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Saturday, June 21

Haberer to play for Angels

[JUNE 21, 2003]  Rachel Haberer of Greenville has signed her national letter of intent to play basketball at Lincoln Christian College.

Haberer, a 5-foot-10 post player, started for three years at Greenville High School. She was selected to the all-conference second team for the South Central Conference her senior year and was honorable mention her junior year. She led her team in rebounding two years in a row, averaging eight rebounds per game. She also averaged seven points per game her senior year.

"Rachel is a great kid with a ton of heart and enthusiasm for the game. She will make a definite impact on the LCC team," said Greenville High School coach Gina Allen.

Rachel is a member of First Christian Church in Greenville and is active in the church youth group. She is the daughter of Mike and Nancy Haberer.

[LCC press release]


(Left to right) Greenville High School coach Gina Allen, Nancy Haberer, Rachel Haberer and Mike Haberer

Greene is Will Robinson Endowed Scholar at ISU

[JUNE 21, 2003]  NORMAL -- At something less than 5-foot-10, former Illinois State basketball coach Will Robinson and current Redbird guard Vince Greene are both small men in a big man's game. Like Robinson, Greene's success in the game is proof that the size that really counts is size of heart. Greene's grit has merited him selection as the 2003 Will Robinson Endowed Scholarship winner at Illinois State.

The scholarship honors Robinson, the Redbird basketball coach from 1970 to 1975 and a pioneer among African-American college coaches. During a span of seven decades he has been a high school coach, college coach and NBA administrator. Robinson has served in the Detroit Pistons' front office since 1975.

Proceeds from the 1994 Doug Collins Chicago Golf Outing and a special announcement reception established the scholarship honoring Robinson. The scholarship also funds an internship with Pistons.

New Redbird head coach Porter Moser, just a few weeks into the job, has quickly learned to appreciate Greene's willingness to push himself.

 

"Vince has been extremely mature and responsible," said Moser. "He [has been] programming himself to overachieve both in the classroom and on the court. It has been easy for me to see a mature side of him. He's at a mature, focused point right now."

Greene remembers seeing the endowment displays around Redbird Arena during his first year at Illinois State and admiring the names on the endowments as well as the names of the Redbird players who had received the Robinson scholarship.

"Guys like Tarise (Bryson) and Shed (Ford) are great people and great players who taught me a lot," said Greene. "Their success inspires me to stay headed in the right direction."

 

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Greene has met Will Robinson and has deep respect for his accomplishments.

"To do what he did with the way things were when he came up, being the first black head coach in Division I, it's a remarkable thing," said Greene, "especially with the way things were during that time. Everyone has to respect what he did. I'm grateful that this makes me connected to him."

 

The Will Robinson Endowed Scholarship is one of 12 endowed scholarships funded by private donors and available to Illinois State student-athletes. Six are already fully-funded, including the Robinson scholarship. For information about supporting Illinois State University endowments for student-athletes, call The Redbird Club office at (309) 438-3803.

Will Robinson Endowed Scholars

2003 -- Vince Greene

2002 -- Dana Ford

2001 -- Baboucarr Bojang

2000 -- Shedrick Ford

1999 -- Tarise Bryson

1998 -- Kenneth Pierson

1997 -- Rico Hill

1996 -- Jamar Smiley

[Thomas Lamonica, Illinois State University]


USA junior roster updated; Illini James Augustine withdraws from consideration

Daniel Brown and Deron Williams are finalists for squad

[JUNE 21, 2003]  COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- With training camp slated to open June 24 in Dallas, Texas, USA Basketball announced that five young men have been added to the finalist roster for the junior national team, and three previously announced finalists -- James Augustine, Illinois, Mokena, Ill.; Al Jefferson, Prentiss High School, Prentiss, Miss.; and Kennedy Winston, Alabama, Prichard, Ala.
-- have withdrawn from consideration.

New to list are University of Oklahoma 6-5 forward guard DeAngelo Alexander, Midwest City, Okla.; University of Michigan 6-9 freshman center Graham Brown, Mio, Mich.; 6-10 high school junior David Burgess, Woodbridge H.S., Irvine, Calif.; University of Oregon 6-10 signee Mitch Platt, Green Valley H.S., Henderson, Nev.; and prep all-American guard and University of Arizona 6-3 signee Mustafa Shakur, Philadelphia Friends Central H.S., Wynnewood, Pa.

Current finalists are Mohamed Abukar, Rancho Bernardo H.S., Escondido, Calif.; Maurice Ager, Michigan State, Detroit, Mich.; Alexander; Brandon Bowman, Georgetown, Santa Monica, Calif.; Daniel Brown, Illinois, Maywood, Ill.; Graham Brown; Burgess; Paul Davis, Michigan State, Rochester, Mich.; Ryan Hollins, UCLA, Pasadena, Calif.; Daniel Horton, Michigan, Cedar Hill, Texas; Brian Johnson, Bishop O'Connell H.S., Va., Glenarden, Md.; Jonathan Modica, Arkansas, Smackover, Ark.; Kevin Pittsnogle, West Virginia, Martinsburg, W.Va.; Platt; J.J. Redick, Duke, Roanoke, Va.; Shakur; C.J. Watson, Tennessee, Las Vegas, Nev.; and Deron Williams, Illinois, The Colony, Texas.

 

Johnson's participation is contingent on him being medically cleared to compete in the June 24 training camp. He suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee early in the first team trials session on Friday, May 30.

Finalists from the University of Illinois

(Name, position, height, weight, date of birth, year of graduation, college or high school, hometown)

  • Daniel Brown, G, 61, 175, 8-17-84, 2006, Illinois, Maywood, Ill.
  • Deron Williams, G, 63, 205, 6-26-84, 2006, Illinois, The Colony, Texas

Eligibility for the U.S. team is limited to any male athlete who is a U.S. citizen and 19 years old or younger (born on or after Jan. 1, 1984). The finalists were selected by the USA Basketball Men's Collegiate Committee.

The official 12-member USA junior team will be finalized during the June 24-July 6 training camp in Dallas. In preparation for the FIBA Junior World Championship Tournament, the U.S. squad will participate in the 2003 Global Games, which are being conducted in Dallas. Ten teams are featured in the Global Games, and the U.S. team will play in five games between June 30 and July 5.

The junior squad will then compete July 10-20 in the FIBA tournament, which was recently moved from Malaysia to Thessaloniki, Greece. The tournament features 16 junior national teams that qualified last summer, with the teams placed into four groups of four for preliminary round-robin play. The top two teams from each group will advance to the medal quarterfinals, while the remainder of the field will compete for ninth to 16th place. The U.S. team has been placed in Group C, joining China, Nigeria and Slovenia.

University of Oregon's successful head coach Ernie Kent, who served as head coach of the U.S. junior qualifying team last summer, will again be head mentor of the squad. He will be assisted by Dennis Felton of the University of Georgia and Ray Harper of Kentucky Wesleyan College.

Following the May 30-June 1 team trials, head coach Kent said: "There may not be a quote, unquote ‘big name' star like we had last year with Carmelo Anthony (who was a member of the 2002 USA Junior World Championship qualifying team), but what we have is a team that is really going to play hard -- play hard and focus together. And certainly one that is athletic. It seems that they have a tremendous focus on wanting to be successful in this tournament, and that is a real big positive for us."

Of the 18 finalists, 10 have participated in previous USA Basketball competitions. Five were members of last summer's qualifying team, which finished 4-1, earned the bronze medal and qualified the United States for the this year's tournament. Members of the last year's junior qualifying team vying for roster positions this year are Abukar, Daniel Brown, Horton, Johnson and Williams. Also possessing prior USA Basketball experience are Alexander, who participated in the 2002 USA national team trials and the 2001 Youth Development Festival; Davis, 2001 USA Basketball Youth Development Festival; Modica, 2001 USA Basketball Youth Development Festival; Redick, 2001 and 2002 USA Basketball Youth Development Festivals; and Shakur, 2002 junior national team trials.

"I think that's going to be huge," commented Kent about the five returning members from last year's junior qualifying team, "particularly if all five make the team once we head out of Dallas. They're going to be able to not only handle the environment over there better, having played in international competition, but more importantly, they're going to be able to educate the other players on what to expect and how to handle the international environment."

 

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Six of the U.S. team hopefuls -- Daniel Brown, Horton, Modica, Pittsnogle, Redick and Watson -- claimed all-freshman team honors in their respective conferences. Five of the finalists -- Abukar, Burgess, Johnson, Platt and Shakur -- competed at the high school level in 2002-03, with Burgess and Johnson having completed their junior year in 2003.

USA in FIBA Junior Worlds

This summer's FIBA tournament for men age 19 and younger is the seventh in a series played every four years since 1979. The United States has had great success at the championships, collecting a record five medals in six tries, including three golds and two silver medals, while owning a 38-9 overall record (.809). Led by then-University of Florida head coach Lon Kruger, the 1991 U.S. team captured the gold with an unblemished 8-0 record, marking the last time the United States claimed gold. At the most recent championships, a U.S. squad coached by Arizona State's Rob Evans went 7-0 before being bested by Spain 94-87 in the gold medal game.

USA Basketball Men's Collegiate Committee

The USA Basketball Men's Collegiate Committee is chaired by Terry Holland, former University of Virginia director of athletics, and consists of: NCAA appointees Jim Boeheim, head coach, Syracuse University, N.Y.; Evans Jim O'Brien, head coach, Ohio State University; and Tubby Smith, head coach, University of Kentucky; NABC appointee Oliver Purnell, head coach, Clemson University; NAIA appointee Ralph Turner, head coach, Union University, Tenn.; NJCAA appointee Dan Sparks, head coach, Vincennes University, Ind.; and athlete representatives Steve Wojciechowski, from the 1995 USA Junior World Championship Team and assistant coach at Duke University, N.C., and A.J. Wynder, from the 1995 USA Pan American Games Team and head coach at Nassau Community College, N.Y.

 

Coaching staff

Head coach: Ernie Kent, University of Oregon

Assistant coach: Dennis Felton, University of Georgia

Assistant coach: Ray Harper, Kentucky Wesleyan College

Athletic trainer: Clay Jamieson, University of Oregon

Schedule

June 24-29 -- Training Camp at Dallas Mavericks' practice facility, American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas

June 24 – Training, 3-5 p.m.

June 25-29 -- Training, 10 a.m.-noon and 5-7 p.m.

June 30 -- Training, time to be determined

June 30-July 5 -- Global Games at Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas

June 30 -- USA vs. Lithuania, Southern Methodist University, Moody Coliseum, 8 p.m.

July 1 -- USA vs. Texas, Southern Methodist University, Moody Coliseum, 8 p.m.

July 2 -- USA vs. Africa, Southern Methodist University, Moody Coliseum, 8 p.m.

July 3 -- USA vs. Canada, Southern Methodist University, Moody Coliseum, 8 p.m.

July 5 – Finals, USA vs. team to be determined, at Southern Methodist University, Moody Coliseum

Note: All times for training and Global Games in Dallas are given in Central Daylight Time. Training times are subject to change or cancellation; please verify with USA Basketball if you plan to attend.

July 7-9 -- Training in Thessaloniki, Greece

July 10-20 -- FIBA Junior World Championship, Thessaloniki, Greece

July 24-26 -- Preliminary round

July 10 -- USA vs. Slovenia at AOK Sports Arena, 7 p.m.

July 11 -- USA vs. China at PAOK Sports Arena, 7 p.m.

July 12 -- USA vs. Nigeria at PAOK Sports Arena, 4:45 p.m.

July 14-16 -- Second round

July 19 -- Semifinals

July 20 -- Finals

Note: FIBA Junior World Championship game times are Greece local time, which is seven hours ahead of Eastern Daylight Time.

[Caroline Williams, assistant director of communications, USA Basketball]

Articles from the past week

Friday:

  • Lincoln College plans evening at Peoria Chiefs

  • ISU offers youth baseball clinic

Thursday:

  • Bronco baseball

Wednesday:

  • No new postings on this page

Tuesday:

Monday:

  • Doug Collins scholarship goes to Alexander

Saturday:

  • No new postings on this page

Golf nirvana mutterings

By Jeff Mayfield

[JUNE 17, 2003]  Happy belated Father's Day to all you dads in the audience. I'm really getting into these dads' days! Shouldn't they be celebrated a little more often? Thirteen years ago to the day, I took my dad to the U.S. Open in Chicago. While it was a gift to him long overdue, we had a great time nonetheless as the ageless Hale Irwin prevailed. So, enough of the trip down memory lane, let's get right to it…

Is there a better man to have as the U.S. Open champion than Jim Furyk? A consistent, hardworking, highly respected individual just seems like the kind of guy you'd like to see win a major. And even though the TV ratings probably don't reflect it, I personally like it a lot better when you turn on your TV and have no idea who is going to win. How many times have you turned it off on a Saturday knowing that Tiger wasn't in contention? Having guys like Furyk, Nick Price, Vijay Singh and a host of other names that you don't follow as closely as say, Tiger, Phil, Ernie and the boys actually makes the golf tourneys much more exciting to follow. I think that the rest of the tournaments this summer are going to be up for grabs and may make for one of the most exciting summers of golf in recent memory.

Several local residents took in the tournament festivities, but none more conspicuous than our own Elks pro, Adam Walsh. We spotted him following the Justin Leonard group. Perhaps Leonard should've grabbed some tips from the pro as he went by.

This is also that time of year when we are almost overrun by the number of scramble tournaments in the area… Don't you just love it? I doubt that I will ever be good enough to compete in tourneys by myself, but for some reason I can really get focused in a scramble and hit enough decent shots that usually I can beg a threesome somewhere to pick me up! And pick me up they usually do, making for a lot more fun than I usually have playing this great game.

Do the Cardinals have the worst timing of any team in any sport? First, they meet the Reds after they had played horribly for two months. The result was the Reds taking a four-game sweep and also winning in St. Louis, which has become more of a trend than I care to see. Then they played the Astros, who had just been stinking it up everywhere. The result was more losses. This past weekend they go into the house that Babe built, with all the Clemens hoopla, and lay an egg for three straight days! What's up with that?

 

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However, with all of these losses and all of this mediocre play, the Redbirds are ONLY two games out of first place! How is that possible? This bullpen has struggled in every way imaginable, and there seems to be no end in sight. Will even the addition of Izzy make any appreciable difference? I have an idea… Why not bring Rick Ankiel back? Our pen is an adventure anyway… Maybe Rick would be motivated to be “the man!” It's just a thought.

Through it all, the Cubs are just a few days away from being in first place into July. How do you like Dusty Baker now?

Congratulations to the Spurs on winning another NBA title! On the most recent edition of “FANdamonium” many kids out at the Railer basketball camp told you fans that they would indeed win it all. Congrats also to Tim Duncan on another MVP award. Any doubters now? We were thrilled to see the Admiral, David Robinson go out on the highest note possible -- 13 points, 17 rebounds and two blocked shots. Happy sailing, David!

Wouldn't the Spurs be a nice team for Lincoln's Brian Cook to end up on? We're still hearing middle to end of the first round for Brian, with teams like Phoenix and Utah showing considerable interest.

Still lots of basketball, volleyball and other sports camps going on in the area. Call your local college to find out which ones still have openings.

Have a great week, everybody!

[Jeff Mayfield]

Announcements

ISU offers youth baseball clinic

[JUNE 20, 2003]  After three highly successful clinics this summer, the Illinois State baseball staff still has openings for their final clinic of the summer.

The last clinic is open to youths ages 11-17 and will focus on offensive and defensive fundamentals of the game. Sessions run from 9 a.m. to noon June 23-26. The registration fee is $100.

Players interested are encouraged to enter in advance; however, the coaching staff will be accepting entry forms from 8:30 to 9 a.m. on Monday, June 23, the camp's opening day.

Participants will receive a T-shirt and an in-depth take-home evaluation at the end of camp.

For further information, please contact Seth Kenny, assistant baseball coach at Illinois State, at (309) 438-3338 or via e-mail to sakenny@ilstu.edu.

Registration forms are also available online on the Illinois State baseball page at  www.redbirds.org. [Click here to download the Adobe Acrobat reader for the registration form.]

[Aaron Johnston, athletics media relations,
Illinois State University]

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