Paul Pierce two seasons ago. Nothing has changed from my end. He needs to believe it, and his coach and teammates need to as well. If those things align, we're talking an elite forward who can play big or small, shoot or post, all while being a dominant athlete.

hedge wrote:Roundtable discussion on ESPN.com of the future of Golden State, I found this part interesting"

3. What does the future look like for Harrison Barnes?

Abbott: Whatever playing time worries he once had have evaporated -- not just because he's a shooter but because he might be the only athletic guy on a team starved for athleticism. They could use three of him.

Adande: It feels as if he could double his rookie scoring average of 9.2 points a game within a year or two. He wasn't far off in the playoffs, when he averaged 16.1 points a contest. After producing two 20-point games during the regular season, he had four 20-point games during two rounds of the playoffs. He can already score in a variety of ways. If he adds a couple of countermoves, watch out.

McMenamin: James Harden-esque. Curry and Klay Thompson seem to be the one-two punch that the Warriors are building around, much like Durant and Russell Westbrook in Oklahoma City. If Barnes continues to improve as rapidly as he did in the playoffs -- increasing his regular-season averages of 9.2 points and 4.2 rebounds to 16.1 points and 6.4 rebounds -- it will be hard for Golden State to keep him in the long run.

Strauss: It looks like he should play more power forward. Barnes was better in the postseason, in part, because Golden State finally went small and stuck him at the 4. Thanks to the rebounding and defense Andrew Bogut provides, the Warriors can benefit from playing an athletic 3-point shooter alongside him at power forward. Such a lineup helps Barnes because it provides him more space for his drives and more room for his shot.

Thorpe: I'm the wrong guy to ask that, seeing as how I first thought he could be Paul Pierce two seasons ago. Nothing has changed from my end. He needs to believe it, and his coach and teammates need to as well. If those things align, we're talking an elite forward who can play big or small, shoot or post, all while being a dominant athlete.

I'm glad you have someone to watch now besides Dunleavy

LOL

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