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 Thursday, February 17
The Word's Answer Man
 
By Andy Katz
ESPN.com

 The season's under way, which means the Word's Answer Man is down in his defensive crouch ready to take on the tough questions. If you want to send a question to the Word, click here and check back each week to see if your question was answered.

I know that you addressed the issue of Freshman Watch already, but in addressing "some" people's questions, you did not address SirValiant Brown. Here's a freshman that's leading the entire nation in scoring. I'd say that makes him something special, wouldn't you?

    -- Charles Pratt, New York

Yes. But Brown is taking a ton of shots on a losing team. We did address Brown as one of the nation's surprise players back in December. Brown has his detractors and supporters. Plenty of people were upset that he was listed as a surprise.

Why is it that the MCC gets no press? This conference is starting to look better and better all the time. It is full of defensive teams that play hard for 40 minutes. Look at Cleveland State -- it is 6-1 in the conference and Damon Stringer had 47 points in a 109-105 overtime victory in UWM last weekend.

    -- Kevin, Cleveland

The problem is the MCC's two leading teams -- Butler and Detroit -- are struggling. Had they repeated their fortunes of the past few seasons, the league would have been receiving more publicity. Cleveland State is a viable postseason team and will get its due if it qualifies because of Rollie Massimino.

What is your bias against Maryland? You obviously have one because the Terps lost by two points at N.C. State and one point at Georgia Tech and you act like they were blown out and are the worst team in the conference. I think they played poorly in those games compared to their potential, but playing on the road in the ACC is always tough. I think you must be the only professional NCAA analyst that has no respect for them. Young and inexperienced though they may be, I think they are going to prove you wrong down the stretch.

    -- Brian Landis, Laurel, Md.

Unfortunately, I think you're reading too much into any words about Maryland. I don't have a bias. In fact, I was pushing to pick Maryland as the favorite to win the ACC in ESPN The Magazine, but I was voted down. I liked the Terps when I saw them in New York at the Preseason NIT. But they've hit a bumpy road (prior to the last week). I still think they could be a threat to win the ACC Tournament.

When is anyone going to recognize Southeast Missouri State as a Division I basketball team? Three votes in the ESPN poll, none in the AP for a 16-3 team, RPI rating of 75, albeit only a 215 strength of schedule. SEMO is destroying teams in the OVC, even Murray State in its own house. What do you think?

    -- Jerome Wenzel, Shawneetown, Ill.

Gary Garner has done one of the best rebuilding jobs in the nation. He's done so well that he might be a candidate for a Big 12 opening. The coaches have recognized Southeast Missouri State's resurgence but the writers haven't yet.

I would like to see a penalty follow a coach. Say a school is put on probation for two years, so it fires the coach. It still has to abide by the penalty. The coach just goes to another school, usually for more money, and starts over. Why doesn't the penalty also follow the coach, so the school that the coach screwed up in the first place isn't the only ones that pay? The coach should also suffer. Maybe that would cut down on the cheating.

    -- Curtis Johnson, Cincinnati

I agree. Coaches get off the hook when they leave the school. Too often the next coach is stuck with the previous coach's problems. The only coach presently banned from coaching due to previous violations is former Cal coach Todd Bozeman. The problem is the violation has to be directly tied to the coach or his lack of institutional control within his program. Any other violation would be hard to tie to a coach if he went to another school.

Andy, the Mid-American Conference is having a very strong season, with some surprising out-of-conference wins. But it seems the MAC is constantly being underrated. Kent is probably the strongest team in the MAC, with Bowling Green right behind it. Do you feel that the MAC is being overlooked, and can a team like Kent play with other tournament teams throughout the nation?

    -- Kevin Forrer, Canton, Ohio

The MAC may be stuck with only one bid because of competitive parity. Kent, Akron and Bowling Green are the three top teams but they've been beaten within the league. I hope the committee gives the MAC two bids because of its strength as a league from top to bottom, but I'm not optimistic.

I enjoy your columns (sometimes even at work...), but I haven't seen much mention of IU lately. The overtime loss to Michigan State was nothing short of luck for Michigan State, and with A.J. Guyton -- definitely one of the top guards, if not the top guard in the country -- Kirk Haston, and some throwback IU defense, I'm beginning to think these guys have been seriously overlooked. What's your take on whether this year's group can contend for the top?

    -- Rupert Barron, Washington, D.C.

Indiana will play defense, and that alone will carry the Hoosiers to a win or two in the tournament. But Guyton's shooting will determine how far the Hoosiers can go in the field of 64. Am I surprised by the Hoosiers? No question.

What is your reaction to the new book by Don Yaeger and Dan Wetzel called "Sole Influence?" Is there influence that is so out of control the NCAA should step in and legislate? Should AAU coaches and sponsors have more input than high school coaches and guidance counselors? When "Under the Tarnished Dome" came out, the initial media reaction far outweighed any long term impact. Can we expect as similar situation with "Sole Influence?"

    -- Boyd Childress, Auburn, Ala.

"Sole Influence" will have more impact than "Under the Tarnished Dome." That book was about one school, Notre Dame. "Sole Influence" is about widespread corruption in amateur basketball. The authors have already been contacted by high-major conferences to speak on the ills of college basketball to the athletics directors meetings this spring. This problem will be addressed and the book is helping open the minds of athletics administrators.

Hola, Mr. Katz. I really like reading your column, even here in Mexico. I am really amazed at Eduardo Najera's development this year. I watch the game against Texas and he is tough. But I don't know about his chances in the NBA. What do you think?. Maybe a late first-round pick?

    -- Pedro Gonzalez, Hermosillo, Mexico

Najera has solidified his position as a first-round pick. Scouts love his toughness and ability to get to the basket. He will be a pick and a favorite on any roster.

Why doesn't ESPN pick up any Pac-10 games? Arizona at Stanford (No. 4 vs No. 1 at the time) was carried by Fox Sports Net. ESPN carried Missouri-Iowa State. ESPN won't be covering the rematch of these teams (with a conference championship and a No. 1 seed possibly on the line) either, because it'll be picking up the first round of the ACC tournament. As far as ESPN is concerned, the No. 2 and No. 5 teams in the country just aren't worth covering (forget about USC and Oregon, who'd probably be ranked if anyone saw them play). What gives?

    -- Marc Gershow, Stanford, Calif.

Here's the answer: television rights. Fox Sports Net owns the rights to Pac-10 games. ESPN can only carry a Pac-10 team when it is traveling to a non-conference game. ABC has rights to show some Pac-10 conference games on weekends (like UCLA-Arizona on Feb. 19). That's why you're not seeing the Pac-10 on ESPN now.

Mr. Katz, I asked you a question before regarding Former LIU coach Ray Haskins, but you did not reply. Please let me know do you think it's possible that he will be coaching again due to his impressive résumé -- and if so where?

    -- Bak Harris, Raleigh, N.C.

Not sure where he's surfaced. Haskins could land at another low-major situation but it might be tough in light of his departure at LIU.

I'm a big Central Connecticut State fan wanting to know your opinion on this year's squad and current 11-game winning streak. How do you think the Blue Devils would do in the tourney if they make it and do you think there is a chance of an at-large bid? Also please discuss John Tice and his game. He was on the Fairfield team that made the tourney two years ago and played North Carolina tough into the second half (as a freshman, he scored 14 points in the game).

    -- James Penn, Lanoka Harbor, N.J.

Tice has experience and Central should win the Northeast, but it will probably get no higher than a 14 seed, making it tough for the Blue Devils to win a first-round game. The reason they don't get any pub is the Northeast Conference rarely has a team that gets on national television.

As an Argentinian fan of college basketball, I would like to know what do you think about Pepe Sanchez's chances to get to the NBA. I've watched every game we get to see here the last three years (one per week) and in my opinion he's one of the least spectacular point guards in the nation but one of the most intelligent ones.

    -- Juli´n Etchevarria, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Sanchez is a favorite of scouts, who like his ability to control tempo. But he's not a lock for the first round. He'll have to play well in the spring draft camps to secure his draft status.

Andy, I don't want to pound the issue, but how come there was never even a word about DerMarr Johnson in your top freshman. He is by far the best freshman all-around player in college basketball. The only difference is, all the other freshman seem to be the strongest part of their respective teams game. Not the case with Cincinnati. He is problably their third best player of the starting five. If you were to put him on any of these other teams, I sure he'd be throwing down 20-plus points a game. P.S. Did you see his first half against Louisville?

    -- Bill Schwetschenau, Cincinnati

We quoted DerMarr Johnson in the story about freshmen hitting the wall. We didn't include him in the Freshman Watch to get some other names in the story. But he's deserving of late, being one of the top five freshmen players in the country. Hopefully he'll stay in school to refine his game.

Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.

 



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