Wayne23

It was nice to sleep in our own beds for three nights. Now we’re in Las Vega, first vs. UNLV, and then at the Winter Jam. At least we’re not flying from place to place every other day. UNLV is 6-2, unranked. Weak Schedule. Two bad losses, no quality wins. They rebound well but cough up the ball fairly easily. Good inside D but not as good outside. Dec. 13: 77-60. 45 rebounds. Lee Barr was terrific. He played 30 min. and had 24, 2, 5. Al Budd was not effective so we gave Lee his chance. Dan Mack is starting to produce, 3, 7, 2 tonight. 14, 5, 4 for Herr, 9, 4, 7 for Rand, 9 and 10 for Jay, 11, 9 for Hawk. 9 games played, 9 games scoring in the 70s. We’re the #1 seed at the Las Vegas Winter Jam and it’s a pretty good field. We play #8 seed, 4-2 Southern Illinois. They beat Houston by 2 at home. Other than that they haven’t played anyone. They don’t play much D. Good center but not much else. Dec. 16: 73-60. Closer than it should have been. They stayed with us for about 32 minutes, mostly because we were awful, +1 TO (18), -3 RB and poor D. In the end we had too much talent but we didn’t make very good use of it. Rick Jay was in foul trouble all night, as was Hawk. #4 seed, 5-2 Florida State in the semifinals. All four top seeds won. D is shaky but they’re good with the ball and they rebound decently. Lots of guys play. We need to play better than we did last night. Dec. 17: 72-68. Closest game of the season. We’re road weary. Our big size advantage made the difference, +12 RB, 20, 9 for Jay, 14, 13 for Hawk, 16, 4, 2 for Budd. #2 seed, #5 ranked, 9-0 Oklahoma for the title. They have a solid backcourt and an excellent PF. 8 of their wins were by a wide margin. PG bruised a thigh in the semis and may not play. If he does he will not be at his best. The key is containing the PF. We may pressure the PG, given the injury. Dec. 18: 69-76. The PG played 20 very good minutes, we contained the PF (15, 5), but the SG killed us (32 points, 8 threes). They had a lot of weapons. We had a season high 21 TOs, -6, were only +2 RB, and no one really stepped up. A disappointing game. First time we score below 70. We fly home and play #17, 5-3 Georgia Tech with no day off between games. Not good. They are very good at SG and SF. Played three ranked teams, three losses. They play good D. Last pre-conference game. Dec. 19: 87-84, OT. 18 TOs, -6, +14 RB. We were too tired to get out on the shooters and they made 13 threes. But they took 41. Their SF had 28. Rick Jay outplayed a very good C, he had 23, 8, 2. 13, 13 for Budd, 13, 10 for Hawk, 21, 5, 4 for Rand. Herr was outstanding, 9, 11, 9 with only three TOs. Bench gave us very little. At the end of regulation GT scored the final five points to tie it. In OT we scored the first 9. They hit a three at the buzzer but we were not in danger during the OT. We really need some rest. Fortunately, 10 days until our next game. Dec. 25: We’re still #1, #1. Dawn is on the road so I was alone for the holiday. I spent it playing keyboard and writing songs. Had a great time. Never gave basketball a thought.

#6 ranked, 5-1 Michigan State is here. Very strong outside. Weak schedule though. PF broke his toe. Nov. 28: 76-59. They stayed with us for a long time but eventually foul trouble did them in. We couldn’t stop their SG, who had 34. We absolutely owned the inside, 19, 10, 2 for Hawk, 17, 11, 1 for Jay, 10, 7, 2 for Jobe, 9, 5 for Budd, +18 RB (+5 TO). 5, 7, 7 for Herr with only 1 TO. 5 games played, 5 games scoring in the 70s. Not another home game until Dec. 19. Home for three days only, Dec. 10-12, in all that time. At 4-1 Oklahoma State. They’ve played a very weak schedule. Good with the ball but they don’t seem to play a lot of D. Dec. 1: 75-70. We led all the way but never by more than 10. We didn’t play great D and bench play almost did us in, 32, 13, 4 for them, 6, 7, 6 for us. 16 TOs, worst of the season (-4), but +8 RB. 29, 2, 4 for Rand, 21, 9, 2 for Jay, 10, 8 for Hawk. PG Herr had 7, 8, 5 but 6 TOs. Not at our best tonight. George Harrison is going to record my song as a single. I am really excited about this. At #16, 5-1 Maryland. Played one ranked team- lost. SG is very good. They rebound and they take care of the ball. But except for SG they don’t play much D. It’s a roads game though and if we aren’t on our game we could be in trouble. Dec. 5: 79-70. We led all the way, and by as many as 19. They came back at the end but the final margin of 9 was as close as it ever got after the first few minutes. 17, 2, 2 for Herr, 16, 8, 2 for Jay, 14, 7, 2 for Budd from the bench, 8, 9 for Mack from the bench, 9, 3, 4 for Barr from the bench. Rand had an off night, 1-8. 12 TOs, 43 RBs. This victory came at a great cost. Starting SF Ed Jobe tore up his left knee very early in the game. He is out for at least a full year. We’ll start Al Budd, and move Dan Mack up in the rotation, but this will hurt some. I’m glad we’re deep. At 0-5 Cincinnati. This was supposed to be a good team, ranked #25 in the preseason. They’ve lost badly to 2 ranked opponents and in close games with three cup cakes. They have a lot of trouble scoring points. They seem to take care of the ball, they play decent D, but they don’t rebound well. Trying to keep my guys focused. Surprises happen on the road. Dec. 8: 70-61. We went down by 11 in the first half, most of the season. At the half it was 8. We reworked the D to stop the outside shot and turned things around. We took our first lead with 3:02 left and scored the last 11 points of the game to win by 9. Rick Jay had a monster game, 26, 20, 2. 12, 6, 5 for Rand. We won it on the boards, +15, and with great second half D, holding them to 19 in the second. Met George Harrison. He’s a great guy. The single will come out in early January. I have a bunch of songs written now. Dawn says she already has two that she wants to record on her next album. Our agent really does want me to put out an album of my own. Thinking about it. Dec. 11: 8-0, #1, RPI #1. Looking forward to that short visit home.

Nov. 13: We’re going with a 7 man rotation, at least for now. We begin at #25 Wake Forest. Not much to go on. Nov. 14: 71-62. 28, 13 for Rick Jay at C, 15, 6, 2 for Rand at SG (not PG this year), 7, 9, 2 for Jobe at SF. 9 TOs, 39 RBs. We beat a ranked team on the road. I’ll take it. Home debut vs. #12, 1-0 Syracuse. They appear to be excellent outside and good inside. (Syracuse playing man to man?) Jay tweaked a shoulder. Day to day. Nov. 17: 75-58. 18, 9, 3 for Clay Herr at PG, 16, 6, 3 for Jay, 15, 5, 2 for Rand, 11, 2, 4 for Barr from the bench. Our backcourt outplayed theirs, and our inside game was also better. 9 TOs, 35 RBs. Nov. 20: All of our recruits signed. We are looking at a big guy just in case someone goes pro. He’s the only guy left worth watching for us. #3, RPI #8. At #23, 1-1 Duke. They were just crushed by #1 Oklahoma. They are very deep. Nov. 21: 77-65. This was a battle for 29 minutes. AT the media time out I woke the guys up, tweaked the D to try to stop the three. They had hit eleven of them at that point. We definitely woke up and Duke only hit one more three. We brought a 2 point lead to 15 and held on from there. 17, 11, 2 for Jay who has been terrific, 17, 4, 5 for Rand, 15, 3 for Barr, 9, 7, 2 for Herr, but he fouled out in 25 min. Barr and Rand filled in very well at the Point. #11, 2-1 UConn is here. They’ve become the power in the Northeast. Very good at PG, SG and C, but that is it. Not a great defensive team. Nov. 24: 79-48. We jumped out to a big early lead and never looked back. 21, 14, 4, with 5 steals for Rick Jay, 11, 5, 9 for Rand, 15, 7, 3 for Jobe, 10, 7 for Hawk, who isn’t seeing the ball on O this year with all of our other weapons, 6, 3, 6 for Barr. +6 TO, +20 RB. Definitely our best game so far. #4, RPI #1. Deciding to ease off the professorial responsibilities was a very good decision. Coaching is a more than full time job, and I am doing more with music all the time. I am writing very seriously now, sometimes with dawn and sometimes on my own. One of my songs is being “shopped” by my agent (Dawn’s agent is now mine as well), and several well known artist are interested. I have a few others that are not quite ready, but I think they are the best I’ve done. As with anything else, there’s a learning curve and I am learning how to write good songs. There is even talk of a solo album. We’ll see.

Aug. 7: The album debuts at #1. How cool is that. I’m on all but two of the songs. 7 on the Norton List: PG Will Rand at #15, SF Ed Jobe at #23, C Rick Jay at #26, C Al Budd at #27, PG Lee Barr at #33, SF Dan Mack at #41, PF Kent Hawk at #42. When Hawk is regarded as our 7th best player I’d say we’re going to be pretty good! Aug. 21: We offer to three Small Forwards. I know, seems weird to me too, but there it is. Sept. 11: 5 weeks at #1. The album is a huge success. The single from the album that we released two weeks ago is at #4. I visit our three recruits plus one other who we’d like to have. Sept. 18: Got two, lost one. #5 SF Tom Owen and #11 SF Brad Arms committed. Offering to #3 SG Jon Gatt. We’re at the Las Vegas Winter jam in Dec. Playing almost all ranked teams in the preseason. Sept. 25: Got Gatt. So we should be through with recruiting. All three are good students so barring a surprise on SAT day we’re set. Oct. 2: First day of practice. Wow! My second five look like they could finish in the top 10. The album is still #1 and the single is #3. Nov. 6: The guys have looked terrific in practice. Two exhibition games this week. Can’t wait. I’ve had the chance to do several concerts with Dawn. I’m enjoying it more and more. Meeting a lot of people who always seemed more like legends than real people. Most of them are pretty cool. Met "Bob" and hung out with him for a few hours. Yep, he’s about as weird as I thought he would be. It’s hard to tell how much is real and how much is an act. He is clearly kind of… I don’t know if the word is shy, but definitely careful around people he doesn’t know well. Oh, and he’s bright as can be. He asks insightful questions. He wasn’t interested in my coaching. “Are you that football guy?” But he had a lot of questions about statistics, listened carefully to my answers and asked very sophisticated follow up questions for one not in the field. He was willing to discuss the songwriting process as well, which I found fascinating. Old "Jack" truly does not ever stop “ramblin’.” It’s tough to get a word in. He is very entertaining though. Lots of others. I’m sure I’ll talk about some of them from time to time. It is certainly not a world I ever expected to be part of.

May 1: Preseason #2. And we’re off! Once again we buy national gold and international basic. May 11: Finished recording the album. We both love the sound. It really is just what we hoped it would be. I’m able to make some of Dawn’s concerts and really enjoying performing. We’re even talking about me singing a couple on lead. May 19: I negotiated with the stats department to go part time. I will continue to do research, will work with one Ph. D. student and one Masters student, and will teach only one class, during the summer. Something needed to go. My research is important to me, and I like working with grad students. This way I keep a little of both. Teaching the summer class, also to grad students, is also something I want to keep doing. This will free up some time and that simply had to happen. June 5: Looking at a few transfers. We have one open slot. June 12: We get Ray Hart, a highly rated SG who was at Arizona. Now to get him eligible! June 25: We have the money so we’re going to the camps. June 26: Kev Eddy went #5 in the draft, Addy Burt only #21, a steal, Russ Wild #29, Len Fitz #57. July 1: Can’t believe it. Dave Van Ronk was back in SF. Dawn and I saw him, said hello afterward. He was incredibly gracious and we were with him ‘til daybreak. He showed me a few things on guitar. I just got taught some stuff by one of the world’s best guitar players. Three scholarships to give. We want at least two big guys. Looking at 16- 1 PG, 3 SG, 4 SF, 4 PF, 4 C. July 11: We will do two weeks of kid camps again. July 22: I think we have a better, deeper team than we had last year. It’s difficult to say that based upon what we accomplished last year, but what I saw this week repeatedly amazed me. “Dawn- New Morn” comes out Aug. 3. The buzz is pretty loud.

#1 ranked, #2 RPI, 34-0 Indiana will be very tough to beat. But their very good starting SF broke his elbow in their last game. That hurts the starting lineup and shortens the bench. They are very strong at the other four spots. They do everything well. Barr will be able to play some for us but not a great deal. This is my third trip to the Final Four and there’s nothing like it. April 1: 74-62. 10 lead changes, 7 ties. We were down 2 with 3:45 left, at the final media time out. We outscored Indiana 18-4 from there until the end. At that time out we decided to double the PG who had been killing us all night. He didn’t get another point and we forced 4 critical turnovers. In addition, we didn’t miss a shot from then on. 26, 3, 2 for Burt, who has been the man all season. 7, 13, 2 for Hawk, 10, 4, 2 for Fitz and 10, 3, 2 for Rand. Good bench play. +1 TO, even in RBs. Really a nail biter for the first 36 minutes. We were there when it counted. Now we get to play for the title. Kent Hawk has tendinitis but he’ll definitely play. Barr, who played well in limited time is still not 100%, but he too will play. It’s #3 ranked, #3 RPI, 32-5 Georgia Tech. We beat them by 12 at home. There was a huge disparity in fouls, in our favor, and that was the difference. This is a very good team. If both teams play their best this will be very close. No more to be said, it’s time to play! April 3: 74-52! We came to play and we PLAYED! 23, 10 for Addy Burt in his last game with us. Great player! 12, 7, 2 for Hawk despite the slight injury. 12, 4, 7 for Rand who was there when we needed him to be. Very steady, and he shut down their PG. 13, 4, 3 for Fitz. 13 TOs, 41 RBs and the title!!! While there is nothing quite like the first national title, this one feels really special. April 4: Awards: Addy Burt wins the Norton, WS POY, NCAA Final Four MOP, first team All American. Kent Hawk is 2nd team. I get national Coach of the Year. In the Pac 12, Addy was POY and 1st team along with Kent. Will Rand made 2nd team and I got Coach of the Year. April 9: Some very high profile teams want me to coach, including Kansas and Maryland. No thanks. April 16: No staff vacancies. LOVE my staff! April 23: I ask for a facilities upgrade. Didn’t get it last year. Didn’t get it this year either! Season #6 ends with my second national championship. I’m at 169-44, .793. Off.- 39, Def.- 56, Recruit- 99, Scout- 95, Player Development- 55, Reputation- 76. Not bad at all! We should contend again next year with Hawk, Rand, Barr back and some excellent recruits including 3 top 10 coming in, plus red shirt Lem Span. I think we’ll be fine. Lots to do so no vacation. All the teaching and coaching responsibilities, plus we start recording next week. I love the life I’m leading. At times it is too much and at other times it is WAY too much but I don’t know what I would cut. Dawn and I have a great relationship we are friends and by now considerably more than friends but she has absolutely no interest in marriage and family, doesn’t want kids. I do, but I don’t want to lose her and the great thing we have going. I suppose at some point that will become a serious issue, but I have plenty of time so I’m staying, for now, maybe for as long as she’ll have me. We maintain separate residences but usually stay together when we’re both in town, sometimes at her place sometimes at mine. She has a gorgeous place just southeast of San Francisco. Like mine it is big enough to suit her needs but not ostentatious, and definitely not a mansion.

#5 seed, #9 ranked, 28-5 Gonzaga in the Sweet Sixteen. We beat them by 4 there. 6 straight wins and then 14 before the one loss. Yes, they’re hot! They score outside. Decent but not great inside. March 23: A battle! Interestingly enough we never trailed and it was never tied after 0-0, but we never led by more than 9. Balance was the key, 8 guys scored between 5 and 16. -3 TO, +9 RB. On to the Elite Eight! Barely, but we’re there. #3 seed, #10 ranked, 28-5 Cincinnati. Very good outside. 6 wins in a row, 9 of 10, 13 of 15. Starting AS out with a broken finger. We think we’re the better team, but not by a lot. March 25: 76-65. BIG game for Burt, 32, 2, 3. 13, 6 for Hawk, 10, 6, 1 for Wild, 7, 3, 6 for Rand. Costly injury. Lee Barr sprained his big toe and he’s out for at least a week and a half, so probably for the rest of the way. We’ll face #1 ranked Indiana in the round of four. #3 Georgia Tech plays #4 Louisville so the top four teams made it to the Final Four.

March 13: UCLA wins, Cal loses in the NIT. March 14: USC loses in the NCAA play in. March 15: UCLA wins in the NIT. #16 seed, 20-11 UMBC. Finished fifth then won the tourney. This is a team we should beat. March 16: 67-38. +6 TO, +3 RB. Very good play by all five starters. March 17: Utah won, Arizona State shocked again, losing by 2, in the NCAA. #8 seed, 19-12 Kansas is next. Tough season. They have a very good C but he doesn’t get much help. March 18: 65-46. Rand had 21, 4, and the rest of the starters plus Barr played really well. Colorado won, Arizona lost in the NCAAs. March 19: Utah lost in the NCAA. March 20: UCLA won again in the NIT. They’re in the final four. No time to even think about music these days except for the hour I set aside for practice.

March 9: Play in games. Utah and UCLA both upset victims. We’ll play #9 seed, 19-11, 7-9 Arizona in the round of eight. Beat them by 17 at our place. They are 4-1 after losing 5 straight. We want to be in the PG’s face all night. March 10: 78-57. We were in control all the way. 24, 6 for Burt, 14, 9, 3 for Hawk, 13, 5, 6 for Rand with 1 TO. HUGE upset, Arizona State is gone, beaten by USC. 15-13, 9-7, #4 seed California in the round of four. We lost by two there, won by 15 at home. 2-3 in their last 5. They score outside. Not great with the ball. March 11: 83-63. Again, we were in control all the way. 24, 4, 3 for Burt, 19, 11, 4 for Hawk, 7, 6, 8 for Rand. Barr and Wild played well from the bench. We’re now #2, RPI #1. #18 ranked, #3 seed, 24-5, 12-4 Colorado for the title. A win could get us #1 overall. Beat them by 5 there and then 15 at home. They’ve won their last 4, 7 of 8, 13 of 15. Starting C out with a broken wrist but it hasn’t seemed to hurt them that much. Makes the bench shorter. This should be a good one!. March 12: 90-75. 22 each for Burt and Hawk. +7 TO, +4 RB. Nope. Indiana is #1. We’re #2 overall, #1 in the Midwest (another glitch. Why the h*ll has this never been fixed. The two best teams ALWAYS are set up to meet in the semifinal not the final.)

13-10, 8-4 California is here. They beat us by 2 at their place. Won their last five. My guys have been very focused at practice. They want a win. Feb. 9: 71-56. Outside game was hot tonight, 17, 6 for Burt, 12, 3, 3 for Rand. Inside looked good as well, 15, 9 for Hawk, 5, 10, 2 for Eddy, 11, 5, 2 for Wild. 8 TOs, 43 RBs. Arizona State lost to Colorado so we’re tied again with Colorado one back. Everyone else is out of it. Little used back up guard Earl Ah hurt his toe. Out about two weeks. Feb. 12: Addy Burt still #1 on the Norton List, and Kent Hawk is #4. Third place Colorado, #18, 20-4, 10-3, is here. We won by five there. They are 9-1 in their last 10. Starting C is out with broken wrist but they are 2-0 without him. This is a must win. We’re in third place if we lose. Feb. 13: 83-68. We took charge early and led for the last 38 minutes. 38, 4 for Burt. Good play by all five starters. Still tied for first. AT 6-19, 3-11 Oregon. We beat them by 25 at our place. After losing 10 in a row they’ve won their last two. Starting PF lost to grades and first big off the bench tore his ACL. We need to stay focused here. Feb. 16: 76-67. They stayed with us for a long time. With about 6 ½ left we went on a 12-3 run and that did it. It wasn’t easy though. 10, 13 for Hawk, 16 for Burt. Good bench play did it for us, Wild had 8, 5, 3 and Mack had 14. Barr had 5, 1, 3. I wish the bench were more consistent. Arizona State was upset by California. If we win our next game we finish first. Feb. 19: 24-4, #3, RPI # 1. Our final regular season game is at home against 9-18, 3-12 Oregon State. We beat them by 11 there. Their 1-2-2 confused us some. They’ve lost 5 straight. They are not a very good team. Feb. 20: 81-66. We never trailed, it was never close. Great work by Burt, Wild, Rand, Barr. 8 TOs. Frontcourt didn’t play that well except for Wild. Nine songs written. We’re still tweaking all of them but minor changes. They are essentially ready to record and to perform. That’s the question, do we perform before recording. I make the occasional concert but not often. And it’s the post season. Lots of time off before our first game, more than two weeks. We’ll rest aching bodies for a while, then do enough to stay and shape and walk through all the things we need to do. Feb. 26: #3, RPI #1. March 5: Still #3, #1. Good news, bad news. Burt #1, Hawk #7 on the Norton List. But freshmen Russ Wild and Kev Eddy declare for the draft (And of course, the game, wrongly, does not allow me to recruit their replacements. This needs a fix. The only way now is to cut them and take the hit. Worth it?). Okay, song writing, song tweaking, piano and guitar practice, singing with Dawn, all about to lessen considerably. Back to full time coaching (and part time research and part time work with grad students).

At 6-13, 2-6 Washington State. This is not a good team BUT they somehow beat #4 Arizona so we’re taking it seriously. Jan. 26: 79-62. 30, 4 for Burt who is having a great season. 14, 13, for Hawk. 8 TOs, 34 RBs. Jan. 29: Addy Burt #1 on the Norton List. Kent Hawk #3, Will Rand #26 (Not so sure about that last one). 9-11, 6-3 Washington is here. They seemed to wake up when conference play started. Not great with the ball. Jan. 30: 77-38. Terrific D again. 25, 5, 3 for Burt, 12, 15 for hawk. 7 TOs, 47 RBs. It’s a two team race. Still tied with Arizona State but Colorado is two back and everyone else is three or more. Two really tough road games. First #23, 14-8, 5-5 Utah. Very up and down but on a good night they can compete with anyone. We want to force TOs and control the inside. If we do we’ll be fine but easier said than done. Feb. 2: 64-63. Whew! We led most of the way and then Addy Burt fouled out with 6 minutes left and Utah got back into it. The lead changed hands four times in the last minute. We got it last and Rand hit a 14 footer with a hand in his face for the win. Burt still had 25. 6 and 14 for Hawk. 16 TOs (-5), -2 RB. This is the big one. At #7, 21-3, 10-1 Arizona State. We won by an amazing 93-49 at home. I have to believe it will be nothing like that this time. They are 12-0 at home and they are beating everyone easily. On the other hand they aren’t that good with the ball and they aren’t that good on the boards. But they are deep and they keep fresh legs on the floor at all times. We were +9 TO and +15 RB last time and stayed out of foul trouble while holding them to 31.3% shooting. That’s the kind of effort it will take. Feb. 6: 65-76. Their bench: 31, 11, 8. Ours: 10, 6, 6. We let them shoot 53.8%. +1 TO, -4 RB. We gave up 53 points in the first half. In short, we were outplayed. We’re definitely in a hole as far as winning the conference is concerned, one back with four to play. I’m really enjoying writing songs with Dawn. We work well together and seem to bring out the creative aspect in each other. We have six songs written. We’re tinkering with them, adding little touches, revising in some ways but the six are essentially ready to record.

Back on the road at 6-10, 0-4 Oregon State. The 1-2-2 may confuse us a bit but this is a team we should beat. Jan. 12: 68-57. 34 for Burt, half our points! But we had 18 TOs, 6 each by Burt and Rand. +1, but still. +9 RB. We’re tied for first with Arizona State. Six teams one game back. At 13-4, 3-2 USC. Very unpredictable, some nights they’re great but others they are mediocre. Not good at taking care of the ball but they rebound and play decent D. Lots of guys score but no go to guy. Jan. 16: 76-72. A battle! 13 lead changes, 9 ties. Kent Hawk played a great game, 27, 13, 2. 17 for Burt. Russ Wild had 10, 6, 3 from the bench. We won this one inside but almost lost it on the bench where we were badly outplayed. A big win. Still tied for first but now only two teams one game back. Back home for two. 11-8, 3-3 UCLA is here. Not their usual season. They score outside. Jan. 19: 81-56. We led for most of the night, all of it after the first five minutes. Held them to 17 in the first half. 41, 8 for Burt who has been lighting it up lately. 14, 4, 3 for Rand, one of his best games. 7, 10, 5 for Hawk. Only 6 TOs, 36 RBs. We looked good! Still tied with Arizona State. Only Colorado is one back. #14, 15-5, 4-3 Arizona is in town. They can play, esp. inside. Won their last four after losing four. 4-0 vs. ranked teams. But they lost starting PG and first big off the bench to grades. This one looks like a challenge. Jan. 23: 67-50. Very good first half D held them to 21. We went in up by 17. The second half played even and they never got it to single digits. 20, 6 for Burt, 17, 8, 3 for Hawk, 10, 3, 6, one TO for Rand, 7, 9 for eddy, 6, 6, 1for Wild. 10 TOs, 40 RBs. Dawn is taking a few weeks off from touring and when we can find the time we’re working together to compose songs. Sometimes that means listening to things over the phone late at night when I’m on the road. It’s actually a lot of fun.

#16, 11-2 Arizona State is here to start conference play. They beat #5 UConn in their last game, so they can play. We feel we’re better inside and deeper. First 1-3-1 we see all year though. Dec. 29: 93-49. Wow! Great start to conference play! 30, 4, 2 for Burt, 13, 6 for Eddy, 8, 9, 3 for Hawk, 10, 4, 6 for Rand but 5 TOs, 9, 6, 2 for Wild. 10 TOs, 40 RBs. 4 of the next 5 on the road and then it becomes sane at last. Jan. 1: Happy 1974. Spent New Year’s Eve on stage with Dawn. Did the full concert right over in San Francisco at the Cow Palace, which was full. It was fun. At 6-6, 1-0 California. Strong outside but not much inside. Jan. 2: 72-74. 19 TOs and poor bench play, 10, 6, 2 to their 29, 12, 5. 30, 7 for Burt, but 9 TOs for Rand. I would have pulled him but Barr was throwing it away, too. We were in it all the way despite all of that. We had a chance to tie but Burt was covered, we couldn’t get it inside, and Rand missed a 16 footer at the buzzer. Frustrating night. At Colorado 11-2, 1-1 Colorado, a better team than Cal., especially inside. We do NOT want to lose two in a row. Jan. 5: 88-83. We played a really good first half and a terrible second, giving up 59, the most a team of mine has ever given up in a half. Fortunately we scored 52 of our own and held on. 23, 13, 4 for Hawk, 25, 4 for Burt, 12, 6 for Eddy, 14, 2, 7 but 8 TOs for Rand. This is a continuing problem. +14 RB. Bench didn’t give us much for the second straight game. We won ugly but we won. Home for five days. We decide to give Russ Wild more time. 4-10, 0-3 Oregon is here. As if things weren’t bad enough they lost their starting PF, who was their best rebounder, to grades. Jan. 9: 68-43. 28 for Burt, 20 and 9 for Fitz. 9 TOs. We held them to 17 in the first half.

Dec. 4: Still #2, RPI #5. Reflecting upon how much I’ve changed and loosened up. I was the typical statistics professor and then, through Maggie May and Dawn I became something else entirely, Mr. Hipster, or something like that, long hair, a beard, guitar and piano playing singer, pop star. What a difference. I relate to my guys now, speak their language as far as music and movies are concerned- HUGE changes. I still do the professor thing, and frankly, I still enjoy it. This semester I certainly didn’t do much teaching because of our schedule, but I’ve tried to stay in touch with the students taking the class and with my grad students, and the research and attempts to publish continue. My life is simply a great deal richer and certainly a great deal more fun. #3, 7-0 Georgia Tech is here. Terrific outside and not bad inside, but they haven’t really played anybody. They’ve done everything well so we need to play. Dec. 5: 66-54. 24 lead changes, 11 ties. We went on a very late run, outscoring them 15-5 at the end. At that point Hawk had fouled out but Russ Wild came in and got 10, 6, 2. It’s great to have a bench and this year we have one. -2 TO but +12 RB. We won this game on D, especially outside D. We held their outside shooters in check. Great win! Back on the road. At #21, 5-1 Ohio State. They lost to the only good team they played. Inside D is weak as is rebounding but they are tough outside and tough at home. This won’t be easy. Dec. 8: 65-73. We gave up ten threes and that was not good, but 23 TOs is what beat us. It was a group effort, everybody was coughing it up. Just awful. Burt fouled out but I don’t think that mattered much. 3 of the next 4 at home, BUT 5 of the next 9 on the road. After that it’s 6 of the final 10 regular season games at home. SO sick of the road- all of us are. That rock star thing? That’s all road. Don’t think I’m interested in that lifestyle. That is also why I would have no interest in coaching pro basketball. 1-6 San Jose State is next. This is one of the few soft games in the pre-conference schedule. Dec. 13: 78-55. Never a doubt. 21, 7 for Hawk, 20 for Burt, 14, 5, 3 for Rand, 8, 9 for Eddy, 10 TOs, 39 RBs. 4 of the next 5 are against ranked teams. At #21, 7-1 Gonzaga. They haven’t played anybody. They’ve played good D and taken care of the ball. Dec. 15: 88-84. 22, 4, 5 for Burt, 18, 10, 3 for Hawk who got hurt late. 15, 3 for Fitz. Good bench play from Wild and Barr. This was a shootout. +5 TO, +6 RB. Not much D played by either side. We somehow survived giving up 20 threes. Kent Hawk has back spasms. Out at least a week. He’ll miss the next game. Dec. 18: 10-2, Ranked #3, RPI #1. One pre-conference game left, against #10, 7-3 Duke, here. They’ve lost their last 2, and 3 of 5. They’re a good team so we’ll need to play. We can’t let their SF beat us. He’s a scorer. Dec. 19: 73-36. I didn’t expect THAT! And with Hawk playing very limited minutes I REALLY didn’t expect it. 22, 5, 4 for Burt, 17, 6, 2 for Wild, who played a lot of minutes inside. We held them to 23.5% shooting, and were +6 TO, +13 RB. A great night! And now some time off, nine days until our next game. Dec. 25: Dawn and I had a rare day together. It was nice. She’s been touring practically nonstop and is now a genuine star. There are ups and downs, of course. She is loving most of it. Her people want another album in about six months so she is putting together some of her other poems and writing new ones. She has listened to the three I put to music for her and she says she really likes one of them and thinks a second has possibilities. I would like to back away. I want to keep playing both piano and guitar, and want to keep singing, but I have way too much to do to try to fit in concerts with her. She understands that but would still like me to be on the next album. We’ll see. Hawk is back to 100%. We go to conference play at 11-2, #3, RPI #1. I’ll take it!

This game happening on this day makes no sense. UMD is 2-0, #25. Even worse, no home games between Nov. 14 and Dec. 5. 7 straight road games. Then we play one at home and hit the road again! MD has played two nobodies. They score outside but they’re sloppy and they don’t rebound all that well. Inside D is also suspect so we’re going to try to bring it inside as much as possible. Nov. 21: 72-62. We were able to score both outside and inside. 24, 2, 5, 4 steals for Burt, 13, 5 for Rand, 15, 8, 2 for Hawk, 7, 6, 3 for Fitz, and good games for both Wild and Barr from the bench. 8 TOs, +4 RB. Very proud of my guys. They were really tired, even yawning during this one. I was too, to tell the truth. But they kept working. AT 1-1 Kansas next. Not ranked but a good team. They can be turned over. Nov. 24: 68-59. 17, 13 for Hawk, 15, 8, 3 for Rand, 8, 8 for Eddy, 9, 3, 5 for Burt, good bench work. We led most of the way. We didn’t practice much before this one. I just let my guys rest. We ran through what we needed to run through and did only the most minimal running. They’re young, so I guess they’re probably back to normal now. Nov. 27: #2, RPI #13. At #9, 4-0 Georgetown. Tough team. Starting PF has a knee problem, will not play. This hurts them on the boards. They can light it up outside. We will need to get on the shooter. This one will be a challenge. Nov. 28: 68-76. We faded late. Too many road games in too short a time. More to come so we need to find a way to recharge. 20 TOs (-9). Addy Burt had 31 but the rest went 11-38. Rand fouled out in 19 minutes Lee Barr was not effective behind him. I really do think fatigue beat us tonight. At #15, 5-0 Missouri. It doesn’t get easier. Again, I’ve been working strategy and skull sessions and walking through formations and such, not doing much physical stuff, just enough hopefully. MO really hasn’t played anyone. We’re going try to not let them do what they like to do. Hawk hurt an arm. Day to day. Dec. 1: 78-71. 47-28 at the half. The tank was empty at that point but we hung on for the win. 22, 6, 2 for Burt, 16, 7, 4 for hawk, 12, 3, 3 for Rand who fouled out again, but 12, 3, 2 for Barr in his place. 12 TOs, 37 RBs. Back home finally! The album stayed at #2 for one more week. It is fading now, #5. But it has sold very well. It’s making Dawn some money, directly, but more indirectly through concerts and guest appearances on TV shows.

Sept. 11: We visit four. The fifth is a long shot and we thought it better to visit the four we feel we have a real chanced with. We’ll see. Sept. 18: Got three, lost one. Commitments from #6 PG Clay Herr, #11 C Jay Jack, #15 PG Dave Ward. We offer to a C. We have a schedule. We’re at the Hawaiian Shootout in November. We have a lot more road games than home games this season. All preconference games except one, and except for who we might meet in Hawaii are ranked. Sept. 25: We got our last two. #4 C Rick John, and #17 C Al Buck committed. So 3 play C, 2 PGs. If they meet the SAT score we’re all set with recruiting. All are good students. Oct. 2: First day of practice. I LOVE what I saw. I think we can contend for the national championship. The album is selling. #11 on the charts this week and lots of buzz everywhere. Dawn has arranged a tour that closely aligns with my team’s travel schedule. She is in towns or on campus where we’re playing on the evening of afternoon games and either the night before or the night after evening games. I have committed to nothing but she and her manager are obviously hopeful that I will appear with her when I can. We’ll see. Oct. 22: The album is at #3. I appear with Dawn at two concerts in L. A., last night and tonight. It was fun! Nov. 6: Exhibition games. Several changes and a couple of spots still very much open. We’ll be watching to see who steps up! Nov. 13: #8 Michigan State is here to start the season. Okay, let’s see if we’re any good! Nov. 14: 84-73. 57 points in the first half. 19, 5, 3 for Hawk at C, 18 for Burt, 14, 6 for Fitz at SF, 6, 8, 7 for Rand at the Point with 1 TO. Team had 9. 8, 3, 6 for backup PG Lee Barr, 13 for backup big Russ Wild. Great start! Off to Hawaii for the Shootout. We’re the #1 seed. 0-1 Kent State in the round of eight. This is a game we should win, they looked awful against a mediocre (at best) team. Nov. 18: 72-52. Good D, good ball handling (10 TOs). 21, 4 for Burt, 13, 8, 5 for Hawk. Lee Barr had 16, 2, 5 in 24 minutes at the point. He’s making a case for starting there. We could rebound better. #4 seed, 2-0 Minnesota. They score lots of points-10 guys score- and they take care of the ball. We need to show some inside game. Nov. 19: 93-70. 52 in the first half. 23, 3, 4, 3 steals for Burt, 20, 6, 3 for Hawk, 14, 4, 2 for Fitz, 13, 7, 10, 2 TOs for Rand, 9, 2, 2 for Barr. Not thrilled with our rebounding and we could have played better D. Nothing wrong with our offense and ball handling (8 TOs) though. #4. All five recruits sign so we’re through with recruiting for the season. Recruiting coach Bud Grimm will keep in touch with our five guys but will help with bench and practice coaching, both of which he excels at. #6 seed, 2-1 Texas Tech beat #3 then #2 to reach the finals. They lost to Siena (!) in the opener, beat Cal in OT, then beat Texas by 3. They’re sloppy and they are not great rebounders. Nov. 20: 75-50. And control the inside we did! +12 RB. 19,9, 3 for Hawk, 8, 15 for Kev Eddy at PF, his first really good game, 10, 5 for Fitz. Mack and Wild also played well inside. 12, 4, 4 for Rand but 5 TOs- the team had 11. Yes, I sang a couple of songs with Dawn in Honolulu after Saturday's game. Three to be precise. The whole team went. The guys seemed to really get a kick out of it. They often play the album when we're traveling, or in the gym before practice. Sometimes it's because they like it and other times I know they're teasing me. That's fine, it keeps us loose. Insane scheduling. We fly to D. C. for a game with U. of Maryland on 11/21. Oh, “Dawn Is Rising” is #2 for the third straight week. Kind of amazing. I don’t think we’ll push “Band on the Run” off of #1 though. The whole pop/folk/blues/rock music world has fallen in love with her. She’s guesting on TV shows, and cuts from the album are playing everywhere. She released a single (I’m on both sides) and that is climbing fast, too. I’m getting some publicity from this and it’s a complication. Questions about it are asked at postgame press conferences and interviews. I refuse to answer them and demand focus on my team and on the game. Dawn’s agent wants me to release an album which is just silly. I am just a competent (I hope) back up musician/singer. It’s not going to happen.

Sept. 11: We visit four. The fifth is a long shot and we thought it better to visit the four we feel we have a real chanced with. We’ll see. Sept. 18: Got three, lost one. Commitments from #6 PG Clay Herr, #11 C Jay Jack, #15 PG Dave Ward. We offer to a C. We have a schedule. We’re at the Hawaiian Shootout in November. We have a lot more road games than home games this season. All preconference games except one, and except for who we might meet in Hawaii are ranked. Sept. 25: We got our last two. #4 C Rick John, and #17 C Al Buck committed. So 3 play C, 2 PGs. If they meet the SAT score we’re all set with recruiting. All are good students. Oct. 2: First day of practice. I LOVE what I saw. I think we can contend for the national championship. The album is selling. #11 on the charts this week and lots of buzz everywhere. Dawn has arranged a tour that closely aligns with my team’s travel schedule. She is in towns or on campus where we’re playing on the evening of afternoon games and either the night before or the night after evening games. I have committed to nothing but she and her manager are obviously hopeful that I will appear with her when I can. We’ll see. Oct. 22: The album is at #3. I appear with Dawn at two concerts in L. A., last night and tonight. It was fun! Nov. 6: Exhibition games. Several changes and a couple of spots still very much open. We’ll be watching to see who steps up!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Home for a week and then five straight road games. And the home game is against #10, 7-2 Illinois. They are tough outside and they rebound. We will need to play our best game. Dec. 8: 77-64. 26, 6, 5 for Sims, 20, 2, 3 for Burt, 11, 8 for Rowe. Betz played well and Jay Cull was even better backing him up. Not happy with 16 TOs but we had 21 assists on 27 baskets. +7 RB and good defense for the most part. Our next home game is Jan. 2. We will come home for a few days for the holiday but other than that we are gone for the next three weeks. I will be able to give the exam to my class before we leave. My players will take some of their exams on campus but a few need to be taken on the road and mailed in. We will provide a proctored atmosphere for this. Dawn and I have been spending a lot of time together. She says I am a natural at singing harmony, which I had no idea about. She is helping me to learn to play a few chords on guitar, which amazes me to even think about. She says I only need a few chords and the ability to strum, and I’ll be able to sing with her and back her up. It’s fun! I’m more interested in piano and I’m thinking of taking lessons. She says that in that case I should still learn the chords but don’t even touch a piano until and unless I find a teacher. That way I won’t develop bad habits. While there are some similarities between Dawn and Maggie May, they are far more alike than different. MM was a ball of energy, explosive and never stopping, but she was far from deep, except where literature was concerned, and she was really quite self-centered. While it must be said that I am still getting to know Dawn, she is a very sensitive person, always aware of and concerned with what I am feeling, and truly, what everyone around her is feeling. She is hippie in the best sense of the word. She loves her fellow humans (and all animals), and works to make people feel comfortable, safe, and happy. I very much like that about her and try hard to give it back. She is very concerned about social issues despite having little or no interest in politics in general. She’s of the “think globally act locally” school of thought. Poetry and music are at the center of our relationship, but feeding the hungry and helping the downtrodden are also part of what we try to do. On a personal level we are taking our time, getting to know each other, but it is safe to say that we already care about and for each other. Dawn has now been to my home. She likes the fact that it is not a “palace” but is a simple place, not a lot bigger than what I need. I certainly didn’t purchase it with her in mind as we had not yet met, but I simply had no interest in occupying a huge living space. My home is not tiny, but it really isn’t extravagant either. At 5-3 San Jose State. Okay, it’s a road game just a few miles from home. We traveled here by bus and will return home after the game. It’s still a road game. They can shoot outside but their strength is inside. They do not play great defense, and we do not think they will handle pressure on the ball well. Dec. 13: 60-59. 19 lead changes, 6 ties. We were down 59-56 with under a minute to go. Betz couldn’t find anyone open for a three so he got it inside to Fitz who hit a 6 footer. San Jose ST brought it down with :40 left. They couldn’t run out the clock. They called a time out. I told my guys we did not want to foul, just don’t give up an easy shot. We didn’t. They missed a contested 18 footer with :08 left. Rowe got the RB, sent it to Betz who got it to Burt for a fifteen footer that went in at the buzzer. Good work on both ends by all five starters tonight. 15 TOs. I don’t want to start losing the good ball handling. We’ll work harder on this. At 3-4 Missouri State. They don’t play a lot of defense and they cough it up, but they win at home. Dec. 15: 49-64. We were about as flat as it is possible to be. We spent the night standing around on offense waiting for the other guy to do something. That’s how a team scores 49. I don’t often go negative but I lit into the players after this game. Not for long, the tirade was over in less than a minute (It was very much premeditated. I had Coach Creek time it. He was to signal me at 45 seconds, which he did.). Now to see if it has any effect. Practice will show us that. Of course practicing at odd times in a gym in a strange town isn’t ideal, but that’s how it is. At 3-6 Texas State next. They have a very good PG but he doesn’t get much help. Dec. 19: 81-62. We played well tonight, nothing like last game. 22, 5, 2 for Burt, 16, 7, 2 for Rowe, 9 assists for Betz, 5 TOs for the team. Now we need to do it consistently.