DMN blurb..Slinker and JJ to return next year

[OldTimer]

Just a quote from RV....doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement if that's all he said.

[MeanGreen61]

UNT basketball coaches to return

08:58 PM CST on Saturday, March 19, 2005

DENTON – Athletic director Rick Villarreal said basketball coaches Johnny Jones (men) and Tina Slinker (women) will return next season.

The UNT women finished second in the Sun Belt Conference's West Division; the men tied for fourth. Both teams finished 14-14.

Sun Belt tourney may try neutral sites

Sun Belt Conference commissioner Wright Waters said the league is interested in moving its postseason basketball tournament to two neutral sites in 2008. The league is committed to playing the men's and women's tournament in Murfreesboro, Tenn., and Lafayette, La., the next two seasons.

Brett Vito

[NT80]

North Texas athletic director Rick Villarreal expressed confidence in both his basketball coaches this week.

Both the UNT men and women finished the season with .500 records and lost their first games in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament at the Super Pit earlier this month. Tina Slinker led the UNT women to a second-place finish in the Sun Belt’s West Division, while the UNT men finished in a tie for fourth.

"I see a lot of positives in both of our programs," Villarreal said. "The women have a chance to be good next year with everyone coming back, and this is really Johnny’s fourth full year. He has started to assemble the type of talent we need to compete. They will be back."

The UNT women were picked to finish third in the Sun Belt’s West Division, but were in the hunt for the division title into the late stages of the season when Louisiana-Lafayette secured the championship.

The Mean Green women received a bye in the first round of the conference tournament and then lost in overtime to eventual tournament champion Middle Tennessee. UNT returns every major contributor from last season and loses just one player.

The UNT men finished .500 or better for the second time in four seasons under Jones.

The Mean Green lose three players from last season’s team, including leading scorer Leonard Hopkins. The senior gave up his appeal to the NCAA for an additional year of eligibility to enter the NBA Draft.

UNT also loses senior guard Marqus Mitchell and senior forward Michael Jones.

Both coaches are expecting a boost from solid incoming recruiting classes. The UNT women signed four players ranked among the top 35 in the state by Texashoops.com. The group that includes three guards is expected to improve UNT’s ability to score from the perimeter.

The UNT men signed forward Harold Stewart from Crowley and center Justin Howerton of Howe. Stewart is ranked 26th in the state by Texashoops.com, while Howerton is ranked No. 52 and led his team to the state tournament.

The UNT men still have two open scholarships.

Waters pleased with UNT

Sun Belt Conference commissioner Wright Waters was pleased with the way North Texas’ athletic department handled hosting the Sun Belt Conference Tournament earlier this month.

"We were really happy with the way it turned out," Waters said. "It’s tough to host a multi-day event. UNT has a great facility for hosting the tournament and did a good job of getting the word out to the community about the event."

The UNT men had not hosted a conference tournament since the Southland’s postseason event was played at the Super Pit after the 1988-89 season. Waters said he could see the impact brining the tournament Denton made for UNT.

"A fan came up to me during the tournament and said he wanted to thank me for brining it to Denton," Waters said. "He said he felt like he was a part of March Madness for the first time."

Headed to a neutral site?

When North Texas hosted the Sun Belt Conference Tournament this year, it may have taken advantage of a last chance to host the conference’s championship games.

Sun Belt commissioner Wright Waters said he would like to move the tournament to a neutral site.

"What we want to do is get to the point where we are playing the men’s and women’s tournaments at two different neutral sites," Waters said.

The Sun Belt is already obligated to host the tournament in its entirety in Murfreesboro, Tenn., for next season and Lafayette, La., for the following year.

The Sun Belt could look at several different scenarios at that point.

Waters said the league could consider playing the opening rounds of the tournament at the site of the regular season men’s and women’s division champions. The tournament semifinals and finals could then be played at a neutral site.

Waters said the conference could gain financial considerations for moving the tournament to a neutral site and would also be able to eliminate the home court advantage for teams in the tournament with a move to a neutral city.

MAC talking to WKU

Sun Belt Conference commissioner Wright Waters acknowledged this week that the Mid-American Conference could still be eyeing Western Kentucky as a potential expansion candidate.

WKU and the MAC informed Waters of discussions between the school and the league several weeks ago before talk of MAC expansion died down. Waters said expansion is still on the MAC’s agenda.

WKU is one of the Sun Belt’s top basketball powers, but plays Division I-AA football in the Gateway Conference.

"That is the world we live in," Waters said. "The world where everyone is in the same conference for a long time ended when the Southwest Conference broke up. Our challenge is to build the best conference that we can."

[MootPoint]

[UNTLifer]

 

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[greenfrog]

Just a few thoughts from a guy that only wants NT basketball success:

1. I watch with envy how Baylor women have built perhaps the best team in Div. 1

women's bb in 5 years. They have gone to the NCAA 4 years in a row and played

to over 11,000 in Waco recently. Tina has had 15 or 16 years and we still are only

average and draw 300 or so people. It's really sad because women's bb can be

one of our flagship sports.

2. JJ should get at least next year and probably the year after to build "his team".

We have 2 players that he signed his first year who we are stuck with that are

marginal Div. 1 players and one just graduated that was marginal. Next year is

a big year for JJ. I am pulling for him and his staff who are first class people.

Guess I'm just envious of TT and Baylor because i can't stand them and they are doing

so much better than us in these 2 sports . Being in the Big 12 helps a great

deal but there have been a lot of teams in the NCAA 64 March madness that were in

conferences that were about the same as the Sunbelt or lower.

[True Colors]

greenfrog,

Actually, the Baylor women made it to the NCAA twice, then the NIT finals one year, and then back into the NCAA tournament two times. So technically, it's actually 4 out of 5 years.

It's all about having the right coach. BU had no history of success in women's baskeball before Mulkey came along.

TC