09.14.06

White wants four year commitments at UC
Sept. 13, 2006

By Jack Bogacyzk
Charleston Daily Mail

Greg White is starting his fourth season in his second stint as men's basketball coach at the University of Charleston.

He hopes to make a four-year plan more significant in the Golden Eagles' program.

"I've brought in more Division I transfers in the past," White said of his recent seasons at UC, "but I'm trying to move now to bring in more players who will be here four years. We need to try to get more of those guys, players who will be in the system three and four years."

White will win his 300th career game this season, likely in early January. He's 292-267 in 20 years as a college head coach and UC didn't quite reach the 20-win level (18-11) last year. The Eagles also only tied for seventh in the West Virginia Conference.

White has four signees to add to a club led by two-guard Marquis Brooks (14.0 points per game) and power forward Robert Strickland (12.0). The UC coach said the four newcomers should figure into the first eight in his rotation.

UC has a pair of high school signees, a junior college transfer guard and 6-foot-3 Warren Wallace, who has moved from Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne (IPFW), a Division I program where he missed most of last season due to injury.

IPFW is appealing to the NCAA to get a fourth year of eligibility back for Wallace, who was seriously hurt when undercut while trying an alley-oop play. If the IPFW appeal doesn't work, then UC will petition the NCAA for Wallace, White said.

Until then, Wallace is a sophomore and possibly UC's starter at the small forward spot. Wallace played on a star-studded high school team, Lawrence North High in Indianapolis, which a year after the UC newcomer's graduation sent heralded prospects Greg Oden and Mike Conley to Ohio State.

White's other recruits are 5-11 junior Anthony "Poolu" Anderson, of Vermillion (Minn). Community College. Anderson averaged 24.7 points last season, including a 50-point outburst against Bismarck (N.D.) State which featured a scintillating 14-of-20 from 3-point range.

White's connection was through Anderson's hometown of Cleveland, where UC basketball often goes for talent. Anderson could battle returnee Austin Weatherington for the point guard job.

The high school signees are 6-4 John White of St. Peter Chanel High in Bedford, Ohio (suburban Cleveland), and 6-6, 270-pound Ibrahim Marone ("big guy, soft hands, born in the Bronx and understands basketball," White said). Marone played for Trotwood (Ohio) Madison, the Division I state runner-up last season.

"We have a lot of new guys to break in," White said. "Last year we should have been better than 18 wins, but we shot free throws poorly. We do that the way we should, maybe we win three or four more games."

"Games" have been a difficulty this off-season for White.

UC still needs one game to complete its schedule and White said it will be a home date, either on Thanksgiving weekend or Dec. 16.

White had to drop the four-team UC Classic in early December when he couldn't lineup a fourth team to go with the hosts, West Virginia State and Bellarmine (Ky.)