Career Legacy: Coach Cooper

[Vinsane187]

You've gotta start somewhere.

Coach: "What are your goals this year?"

People ask me, why coach? Why leave the game of basketball. Wait a minute, let me rephrase...Why leave the game of high school basketball? There comes a time in every coaches life, one way or another where they have to say goodbye to the world they know. And say hello to the world of the unknown.

They've gotta go in blindfolded, feel around for awhile. Get the senses rolling, the touch, the sound, the "feel" of the game. And just like when they got comfortable before, it happens again. So here I am, stuck answering these questions as to why, why leave Columbus Grove, why head out into the big bad world of college basketball. I'm too young they tell me, I'm not ready they say. **** them...what do they know?

All my life coaching has been a dream, been a passion. From the first time I seen the game I fell in love with it. I sat there in front of the T.V. my grandpa in the recliner. We watched M.J. tear up our Cavs, watched his Airness dominate his sport. And slowly but surely, as did all kids of the 90's, I fell in love with Michael Jordan. However it wasn't until Michael was gone that I realised what I really fell in love with...The game of basketball.

It was high school when I first realised how much I loved the game. I was merely a fan up through middle school, not participating in the sport. Then one day a coach comes up to me and asks. "Hey I need a PG, wanna play?" I shrugged my shoulders and that's where it all started. The next thing I know, I'm at tryouts, I'm in camps, I'm back at tryouts, I'm given a uniform, Friday night comes and I'm stepping on the court. The next four years after that were a blur.

When I graduated I was no stud, no colleges wanted me for my athletic ability. I was too small, too careless with the ball. But no one, not even the scouts could say I didn't know the game. I pushed the limits, learned the defenses slashed through them. Only when I was stuck in a film room after my final season was over did it hit me. If I couldn't play the game, if my run was truly over then I wanted to still be involved. I knew then I wanted to coach.

And so the long road began to where we are now, these flashing lights are starting to hurt my eyes. The camera bulbs blasting black dots into my eyelids everytime I blink I see them. Damn... it's loud in here too. The podium wood is warm however, as wood should be. Much like the wood on the court. I developed the ritual when I started coaching girls basketball. It was the only job open at my local highschool and I took it. I thought hell, you gotta start somewhere right? And I did, head coach of the Lady Cubs.

The ritual? Oh right, I was getting to that. So before every game I walk out to the midcourt line, bend down place my hand on the line close my eyes and I say a little prayer. I don't pray to god persay, but I do pray. To whoever is up there listening. Red Aurbach, Woody Hayes. Whatever coach made an impact on their game I say a little prayer too, just help me get through this game is pretty much the gist of my prayers.

Anyways, after that, it's game time.

And so it went through the start of my career, three years with the Lady Cubs, capturing one NCC (North Central Conference) championship. Three good strides in the playoffs, going as far as the Regionals in one season. Then making the transistion to coaching the boys. There we had equal success if not more, three seasons of playoff runs for the record books, two trips to the elite eight, and a trip to the State Semis'. So many good memories.

To speed things up for your sake, the road twisted south to Columbus Grove. My uncle who was coaching Football down there told the A.D. about me. A few phone calls later and I'm moving to the land of the Buckeyes. Only two seasons at Columbus Grove and then I get another call. "Wanna step your game up?" A challenge, I love challenges. "Want to coach some college ball?" William "Bill" Bank was on the other line. A.D. for St. Francis (PA) Red Flash.

The answer was rehtorical, he knew I wanted to coach College ball, he knew I was just waiting for the call. I didn't have a clue however until I put down the phone after saying "Yes". So here we are, all that to get to this one moment. The flashing bulbs coming back to my eyes, how long have I been reminising? How long have I babbled on to you without answering the question.

Cooper: "I'm sorry, could you repeat the question please?"

Reporter: "Coach, what are your goals at St. Francis this year?"

Cooper: "Oh, well I feel we're very capable of playing .500 ball for starters. You know I know you want to hear win a conference championship, get a ticket to the dance. I'm keeping realistic here. Yes those are long term goals but I feel that we need to start by playing .500 ball and then we'll work our way up."

More flashing bulbs, more hands in the air. Luckily Bill came to the rescue knowing that I've spent way too much time up here already.

Bill: "Folks, I think that's enough for coach Cooper, he needs to get started on his media guide. So save all questions for another time and look forward to another season of Red Flash basketball. Thank you."

Man was that rough, a wipe of sweat from my brow and Bill and I are behind the curtains once more, away from reporters. Suddenly it's silent.

Cooper: "Thanks Bill, that was rough."

Bill: "I know, but you did good Coach, now just make good on that .500 promise and you'll be squared away with me coach."

Cooper: "That's good Bill, I appriciate that."

Bill: "Hey your new right? It's a good goal to have."

Cooper: "Right."

Bill: "You know the old saying right? You gotta start somewhere."

(End)

[Deuce2223]

Very nice. Love the story about starting out coaching the girls and working your way up the ranks. St Francis the Flash. Should be good there are some good ballers that come out of Philly. Looking forward to the season.

[Vinsane187]

http://images.sportsline.com/images/cbss/ui2/logos/collegebasketball/160x100/STFRPA.gif
St. Francis, PA. 07-08 Media Guide

INDEX

1.) Letter from the Coach.
2.) The Coaches.
3.) The Players.
4.) The Schedule.

Letter from the Coach

From: Coach Cooper
To: The Fans

Welcome,

If your reading this right now than I can confirm your already interested in this team. This year will probably be a challenge for all Red Flash fans. We have a solid squad yes but a tough road ahead of us if we’re to capture a NEC title. I hope you all understand that success doesn’t come without hardship, that winning this season might be few and far between but never the less we are dedicated to bringing you high quality division I basketball in the state of PA.

I’ve outlined a small description of my goals this season below. These are what I consider realistic goals. Things that are within reach so that you the fan have something to believe in, something to compare at the end of the season and base our success on not how many numbers we place in the W column but how well we did based on these goals. As always we welcome you to our floor on home games and appriciate those who travel with us across the country.

In closing I’ll leave you with my goals.
-Finish .500
-Place within the top 5 of the NEC conference.
-Win at least a conference tournament game.

I know looking at those goals you think we might not be ambitious enough, maybe. But like I said you have to make realistic goals and compete for those first before aiming high. Well to the fans, families and supporters of the Red Flash. Our opponets will be “Seeing Red” this season, and we’ve adopted “The Red” by Chevelle as our team song this year. Learn the lyrics, blast them at every home game, and most importantly have fun this season.

-Go Flash!

-Coach Cooper.

The Coaches

Vincent Cooper (26 years old, 1st year head coach)

Coach Cooper hails from the Heartland state of Ohio. After six years of Highschool basketball both Men and Women's team he makes the jump to the College level. Coach Cooper is said to be a charasmatic guy with a lot of energy on the floor, and can change a game with that same energy giving a renewed hope to players and fans. He's a tough as nails fight till the end coach, something the Red Flash have needed since day one.

Ovr: C
Off: C+
Def: C
Tea: C-
Sco: C
Cha: C
Dis: C

Stetson Gomez (39 years old, first year assistant coach)

If your looking for a better coach than Stetson Gomez, there's plenty. Coach Cooper chose Stetson because of his ambition to be one of the better coaches in the college ranks. At first glance his ratings leave something to be desired, Cooper however picked him for his higher rating of scouting.

Ovr: C-
Off: C+
Def: F
Tea: D
Sco: C+
Cha: C-
Dis: D

Michael Anrin (49 years old, first year assistant coach)

Michael Anrin completes this rookie trio of coaches. Perhaps this will be the weakness in this Red Flash team. The coaches being so new to the game of basketball may cause a problem on the sideline for the Red Flash. Coach Anrin was selected to pick p slack where Coach Gomez lacked, his ability of the defensive game is better than even Coach Coopers, he will be the defensive consultant for Coach Cooper this season.

Ovr: C-
Off: C+
Def: C+
Tea: C-
Sco: D
Cha: D
Dis: D

The Players

Starters:
() - Overall rating

PG - Marc Williams (66) 5'10" 180lbs. Junior, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
SG - J.P. Yeager (65) 5'10" 175lbs. Junior, Jacksonville, Florida.
SF - Attarrius Trans (67) 6'6" 180lbs Sophmore, Towson, Maryland.
PF - Paulius Mankevicius (56) 6'7" 220lbs Sophmore, Lithuania.
C - Kyle Beye (58) 6'9" 215lbs Junior, Senegal. ***

*** - Primary position is PF, playing Center because no other Centers are on the roster.

Bench:

SG - Ed Ruffin (62) 6'4" 190lbs. Junior, Austin, Texas.
SG - Darryl Lennon (56) 6'3" 175lbs Junior, Elgin, Pennsylvania.
SG - Vince Brower (55) 6'5" 180lbs Junior, Reading, Pennsylvania.
SF - Kevyn Sherrod (54) 6'6" 210lbs Sophmore, Scranton, Pennsylvania.
PF - Channing Atkins (53) 6'8" 200lbs Sophmore, Bethlaheim, Maryland.

Redshirts:

PG - Olli Valsin (55) 6'0" 180lbs Freshman, England.

Coach Cooper is playing with fire. Only running 10 guys on the active roster. However this is what he is left with. Some pluses being that he does not have any Seniors departing so this team will have two years to grow together. Some negatives being that he is SG heavy. From talks with Coach Cooper, he really only likes having 3 players at any certain posisition. It will be interesting to see who Coach Cooper can bring in with only 1 scholarship on the table and which way he will go about doing it.

The Schedule:

Conf Games in Red.

Nov 10 American
Nov 12 @Penn St.
Nov 14 Morgan St.
Nov 17 Lehigh
Nov 24 @La Salle
Nov 28 Youngstown St.
Dec 1 @Bucknell
Dec 8 @Robert Morris
Dec 19 Iona
@Duquesne
Dec 29 @Arizona St.
Jan 3 Quinnipiac
Jan 5 Monmouth
Jan 10 @C. Connecticut St.
Jan 12 @Wagner
Jan 16 @Mt. St. Mary´s
Jan 19 Robert Morris
Jan 24 St. Francis (N.Y.)
Jan 26 C. Connecticut St.
Jan 31 @Quinnipiac
Feb 7 Long Island
Feb 9 Fair. Dickinson
Feb 14 @St. Francis (N.Y.)
Feb 16 @Sacred Heart
Feb 21 Wagner
Feb 23 Mt. St. Mary´s
Feb 28 @Monmouth
Mar 1 @Fair. Dickinson

[Deuce2223]

Good luck with the season. Looks like its going to be a tough year in recruiting. Not much in the Charisma Dept for any of your coaches. Hopefully you can earn a few attribute points 1st year in. Roster-Wow. Tough squad. Hope Atkins can provide some needed mins off the bench for you. I wouldn't worrry abou the 10 man roster to much. Coach Akpan has ran with it for years and has had very good success, and of course he learned it from the Great Coach Dezaron. With only 1 scholarship I think you almost have to go big either in the form of a true C or a PF who is 6'10 or taller. Shouldn't be to hard to get someone ranked and atleast a 3* being how you can pour all your attention into them. Probably fill up your target list with PG-SG-and C for next season.

Schedule looks decent. Penn State,La Salle,Arizona St will be very tough games, but with solid efforts in the rest of them you should be able to hopefully pull of a .500 record going into conference play.

Questions
Who are the teams to beat in Conference play.
Who are the better players in the Conference(Best overall,shooter,ect...)
Whats your future schedule look like. Any games against schools from Ohio. Any West Coast road trips. Do you have plans to schedule more instate games against the Bigger Powerhouse schools in hopes of landing more instate recruits??

[Vinsane187]

Answers:

Q.) Who are the teams to beat in Conference play.
A.) I base predictions off of a straight up simulation of the season, so based on squads right now believe it or not, St. Francis is projected as 4th. The squads to beat include Wagner, Sacred Heart, Mt. St. Mary's, and our in-conference rival Robert Morris.

Q.) Who are the better players in the Conference(Best overall,shooter,ect...)
A.) Ok without any direct names or things of that nature (don't have the game infront of me right now) I can give you this. The tough kids are a SF from Robert Morris who torched me in our first matchup. Wagner has a damn decent squad and I believe Sacred Heart is the top rated. (Note: I'll follow up on this question more indepth when I have the time to skim through the game.)

Q.) Whats your future schedule look like. Any games against schools from Ohio. Any West Coast road trips. Do you have plans to schedule more instate games against the Bigger Powerhouse schools in hopes of landing more instate recruits??
A.) I'm a firm believer like Coach Akpan in making our school the best in-state squad. While my heart will be in Ohio for a coaching job don't expect me to go looking in that part of the midwest for games. I'll stick to places such as PA, New York, and the Virginia's.

As for recruiting, I've never not been able to land solid recruits. We were chasing a SG as three SG's will be leaving at the end of next season. Also a big-man. With only one scholarship there is only so much I can do. I'll try to put together a bigger squad next year or remain on the track of speed vs. size. I've proven so far in my non-conference play which wrapped up last night that it's a tougher task than I thought.

Expect more in the near future, I have a couple down days and I'll do write ups for my games. They'll look nothing like my Cleveland St. write-ups. I've learned that it's taking too much out of me to present 20+ games like that. Expect more summerized write-ups Via your style Duece.

[blue_apocalypse]

Good to see you back Vinsane. Looks like your backcourt is decent but it'll be tough with a lack of talent and a lack of size up front. That being said..I'm sure you'll turn this team around quickly.

[Vinsane187]

Good to see you back Vinsane. Looks like your backcourt is decent but it'll be tough with a lack of talent and a lack of size up front. That being said..I'm sure you'll turn this team around quickly.

It's good to be back, and even better i've found a way to get my 360 in the trailor with me so I can give updates on the fly as the games finish. I'm getting ready to do that now. Just need the 360 to cool down first, ran it for awhile and just letting it rest. With power surges and all kinds of stuff going on over here recently don't wanna fry my box ya know.

[Vinsane187]

Rought start for Red Flash.

The season couldn't of began any rougher for the Red Flash of St. Francis. Shooting only 28% from the floor in the first half didn't help their cause much as the season tip-off seen them matched against American at home. The second half didn't see much improvement even with the home crowd behind them they were only able to bring their FG percentage up 4 points. Coach Cooper had this to say after the game.

Cooper: "It was rough out there, nothing fell for us. Kids played some very unprofessional ball out there. We're better than this, just need to work on communication and presense when defending our home court. It's just the start of the season so don't hit the panic button just yet. Still a lot of basketball to play."

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 47
American: 71

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

M. Williams - 11pts 2reb 3stl
K. Beye - 12pts 8reb 1ast 3blk
P. Mankavicius - 6pts 5reb

American

R. Laws - 23pts 3reb 4ast
M. Dupree - 16pts 2reb 6ast
C. Couisnard - 12pts 5reb 1ast

Penn. St. takes care of business and Red Flash.

The second game of the season proved to be opposite of the first. The Red Flash tried their best to keep pace with the Big Ten team only to fall victim to a hostile crowd and an electric offense that was surged by team captain J.R. Lovelace.

In the first half the Red Flash made this a game until Penn St. made a 7-0 run to end the half and never looked back after that. The score at the half 35-28 Penn St.

The second half was an absolute shootout with both teams combining for 93 points. The end result was the tough play by Penn St. not being upset on their home court in their season opener. The Red Flash try as they might tried to topple the giant but fell short of their goal.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 74
Penn. St.: 82

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

A. Tran - 12pts 5reb 2ast
K. Beye - 10pts 7reb 2ast 1blk
J.P. Yeager - 10pts 1reb 1ast

Penn St.

J.R. Lovelace - 22pts 2reb
A. Doellman - 10pts 13ast
M. Faye - 13pts 7reb.

Red Flash lose heartbreaker to Morgan St.

As all the pieces start to fit together we see an improved Red Flash team taking form before our eyes. However it was not enough to outlast the Morgan St. Bears. In a battle the Red Flash tried to pull out their first win but fell short on a buzzer beater jumper by Morgan St. Coach Cooper talked about this game with our sideline reporters.

Cooper: "Man this is tough, we're putting together two solid performances, one against Penn St. one here tonight. It's been rough it really has, trying to get this first W. We'll keep trying though, can't fault the guys tonight. The last shot just wasn't ours."

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 62
Morgan St.: 64

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

J.P. Yeager - 23pts 1ast 1stl
A. Tran - 16pts 2reb
M. Williams - 8pts 1reb 1ast 2stl

Morgan St.

A. Zwikker - 10pts 5reb 1stl
C. Obasohan - 15pts 6reb 1ast
L. Lemkin - 11pts 2reb 1blk

[Vinsane187]

FOLLOW UP:

Q.) Who are the better players in the Conference(Best overall,shooter,ect...)

Overall: Led O'Sullivan, Senior, C. Conn. 78OVR
Best Freshman: Will Root, Freshman, Quinnipiac, 64OVR
Best Shooter: Clent Barrett, Senior, Sacred Heart, 59OVR
Best Playmaker: Josiah Berrelleca, Senior, Wagner, 72 OVR
Best Pro Prospect: Led O'Sullivan, Senior, C. Conn. 78OVR
Best Defender: Jesse Eppenhemer, Senior, Robert Morris, 77OVR**

** - Denotes Injury

Pulled Hamstring, Day to Day, 13 Days.

[Vinsane187]

Lehigh provides much needed win.

The monkey is now off of their back. On Saturday Nov 17th Coach Cooper and the Red Flash picked up their first career and season win in 07-08. With a ruckus crowd behind them the Red Flash were able to keep Lehigh at bay and secure the first win of the season improving their record to 1-3. It was a morale boost for every fan but an estatic Coach Cooper had this to say.

Cooper: "Kids gave it their all out there tonight, did everything they could to secure this win and keep it for themselves. This is a huge chip off our shoulders, especially after the buzzer beater loss earlier this week. We're happy to win and hope that more will follow.

Final Score:

St Francis. (PA): 71
Lehigh: 65

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA):

A. Tran - 20pts 4reb 1ast
K. Beye - 14pts 10reb 1stl
J.P. Yeager - 13pts 2ast 4stl

Lehigh:

J. Joneliunas - 20pts 2ast 1reb
D. Tamir - 13pts 4reb 1ast
R. Jensen - 9pts 7ast

Winning streak stops at 1 as La Salle whips Red Flash.

Bittersweet is what we'll call the first win of the season. As La Salle proved St. Francis has a long ways to go before being a reconizable figure in the state of Pennsylvania. The Red Flash suffered a huge blow by La Salle that beat them with solid team play, and showed the Red Flash how to truly run the floor. Coach Cooper had this to say after the game.

Cooper: "Another tough loss, expect us to keep scheduling these guys. We'll prove that we're for real in Pennsylvania. We've still got a lot of growing to do but I seen flashes tonight of what this team could be, and it's looking good for our future. We'll take what we can from this game and move on."

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 51
La Salle: 72

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

J.P. Yeager - 16pts 4ast 2stl
A. Tran - 8pts 7reb 1ast
M. Williams - 8pts 1reb

La Salle

A. Owensworth - 13pts 3ast 1stl
A. Hoyer - 10pts 4reb 4ast
G. Mohammod - 9pts 1reb 2ast

Red Flash pick up win number two against Ohio's YSU.

Youngstown State came into town winless, they also left town winless. The St. Francis (PA) Red Storm came into the game with something to prove. Hoping to improve a record that showed them slipping away into the bottom feeder teams of the NCAA. The Red Flash however dominated their home court and improved to 2-4 on the season.

The Penguins made the game interesting but the Red Flash fans would not let them seal the deal in the final minutes of the second half when St. Francis locked the game up at the line.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 56
Youngstown St.: 50

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

J.P. Yeager - 16pts 2ast 2stl
E. Ruffin - 9pts 1reb 1stl
A. Tran - 7pts 2reb 1blk

Youngstown St.

B. Pilgrim - 10pts 2reb 5ast 1blk
T. Grove - 9pts 3reb 1stl
V. Krywonis - 8pts 2reb 1ast

[Deuce2223]

Rough Start to the year, but atleast you beat those pesky penguins from Youngstown.

[Vinsane187]

Well I'm working on more updates so you guys can see just how rough this season is winding up. And it's getting exciting at the same time. So keep your eyes peeled, updates coming later tonight.

[Vinsane187]

Bucknell breaks up a possible win streak for the Red Flash.

Bucknell led by great bench play from Hester and Hale put an end to the hopes of St. Francis putting together their first win streak of the season. Coach Cooper's boys traveled to Bucknell for the game against the Bison. Little did they know what a shoot out they were going to be in.

The first half went to Bucknell, 54-28. While this doesn't reflect a shootout at all the Red Flash refused to give up during the second half and battled back to even the odds, scoring 48 pts in the second half and holding Bucknell to only 22. The big blow would come in the form of J. Nelsen's final shot of the game. On an inbound pass the D covered down on the hot M. Cohen leaving Nelsen open for the three. When the buzzer beater fell so did the Red Flash.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 76
Bucknell: 79

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

J.P. Yeager - 16pts 7ast
K. Beye - 12pts 2reb 1ast 1stl 1blk
P. Mencio - 14pts 1reb 1ast

Bucknell

M. Cohen - 18 pts 4reb 5ast 2stl
W. Hester - 17pts 2stl
M. Hale - 12pts

Maureece Cisse explodes for 36, but Red Flash prevail.

With having to go on the road after the heart break comback and loss at Bucknell the road trip took the Red Flash to Robert Morris to face their in-conference Rival for their opening game of the Northeast Conference schedule. Robert Morris showed why this is such a rivalry with their ruckus fans and hard fouls. Sending the redflash to the line 22 times.

St Francis however bruised and battered refused to give up trailing by 8 at Halftime Coach Cooper delivered his message to the boys in the back.

Cooper: "Stay focused, you proved you can come back, this time lets do it right, lets come back, get the lead and throw it into cruise control to the victory."

And throw it into cruise control is what Coach Cooper did. After taking a ten point lead late he had his offense slow down the pace and use the full 35 seconds letting Robert Morris creep within 4 points but the strategy paid off in the end as the Red Flash walk away with their third win and first NEC win of the season.

The lost story in all this is the performance by Maureece Cisse, which Coach Cooper commented on as well.

Cooper: "We tried everything, keeping him double teamed, screens, everything. The kid just wanted to score tonight and score he did. Like the adidas ad says though, This isn't a videogame, one guy can't do it all. Tonight we proved team play outshines star play anyday."

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 82
Robert Morris: 78

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

K. Beye - 18pts 6reb 2ast 1blk
J.P. Yeager - 16pts 2reb 4ast 3stl
M. Williams - 12pts 2reb 1ast

Robert Morris

M. Cisse - 36pts 3reb 2ast
J. Eppenhimer - 7pts 10ast
J. Dillard - 7pts 6reb 5ast

Iona puts up big second half, puts away Red Flash.

The Red Flash played host to Iona, once agian unable to string together two wins. With a solid first half outscoring Iona 37-30 the Red Flash imploded on themselves and Iona battled to finish the game in the second half outscoring the Red Flash 41-24.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA) - 61
Iona - 71

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

A. Tran - 13pts 5ast 1stl
M. Williams - 8pts 1reb 3ast
K Beye - 6pts 5reb 2ast 1stl

Iona

A. Simms - 23pts 4reb 3ast 2blk
B. Chavis - 17pts 1ast 2stl
J. Kinard - 10pts 4reb 1ast 4blk

Losing streak hits 2 after Duquesne destorys Red Flash.

I don't wanna write anything, horrible game.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA) - 48
Duquesne - 77

The Key Three:

St Francis (PA)

A. Tran - 16pts 14reb 4stl
M. Williams - 6pts 2reb 5ast
J.P. Yeager - 6pts 1ast

Duquesne

C. Coulter - 21pts 7reb 2stl 1blk
D. Krogh - 16pts 6reb
O. Dunnington - 10pts 5ast

Red Flash close out Non-Conference play with HUGE upset.

The 3-7 Red Flash were not looking to win this game, neither was the rest of the nation. To be honest nobody in the Nation probably paid attention to the Red Flash before this game, but it being against at Pac-10 team the Nation watched as the Red Flash did the amazing and finished out their non-conference schedule with what will go down as the biggest win of the year.

Traveling to Arizona St. is no easy task, and winning their isn't that easy either. However the Red Flash did just that and with conviction. Led by strong point play by Marc Williams the Red Flash held off an aggresive defense in the first half and scraped for every one of their 43 first half points. Arizona St. dropped 56 on the Red Flash before half and thought they had the game wrapped up.

This however turned out to be the tale of two Halves. In the second Coach Cooper showed us why you don't sleep on him, or his team. He held the Arizona St. Sundevils to a measly 14, count them 14 second half points. A culmination of Arizona St. going cold and hard press coverage is the result of one of the worst offensive outputs this season.

Coach Cooper had this to say after the game after he, his team and the Red Flash faithful (a whole 23 people, mostly players families) danced at half court.

Cooper: "Wow, what a win. What a performance from our defense, all season Kevyn Beye has been playing taller, stronger guys and tonight he just showed us why it takes more than size to play good D. He played with a lot of heart and his defensive output is what won us the game. To rack up a double-double without scoring 10pts is something amazing. "

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA) - 78
Arizona St. - 70

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

K. Beye - 2pts 12reb 10blk
A. Tran - 19pts 2reb 3ast
M. Williams - 17pts 3reb 3ast

Arizona St.

L. Hunt - 13pts 4reb
D. McNair - 12pts 2ast
M. Lowe - 14pts 1reb

[Vinsane187]

Voiceover: (singing) Whoo eww eww, ew ew ew. (<--me trying to have the theme song from PTI reach you in word form)

Tony: "All right boys and girls we're back, and we're talking college hoops. Joining on us today on five good minutes is Coach of the St. Francis Pennsylvania Red Flash, Vincent Cooper. Coach welcome to the show."

Cooper: "Thanks Tony, its such an honor to be here. I've been watching and listening to your show since the begining. "

Michael: "Well thank you coach, that's quite an honor."

Cooper: "No problem Michael. "

Tony: "Coach, Wilbon and I were talking about the upset of Arizona St. And to be honest Coach, as knowledgable as I am about the college game, I hadn't even heard of St. Francis until last night."

Cooper: "Well to be honest with you Tone, when the call came to my office back home, I had never heard of St. Francis either. Now I guess after last nights win people can't help but hear of us now. "

Michael: "An upset will do that for you coach."

Tony: "Now everyone outside of Pennsylvania is wondering, how, how does a small team like this TRAVEL to Arizona St. and take down a Pac-10 team?

Cooper: "Tony, it's easy man, we went out there played our game of basketball, had a shut down second half and walked away with the win. "

Michael: "See that's what people are talking about, not the fact that you won the game, but you held a power conference team to only 14 points, 14. I can't remember how long it's been since seeing a score that low, I mean a low score in college now-a-days are your 50-60 point games, but to hold a team to 14 points in one half, that's amazing."

Cooper: "We owe it to our big man, Kevyn Beye. Here's a guy who is a power forward and is playing Center for us, and even though he's an underdog in just about every match up he wills his way to the basket, gets rebounds, blocks shots, he's a true defender, naturally he's where he needs to be before he needs to be there. "

Tony: "Now coach, a lot of people believe that small teams like yours are the cup cake teams, the teams that larger schools schedule to keep there W total up versus the L's. So with your record now, 3-7, what does a so called "Cupcake" team do to get ready for conference play?"

Cooper: "Well really we've been preparing for conference play all season, I've got my assistants focusing on the NEC while I handle the off-season scouting and game plans, we come in on monday, get ready for the next game. So this monday will be no different, we've got two NEC games coming up and hopefully we'll take two wins this week. "

Michael: "People say that in the small conferences because of not having the RPI, you have to win your conference to make the big dance is that true?"

Cooper: "Well Mike, this is my first rodeo at the college game, I've consulted with coaches around the nation for their opinions and they tell me that coming into the conference play was the big focus on the year. You can forget whatever upsets you have, forget whatever big wins came your way. At the end of the season if you don't win your conference, your 20 wins wind up being your ticket to the NIT...maybe. "

Tony: "Call me behind my times, but with all the RPI, Voting, Media, Coaches, Fans, you know all that. What's the big thing that your team is trying to cash on with this upset."

Cooper: "To be honest I told the guys to forget about it, it was a great win, we celebrated after the game. It's time to come into the gym monday ready to play another one. Let the energy from Arizona St. transfer over to the conference games we have and stay focused on that. "

Michael: "Coach we're runnin' out of time, lets hear it, National Champs, who you going with?"

Cooper: "Haha, a team from the Midwest bracket. "

Tony: "No one in perticular Coach?"

Cooper: "No tony, I'm focused on our games, March is down the road. "

Michael: "Ok coach I get the final question, Name the coach who has had the success that you want to have."

Cooper: "Damn good final question Mike, I'm an Ohio State fan at heart, though it's a different sport I'm going with Woody Hayes, the man is a legend and a damn good coach to boot. "

Tony: "Ok coach, real quick a coach from your sport, College basketball, Go!"

Cooper: "Wow, I've gotta say I've always admired Coach Dezeron, the guy had the midas touch, anywhere he went was solid gold, sorry to see him gone from the game, but I'm really interested in getting in contact with one of his former players whose coaching now, Coach Akpan from Boise State. "

Michael: "I see coach, maybe a west coast trip planned next season eh? Well kids that's all the time we have for five good minutes, commerical break coming up and we'll go to the big finish. thanks again Coop."

Cooper: "Anytime guys, anytime."

Whisper: "P T I"

(Commercial Break)

[Vinsane187]

Red Flash make short work of Quinnipiac.

The St. Francis Red Flash coming off their upset of Arizona St. were looking to start their first win streak of the season. They got that with a battle in the NEC versus Quinnipiac. The Tigers try as they might could not contain the Red Flash in the second half. St. Francis has proved they are a second half team. This goes to the coaches who draw up the plays at the half. Coach Cooper had this to say after the game.

Cooper: "This is a talented squad, one that's capable of that NEC Championship. I've seen them do amazing things in the off-season and tonight they made me believe by seeing their performance that their ready to take on the NEC."

Hopefully Coach Cooper is right, the Red Flash went into halftime up 36-30. And finished the game 76-54.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 76
Quinnipiac: 54

The Key Three:

St. Francis

A. Tran - 20pts 5reb 1ast 2stl 1blk
K. Beye - 8pts 5reb 1ast 1stl 1blk
J.P. Yeager - 6pts 2reb 2ast 1stl

Quinnipiac

W. Root - 13pts 5reb 2ast
E. Rush - 9pts 3reb 2blk
A. Coulvert - 8pts 3ast

Monmouth punches Red Flash in mouth.

This was a heavyweight fight that lasted 15 rounds. This Monmouth squad is one of the teams favored for the NEC title this year and crushed the Red Flash's dreams of reaching a 2 game win by lasting with them until the final minutes where fouling proved to be worthless as St. Francis could not put up the points at the end of the game.

Coach Cooper had this to say about the Monmouth squad.

Cooper: "Tonight wasn't our night, we just couldn't get the baskets to drop for us at the end. This Monmouth squad is for real and I'm truly looking forward to our match-up later this year. Congradulations to them and their coaches tonight, great execution by them they deserve this win."

The humble coach Cooper would walk back to the locker room trying once again to figure out how to put a win streak together.

C. Connecticut falls to Red Flash.

With the best overall player in the NEC playing for the other team the Red Flash had to figure out a way to stop Leo O'Sullivan. They didn't however and he wound up dropping 33 pts on the Red Flash. However the Red Flash were able to out rebound the Blue Devils and stop the rest of their team which lead to the win.

In the final minutes the Blue Devils had to deploy their foul tactics but the best free throw shooting team in the NEC rose up to the occasion and nailed the shots to close out a tough fought game.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 67
C. Connecticut: 60

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

A. Tran - 14pts 5reb 1ast
J.P. Yeager - 18pts 3ast 1stl
M. Williams - 10pts 1reb 1ast 2stl

C. Connecticut

L. O'Sullivan - 33pts 4ast
M. Bouma - 9pts 1reb
E. Troutman - 6pts 3reb 3ast 3stl

Block propels Red Flash to victory.

Wagner another favorite to win the NEC proved just why they are favored by taking the Red Flash down to the final seconds. In the first half it looked like Wagner was going to walk away with the victory heading into the locker room with a 36-27 lead. When the Red Flash came back out though they proved why they're the favorites by imploring their defense which held Wagner to 19 second half points while their offense put up 29.

The final shot of the game was on Wagner's P. Hunter who hadn't scored all game, the ball was placed in his hands with good distance on defender Tran. Hunter put the shot up but Tran closed in quick and was able to get a hand on the ball as the buzzer rang and the ball fell helplessly to the floor landing in the paint, far from it's basket destination. The floor was swamped with Red and White as the Red Flash fans poured onto the floor. Coach Cooper commented about the win.

Cooper: "Tonight was an amazing game, our guys keep showing why we deserve to be considered favorites in the NEC after knocking off Wagner who was ahead of us by a game. We're still chasing Mount St. Mary's though as I got word they won their game tonight. However tonight is our night, with great Defense by Tran we can call ourselves winners again.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 56
Wagner: 55

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

M. Williams - 10pts 3reb 2ast stl
A. Tran - 19pts 6reb 1ast 1blk
E. Ruffin - 7pts 1eb

Wagner

T. Turok - 14pts 7reb 4ast 2blk
L. Nevill - 11pts 1ast
A. Buckman - 6pts 4reb 2ast 2blk

[Vinsane187]

Rival St. Mary's takes down Red Flash.

Another two win streak means that another loss has to follow. The Red Flash traveled to rival Mount setting 4th in the NEC behind Sacred Heart, Mt. St. Mary's, and Monmouth. With Wagner trailing them by only a game. This was a rivalry game that Coach Cooper felt the Red Flash needed to win if they truly were going to capture the NEC. Earlier in the week he had this to say.

Cooper: "I love rivalry games, but I look at this one as 'The One' for us. We've gotta take this rivalry match-up and dominate now or we won't be able to compete for that coveted NEC title. People are starting to believe in us, we're starting to believe in ourselves. We've just gotta roll with it now and try to win these tough match-ups."

However the Mount St. Mary's squad would not let that become a reality as they threw the Red Flash another loss.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 52
Mt. St. Mary's: 65

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

J.P. Yeager - 15pts 1reb 3ast
A. Tran - 14pts 4reb 2stl
K. Beye - 7pts 3reb 1ast 1stl 1blk

Mt. St. Mary's

J. Chatfield - 25pts 4reb 2ast
L. Copeland - 9pts 6ast 1stl 1blk
S. Davenport - 8pts 1blk

Red Flash go on 7 game win streak!

Final Scores:

St. Francis (PA) : 71
Robert Morris: 42

In a rematch of rivals St. Francis would make short work of Robert Morris destroying them in Pennsylvania.

St. Francis (PA) : 65
St. Francis (NY): 53

That battle of St. Francis, fitting isn't it? A good first half would lead to shoddy play by the Terriers in the second. The Red Flash known for being a second half team lived up to the hype and put NY away in the second half.

St. Francis (PA) : 76
C. Connecticut: 66

Another rematch of NEC teams, the second match-up went just like the first. Leo O'Sullivan though was held to 12pts 1reb and 4ast. The games ending would wind up like the first by the Red Flash getting fouled, but again staying true to their title of best free throw shooting team in the NEC put away C. Connecticut for the second time this season.

St. Francis (PA) : 72
Quinnipiac: 65

Another tough game with Quinnipiac led to another conference win for the streaking Red Flash who pulled out in front. Quinnipiac made this quite a game until the final three minutes when their offense went flat and the Red Flash pulled out the victory.

St. Francis (PA) : 78
Long Island: 66

In their only in-season meeting the Long Island Blackbirds brought their black jerseys looking to leave the Red Flash black and blue. However the Red Flash survived the three point onslaught put on by Long Island who went .500 from three shooting 9-18. The Red Flash had the lead late and slowed down the offense to burn up the clock and they wind up burning the birds for the win.

St. Francis (PA) : 72
F. Dickinson: 65

In their first meeting this season coming at home for the Red Flash, they gave the Flash Faithful a show by putting F. Dickinson away in the second half. Coach Cooper was thrown out of the game however with a techincal foul after arguing a "no-call" which put his PF/C Kevyn Beye on the bench with a broken finger. The refs were not hearing any of it and tossed him out of the game.

St. Francis (PA) : 66
St. Fancis (NY): 56

The aftermath of the F. Dickinson game led Coach Cooper to be suspended for one game. However he was able to ask for a waive of the suspension in lieu of the coaches association standing up for him by showing the NEC commitee video evidence of the "no-call" the commitee would not let Coach Cooper go away unscathed though and fined the university for the "Misconduct detrimental to the conference."

The A.D. of St. Francis (PA) William Bank put the money up himself and paid the $5,000 dollar fine out of his own pocket. Showing he backed his coach and his school 100%.

The next night St. Francis put away their foes who shared the same name handendly with their free throw shooting ability in the final minutes and eased their way to their 7th straight victory winning, when Coach Cooper was asked about the suspension and the fine he had this to say.

Cooper: "The fine represented the crime, the suspension however was not something I would stand for. I'm with this team till the end and to not have me on the sideline with them is not-fair just only to me but the community as a whole. Through this win-streak we've grown close our fans follow us wherever we go, the kids are getting media attention, it's nice."

"To have me sent to my coach for calling what was proved to be a "no-call" foul is ridiculous. The fine was ridiculous too, but Bill stood up for me in the end and I'm thankful for that. I've got a first place team to lead in our final five games of the season."

Standings:

Entering the final five games of conference play here are the standings for the NEC.

*Note: Records are NEC conference games only.

St. Francis (PA) (11-2)
Mt. St. Mary's (9-4)
Wagner (8-5)
Sacred Heart (7-5)
Robert Morris (7-6)
St. Francis (NY) (6-7)
Monmouth (6-7)
C. Connecticut (5-9)
Long Island (5-8)
F. Dickerson (4-9)
Quinnipiac (3-10)

[Vinsane187]

Sacred Heart wins only Match-up this season.

Sacred Heart defended their home court well against a streaking Red Flash putting an end to their 7 game win streak. And propelling themselves towards the lead pack of the conference. It was an all offensive night for both teams as Sacred Heart fell 1 point short of the century mark.

St. Francis went into halftime down by 2, 45-43. However the Sacred Heart would put the dagger to the heart of the Red Flash outscoring them in the second half 54-35. This put a strain on the Red Flash who are trying to wrap up the in-season conference championship as Mt. St Mary's Wagner and Sacred Heart pull closer to them with this loss tonight Coach Cooper had this to say after the game.

Cooper: "When your trying to close out the season and nab that championship it's hard. I've been in battles like this in my high school days but never a race this close between 5 teams still able to take the title for themselves. We needed a win tonight and we didn't get it, now we just need to move on to the next game and stop those teams that are smelling blood."

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 78
Sacred Heart: 99

The Key Three:

St. Francis (PA)

M. Williams - 16pts 1reb 8ast
E. Ruffin - 16pts 5reb 1ast
K. Beye - 13pts 7reb 1ast 1blk

Sacred Heart

D. Humphrey - 22pts 5reb
C. English - 20pts 5reb 1ast 3stl
K. Chancler - 18pts 1reb 4ast

Wagner inches closer with win against Red Flash.

The woes continue for the red flash who are now on the verge of losing thier conference lead to Mt. St. Mary's. The Seahawks came in ready to play the Red Flash and play them they did. The roles were reversed this time. St. Francis took the early lead 44-35 at the half. In the second half they were outscored 35-21. The Seahawks ended the charge put on late by the Red Flash with three's that stuck a dagger in the wounded Red Flash. Coach Cooper commented after the game.

Cooper: "We let up too early, I told the guys to keep playing their game and tone down the offense, this one is on me tonight. I should of told them to deliver the final blow early and then we could throw it into cruise control. Now it's a battle for the number 1 spot against Mt. St. Mary's next. I don't know really what else to say other than we need a win on Saturday."

Battle of the NEC Titans ends well.

St. Francis knew tonight their lead and their championship was on the line. They went out against their in-conference rivals and gave a show for the home town fans. The Red Flash who have been playing better first halves lately pulled out to a 42-27 lead. Mount St. Mary's wouldn't best them in the second half either and their charge to the top would be halted momentarily by the Red Flash. Coach Cooper commented on the game.

Cooper: "Tonight was a reflection of Wensday. We had the lead and this time I went into the locker room telling the guys to put them away, don't let them back in the game. We have the lead lets finish strong and we did. Yeah we only outscored them by one in the second half but it's better than being outscored by 17 and losing the game."

"The conference title is all but wrapped up though. Two games left and Sacred Heart are still sitting pretty at 5 loses, and own the tie-breaker against us. This race will come down to the final week as they we won't play one another. I just hope this pans out for us."

Monmouth Sweeps Red Flash, Now tied with Sacred Heart for Conference Championship.

Monmouth did it again to the Red Flash, securing the win in the second half and there was nothing the Red Flash could do to stop them. Led by J. McCollum the monmouth squad put an end to any hopes of the Red Flash securing the championship on this day. On the other end of the spectrum on the fight for the championship Sacred Heart kept their Championship hopes alive as they beat Robert Morris 77-71 at home. Their final game is against C. Connecticut who are on a 6 game win streak.

In their first match-up Sacred Heart beat the Blue Devils in the conference opener 85-82. The Blue Devils will have to travel to Sacred Heart and win if they want to spoil the championship for them. Devils coach Howie Dickenman was asked who he wants to win the conference and he had this to say. "Between Vince and Dave it's a toss up, both are good guys. Their squads both have the ability to represent as NEC Champions, I'm upset that my guys are playing for the in-season conference title right now. I guess we'll just have to wait till the final buzzer sounds before we crown the champs."

Final game of season leads to Win. However, do the Red Flash get crowned the Champs?

The Red Flash had one mission coming into their final game against F. Dickinson, and that was win. With a win the Red Flash would do all they could to propel themselves to win the regular season championship. Their destiney was not in their hands however as the Red Flash went to the locker room to catch the rest of the Sacred Heart/C. Connecticut game.

F. Dickerson put up a good game against the Red Flash heading into halftime with the 44-43 lead. The Red Flash defense would show up in the second half and Cooper's men would put a stop to the F. Dickinson run late, going up by 4 with a minute left Dickinson had no choice but to put the best shooting free throw team in the NEC to the line. The Red Flash would answer all the questions if they deserved to be champs by winning the game.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 76
F. Dickinson: 71

The Key Three:

St. Francis

A. Tran - 14pts 14reb 2stl
J.P. Yeager - 15pts 5reb 2ast
M Williams - 11pts 2reb 5ast

F. Dickinson

V. Aberlard - 16pts 1ast
Z. Panigar - 11pts 5reb
R. Blizzard - 9pts 1stl

The Red Flash watched in amazement as Central Connecticut knocked off Sacred Heart 88-68 on Sacred Heart's home court. No one said a word until the final buzzer that's when cheers erupted from the players and their coaches all at once. We had some words with a majority of the players and Coach Cooper after the end of the Sacred Heart/Central Connecticut Game.

J.P. Yeager: "Man it's been a long year, coach believed in us though, and we believed in him. He loves winning and we contribute this to our 7 game win streak that propelled us and the strength to finish out the season strong."

K. Beye: "When Coach asked me to play Center this year instead of Power Forward I knew I had a job to do. I went out there night in and night out and regaurdless what happned coach always had my back. Did we think we would be champions of the NEC? No. Did we think we'd be sitting here talking to you? No. Did we believe in ourselves and our coach and play the season out. Yes. That's what matters at the end of the day."

A. Tran: "Coach put a lot of responsability on my shoulders this year, the youngest starter. Putting up big numbers every night is what I try to do and regaurdless what happens coach never gets on us, he never brings us down. If he asks me to make that winning bucket and I miss he doesn't hold it against me, gives me a pat on the back and says "Nice shot, maybe next time?" And yeah it might come off as a little cold to you, but the look in his eyes say it all, he really does believe it was a nice shot, He just knows that they don't always go in."

M. Williams: "To be sitting here as the NEC champs is great. It's some hardware to put in the trophey cases that have been a little bare lately. But we still have a job to do, still have a tourney to worry about. We win that we go to the dance, we lose that and our season could be over. That's all I have to say."

Coach Cooper: "What a magical year for all of us, as a team, as a unit we grew together. We lost together and now we get the chance to win and celebrate together. I gotta extend my thanks to the Blue Devils who made this possible, without their win we're sitting in second angry and hungry, tonight we can sleep well as the NEC Regular Season Champs."

[Vinsane187]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/41/NortheastConference.png/150px-NortheastConference.png

NEC Final Standings and Tournament Bracket

St. Francis (PA) (13-5)
Sacred Heart (12-6)
Wagner (11-7)
Monmouth (10-8)
Mount St. Mary's (10-8)
Robert Morris (10-8)
C. Connecticut (9-9)
Long Island (8-10)
St. Francis (NY) (7-11)
F. Dickinson (5-13)
Quinnipiac (4-14)

The NEC Tournament places the Top eight teams of the Conference in seeded order staring with #1 playing #8. With three teams tied at 10-8 it went by head to head match-ups. The commitee released the bracket as such. Controversey erupts as #3 Wagner is bumped to the bottom of the Bracket instead of the top half where they believe they should be playing #6 Robert Morris. Due to the three way tie however the Commitee believes this is the best way to place the teams based on seeding and head to head matchups.

#1 St. Francis (PA)
#8 Long Island

#5 Mount St. Mary's
#6 Robert Morris

#3 Wagner
#4 Monmouth

#2 Sacred Heart
#7 C. Connecticut

Round 1 is in the books.

#1 St. Francis (PA): 70
#8 Long Island: 61

Long Island gave it their all trailing the NEC regular season champs by 1 at the half 33-34.
The Blackbirds came out in the second half bringing the game to a close ending however the superior post play combined with their cold streak of three's ended the Blackbirds run at the upset. St Francis will play the winner of Mount St. Mary's and Robert Morris.

#5 Mount St. Mary's: 85
#6 Robert Morris: 80

The first upset of the NEC came in the form of Robert Morris knocking off The Mount for a chance to play their in-conference rival for a third time this season. Robert Morris controlled the game from the begining taking a 4 point lead into half. 41-37. Mount St. Mary's rebounds by taking the second half 38-34 and sending the game into Overtime.

In Overtime the defenses would show up and a combined 15 points from both teams would be the deciding factor as Robert Morris tops Mount St. Mary's outscoring them 10-5 in OT.

#3 Wagner: 89
#4 Monmouth: 48

Wagner after feeling like they'd been snubbed by the comittee in their placing wanted to rebound by making short work of Monmouth. The Seahawks took a huge 51-29 lead into half time and in the second half continued to pour on the points and shut down Monmouth outscoring them 38-19 in the second half.

#2 Sacred Heart: 79
#7 C. Connecticut: 81

The Pioneers wanted revenge against the Blue Devils who ended their chances of winning the in-season conference championship by defeating them in their final game of the season. The upsets wouldn't stop their however as the upset bug hit the second placed team of the tournament. The Blue Devils played a strong game and wound up finishing off the Pioneers from the line in the second half finish.

Sacred Heart will have to wait until next year for their revenge now as the C. Connecticut beats them twice in the span of 1 week.

Round 2: Semi Finals

#1 St. Francis (PA): 72
#6 Robert Morris: 70

This was the match-up of the night as Robert Morris took St. Francis down to the wire. In the final 6 seconds Robert Morris tossed up a jumper that would of secured the lead for them. The ball rimmed out and Kevyn Beye came down with the rebound. After the time out the ball was inbounded to J.P. Yeager who drained an 18 foot jumper for the lead.

On the ensuing inbound Robert Morris attempted to throw the ball down court which was intercepted by A. Tran who quickly ran away from any Robert Morris players and kept away from them until time expired, the St. Francis Red Flash survive a scare and move to the championship game to play the winner of Wagner/C. Connecticut

#3 Wagner: 89
#7 C. Connecticut: 72

The Magic for the C. Connecticut Blue Devils ends as Wagner defeats them in the Semi's to move onto the finals. Again Wagner felt they had something to prove as they were knocked out of in-season championship contention a week before the end. Wagner moves onto the championship game to play St. Francis (PA) in the DeGol Arena

NEC Championship Game:

#1 St. Francis (PA)
#3 Wagner
(Regular Season Series Tied 1-1)

St. Francis got their first win via a blocked shot, Wagner got revenge by beating them by 5. If anyone has a score to settle in the NEC it's these two. With a game a piece taken by each Wagner looks to upset the regular season champions and steal their bid to the NCAA tournament. Coach Cooper had this to say when we spoke earlier this week.

Cooper: "We're playing for survival here, when your projected like we are at a sixteen seed it means you win your conference tournament or don't go to the dance at all. We're going to give it our all and try to earn St. Francis it's first bid sicne 1991."

[Vinsane187]

NEC Championship Game:
Wednsday March 12th, 2008
DeGol Arena, Loretta Pennsylvania.

http://images.sportsline.com/images/cbss/ui2/logos/collegebasketball/160x100/STFRPA.gifVS.http://images.sportsline.com/images/cbss/ui2/logos/collegebasketball/160x100/WAG.gif

The Degol arena was packed to watch tonights Championship game where the #1 Seeded St. Francis (PA) took on the #3 Seed Wagner Seahawks.

First Half:

The Seahawks shot lights out from behind the arc while the Red Flash shot like their eyes were out. At halftime the Eagles had landed 7/11 from the Arc to the Red Flash's 1/7. That wasn't the only thing going wrong for the regular season champs as their post game was not working for them either and they were pretty much dominated through the first half. They stayed in the fight though and chipped away at a huge lead as much as they could to pull within 10 at the half.

Haltime:

St. Francis (PA): 37
Wagner: 47

Such was the case in the second half two, St. Francis found a way to stop the Seahawks down town shooting but were unable to stop much else, let alone get their offense rolling. The Seahawks would watch as their lead fell to as many as six but that was the closest the Red Flash would get to winning the NEC tournament. The Seahawks outscored the Red Flash 40-42 and took home the hardware winning the Championship game.

Final Score:

St. Francis (PA): 77
Wagner: 89

The Key Three:

St. Francis

J.P. Yeager - 25pts 3reb 3stl
A. Tran - 19pts 3reb 3ast 1stl
K. Beye - 6pts 2reb 1ast 1stl 2blk.

Wagner

J. Berraelica - 20pts 3reb 8ast 1stl
L. Nevill - 17pts 3ast
K. Sykes - 14pts 2ast

Postgame Press Conference.

Reporter 1: "Coach how do you feel?"

Cooper: (Deep sigh) "It hurts, it really does. Wagner was a talented team, they beat us in the regular season once, we beat them once. They came out tonight and beat us again. I don't feel real great right now."

Reporter 2: "Coach in the second half, you stopped the three point shooting but couldn't stop the offense, what was going on?"

Cooper: "Tonight the defense that's carried us this far wasn't there, we had all this time to prepare and go over gameplans and different scenarios and no matter what we ran nothing worked tonight."

Reporter 3: "Coach do you think the selection commitee will select two teams from the NEC with tonights close performance?"

Cooper: "Honestly this is my first year I don't know. Considering we didn't do so hot in non-conference play I'm going to go with no."

Reporter 3: "What about NIT's?"

Cooper: "That I'm not even sure on either, we have to wait until selection sunday is over with and then await the NIT Selection."

Reporter 4: "Coach this was your first year in college ball, any plans for next year?"

Cooper: "Now your talking like our season is over? Look the only plans for next year right now are getting to next year, next question."

Reporter 5: "Anything to say to Wagner or their Coach?"

Cooper: "Congradulations to and his Seahawks, at the end of the day there can only be one NEC representative as the tourney champs and I wish them the best of luck in the NCAA Tournament."

Reporter 6: "Couple more questions if you would coach, this is a two part question. With the loss do you see yourself leaving St. Francis at the end of the season and if so where would you go?"

Cooper: "I have a contract to honor ok? A contract that says I'm going nowhere for another two years unless someone wants to buy me out at the end of next year. Any questions pertaining to this season or are we done?"

Reporter 7: "Coach...what now?"

Cooper: "Await the selection commitee's decision and see where we go from here. That is all. Thank you."

[Vinsane187]

http://re3.mm-a4.yimg.com/image/2849244032
2K Sports NCAA Selection Show

65 Team Selection
31 Conference Champions
34 At Large Bids

Bubble Teams:

Stanford
Saint Joseph's
Fordham
Villanova
Texas A&M
Vanderbilt
UC Irvine
UAB
Saint Louis
Indiana

Play-In Game:

Grambling vs. Pacific

(Winner gets 16 seed in East Region)

The Bracket Selection:
(East/South/Midwest/West)

1.) Memphis/UCLA/Kansas/Kentucky.
2.) Washington/Louisville/Georgetown/Arkansas
3.) Florida St./California/Arizona/North Carolina
4.) Marquette/Houston/NC State/Tennesee
5.) Dayton/S. Illinois/Oregon/Xavier
6.) Washington St./Alabama/Missouri/Utah
7.) Austin Peay/Clemson/Gonzaga/Ohio State
8.) Pitt/Southern Miss./Kansas St./Rhode Island
9.) Syracuse/Georgia Tech/Butler/USC
10.) Stanford/St. Joseph's/Fordham/Duquesne
11.) Vanderbilt/UC Irvine/Minnesota/Virginia
12.) Yale/Bucknell/Towson/N. Iowa
13.) Wofford/UT-Arlington/Wagner/High Point
14.) ND St./Portland St./Santa Clara/Boise St.
15.) Troy/New Hampshire/Morgan St./Mercer
16.) Play-in Winner/Detriot/Miami (OH)/Marist

Conference Breakdown:

Pac-10 - 8
ACC - 6
A-10 - 6
SEC - 5
Big East - 5
Big 12 - 3
C-USA - 3
Big Ten - 2
MVC - 2
Big West - 2
WCC - 2
Horizon - 2

Whose In:

Stanford
St. Joseph's
Fordham
Vanderbilt
UC Irvine

Whose Out:

Villanova
Texas A&M
UAB
St. Louis
Indiana

http://http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/06/Nit_logo.png/180px-Nit_logo.png

NIT Regionals

(Not sure what it's called, here's the left side)

Left Side - Top

Villanova
UT-Pan American

Oklahoma
Iowa St.

UNLV
Connecticut

New Mexico St.
Akron

Left Side - Bottom

Texas A&M
St. Francis (PA)

Albany
Duke

George Mason
C. Michigan

Colgate
Indiana

(And now the right side)

Right Side - Top

Saint Louis
Jackson St.

South Alabama
Arizona St.

Canisius
Rutgers

Florida A&M
Providence

Right Side-Bottom

UAB
IUPUI

Nevada
Fresno St.

Davidson
W. Michigan

Belmont
G. Washington

[blue_apocalypse]

Tough loss in the NEC championship game. It looked like you were rolling through the tourney until that game. Good luck in the NIT

[vols21]

UCI with the #11 seed and two teams! GO BIG WEST!!

Good luck agains the Aggies

[Vinsane187]

Tough loss in the NEC championship game. It looked like you were rolling through the tourney until that game. Good luck in the NIT

Yeah no kidding, it was rough all around. I thought I could pull it off but after the tough game with Robert Morris I was thinking "This is great, now Wagner is going to be just as tough if not harder." And sure enough they started draining threes. And I just couldn't keep up.

UCI with the #11 seed and two teams! GO BIG WEST!!

Good luck agains the Aggies

Yes during the little selection show or whatever they took time to mention the big west getting two teams into the tournament. Round 1 is ready to be posted and I'll make sure the rest of the tourney is up today and I'll probably cover the off-season too.

[Vinsane187]

March Madness: Round 1
(Upsets marked in RED)

Play In Game:

Grambling: 71
Pacific: 61

East:

#1 Memphis: 95
#16 Grambling: 49

#8 Pittsburg: 73
#9 Syracuse: 77

#5 Dayton: 79
#12 Yale : 66

#4 Marquette: 77
#13 Wofford: 74

#6 Washington St.: 92
#11 Vanderbilt: 83

#3 Florida St.: 67
#14 ND State: 57

#7 Autin Peay: 55
#10 Stanford: 69

#2 Washington: 86
#15 Troy: 75

West:

#1 Kentucky: 77
#16 Marist:62

#8 Rhode Island: 59
#9 USC: 88

#5 Xavier: 60
#12 N. Iowa: 82

#4 Tennesee: 99
#13 Highpoint: 90

#6 Utah: 74
#11 Virgina: 76

#3 North Carolina: 110
#14 Boise St.: 69

#7 Ohio State: 92
#10 Duquesne: 77

#2 Arkansas: 80
#15 Mercer: 78

South:

#1 UCLA: 87
#16 Detriot: 66

#8 Southern Miss: 71
#9 Georgia Tech: 70

#5 S. Illinois: 86
#12 Bucknell: 60

#4 Houston: 69
#13 UT-Arlington: 77

#6 Alabama: 58
#11 UC Irvine: 53

#3 California: 100
#14 Portland St.: 63

#7 Clemson: 63
#10 Saint Joseph's: 67

#2 Louisville: 90
#15 New Hampshire: 59

Midwest:

#1 Kansas: 97
#16 Miami (OH): 68

#8 Kansas St.: 76
#9 Butler: 64

#5 Oregon: 73
#12 Towson: 49

#4 NC State: 76
#13 Wagner: 75

#6 Missouri: 103
#11 Minnesota: 97

#3 Arizona: 81
#14 Santa Clara: 67

#7 Gonzaga: 85
#10 Fordham: 65

#2 Georgetown: 105
#15 Morgan St.: 58

[Vinsane187]

NIT Round 1:

Top Left:

Villanova: 93
UT-Pan American: 58

Oklahoma: 82
Iowa St.: 65

UNLV: 90
Connecticut: 89

New Mexico St.: 74
Akron: 65

Bottom Left:

Texas A&M: 90
St. Francis (PA): 56

After the devestating loss to Wagner the Red Flash get seeded against one of the strongest teams in the NIT. They held their own in the first half 45-35 however in the second half Texas A&M did their homework and knew to keep the Red Flash down and they did outscoring them 45-21. Coach Cooper and the Red Flash's season is now over. With questions as to how to repeat the success next season and take that extra step.

Albany: 69
Duke: 80

George Mason: 72
C. Michigan: 47

Colgate: 54
Indiana: 79

Top Right:

Saint Louis: 87
Jackson St.: 62

South Alabama: 84
Arizona St.: 78

Canisius: 55
Rutgers: 69

Florida A&M: 62
Providence: 79

Bottom Right:

UAB: 50
IUPIUI: 70

Neveda: 65
Fresno St.: 70

Davidson: 83
W. Michigan: 74

Belmont: 63
G. Washington: 71

[Vinsane187]

March Madness: Round of 32
(Upsets marked inRED)

East:

#1 Memphis: 73
#9 Syracuse: 63

#5 Dayton: 71
#4 Marquette: 78

#6 Washington St.: 76
#3 Florida St.: 78

#10 Stanford: 78
#2 Washington: 75

West:

#1 Kentucky: 69
#9 USC: 67

#12 N. Iowa: 74
#4 Tennessee: 69

#11 Virginia: 66
#3 North Carolina: 95

#7 Ohio St.: 48
#2 Arkansas: 77

South:

#1 UCLA: 76
#8 Southern Miss: 70

#5 S.Illinois: 82
#13 UT-Arlington: 68

#6 Alabama: 70
#3 California: 71

#10 St. Joseph's: 79
#2 Louisville: 67

Midwest:

#1 Kansas: 92
#8 Kansas St.: 77

#5 Oregon: 78
#4 NC State: 89

#6 Missiouri: 61
#3 Arizona: 84

#7 Gonzaga: 66
#2 Georgetown: 74

[Vinsane187]

NIT: Round 2

Top Left:

Villanova: 79
Oklahoma: 56

UNLV: 89
New Mexico St: 70

Bottom Left:

Texas A&M: 58
Duke: 63

George Mason: 56
Indiana: 60

Top Right:

Saint Louis: 68
South Alabama: 80

Rutgers: 75
Providence: 85

IUPUI: 58
Fresno St: 66

Davidson: 91
G. Washington: 86

[Vinsane187]

March Madness: Sweet 16
(Upsets marked inRED)

East:
Charlotte Bobcats Arena

#1 Memphis: 70
#4 Marquette: 92

#3 Florida St: 71
#10 Stanford: 78

West:
US Airways Center

#1 Kentucky: 79
#12 N. Iowa: 48

#3 North Carolina: 76
#2 Arkansas: 103

South:
Reliant Stadium

#1 UCLA: 79
#5 S. Illinois: 69

#3 California: 71
#10 St. Joseph's: 63

Midwest:
Ford Field

#1 Kansas: 87
#4 NC State: 79

#3 Arizona: 66
#2 Georgetown: 74

[Vinsane187]

NIT Elite 8

Villanova: 70
UNLV: 80

Duke: 70
Indiana: 71

South Alabama: 66
Providence: 82

Fresno St.: 56
Davidson: 96

[Vinsane187]

March Madness: Elite 8
(Upsets Marked in Red)[/Center]

East:
Charlotte Bobcats Arena

#4 Marquette: 89
#10 Stanford: 78

West:
US Airways Center

#1 Kentucky
#2 Arkansas

South:
Reliant Stadium

#1 UCLA: 82
#3 California: 55

Midwest:
Ford Field

#1 Kansas: 80
#2 Georgetown: 71

[Vinsane187]

NIT Final Four/Championship Game:
Carrier Dome, NY

UNLV: 81
Indiana: 72

Davidson: 81
Providence: 102

Championship:

UNLV: 71
Providence: 81

March Madness: Final 4/Championship Game
San Antonio, TX

#4 Marquette: 85
#2 Arkansas: 87

#1 UCLA: 77
#1 Kansas: 68

NCAA Championship Game:

#2 Arkansas: 75
#1 UCLA: 82

NCAA End of Year Awards:

NCAA Champs: UCLA Bruins
Player of the Year: #50 Devin Grace, PF, UNC
Mid-Major POTY: #1 Ka'Ron Carlisle, PF, Rider
Coach of the Year: Ben Howland, UCLA
Defensive Player of the Year: #40 Cheyne Higgins, C, Alabama A&M
Big Man of the Year: #50 Devin Grace, PF, UNC
Freshman of the Year: #30 Neal Nuualutua, PF, Kansas St.

First-Team All-Americans:

#1 Duane Buschner, JR., PG, Marquette
#5 Ferdinand Roberts, SR., SG, Tennesee
#25 Kabir Blackshear, SR., SF, Rhode Island
#50 Devin Grace, JR., PF, UNC
#21 Martin McMillian, SR, C, Nebraska

Second-Team All-Americans:

#44 Earnest Duany, SR, PG, Virginia
#3 Bobbye Garner, SR, SG, Houston
#11 Ronnie Tamayo, SO, SF, Syracuse
#1 Ka'Ron Carlisle, SR, PF, Rider
#55 Dennis Atkins, SR, C, Georgetown

Freshman All-Americans:

#33 Ime Perkins, FR, PG, USC
#23 Armond Ortega, FR, SG, Indiania
#12 Brendon Yeager, FR, SF, Kansas St.
#30 Neal Nuualutia, FR, PF, Kansas St.
#42 Scooter Jacobs, FR, C, UCLA

Conference Champions:

American East: Albany
ACC: North Carolina
Atlantic Sun: Belmont
Atlantic 10: Xavier
Big East: Georgetown
Big Sky: Portland State
Big South: High Point
Big Ten: Ohio State
Big 12: Kansas
Big West: UC-Irvine
Colonial: George Mason
C-USA: Memphis
Horizon: Butler
Ivy League: Yale
Metro Atlantic: Canisius
MAC: W. Michigan
Mid-Eastern: Florida A&M
Missiouri Valley: Southern Illinois
Mountain West: UNLV
Northeast: St. Francis (PA)
Ohio Valley: Austin Peay
Pac-10: Washington
Patriot League: Colgate
SEC: Kentucky
Southern: Davidson
Southland: Texas AT Arlington
Southwestern: Jackson St.
Summit League: IUPUI
Sun Belt: South Alabama
West Coast: Gonzaga
Western Athletic: New Mexico St.

NEC Awards:

NEC Conference Coach of the Year: Howie Dickenman, C. Conneticut
NEC POTY: Leo O'Sullivan, SR, PG, C. Connecticut St.
NEC Freshman of the Year: Ronni Akagonye, FR, PF, Monmouth

First-Team All-Conference:

#35 Leo O'Sullivan, SR, PG, C. Connecticut St.
#0 Harold Eldridge, SR, SG, Quinnipiac
#1 Attarrius Tran, SO, SF, St. Francis (PA)
#25 Salvatore Hanson, SR, PF, Wagner
#35 Max Zwikker, FR, C, Fairlaigh Dickinson

Second-Team All-Conference:

#23 Josiah Berrelleca, SR, PG, Wagner
#42 Jesse Eppenhemer, SR, SG, Robert Morris
#1 Lyndale Borders, SR, SF, Long Island
#24 Omar Humphrey, SR, PF, Sacred Heart
#40 Arturs Buckman, FR, C, Wagner

Freshman All Conference:

#15 Collin Andrews, FR, PG, Monmouth
#23 Will Root, FR, SG, Quinnipiac
#30 Robin Hampton, FR, SF, C. Connecticut
#21 Ronnie Anagonye, FR, PF, Monmouth
#35 Max Zwikker, FR, C, Fairleigh Dickinson

[Vinsane187]

Off-Season Recruiting Signings:

NCAA Top Ten Recruits:

Cory Edelin, PG, AA, Mr.BB, Clevis, California. UCLA
Desmond Clifford, PG, AA, Mr.BB, El Paso, Texas. Arizona
Jeb Kragel, PG, AA, Mr.BB, Cincinatti, Ohio. Ohio State
Logan Baynes, SF, AA, Vacavilla, California. Nevada
Jarryd Havens, SG, AA, Mr. BB, Baton Rouge, LA. Florida
Tank Okpalobi, SF, AA, Mr. BB, Fort St. Luca, Florida. Tennesee
Demetrice Stokes, PG, AA, Mr. BB, Carlotte, NC. Duke
Whitney Laurelin, PF, AA, Mr. BB, Milford, CT. Georgetown
Lyle Garrison, SG, Toronto, Canada. West Virginia
Lowell Winston, PF, AA, West Covina, California. UNLV

NEC Signings:

C. Connecticut:

Colin Richardson, SF, 3* Rank:405
Louie North, SF, 2* Rank: 507
Lamont Fleming, PG, 2*
Freiedrich Ellerbee, SF, 2*

F. Dickerson:

Isaac Parham, SG, 2* Rank: 541
Jarred Felton, SF, 2* Rank: 651
J.R. Webber, SG, 2* Rank: 320
Jefferey Barker, SF 2*
Peter Amea, SF, 2*

Long Island:

Regnald Jacobsen, SF, 3* Rank: 411
Jacoby Pawlak, SF, 2* Rank: 674
Luam Hobsen, SG, 2*
Terrance Hacker, SG, 2*

Monmouth:

Cornell Gunn, SF, 3* Rank: 281
Laurence Israel, PF, 3* Rank: 359

Mount St. Mary's:

T.J. Ravello, SG, 3* Rank: 115
Jerrah Pearson, C, 2* Rank: 497

Quinnipiac:

Keith Kelley, PF, 2* Rank: 310
Arzelle Coombs, PF, 2* 323
Bracey Woolley, SF, 1*

Robert Morris:

Duane English, SG, 2* Rank: 690
Johnny Koffi, SG, 2*
Jerrey Hutchinson, PF, 2*
Jaivon Colluico, PF, 1*

Sacred Heart:

Filiberto Slaughter, PF, 3* Rank:396
Dominick Lettenberger, PF, 3* Rank: 448
Bernard Sykes, JC FR, PF, 3*
Pete Warden, PF, 2*
Amit Marshall, 2*

Saint Francis (NY):

Timmy Sparrow, C, 2*
C.W. Borges, C, 2*
Tracy Kandji, SF, 2*
Ramdo Mullins, C, 2*
Rubin Frank, 1*

Wagner:

Cornelius Ebede, PG, 3* Rank: 190
Dedrick Edelin, PG, 2*
Cameron Moliva, PG, 2*

St. Francis (PA):

JonPaul Mascoll:

Height: 7'0
Weight: 231
Pos: C
Hometown: Detriot, Michigan

Grades:

Shooting - C-
Skills - C
Defense - C-
Athleticism - C-
Rebounding - B
Intelligence - C-
Potential - C-
Size - A

Coach's Note: JonPaul is a bigman, a big, big man. Recruited him not for his talents but for his size, he'll be the biggest player in the NEC next season going by size and weight. We were outrebounded a lot and needed to improve in this area. Some people might believe this was a wasted scholarship. I believe this was the only logical pick as we had no Centers on this team last year. This will also give Kevyn Beye a break to focus more on scoring than defense.

In closing I believe JonPaul was the best pick with our scholarship and you will see him on the floor next season as I'll wave the option to bench him for a season. With him I believe we continue the success we had last year, perhaps pick up a few more games and it give it our all to make another run at a birth in the NCAA Tournament.

Top 10 Recruiting Classes:

Georgetown
Duke
Arizona
UCLA
Ohio St.
Florida St.
Washington St.
Creighton
Kansas
Vanderbilt

[Vinsane187]

[CENTER]http://images.sportsline.com/images/cbss/ui2/logos/collegebasketball/160x100/STFRPA.gif
St. Francis, PA. Media Guide 08'-09' Season


INDEX

1.) Letter from the Coach.
2.) The Coaches.
3.) The Players.
4.) The Schedule.

Letter from the Coach

From: Coach Cooper
To: The Fans

Hello Again,

First and foremost I'm so glad to return as your head coach for the 08'-09' season. We did so much last season it will be hard to top it this year. Winning the conference Championship was the greatest accomplishment that our team could of done for us. I'm very proud of them for the effort they put in last year and the effort they continue to put in for this year.

With all of our success we all believe that there is more to accomplish this season. Returning all of our starters, everyone improving in the off season and bringing in our new center we can deffiantly repeat the success. However, we can't do it alone. We need you the fans for your support and love for this team.

This season our goals are well within reach like they were last year. I also expect to go above and beyond expectations as we did last year. However, like everything else in this crazy college basketball world nothing is for certain.

-Finish better than .500
-Improve on non-conference schedule (3-7 last year)
-Place in top 3 of Conference (Won NEC last year)
-Win conference tournament (Knocked out in Championship game last year)

Again we can't do this alone and need your support this season, please join me and the Red Flash for another exciting year of College Basketball.

-Go Flash!

-Coach Cooper.

The Coaches

Vincent Cooper (27 years old, 2nd w/Saint Francis (PA))
Career Record: 18-14

Last year Coach Cooper busted on the scene and brought Saint Francis it's first NEC Title in his tenure. However, the Red Flash we're knocked out of the NEC Tournament by Wagner. Leading them to the NIT where they lost in the first round to Texas A&M. Coach Cooper vows this year will be different, that his focus is winning the NEC Tourney no matter what seed they are and getting St. Francis to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since, 1991.

Ovr: C
Off: C+
Def: C+ (+1)
Tea: C (+1)
Sco: C+ (+1)
Cha: C+ (+1)
Dis: C-

Stetson Gomez (40 years old, 2nd year with Coach Cooper)

Stetson Gomez was a good assist last year in Offensive coaching and took care of most the scouting abilities. As coach Cooper gets better at scouting and offense coach Gomez looks more obsolete to the St. Francis team. However Coach Cooper insisted that Stetson stay on the team not wanting to cause changes to the coaching staff, especially with all the kids returning this season.

Ovr: C-
Off: C+
Def: F
Tea: D
Sco: C+
Cha: C-
Dis: D

Michael Anrin (50 years old, 2nd year with Coach Cooper)

Coach Anrin is in the same boat, Coach Cooper continues to learn the game of basketball and his defensive expertise becomes more obsolete as well. Again however Coach Cooper did want to break up the coaching trio in only their second year together. Coach Anrin forgoed Retirement to return to the team with Coach Cooper beliving that this team can make the NEC tournament championship again and this time win.

Ovr: C-
Off: C+
Def: C+
Tea: C-
Sco: D
Cha: D
Dis: D

The Players:

Starters:
() - Overall rating

PG - Marc Williams (68)(+2) 5'10" 180lbs. Senior, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
SG - J.P. Yeager (67)(+2) 5'10" 175lbs. Senior, Jacksonville, Florida.
SF - Attarrius Trans (70)(+3) 6'7" 180lbs Junior, Towson, Maryland.
PF - Kyle Beye (60)(+2) 6'9" 226lbs Senior, Senegal.
C - JonPaul Mascoll (54) 7'0 243lbs Freshman, Detriot, Michigan.

Four starters return to the line-up. Paulius Mankevicius is moved to the bench for Freshman JonPaul Mascoll. Coach Cooper is going for size with this starting line-up. He believes that JonPaul can contribute early and often. Also note that Attarrius Tran picked up an extra inch in the offseason. Kyle Beye also gained weight, 11 pounds. Making him and JonPaul the big men of the conference. Expect to see better offensive output from this line up as Mascoll and Beye can bang it down low, and Marc Williams and J.P. Yeager can shoot from outside.

The Star however is Attarrius Tran, the First-Team All-Conference SF returns to lead this St. Francis Red Flash team to hopefully another conference championship and a better outcome in the conference tournament.

Bench:

SG - Ed Ruffin (64)(+2) 6'4" 192lbs. Senior, Austin, Texas.
SG- Micheal Eisentrout (61) 6'5" 182lbs. Senior, Aurora, Illinois
SG - Philip Mencio (58) 6'1" 184lbs, Junior, Towson, Maryland.
PF - Paulius Mankevicius (58)(+2) 6'7" 220lbs Sophmore, Lithuania.
SG - Vince Brower (55) 6'5" 180lbs Junior, Reading, Pennsylvania.
SF - Kevyn Sherrod (54) 6'6" 210lbs Sophmore, Scranton, Pennsylvania.
PF - Channing Atkins (53) 6'8" 200lbs Sophmore, Bethlaheim, Maryland.

Note: Apologies to Michael Eisentrout and Philip Mencio. Neither made out media guide last year and this in no way was their fault. Eisentrout was a solid contributer to the team last season as one of their threats from deep. He often to change the swing of games with his sure shot. Philip Mencio played more or less a reliefe roll. Something he told Coach Cooper he was comfortable with and that is why he returns to the bench this season.

Paulius Mankevicius is moved from the starting line-up to the bench. He will relieve Kyle Beye and Channing Atkins will play the reliefe Center for Jon Paul Mascoll. This is a solid bench for Coach Cooper who ran with 10 individuals last year, this year he floors 12 players starters and bench. His comfortable number.

Redshirts:

PF - Christano Njoya (47) 6'9" 216lbs Freshman, Cameroon.

Christano is one of Coach Cooper's walk-on guys. Coach Cooper believed the kid did not have enough talent to be on the roster however and awarded him a red shirt for his efforts. He brings size to the PF posisiton but not much else. Coach Cooper is giving him a year to pan out to possibly make next years team.

PG - Calvin Buscher (45) 5'8" 174lbs Freshman, Brooklyn, NY.

Coach Cooper belived that Calvin deserved the same chance he gave to Christano giving him a year to develop his skills. With a lot of the PG's graduating this season and not sure who will come in with the 6 scholarships Coach Cooper took the safe route knowing that he had a kid in reserves that he could go to next year. If anything Calvin could be backing up a recruit next year as Coach Cooper has said and proved he doesn't mind starting a freshman.


Cut:

SG - Darryl Lennon (56) 6'3" 175lbs Junior, Elgin, Pennsylvania.

Darryl Lennon was cut from a SG heavy roster. He never panned out like Coach Cooper wanted making no improvements in limited playing time. When he did play he average less than 1 in every catagory. Coach Cooper believed that he could of contributed if the roster was shorter on SG. None the less the Red Flash bid farewell to Darryl Lennon

PG - Olli Valsin (55) 6'0" 180lbs Freshman, England.

Last years red shirted Freshman was also cut, again to heavy volume at his posistion. This off-season Coach Cooper wanted Olli to pass more and do the small things for the team, however Olli wanted more playing time and was often being selfish with the ball. And Coach Cooper admited he did not have room on his team for Olli Valsin and his selfish ball playing.

The Schedule:
(Conference games in red)

11/9 at La Salle
11/12 at Penn St.
11/15 vs Hartford
11/18 vs. Stony Brook
11/23 vs American
11/26 at G. Washington
11/29 at Navy
12/4 vs Long Island
12/6 vs Mount St. Mary's
12/9 vs New Hampshire
12/14 vs George Mason
12/20 at Idaho
12/28 at Boise St.
1/1 at Quinnipiac
1/3 at St. Francis (NY)
1/8 vs F. Dickinson
1/10 vs Wagner
1/15 at Robert Morris
1/17 vs Sacred Heart
1/22 at C. Connecticut
1/24 at F. Dickinson
1/31 vs Quinnipiac
2/5 at Monmouth
2/7 vs St. Francis (NY)
2/12 vs C. Connecticut
2/14 at Wagner
2/19 Sacred Heart
2/26 vs Monmouth
2/28 at Long Island

[Vinsane187]

Pre-Season Press Conference:

The lights are flashing again, this time after being in front of them for a season they don't bother me as bad. I look out at the crowd, damn, a lot of people showed up. Our team gained a lot of interest last year. Attendence when up a few percentage points, more people came out on the road to see us. It was really a nice time for the community, us on the other hand not so much.

Losing in the championship game of the tournament is probably worse than losing in the NCAA tournament. I say probably because I don't know yet but I know how I felt when we lost that game, like a dagger through the heart, it wanted to set in in the first half, but I wouldn't let it. Slowly it creeped in, slowly it stung, and now well. The sting is only a reminder that we're not invinceable at the end of the season. We gotta play just as hard if it were a first round game and not a championship game.

William "Bill" Bank stood off to the left behind the curtain, he's been taking back seat rides like this just watching over his coach. He pulled a lot of strings to get a unexperienced coach onto a Division I squad. Now that the risk payed off in the form of a conference championship he wanted to make sure that the winning continued, for years to come. He'd slowly give the reigns over to coach Cooper however.

Coach Cooper looked to the left, nodded to bill. Then faced the crowd.

Cooper: "Ladies and gentlemen we can begin when your ready, I ask that we leave all questions regaurding last years possible suspension in the dark however, the only reason being I don't want to give the committee something to talk about before the season begins."

A small laughter from the crowd.

Cooper: "Yes, Brian, start us off."

Did I mention that I reconize faces of the crowd now, Brian Devenney, Student writer working with the local newspaper as an internship job, kid wants to be on ESPN one day.

Brian: "Coach, last season you brought this group to the finals of the NEC and then to the NIT, plan on more success this year coach or was it a flash in the pan fluke?"

Cooper: "Well when you take a bunch of kids who came from nothing into something, and you get all of those pieces back, plus a big man. Well lets just say we got the formula to repeat, now we just need the other teams to fall in line."

Reporter: "Coach, looking at the schedule you placed two WAC conference teams at the end of the non-conference schedule, why ride out north when a majority of your schedule is the mid-west?"

Cooper: "Good question, this off-season I got a call from a very special person in my eyes, one of my idols. Coach Dezeron gave me a call and told me that I should go ahead and give Coach Akpan a call, Coach Akpan has adopted the "anyone, anytime, anywhere" attitude. So Bill and I got on the phone with Coach Akpan and scheduled the Boise State game, he then gave me the number to Idaho and told me they too were looking for a Mid-West/East Coast team to play."

Reporter: "Coach you also rescheduled Penn St. and LaSalle, teams that won easily last year, why?"

Cooper: "Well LaSalle may of won easily, Penn State had a tougher time with us, I want to show the kids in Pennsylvania we can play with anybody, ANYBODY. And if that means I have to take out the Pennsylvania Powers, I will."

Reporter: "Coach, in the off-season some of your collegues and fans a like said that Jon Paul Mascoll was a terrible waste of a scholarship. Do you believe so?"

Cooper: "If I did do I think I would of got him? Jon Paul will be a great asset to this team and our run at another NEC conference title, just wait and see."

Brian: "Coach, rumor has it that your leaving at the end of this season, that quite a few teams were interested in your surge last year and seen a lot of potential in hiring you as their coach, are you leaving at the end of the year?"

Cooper: "This question was brought up in the off-season too, I'm not going anywhere, yet. I'm here to honor my three year contract, as you all know yes a team can buy me out if they wish to do so at the end of this year but only at my disgression. If the offer is right for me and the team than I will walk. Right now I plan to honor all three years."

Reporter: "Coach what will be the deciding factor for you to leave this year?"

Cooper: "Like I said, the offer has to be right, the money has to be right, the location has to be right and anywhere outside of Pennsylvania is not an option, it will have to be my home state of Ohio or a once in a lifetime opportunity to get me to leave The Red Flash."

Reporter: "Do you think by saying that your lobbying interest from schools in Ohio to nab you?"

Cooper: "No, no. I'm here, my focus is here, my job is here. Not trying to lobby anything I'm dedicated to this team and our dream of winning another NEC Conference Championship and the Tourney."

Reporter: "After an early exit in the NIT last year to Texas A&M do you think if you would go back to the NIT you could do better?"

Cooper: "Who wants to focus on the NIT? I don't, my players don't, no one i the nation looks to their schedule, their year and say, you know it would be nice to play in the NIT no, that's not the goal, the big dance, that's where we wanna be."

Reporter: "Coach, what about your recruiting this year, will you be bringing in more talent for next year?"

Cooper: "I don't talk about recruiting until we have someone inked on the dotted line. We have some guys we're chasing and until they commit you won't hear anything about them."

Reporter: "Coach, last question, prediction on the season?"

Cooper: "17-12, that is all. Thank you."

[blue_apocalypse]

Good luck with the new season and making it to the big dance this year! I hope you beat the Vandals and the Broncos at the end of your non-conference schedule.

[adami45490]

Good luck in your upcoming season.

[Deuce2223]

Good luck with the new season and making it to the big dance this year! I hope you beat the Vandals and the Broncos at the end of your non-conference schedule.


Now those are :box: words.. Looking forward to the game. Hopefully playing in games with Coaches I consider friends won't get me into hot water again.

[boomosby50]

I had an old leagcy i played at Army and I played St Francis 2nd year and they brocked me, like 71-55. good luck, any updates coming soon?

[Deuce2223]

I had an old leagcy i played at Army and I played St Francis 2nd year and they brocked me, like 71-55. good luck, any updates coming soon?

Coach Cooper is over in Iraq and his disc got scratched or something, anyways he can't get it to work and doesn't want to spend $60 on a new disc, so he said he is going to try and restart once he makes it back to the states were he can buy a used disc or something cheaper then $60 bucks.

I know I am sad too. He had a pretty good legacy at Cleveland St too, but wanted to do a closed legacy like everyone else.