The Professor

[Wayne23]

At #3, 12-1 Purdue. We beat them by 12 in the Coaches Classic. They are a very good team. Maybe the best PF in the nation.

Dec. 22: 67-82. 29, 5 for Burt but no one else was able to do much. Only -1 TO and -3 RB but they were the better team. We could have defended better but they were quicker than we were.

Oh well. At least we get to go home for a few days.

Dawn and I spend the holiday together at my place. We’ve only known each other a month so simple, small gifts. We cooked dinner together, and that was fun. After dinner we sang some songs, Dawn working on my guitar chords and offering a little advice on harmony, but she was very kind, saying I had all the right instincts with harmony.

I haven’t talked about family at all. I am not close to my family for reasons I do not choose to go into. My parents live in Western Massachusetts. I have not seen them in several years and do not plan to see them again. I have no siblings.

I haven’t given a lot of information regarding Dawn either. She works in a small book/record store just off campus. She is the assistant manager. She lives in a little efficiency apartment, basically one room with a bath, just down the street from the shop she works at. She has one of those beds that goes up into the wall- Murphy bed? It works for her. She is not close to her family either. We have not given each other details as yet.

We now spend more time at my place than hers when we are together, but we really spend more time up in the San Francisco/Oakland area. The music scene is lively, and she gets opportunities to recite her poetry and sing her songs in several of the small cafes, coffee shops, clubs… It’s all “pass the hat” but she makes a little money, on some nights more than a little. She wants me to sing harmony on a couple of songs but I feel that I am too well known to get up on a stage. I prefer to keep my anonymity. I do sing with her when we’re at one of her friend’s places, or when we entertain friends, but not in public.

We end the pre-conference season at 9-4, ranked #17.

We open Pac 12 play at 7-4 Arizona State. They’ve played a weak schedule. Their starting PG is out with a broken leg. He’s probably their best player. They play 1-3-1 which we don’t see very often.

Dec. 29: 69-53. Good play from 8 guys but 16 TOs. +11 RB. Good defense won this one.

Happy 1973! Spent New Year’s Eve with Dawn. She read and sang at a coffee house in SF. She actually got me up to do harmony on a song. Lights were very low and she introduced me as, “My friend Lee.” No one figured out who I was. It was fun, and I wasn’t really nervous, strangely enough, but I am still leery. I even played guitar.

After the show we went to a party at her friend Jay’s place in the city. We left at about 5:00 a.m. It was fun. I could have gotten a contact high but I stayed straight.

Home for two, both ranked teams.

#25 California is 11-3, 1-0. This one figures to be close. They have a good PG. If we let him do what he wants to do we’ll be in trouble. Their C is also a solid player, and their bench seems to be better than ours. We’re stronger at the other positions.

Jan. 2: 68-57. A good win! Great defense and exceptional ball handling, 6 TOs (+11). 21, 6 for Fitz, 12, 6, 4 for Sims, 8, 8, 4 for Rowe, and Lew Gore had 12 from the bench. We completely shut down their C and we did not let their PG do what he wanted to do. He had 18 but he had lots of trouble getting the ball to his teammates.

#23 Colorado, 13-2, 2-0 is here. They’ve played a soft schedule and I don’t think they’re as good as California, but we will need to play well. Again, don’t let them do what they want to do on offense. Good defense is always key.

Jan. 5: 49-39. Yes, it was definitely the defense. Strange game. We led almost all the way, never trailing in the second half. We had 10 TOs, they had 24. We had lots of trouble making shots (25.5%!), but they kept fouling us and we hit the free throws (16-18), and that made a huge difference. 16, 8, 2 for Burt, 12, 10 for Sims.

Jan. 8: We’re 12-4, 3-0, ranked #15, RPI #14, but 7 tough road games still ahead and a couple of home games that won’t be easy. Still, a great start!

At 7-7, 1-2 Oregon. They’ve played a tough schedule and they’re better than their record. They are tough inside. We need to come to play.

Jan. 9: 77-69. We took an early lead and extended it out to 22. 20 for Burt, 14, 8, 3 for Rowe, 13, 7, 3 for Fitz. 8 TOs

Bill Sims hurt his back. It doesn’t look serious and he is day to day.

I’ve started piano lessons with a local teacher who comes highly recommended. I bought a piano, just a spinet. It fits very nicely in the living room. I practice every day that I’m in town. Music has become a very important part of my life. I spend at least an hour a day practicing the piano, and more time with the guitar. I am not neglecting my coaching or professorial duties but I do find the music both relaxing and enjoyable. Dawn and I spend a great deal of our time making music together. With her encouragement I am setting some of her poems to music. These are poems which she never thought about as songs but which sound like songs to me. The results are at best mixed at present but I am just beginning.

I am very pleased with the team. At 13-4, 4-0 we are, surprisingly, alone in first place. I cannot think this will last but it puts us in a great position to finish high up in the conference standings.

[Wayne23]

5-10, 2-2 Oregon State is here. They play 1-2-2 which can be a little confusing. We’ve been working against it in practice, trying to get the ball inside. This is a a team we should beat.

Jan. 12: 60-59. This wasn’t a win it was an escape. We led early then all but fell apart. With 5 ½ minutes left we were down 9, 56-47. At that point I called a time out, which I rarely do. We were struggling to get the ball inside and were settling for outside shots that were not falling. I laid into the guys, then charted some ways to get it in to our big guys. They listened. On defense I told them to double the PG and SG whenever they got the ball as outside shots were killing us.

We started to turn them over and they stopped making those outside shots with our tighter D. The ball started going inside for us, we got lay ups and shots very close to the rim, we got steals and forced turnovers, and from that point on we out scored Ore. ST 13-3. We retook the lead only in the final 30 seconds. They had the ball last, with a chance to win, but our tight defense did not allow them a good shot and a contested 20 footer went off the rim at the buzzer. 13 TOs (+5). 15, 11 for Fitz, 8, 10, 4 for Rowe, 12 for Sims. A win is a win but this was tougher than it should have been.

7-9, 1-4 USC is here. Stopping the PG, or at least not letting him do what he wants to do is the key. He is their best player. They are 2-6 in their last 8. Starting SG and first big man off the bench were lost to grades.

Jan. 16: 67-57. 14 each for Sims, Rowe and Betz. +11 TOs. We were very effective at getting it inside and we outscored them 30-8 in the paint.

Carl Betz got a hip pointer. Day to day.

We are up 2 games on four teams.

At #16, 12-7, 4-2 UCLA. A very good team and they do not lose at home. We have our work cut out for us. They are good both inside and out. As always we will try to stop them from doing the things they like to do but it will not be easy.

Jan. 19: 77-75. Amazing!!! Cris Betz, who was at less than 100% fouled out in 18 minutes but Jay Cull did some really nice work filling in for him, especially on the defensive end where he shut down a very good PG. Addy Burt was on fire all night, 34 points, 7 threes. 12, 9, 2 for Rowe, and Fitz and Sims played well. UCLA scored the last six but never had possession with a chance to tie or win. Their last basket, a three, came with 1.8 left. Great win!

At 11-8, 5-2 Arizona, one of two teams two games back of us. They have a very good SG. Let’s see how we defend him.

Jan. 23: 47-65. I guess a night like this was overdue. We scored 19 in the first half and were down by as many as 27. We had no answer for their SG who got 33. -6 TO, +3 RB.

Halfway through the conference schedule and up one over Arizona, at least two over everyone else. But the second half schedule will not be easy.

16-5, 7-1, ranked #13, RPI #13.

Loving my piano lessons. Practicing every day. The method my teacher is using allows me to play actual songs right from the start, as well as doing exercises. This really makes it interesting. I think it is helping my guitar playing as well.

Dawn and I are really getting close. She is always fun to be with.

[Wayne23]

10-9, 4-4 Washington State is here. One quality win, lots of bad losses. They do not play great defense and they turn it over. This is a game we should win.

Jan. 26: 76-50. It was close during the first half but we made adjustments and took total control in the second. +9 TOs, +8 RBs. 21 for Burt, 18, 8, 2 for Sims, 11, 8, 6 for Rowe.

Jan. 29: Addy Burt is at #10 on the Norton List.

We look at a few more recruits, just in case. Only one we were speaking with failed to hit the SAT score.

AT 8-12, 3-6 Washington. One quality win. They play good defense and they rebound but they are sloppy. We need to take advantage of that.

Jan. 30: 67-74. We didn’t play very well, -1 TO, -1 RB. Both of our guards were in foul trouble all night. The biggest difference was the bench. They had 23, 12, 5, we had 4, 7, 1.

Arizona lost. They and Utah are one back. UCLA and Cal are two back.

#11, 18-4, 7-3 Utah is in. This is a very good team both inside and out. Their 1-3-1 is not a D we see often. They have played well against good teams. This should be a challenge.

Feb. 2: 60-54. Huge win! We played good defense and scored just enough. It was a very balanced effort offensively. 17 TOs, too many, but only -1. +8 RBs which was a definite factor. Our bench was better tonight as well, 15-22.

One game up on Arizona, 2 on Utah and UCLA, five to play.

12-10, 5-6 Arizona State is here. We won by 16 there. 4-1 in their last 5 and they play 1-3-1. Two starters out with broken bones.

Feb. 6: 74-56. 20 TOs, worst of the season, but +18 RBs. 17, 13 for Rowe, 15, 4 for Burt. 11, 7, 5 for Betz but 8 TOs. The subs did better at PG and I had Cull in at PG when it counted. Bench and inside players won this one.

A big win because Arizona lost. We are two games up with four to play. Exceeding all expectations!

Heading out for 3 of our last 4 conference games. We need one road win. Two would be terrific. And of course we need to win the home game.

Music continues to be a daily part of my life. On the road I can usually find a piano to practice on, usually in the lounge at the hotel where we stay. During the day the lounge is empty and I talk my way into being able to practice. There’s always a piano. I take my guitar on the road, too, and I am now able to pick out some songs and fake most others.

When we’re at home Dawn and I get together for at least some part of every day. Music is a big part of that but a relationship is definitely forming. Dawn is very comfortable to be with, very laid back and not at all demanding. She knows who she is though, and is not a person to try to push around.

[Wayne23]

At 17-8, 7-5 California. We won by 11 at home. 4-4 in their last 8. We’re expecting a tough game.

Feb. 9: 65-73. Betz was ineffective again tonight. Fouled out in 17 minutes. His backup, Cull, fouled out in 19. -7 RB. Refs didn’t help, 25-35 for them vs. 18-22.

Arizona lost again. Utah is the only team one back. UCLA, Cal and Arizona are two back.

Burt is #11 on the Norton List.

At 16-10, 5-8 Colorado. I wouldn’t call this a “must win” but a win would be really nice. We beat them by 10 at our place. They’ve lost 5 straight, since their best player went out with a broken nose. We need to turn them over.

Feb.13: 61-73. Another poor game for our Point Guards. This has been a real problem and we’re going to re-evaluate. We won the inside battle, but lost outside and lost badly regarding bench play.

Utah lost so we’re still one up (on three teams) with two to play. We should win both and we need to.

10-15, 4-10 Oregon is in. We won by 8 there. They’ve lost 6 of 7. Now THIS is a must win!

Feb. 16: 63-45. We held them to 17 in the first and were never in danger. 12, 11, 3 for Rowe, 17 for Burt, better play at PG, and good play all around. 11 TOs, +5 RB.

Up one with one to play and we beat both of the teams who are one back (UCLA and Utah). So we’ll finish first.

We finish at 7-19, 4-11, last place Oregon State. We won by only one at our place. They’ve lost 5 of 6, 8 of 10. We need to turn them over and should be able to. We need to play much better than we did last time.
Outside D was the problem then and it cannot be this time.

Feb. 20: 66-64. What is it with this Ore. ST team! Addy Burt knocked down a 23 footer at the buzzer to avoid the upset. He had 25, 8. 10,15, 2 for Rowe, 10, 7, 2 for Fitz, 8, 5 for Sims. 7 TOs for Betz but as a team we had only 11, with 40 RBs.

We finish #1 in conference.

“I LOVE the way you sing harmony. I think I’ll introduce you as ‘My friend Phil’ from now on.”

Now THAT’S a compliment!

On to the post season!

21-8, 12-4, ranked #17 RPI #16.

[Wayne23]

March 9: Play in round. We’ll met 14-14, 7-9 USC in the quarters. We won by only 10 at our place. They’ve won 4 of 5, 7 of 9. Lost a starter and sixth man to grades though.

March 10: 51-40. Great D all night long. Held them to 27.6%. 18, 4, 2 for Burt, 10, 10 for Sims. 8 TOs, 35 RBs.

All the favorites advanced so nothing easy from here on. Next is 20-10, 9-7 Cal. Beat them by 11 at home then lost by 8 there. They play good D. we need to pressure the guards and win the inside battle. Easier said than done. This is a good team.

March 11: 79-76. Not much defense either way in this one. +7 TOs helped. Our outside defense was nonexistent. They were 13-21 on threes. For once our bench won one for us, 30,7, 5 vs. 12, 8, 4. Rows was in foul trouble all night and seldom used D. J. Vann had 11, 4, 1 in his place. Cull played very well as back up PG, and Hall had 9.

We play 24-6,11-5, #11 Utah in the final. We beat them by 6 at home. They are strong inside and out and their 1-3-1 is not something we see often. We won it inside last time and that’s what we need to do again.

March 12: 61-66. We led by 13 in the first half and then away it went. 23 TOs, a season high. Burt had 29 and 6 but he didn’t get much help, 9 and 9 for Fitz and that was about it.

The loss will cost us on selection day. We will probably drop form a 3 or 4 to a 6 or 7 seed.

23-9, ranked #18, RPI #14.

Dawn has never seen us play. She says she has no interest. She isn’t interested in statistics either.

Selection time: #4 in the East. Higher than I thought we’d be! We play Ball State.

[JMD]

Pro-fess-or! Pro-fess-or! Pro-fess-or!

[JMD]

You know, there was a Total College Basketball dynasty named 'The Professor'.

[Wayne23]

Wasn't me!

[Wayne23]

23-9 Ball State won the regular season and the tournament. They’ve won their last 15, all of them comfortably. Starting C is out with a torn ACL though. We should control the inside. If we can turn them over we should be fine.

March 13: Arizona ST won in the NIT.

March 15: Arizona State won again.

March 16: 72-61. We led all the way after the early going. And we completely dominated inside, +12 RB, 46-13 for starter’s points at 3, 4 and 5. 22, 7, 2 for Rowe, 15, 5, 3 for Sims, 9, 10 for Fitz, 13, 7, 5 for Burt.
Cal won, Colorado lost.

March 17: Utah won. UCLA lost in the NCAA.

#21, 24-8, #5 seed Butler is next. They won the Big East tourney. Beat then #1 Indiana in December. Lost a starter and a sixth man to grades. Better outside than in.

March 18: 72-74. 18 lead changes, 5 ties, but we never led by more than 2. They beat us outside and on the bench, sort of the story of our season.

We finish 24-10. Better than I would have predicted, honestly. And we have some terrific players coming in.

March 19: Utah won in the NCAA.

March 20: Ariz. ST lost in the NIT.

March 24: Utah loses and that’s it for the Pac 12.

My Harvard team is in the Final Four. A #5 seed vs. #10 seed Florida. On the other side it’s #1 seed Duke vs. #2 seed Oklahoma.

I am at the Final Four in Dallas.

April 1: #5 ranked Oklahoma beats #1 ranked Duke, and #17 Harvard beats unranked Florida.

April 3: 61-58 Oklahoma. Great game!

April 4: Awards: Addy Burt and Curt Rowe make first team conference all stars. Bill Sims and Len Fitz make 2nd team. Good calls!

April 9: Lots of job offer calls. Not interested, thank you. I believe I am here to stay!

April 16: No assistant coach vacancies.

April 23: I ask for a facilities upgrade. Didn’t get it.

At the end of five seasons as a head coach I’m at 135-40, .771. I’ll take it! My numbers: Off.- 33, Def.- 48, Recruit- 99, Scout- 94, Player Dev.- 48, Reputation- 65.

We should be very strong next year. Losing Rowe, Betz, and little used D. J. Vann but bringing in some terrifically talented players.

Dawn has been offered a record contract and she wants me to play and to sing back up. Hm. Maybe under a stage name but still, do I want to do this? If she gets popular it will mean she will tour and I certainly couldn’t do that. Not sure I’d want to. She really wants me on the first album though. Says I should do it as “Phil Lee.” I told her I’d think about it.

Oh, I grew a beard. It’s neatly trimmed and all that but it’s quite controversial in the coaching world. Get over it guys. Haven’t cut my hair in a very long time, almost a year. It is straight and I usually wear it in a pony tail. That gets lots of comments, too. I don’t care.

[Wayne23]

May 1: We buy the gold national and basic international reports.

Preseason #9.

June 5: Looking at possible transfers. We lost a couple of guys so we have spots to fill. The pool looks really shallow though.

June 6: Summer course starts today. Three weeks, Mon.-Thurs., 8:30-12:00. That’s a lot of statistics in a very tight time frame.

June 12; We decide to pass on transfers.

June 25: Since we have the dollars we decide to go to the camps, Indy Elite and all five regionals.

The album is happening and I’m on 9 of the 12 songs. Nine are original songs written by Dawn, three are covers. It will be out in 6-8 weeks, I am told.

June 24: Last day of summer class. It’s been interesting and I have to say I enjoy teaching but there’s an awful lot to do. I’ll finish grading this weekend and wrap it up.

June 26: Curt Rowe goes #46 in the draft and three of my Harvard guys go earlier than that.

5 scholarships. We could go three guards two bigs or the other way around. Looking at 18- 8 PGs, 1 SG, 2 PFs, 7 C.

July 11: We’re running two weeks of basketball camps for kids in grades 7-12. It’s a great way to give my assistant coaches a little extra money, to get summer income for my players, and most importantly, to see what my new guys look like. Believe me, this is why everyone does this. I can’t coach my guys and I don’t, but they can be in the pick up games with the high school juniors and seniors.

July 22: Last day of camps was today. I like what I see. Yes, there were definitely some incoming high school seniors that we’ll watch. We also had 6 guys on our recruit list at camp, which helped us to evaluate them. I very much like what I saw from my team. I think we’re going to be very much better at the Point, and very solid. I have 8 players that can be in at the most crucial moments. Very excited.

Dawn and I were called into the studio to do a little work on two of the songs on the album. I’m told this is not unusual. We’re a month away from release and the company says they are going to give us a lot of publicity. They think the album is a winner.

Aug. 7: Seven on the Norton List: PF Kev Eddy at #16, SG Addy Burt at SG, PG Will Rand at #27, PG Lee Barr at #40, SF Dan Mack at #44, PF Kent Hawk at #48, and SF Len Fitz at #49.

Aug. 21: We offer to five, three PGs, 2 Cs.

Aug. 25: The album is out. They called it “Dawn Is Rising”. They’re calling her a cross between Carol King and Carly Simon. Fast company!

Sept. 4: Lots of advertising for the new album. Hearing songs from it on
radio, excerpts on TV. Cool. No idea if the album is selling or if the publicity is local, regional or national. Somehow word got out that I’m Phil Lee and that’s brought a whole bunch of publicity I didn’t really want.

My keyboard teacher is fantastic. She has me playing all the chords I need and I can already play songs and fake LOTS of songs. Loving this.

Up to my eyes. New semester starts today. Teaching a class, lots of grad students, working on two papers and doing research for some others- oh and there’s that basketball team. We’re courting our five guys hard. Will visit next week. I’m 30 and I feel 60 right now.