Playboy's College Basketball Preview

our comprehensive pre-season guide to the nation's top teams and players

A Couple of years ago, Playboy published a photograph of a basket hanging on the side of a barn to symbolize the traditional American roots of the sport, invented in Springfield, Massachusetts, almost 100 years ago by Dr. James A. Naismith as a way to pass time on rainy days. As American as the light bulb, blue jeans or the Ford Mustang, basketball is America's cross-cultural stew, the rich-kid/poor-boy recipe that gets cooked to its delicious culmination at the collegiate level.

But, as Bob Dylan (who, by the way, had no jump shot at all) would say, the times, they are a-changin'. The first hint came when a bunch of three-point-shooting Brazilians shot the Yanquis down in the 1987 Pan American Games. Then the Russians routed us in the 1988 Olympics, this time without the benefit of a clock that wouldn't run. Last year, the Hollywood Lakers made Yugoslavian Vlade Divac their first-round draft pick, and last year's Collegiate Player of the Year and two-time Playboy All-America Danny Ferry signed a $1,000,000 contract to play for Il Messaggero of Rome, Italy.

The handwriting on the wall in this we-are-the-world phenomenon came to its ultimate, irrevocable conclusion when the Golden State Warriors signed Soviet guard Sarunas Marciulionis, a 6'5" Lithuanian who maintains, "We [Lithuanians] are the best basketball players in the world, next to black Americans." So there it is, flag wavers—the common market of basketball. The game is no longer ours.

The upcoming college season will reflect a healthy dose of this new internationalism. True, Seton Hall's Andrew Gaze is back down under, playing for the Aussie nationals. But players born outside the United States will be liberally sprinkled throughout Division I rosters around the nation. And college teams open their schedules against teams from such far-flung locations as Finland, Australia, Holland, Estonia and the Soviet Union, to name just a few.

The mind boggles at the prospect of trying to decipher next year's stats from Armenia, Chad and Botswana. It was already a formidable task to track 292 Division I teams and more than 3000 players to prepare our pre-season predictions and select our Playboy All-America Pre-Season Basketball Team. So, before our headache gets too intense, let's run through this year's top American college teams and spot the winners.

American South

Southwestern Louisiana's nickname, Ragin' Cajuns, sounds more like this week's special at the local seafood restaurant than like the favorite to take the American South Conference crown. Coach Marty Fletcher's crew is quick and can shoot the three-pointer (201 team total last season). Almost everyone is back this year, including guard Sydney Grider (23.4 points per game) and 6'8" forward Kevin Brooks (20.7 p.p.g.).

Last year, (continued on page 164) Tim Floyd took over as coach at New Orleans, a team that had lost all five starters from the previous season and averaged a wimpy 6'2-1/2" per man. Most experts picked the Privateers to finish last. But, as Floyd said, "I wasn't prepared for life at the bottom." He used good defense, two overachieving 6'3" forwards—Tony Harris and Willie Richardson—and mirrors to win 19 games and the conference championship.

Louisiana Tech has a knack for turning out awesome power players. First there was Karl malone, then Randy White. Anthony Dade may be the Bulldogs' next contribution to the N.B.A. The (6'7" forward averaged 14 points and 7.3 rebounds a game last year as a freshman. Jerry Loyd replaces Tommy Joe Eagles, now at Auburn, as head coach.

Atlantic Coast

It's changing-of-the-guard time in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Goodbye, J.R. Arrivederci, Danny. Make way for the superstars of tomorrow: Duke's Christian Laettner, Tech's Dennis Scott, Clemson's Elden Campbell, NC State's Rodney Monroe. But while the names of the rising players are new, the teams on top of the conference standings will have that familiar ring—as in Duke and North Carolina. With better balance in the conference, look for the difference to narrow between first place and last.

Duke won't be as good as last season, because it won't have Danny Ferry. But with chief rival North Carolina down a notch, the Blue Devils have enough young talent to win the conference. Coach Mike Krzyzewski will count on 6'11" Christian Laettner and 6'5" forward Robert Brickey to provide the bulk of the Blue Devils' offense. Alaa Abdelnaby will handle the middle. Guard Phil Henderson, who considered transferring to Illinois, stayed put in Durham.

North Carolina will be without some (continued on page 210)College Basketball Preview(continued from page 164) of its scorers—J. R. Reid, Jeff Lebo and Steve Bucknall—from last season. Kevin Madden, the Tar Heels' 6'4" senior forward who averaged 14.6 p.p.g. last season, and Rick Fox (11.5 p.p.g.) figure to be the main men for coach Dean Smith. Guard King Rice and 6'9" junior forward Pete Chilcutt will have to contribute heavily if the Tar Heels are to challenge.

Georgia Tech immediately retired Tom Hammonds' number-20 jersey after he finished last season as only the third 2000-point career scorer in Tech history. The Yellow Jackets will miss Hammonds' per-game average of 20.9 points and 8.1 re-bounds. But coach Bobby Cremins, one of the best recruiters around, quickly lined up a superstar of tomorrow: guard Kenny Anderson, regarded as the best high school prospect in the nation. While Anderson develops, Dennis Scott (20.3 p.p.g.) and Brian Oliver (16.1 p.p.g.) will provide the points for Tech. If 6'11" James Munlyn or freshman malcolm Mackey can hold up the middle, Tech can sneak up on Duke and North Carolina.

Clemson returns four starters from last year's squad that won 19 games. Elden Campbell and Dale Davis, two 6'11" intimidators, give the Tigers a strong game underneath. Coach Cliff Ellis needs a solid performance outside from guards Derrick Forrest and Marien Cash.

The recent problem at North Carolina State is that coach Jim Valvano gets more attention than his Wolfpack teams. That situation grew worse with the publication of Personal Foul, a largely unattributed diatribe against Valvano and the NC State basketball program. If only ten percent of what the book says is true, he may be available to fill Dick Vitale's dead-air time on TV's college basketball coverage. In the meantime, Valvano has another team capable of making noise in post-season play. Rodney Monroe (21.4 p.p.g.) and Chris Corchiani (10.5 p.p.g.) are the best back-court tandem in the conference.

Virginia coach Terry Holland enters his 16th and final season with the Cavaliers before becoming athletic director at alma mater Davidson next year. Holland, who never managed to win a national championship during the Ralph Sampson era, again gave solid evidence of his coaching skills as Virginia won 22 games last season without benefit of a standout player before falling to Michigan in the regionals of the N.C.A.A. tourney. He has three starters back from that team, plus some talented freshmen recruits, including Chris Havlicek, son of former Ohio State and Boston Celtic star John Havlicek.

Wake Forest has a new coach, Dave Odom, but returns four starters from last year's team. Sam Ivy, slowed by injury last season, hopes to return to his All-A.C.C. form of two years ago. Georgetown transfer Anthony Tucker, a 6'8" forward, will get a lot of court time.

In college coaching, one man's failure is often another man's opportunity. Bob Wade, who took over at Maryland after the Lefty Driesell/Len Bias incident, is gone after a season that produced only nine wins. For new coach Gary Williams, most recently at Ohio Slate, the opportunity at alma mater Maryland "is a dream come true." Williams will have the Terps fast breaking on offense and playing a 94-foot, man-to-man press on defense.

Atlantic Ten

Coach John Chaney will have the Temple Owls perched back atop the Atlantic Ten Conference this season. Last year, he lost his top three freshmen prospects to Proposition 48, the N.C.A.A. eligibility rule that requires incoming freshmen to score a minimum of 700 on their S.A.T.s or a 15 on their A.C.T.s, but his team was still good enough to win 18 games and qualify for the N.I.T Still just a junior, Mark Macon (18.3 p.p.g.) is back at the two guard spot. Freshmen Donald Hodge at seven feet and Mark Strickland at 6'9" are eligible and ready to help out seven-foot Duane Causwell in the paint.

West Virginia will drop a notch or two from its 26-5 performance of last year because of the loss of three starters, including Darryl Prue. The Mountaineers will rely on defense and the emergence of some junior college talent to hold down the conference's second spot.

Rutgers, under second-year coach Bob Wenzel, has talent but not much size. Forward Tom Savage (20 p.p.g.) is the team's offensive leader.

Penn State battled into the 20-win category for only the third time in its history. With the graduation of Tom Hovasse, their best player, the Nittany Lions will struggle to win 20 again.

Rhode Island, a Final 16 team in the 1987-1988 season, fell on tough times last year because of the graduation of guards Carlton Owens and Tom Garrick and the change-over from coach Tom Penders, now at Texas, to former assistant Al Skinner. The Rams will play up-tempo to compensate for their lack of size.

The rest of the conference falls off dramatically in talent and looks unlikely to break into the top half of the standings.

Big East

Surprise! Syracuse and Georgetown will be back on top of the Big East again this year, no small accomplishment in one of the nation's most consistently competitive conferences.

Don't look for Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim to hurt his 24-win-a-year average this season. The Orangemen return three of the finest players in the nation in Playboy All-America Derrick Coleman (18 p.p.g.), 6'9" Billy Owens (13 p.p.g) and the explosive Stephen Thompson (16.9 p.p.g.). The icing on Boeheim's cake came when LeRon Ellis jumped the troubled Kentucky program to join the Orangemen. Boeheim's primary concern is finding a replacement for Sherman Douglas, the N.C.A.A.'s all-lime assist leader. Freshman Michael Edwards is the leading candidate. Syracuse, which has come so close in recent years, now has the talent to take it all.

Love him or hate him, coach John Thompson puts a well-disciplined, scrappy team on the floor for Georgetown every season. This squad's centerpiece is Playboy All-America Alonzo Mourning. With a shot-blocking ability reminiscent of Bill Russell's, Mourning allows the Hoyas to gamble with full-court pressure. Departed point guard Charles Smith will be missed, but Thompson has some exciting freshmen to help fill the void: Dave Edwards and Michael Tate, who averaged 41 and 23 p.p.g., respectively, in their last year of high school. With a blend of returning veterans, talented freshmen and a bench with the likes of 7'2" Dikembe Mutombo, the Hoyas will not be beaten easily by anyone.

Pittsburgh returns all five starters from last year's talented but sometimes inconsistent team. The Panthers beat several top-ten teams such as Georgetown, Syracuse and Seton Hall, only to drop games to Siena and Duquesne. Coach Paul Evans hopes experience and a better bench will enable Pitt to avoid the upset. The Panthers' main gun is Brian Shorter (19.6 p.p.g.), last season's Big East Rookie of the Year.

Two of the best and the most colorful coaches in the nation, Lou Carnesecca and Rollie Massimino, have teams good enough to upset the conference favorites, if given the chance. Carnesecca's St. John's team redeemed itself from last year's 6–10 conference finish, worst in its past ten years of conference play, by winning the N.I.T championship in convincing fashion. St. John's returns four starters and adds sophomore Chuck Sproling, whom Carnesecca calls his first legitimate three-point shooter. At Villanova, Massimino has lost guards Doug West and 'Nova all-time assist leader Kenny Wilson. But 7'3" Tom Greis is back and the Wildcats have added talented freshmen Arron Bain and Calvin Byrd.

Last year, Seton Hall's magic lasted to the final overtime seconds of its national-championship game against Michigan. P. J. Carlesimo, the deserving winner of a number of coaching awards, got everything and more from a team picked to finish no better than sixth. Unfortunately for P. J., all five starters from last season are gone, and while this year's group will be physical, it's not clear who will score the points.

Big Eight

With the departure of Missouri's Byron Irvin and Gary Leonard and Oklahoma's Stacey King and Daron "Mookie" Blaylock, there's room for a new name on the Big Eight post-season marquee. Oklahoma State, which managed 17 wins last season with ten new players, returns almost everyone this year, including junior forward Richard Dumas (15.7 p.p.g.) and Byron Houston (8.4 rebounds per game). Coach Leonard Hamilton has also picked up 6' 11" Mattias Sahlstrom, who averaged 21 p.p.g. on the Swedish National Team.

The loss of three starters will drop Missouri, last year's Big Eight tournament winner, down a notch. The Tigers' best player is junior forward Doug Smith (13.9 p.p.g.). Coach Norm Stewart, who returns this season after a bout with colon cancer, has freshman Travis Ford ready to take over as point guard.

Down at Oklahoma, coach Billy Tubbs is reloading, not rebuilding. Freshman Jeff Webster, a 6'8" forward, is being called the best player to come out of the state of Oklahoma since Wayman Tisdale. Junior college transfer Smokey McCovery will be Blaylock's successor at point guard. The Sooners, smaller and more inexperienced than in recent years, will still run and gun.

The old for coach Johnny Orr may surprise some conference rivals with this year's Iowa State team. Junior center Victor Alexander (19.9 p.p.g.) is a dominating player in the paint. The Cyclones also have an excellent perimeter shooter in forward Mark Baugh.

Kansas State's Steve Henson (18.5 p.p.g.) is one of the most consistent guards in the country, as well as one of the best free-throw shooters in N.C.A.A. history (89.9 percent). Coach Lon Kruger, who at 36 has already led the Wildcats to three straight N.C.A.A. tournament appearances, will rely on Henson and junior college transfers Keith Amerson and Jean Derouillere to nail a fourth.

Kansas coach Roy Williams will utilize the same concepts of pressure defense he learned as assistant for ten years to Dean Smith at North Carolina. The Jayhawks will get one year from senior Rick Calloway, an Indiana transfer. Mark Randall (16 p.p.g.) and Kevin Pritchard (14.5 p.p.g.) will be Williams' offensive leaders.

Big Sky

Coach Kermit Davis got a lot done in his first year at Idaho, guiding the Vandals to a 25–6 record, the Big Sky championship and a trip to the N.C.A.A. tournament. Despite the loss of six of its top nine players, Idaho appears to be the favorite to repeat this year, thanks largely to 6'8" Riley Smith (15.9 p.p.g.).

Boise State will press Idaho for the top spot even though team leader Chris Childs has graduated. Three Proposition 48 returnees, Arthur Charles, Rafeal Peterson and Archie Wright, will make an impact.

The rest of the conference, all evenly matched, will scramble for any advantage. Nevada-Reno hopes that Kevin Franklin, one of the most productive (17.7 p.p.g.) sixth men in the nation, can produce even more in a starting role. At Montana, eyes are on future star Daren Engellant, a 6'9" sophomore who was the league's outstanding freshman last year. Idaho State's main cog is Steven Garrity, an underrated 6'6" forward who averaged 16.9 p.p.g. last season.

Big South

Coastal Carolina, which finished at the top of the regular-season Big South standings the past two years, hasn't been able to win a conference post-season tournament game since the tourney's inception. Not that it matters much, since the winner still doesn't qualify for an automatic N.C.A.A. tournament bid. With the graduation of Derek Wilson, the school's third all-time leading scorer and last year's Anson Mount Scholar/Athlete, the Chanticleers are likely to experience some fall-oil this year.

North Carolina–Asheville and Radford, each with lour starters back and talented newcomers, will battle for the conference crown and a possible N.I.T. berth.

Big Ten

Comedian Jerry Lewis once made a movie called Cinderfella, in which he played the male equivalent of Cinderella. Last year, Michigan assistant coach Steve Fisher may have inspired Cinderfella II: After coach Bill Frieder announced on the eve of the N.C.A.A. tournament that he was moving to Arizona State, Bo Schembechler, the evil stepmother in this tale, instantly dumped Frieder and installed Fisher, eyes bright and cheeks ruddy, as head coach. Fisher and the Wolverines promptly won six tournament games and the national championship. Schembechler, still flushed with Michigan's success in the Rose Bowl, had no choice but to make Fisher's temporary appointment permanent.

Fisher has four starters hack from last year, including Playboy All-America Rumeal Robinson, 6' 10" forward Terry Mills and 6'9" center Loy Vaught. Sean Higgins, an immensely talented but inconsistent junior forward, will have the challenge of replacing the offensive firepower of departed Glen Rice. If he succeeds, the Wolverines should win the Big Ten and perhaps get a shot at providing Fisher with his vehicle for Cinderfella III.

When Illinois' Nick Anderson decided to forgo his final year of eligibility to enter the N.B.A., coach Lou Henson heard the door close on his dreams of a national championship. Henson had factored in the loss of Kenny Battle and Lowell Hamilton to graduation. He had Marcus Liberty, still more potential than performance, primed to step into Battle's spot. He had freshman Deon Thomas, third out of the past four Illinois Mr. Basketballs to play for the Illini. And he had Playboy All-America guard Kendall Gill, the player whose presence was most essential to winning for the Illini last season. The loss of Anderson doesn't mean the Illini can't win the Big Ten title, but it does make them underdogs instead of favorites.

Minnesota, last year's surprise in the Big Ten, may be even more surprising this season. Coach Clem Haskins, who guided the Gophers (19–12) all the way to the Final 16 of the N.C.A.A. tournament, has all five starters back this year, including forward Willie Burton (18.6 p.p.g.). Haskins' biggest challenge is to straighten out the Gophers' Jekyll-Hyde home-road personality. They were 14–2 at home, 5–10 away.

Like Illinois, Indiana also lost a star player to an early N.B.A. draft entry. Guard Jay Edwards, Indiana's leader on the floor and an outstanding three-point shooter, went for the bucks with two years of college eligibility remaining. But coach Bob Knight loves a challenge. Last year, he coached a green Indiana team to a record of 27–8 and the maximum of its potential. This year, he'll love melding returning starters Eric Anderson and Lyndon Jones with one of the Hoosiers' best ever recruiting classes. The group includes Indiana Mr. Basketball Pat Graham, 6'10" Chris Lawson and 6'8" Lawrence Funderburke.

The heart went out of the season for the Ohio State Buckeyes last year when over-achieving guard Jay Burson hit the floor against Iowa and cracked a vertebra in his neck. He recovered from the injury well enough to sign with the Houston Rockets. Now the Buckeyes have to find a new, inspirational leader. A likely candidate is junior center Perry Carter (14.2 p.p.g.). In the oil season, coach Gary Williams moved to Maryland and Randy Ayers replaced him. Ohio State does not have enough talent to make it out of the middle of a very tough conference.

After three successful years at Iowa, coach Tom Davis faces what is likely his most challenging season. The Hawkeyes have lost outstanding starters B. J. Armstrong, Ed Horton and Roy Marble. Davis, who always makes good use of his bench, will spread playing time among several young players and returning starters 7'1" center Les Jepsen and forwards Ray Thompson and Matt Bullard.

Michigan State will be an improved team this year Coach Jud Heathcote has all five starters back, including junior guard Steve Smith (17.7 p.p.g.). Mike Peplowski, a 6' 10" center who redshirted last year because of a knee injury, should strengthen the Spartans' inside game.

Wisconsin would like to encore last season's 18 victories, the most by any Badgers' squad since 1940–1941. Danny Jones (20.4 p.p.g.) and 6'11" Kurt Portmann are back, but coach Steve Yoder will miss the leadership of graduated guard Trent Jackson.

These are the dog days of Purdue basketball. The Boilermakers, who have won more Big Ten championships (18) than any other school, dipped below .500 (15–16) last season. It was the first losing season for Gene Keady in his nine years as coach. Unfortunately for him and for Purdue fans, the Boilermakers will struggle to break .500 again this season. Rich Mount, son of Indiana basketball legend Rick Mount, enters his first year at Purdue.

Big West

Las Vegas, the city that once only conjured up images of gambling casinos, prize fights and Wayne Newton's mustache, has added college basketball to its headlines, thanks to coach Jerry Tarkanian and Nevada–Las Vegas. Seven consecutive Big West championships and seven straight N.C.A.A. tournament appearances have finally convinced basketball fans around the country that the impressive win totals rung up every year by the Runnin' Rebels have more to do with great basketball players than with weak schedules. And this year's team may be Tarkanian's best yet: Junior forward Stacey Augmon (15.3 p.p.g.) will lead the shark attack on the national championship, while Larry Johnson is the outstanding junior college transfer in the nation.

Last year, Cal State–Fullerton's coach quit two weeks before the season began; adding to their woes, the Titans had no returning starters. Thanks to junior college transfer Cedric Ceballos (21.2 p.p.g.), one of the best players you've never heard of, and some sound coaching by former assistant John Sneed, the Titans finished 16–13. With Ceballos returning, they should be even better this year.

New Mexico State is coming off its first 20-win season in ten years. Only two starters from that squad are back, but coach Neil McCarthy picked up four transfers with Division I playing experience.

Colonial

With two consecutive regular-season championships under its belt, Richmond will continue to rule the regular-season roost. The Spiders, who first grabbed national attention two years ago by knocking off Indiana and Georgia Tech in the N.C.A.A. tournament, had to settle for a spot in the N.I.T last season after dropping the conference tourney championship to North Carolina-Wilmington. Coach Dick Tarrant returns three starters, including guard Ken Atkinson (13.9 p.p.g.). Freshman Kenny Wood, the all-time New York State public school scoring champ (31.1 p.p.g.), will make an impact.

Nearly everyone expected James Madison coach Lefty Driesell to turn around the Dukes' losing program. But no one thought he could get them over .500 (16–14) his first year, two transfers, Steve Hood from Maryland and Fess Irvin from LSU, and four returning starters should enable JMU to challenge Richmond.

East Coast

Towson State is our pick to take the East Coast Conference crown this year because of the presence of guard Kurk Lee (25.4 p.p.g.). Lee, the conference's M.V.P. last season, is one of the best college players in the nation. However, coach Terry Truax will need strong play from some of his small-sized inside players to hold off an improved Delaware team. The Fightin' Blue Hens have super athletes in forward Mark Murray, an E.C.C. 100-meter champ, and 6'6" center Alexander Coles, who has cleared seven feet in the high jump.

Ivy League

The Princeton-Georgetown first-round N.C.A.A. tournament game last season typified what's right with college basketball and the current 64-team tournament setup. Princeton, having won the Ivy League championship in exciting but obscure fashion, shouldn't have had a prayer against the powerful Hoyas, but someone forgot to tell coach Pete Carril's team. The result was one of the most memorable games of the season, with the Hoyas prevailing in score only, 50–49. With four starters returning and 400 career wins for Carril just around the corner, it looks like more bad news for Georgetown.

Dartmouth, a 17–9 winning program last year, also returns four starters. Unfortunately, the one departing starter is leading scorer Jim Barton. Coach Paul Cormier will look to 7'1" Walter Palmer to hold things together for The Big Green.

Last year, Yale freshman guard Ed Petersen hit 88.8 percent of his free throws and 51 percent from three-point range as he wrapped up league Rookie of the Year honors. Petersen will be joined by Todd Trimmer, Yale's new freshman whiz. With no seniors starling, the Elis are the upcoming team to watch in the Ivy.

Metro

The Louisville Cardinals are usually a good bet to make the Final Four. They've turned the trick four times in this decade alone, winning the national championship in 1980 and 1986. But while Denny Crum's crew looks like a lock for another Metro Conference championship, it may be a little short on size and experience to make it all the way to Denver. Missed most will be Pervis Ellison, Louisville's all-time leading shot blocker and the number-one pick in the N.B.A. draft. Seven-foot Felton Spencer will try to fill the void. Junior guard LaBradford Smith, Crum's next Ail-American, is the player the Cardinals will go to when the game is on the line.

Florida State has lost one great player, George McCloud, but gained another in Douglas Edwards, a 6'9" forward whom coach Pat Kennedy calls "the best prospect we've ever had at FSU." Kennedy also picked up another 6'9" freshman, Rodney Dobard, who is almost as good. Seminole fans have their fingers crossed that both players will remain eligible.

Memphis State coach Larry Finch has talent returning in the backcourt in Elliot Perry (19.4 p.p.g.) and assist man Cheyenne Gibson. But the Tigers will have to depend on the quick development of several freshmen in the front court to offer Louisville a serious challenge.

South Carolina has enough talent to challenge both Memphis State and Florida State for the conference's second spot. The Gamecocks, who had a problem on the boards last year, hope that 6' 10" Obrad Ignjatovic from Yugoslavia is the solution.

Metro Atlantic

Two teams got all the publicity last year in the Metro Atlantic: one because of a great player, the other because of the measles. The player, Playboy All-America Lionel Simmons of La Salle, is back and his presence alone makes the Explorers the favorite to win the conference. Despite playing for a smaller college, Simmons has an excellent chance to be this season's College Player of the Year. The measles, which put Siena in the national-media spotlight, probably won't be back, because just about everyone there has already had them. Last season, Siena played six regular-season and three conference tournament games without spectators because of the campus-wide epidemic. Nevertheless, it won 25 games and the opportunity to knock off Stanford in an N.C.A.A. tournament first-round game. Siena's Marc Brown (19.5 p.p.g.) is one of the nation's best guards.

Mid-American

The Mid-American Conference doesn't often produce national powers in basketball. But last year, Ball State (29–3) finished with the best winning percentage (.906) in Division I basketball and got its first-ever victory in the N.C.A.A. tournament by knocking off Pittsburgh before falling to Illinois. And the Cardinals will make some more noise this year, since their top nine players return. In fact, Ball State's only loss of note is coach Rick Majerus, college basketball's Friar Tuck, who moved to Utah. Former assistant Dick Hunsaker, who takes over as coach, will continue to emphasize defense and rebounding.

With all the other teams in the conference returning at least three starters, competition should be keen top to bottom. Kent State, a 20-game winner last year under veteran coach Jim McDonald, will likely repeat its second-place finish. Eastern Michigan, conference champ two years ago, returns four starters and adds 6'5" Chris Pipkin, last year's Pennsylvania high school Mr. Basketball runner-up. Ohio University, picked to finish first last year but ending up last, made a coaching switch to Wittenberg's Larry Hunter.

Mid-Continent

Ever since Cleveland State was placed on N.C.A.A. probation, not only has it been denied post-season play but the Mid-Continent Conference has not recorded the Vikings' wins or losses in the conference standings, even though they continue to play the regular conference schedule. The folks at Cleveland State have resorted to playing for an L.P.L. ("Let's Pretend League") title. Last year, CSU won the L.P L. with an unofficial 11–3 record, while conference champion Southwest Missouri State finished at 10–4. However, with the departure of Kenny "Mouse" McFadden, Cleveland State may not even be able to pretend it's the champion this year. Northern Iowa, coached by Eldon Miller, has four starters back, including 6'8" center Jason Reese (22.3 p.p.g.), the best player in the conference. And Southwest Missouri State, which lost four starters from last year's squad, has a host of talented junior college and redshirt players ready to go.

Mideastern

Coppin State coach Ron "Fang" Mitchell got 18 wins last season out of a starting five consisting of three sophomores, a freshman and a junior. With experience on their side this season and the addition of 6'9" center James Mitchell, the Eagles are a narrow favorite to capture the Mideastern championship from a crowd of contenders. Morgan State rates a close second, as it returns four starters, including conference standout Damone Williams (18.3 p.p.g). Delaware State expects a dramatic improvement over last season's 11–17 mark behind high-scoring power forward Tom Davis (25.2 p.p.g.) and an influx of talent recruited by coach Jeff Jones. Terry Giles (14.1 p.p.g.) and Reginald Finney give Florida A & M an excellent backcourt, but the Rattlers are small up front. South Carolina State, last year's conference champ, graduated its top six players but will still be tough.

Midwestern

Xavier has won four straight Midwestern Collegiate Conference tournament championships and the four N.C.A.A. berths that go with them since coach Pete Gillen took over the Musketeer program. Gillen has enough muscle returning from last year's squad to make it five. Strongest of the strong is 6'9" Tyrone Hill, an 18.9-p.p.g., 12.2-r.p.g. power forward. Xavier has the distinction of losing its first-round N.C.A.A. tournament game the past two years to the eventual champions, Michigan and Kansas.

Evansville, the M.C.C. regular-season champ last year, will push Xavier for the conference top spot. Five of coach Jim Crews's six top scorers are back, but the Aces will miss conference Player of the Year Scott Haffner.

St. Louis won 27 games last season and still had to settle for an N.I.T. bid. The Billikens made the best of it, going all the way to the finals before losing to St. John's. Coach Rich Grawer will have a solid squad but will miss Monroe Douglass and Roland Gray, St. Louis' one-two all-time scorers.

Marquette joins the M.C.C. after 72 years as an independent. New coach Kevin O'Neill, formerly an assistant under Lute Olson at Arizona, is considered one of the best recruiters in the nation. O'Neill inherits four starters from last season, but none of them are taller than 6'6".

Missouri Valley

Creighton, last year's Missouri Valley regular-season and post-season tournament champion, looks like a lock to repeat. Coach Tony Barone's best players are 6' 10" center Chad Gallagher and 6'6" forward Bob Harstad. Barone's biggest headache will be finding a replacement for all-conference guard James Farr, the only starter from last season not returning.

Tulsa improved its backcourt depth by picking up Reggie Shields, last year's Junior College Player of the Year in Florida, and Cornal Henderson, a junior college Division I 24-p.p.g. scorer.

Bob Bender, the new coach at Illinois State, has virtually the same team as his highly respected predecessor Bob Donewald, since there were no seniors on last year's team. The Redbirds were inconsistent and lacked rebounding last season.

Southern Illinois has a host of talented young players. Coach Rich Herrin is also looking forward to seeing 6'8" Emeka Okenwa. Herrin recruited Okenwa, whom he had never seen play, by mail from his Imo State team in Nigeria, where he averaged 34.7 p.p.g.

North Atlantic

The competition won't be quite as keen as usual in the North Atlantic, because three teams—Canisius, Niagara and last season's champ Siena—have switched to the Metro Atlantic. Confusing, huh? The move leaves Boston University, the winningest Division I team in the nation (21–9) not invited to a post-season tournament last year, as the conference favorite. The Terriers have traded some of last season's backcourt finesse for up-front muscle.

Northeastern is deep and big, sporting a front line that goes 6'9", 6'9", 6' 10". However, the Huskies will miss the scoring punch of graduated Derrick Lewis (19.1 p.p.g.). Hartford can challenge if coach Jack Phelan finds a point guard to go along with last season's New England Rookie of the Year Lamont Middleton (16.4 p.p.g.).

Northeast

There are four teams in the Northeast with a very similar story: They all have four starters returning, but each lost one starter who was an impact player. Fairleigh Dickinson comes out of the quartet in the best shape because of Desi Wilson, last year's conference Newcomer of the Year. Robert Morris will depend on West Virginia transfer Brett Vincent to replace some of the scoring provided by departed Vaughn Luton, last year's conference Player of the Year. Alex Blackwell, who sat out his freshman year last season because of Proposition 48, should put Monmouth in the upper half of the conference standings. St. Francis–Pennsylvania gets plenty of scoring punch from players such as Joe Anderson (22 p.p.g) but needs to improve defense and rebounding numbers to challenge.

Ohio Valley

It doesn't do much for a team's confidence when the head coach resigns right in the middle of an early-season tournament. That's exactly what happened to Tennessee Tech last season in Hawaii. Assistant Frank Harrell picked up the pieces, but Tech finished 10–20. However, Harrell is back for a full season this year, and so are four of last year's starters, including forward Earl Wise (21.7 p.p.g.), the best player in the conference. If the Golden Eagles get some solid three-point shooting from Samford transfer Joey Coe, they can surprise.

Pacific Ten

Last year, we predicted that Arizona would be the best college basketball team in the nation. Until a last-second three-point shot by Nevada–Las Vegas in the third round of the N.C.A.A. tournament, we were right. The Wildcats finished the regular season ranked number one in the nation. They breezed to a second straight Pac 10 championship, outshooting, outre-bounding, out–shot blocking everyone they played. Their dominance during the regular season may have been their downfall, as they momentarily lost their poise when things got tough against UNLV.

With Sean Elliott in the N.B.A. and Anthony Cook playing pro ball in Greece, you'd expect Arizona to have a down year. But Lute Olson, Playboy's Coach of the Year, has another team that has the talent to win the conference championship and make a run at the national title. Olson has some solid performers returning from last year's squad in Jud Buechler, Matt Muehlebach and 6'11" Sean Rooks. But the key to this team will be 6' 10" sophomore center Brian Williams, a transfer from Maryland, one of the quickest big men in the nation. Another transfer, 6'7" Chris Mills from Kentucky, will be a factor if he is eligible.

Under the guidance of coach Jim Harrick, UCLA is again a national basketball power. The Bruins have two super forwards, Trevor Wilson (18.4 p.p.g.) and Don MacLean (18.6 p.p.g). Darrick Martin, who played the off guard last season, moves to his natural position at point, where he'll fill the spot vacated by the departed Jerome "Pooh" Richardson.

Oregon State has four starters back from a team that was 22–8 last year. New head coach Jim Anderson, who replaced the retired Ralph Miller, isn't exactly a new kid on the block. He has 30 years' experience at OSU as a player and assistant coach. The Beavers' best player is Playboy All-America guard Gary Payton.

Lynn Nance is the new coach at Washington. Nance played for the Huskies back in the mid-Sixties and was most recently coach at St. Mary's, last year's West Coast Conference champion. The Huskies, who return all five starters from last year, are not a good defensive team. Defensive-minded Nance will change that soon.

We're happy to report that Bill Frieder is not still in a hotel room in Seattle pondering the ironies of life and the fact that Michigan athletic director Bo Schembechler dumped him on the eve of the N.C.A.A. tournament (Frieder had announced his intention to switch jobs after the season). He is alive and well at Arizona State, recruiting his tail off and sleeping on the couch in his office in Tempe, just as he did in Ann Arbor. He has improved the locker room and basketball arena floor, moved the ASU band behind the visitors' bench and sold a bunch of tickets to the local community. Give him a year or two and he'll have the Sun Devils on the national basketball map.

Southeastern

Louisiana State coach Dale Brown, college basketball's high priest of positive thinking, works himself into a state of optimism about even run-of-the-mill LSU teams. The talent on this year's Fighting Tigers squad may launch Brown into orbit.

Playboy All-America Chris Jackson is the most dazzlingly pure offensive basketball talent since Pete Maravich hitched up his socks at Baton Rouge. In addition, Brown has corralled not one but two seven-foot Parade All-Americans: Stanley Roberts, who sat out last season because of Proposition 48, and Shaquille O'Neal. Brown thinks all three of these players will eventually be N.B.A. first-round picks.

Florida, the defending Southeastern Conference champion, returns the strongest front line in the nation. Playboy All-America Dwayne Schintzius, a cinch lottery pick in the next draft, has put the immaturity that he displayed earlier in his career behind him. Livingston Chatman and Dwayne Davis, both at 6'7", make nice book ends to the 7'2" Schintzius.

Alabama won 23 games last year, including a victory over Florida for the S.E.C. tournament crown, only to fall to South Alabama in the first round of the N.C.A.A. tourney. Coach Wimp Sanderson expects this year's team to go further, despite the departure of Michael Ansley, the Tide's sixth all-time leading scorer. Gary Waites, last year's S.E.C. assist leader, returns, as does 6'8" center David Benoit.

Mississippi has a blue-chip player in Playboy All-America Gerald Glass. The 6'6" forward showed his mettle last season in a game against LSU when he negated Chris Jackson's 55 points by scoring 53 of his own. Ole Miss won the game in overtime 113–112. Glass will get help this season from guard Tim Jumper, who underwent successful off-season knee surgery.

What else could Georgia's Alec Kessler want? He's a 6'11" Tom Cruise look-alike who averaged 19.2 p.p.g., led the S.E.C. in rebounding and sports a nifty 3.9 grade-point average in microbiology. Kessler, our Anson Mount Scholar/Athlete, would settle for a chance to play in at least a couple of rounds in the N.C.A.A. tournament, and the Bulldogs, with depth and experience, just might oblige him.

Mississippi State is an improved team that will have trouble moving up, because other teams in the conference have also improved. Coach Richard Williams' squad returns four starters from last year, including Cameron "Smoke" Burns (15.1 p.p.g.) and guard Tony Watts, the son of former N.B.A. standout Donald "Slick" Watts.

Auburn, Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Kentucky all have new coaches who are facing rebuilding jobs. At Auburn, coach Tommy Joe Eagles, formerly at Louisiana Tech, inherits only two returning starters from a team that managed just two conference wins. Eddie Fogler takes over at Vanderbilt after C. M. Newtoy resigned to become athletic director at Kentucky. Fogler, former head coach at Wichita State, also has just two starters and a thin bench to start the season. Tennessee has hired Wade Houston, the S.E.C.'s first black coach in either basketball or football. Houston took over in time to recruit his son, Allan, away from Louisville, where coach Denny Crum released him from a signed commitment. Crum's son, Steve, is an assistant for Houston at Tennessee.

At Kentucky, things can only improve. Long considered the bastion of college basketball, Kentucky suffered an embarrassing series of improprieties that ultimately led to N.C.A.A. sanctions and the resignation of coach Eddie Sutton. New coach Rick Pitino, who made the trip from Providence to Lexington by way of the New York Knicks, takes over a team whose top two players, LeRon Ellis and Chris Mills, have transferred; there's no player on the roster over 6'7", and Pitino has only three scholarships to offer each of the next two years. Let's hope he loves a challenge.

Southern

East Tennessee State will be out for another shot at the big time this year. Last season, the Buccaneers bowled over the competition in its conference post-season tourney and came within a single point of upsetting Oklahoma in the N.C.A.A. Southeast Regional. All five starters return, including big man Greg Dennis (6'11") and spark plug Keith Jennings (5'7"). Coach Les Robinson has also added forward Avery Marshall, a transfer from Louisville.

Appalachian State was cruising (16–4) last year until all-conference point guard Kemp Phillips broke his ankle. The Mountaineers then lost four of their last eight games. Phillips is back and ready to play, as are three other starters from last season.

Southland

You say you're not sure just exactly where the Southland Conference is? Well, it's sort of between Stephen F. Austin State in Nacogdoches, Texas, but mostly west of Natchitoches, Louisiana, home of Northwestern State–Louisiana. Does that help? The important thing to know is that McNeese State, last season's conference-tourney champ, is likely to repeat because of two imposing post players: 6'10" Anthony Pullard and 6'9" Mark Thompson. North Texas, which plays in the nation's best-named arena, the Fabulous Super Pit, will challenge McNeese State, as will Northeast Louisiana and Sam Houston State.

Southwest

How did the Arkansas Razorbacks ever get into the Southwest Conference, anyway? They aren't from Texas, they don't eat chili or wear cowboy boots and their football program isn't on probation. But as long as coach Nolan Richardson and his crew of praise-the-Lord-and-pass-me-the-basketball Razorbacks have to hang out with Texans, they might as well be the best roundball team in the conference and one of the best teams in the nation.

Nobody believed us at the beginning of last season when we predicted a top-25 finish for Texas. Our optimism was based on coach Tom Penders, who promised the students at Austin that he'd bring excitement back to Texas basketball. He did exactly that, as attendance more than doubled and the Longhorns finished 25–9, including a first-round N.C.A.A. win over Georgia Tech. Penders has a bunch of talented players back this season, the best being guard Travis Mays, the S.W.C. Player of the Year last season.

Houston got off to a rough start last year when center Kelvin Smith went down with a knee injury in the first exhibition game, then limped to a disappointing 17–14 finish. Coach Pat Foster has recruited well, picking up 6'9" Carl Herrara, generally rated as the second-best junior college recruit this season (behind UNLV's Larry Johnson) and Houston Baptist transfer Alvaro Teheran. This is the most talented Cougars team since Akeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler led Houston to three consecutive Final Four appearances from 1982 to 1984.

Southwestern

The Southwestern Conference will be a four-team race this year. Texas Southern returns the best big man in the conference in Fred West, a 6'9" forward who averaged more than 18 p.p.g. and almost ten r.p.g., as well as Charles Price (18.4 p.p.g.) and Darrion Applewhite, who finished third in the nation in steals. Southern University, last year's conference-tourney winner, also returns several starters but not graduated Daryl Battles, the number-four rebounder in the nation last year. Grambling State should improve on last season's 15-win total because of Louisiana high school M.V.P. Felonta Evans and 6'8" junior college transfer Kelly Love, the son of former N.B.A. star Bob Love. Alabama State will look to incoming transfer Steve Rogers, a 6'5" guard, to replace the scoring punch of graduated conference Player of the Year Terry Brooks.

Sun Belt

Just about every team in the Sun Belt has a shot at the conference crown, the conference-tourney crown and a trip to the N.C.A.A. tournament. Alabama-Birmingham gets the nod because of 7'2" center Alan Ogg, third in the nation last season in blocked shots (3.8 per game), and three-point shooter Andy Kennedy. Coach Gene Bartow must find a good rebounding combination at the forward spots.

Old Dominion's Chris Gatling, a 6'9" junior center, is a prolific scorer (22.4 p.p.g.) and forward Anthony Carver isn't far behind (20.2 p.p.g.). The Monarchs' potential Achilles' heel is at point guard. Jacksonville returns four starters, including guard Dee Brown (19.6 p.p.g.); the Dolphins also have a stronger bench than last year, when they won 14 games. South Florida is the conference dark horse. Last year, the Bulls won only two conference games but should dramatically improve this season, as all five starters return. They've also added sophomore forward Fred Lewis, coach Bobby Paschal's top prospect. Virginia Commonwealth, distracted by the death of player Mike Brown in January from a rare heart ailment and the midseason resignation of coach Mike Pollio, was better than its 13–15 record. Sonny Smith, formerly at Auburn, takes over as coach. South Alabama will be without the dynamite guard duo of Junie Lewis and Jeff Hodge, who helped the Jaguars to a 23–9 record and an N.C.A.A. tournament berth last season. Karl "Boobie" James, a transfer from UNLV, should start. North Carolina–Charlotte, coached by Jeff Mullins, will be in the hunt for the conference title, even though we've listed six teams in front of it. Mullins' best player is sophomore guard Henry Williams.

Trans America

It will be interesting to see if the team with the talented backcourt, Arkansas–Little Rock, can prevail over Georgia Southern, the squad with lots of power up front. ALR, last year's Trans America tournament winner, has an abundance of super guards. At 5'10", Carl Brown (15.3 p.p.g) is a leading contender for the Naismith Award for the best player under six feet. Junior James Scott (14.3 p.p.g) could become the school's leading career scorer. Despite the loss of 6'9" Jeff Sanders to the N.B.A., Georgia Southern has size to spare with seven-foot Emmett Smith and 6'10" Calvester Ferguson, both juniors.

Centenary should finish a strong third in the conference with Larry Robinson (18.6 p.p.g.), last year's conference Newcomer of the Year. Stetson's chances for a league title were hurt when 6'9" forward Bjorn Gehrke elected to play for the Swedish National Team instead of returning to school. Houston Baptist elected to drop Division I basketball for at least a year because of financial difficulties.

West Coast

If you like scoring, Loyola-Marymount is your team. The Lions led the nation for the second consecutive year last season, averaging 112.5 p.p.g. They also set the record for points scored is a game when they beat U.S. International by the unbelievable score of 181–150.

The secret of LMU's scoring prowess is coach Paul Westhead's "run the system" offense, which dictates a shot within five seconds of possession. Another facet of the system is to sometimes give the opponent an easy lay-up so that the Lions can come back and bag a three-pointer (they scored an average of 9.3 per game). Playboy All-America Hank Gathers, who has a chance to lead the nation in scoring and rebounding for a second straight year, is the big bullet in Westhead's gun.

Pepperdine, the school down the street from Johnny Carson's beach house, seems an unlikely spot for solid Division I basketball. Yet year after year, the Waves are strong West Coast Conference contenders. The key for Pepperdine this season will be the inside play of 6'10" center Mark Georgeson, a transfer from Arizona.

Santa Clara, which has trouble getting respect and more than two lines of attention by the media despite several 20-win seasons the past ten years, has enough talent in forward Jeffty Connelly and power forward Nils Becker to get another shot in the N.I.T

Western Athletic

Coach Don Haskins of Texas–El Paso starts his 29th season with 542 wins and seven Western Athletic Conference titles under his belt. Without guard Tim Hardaway, last year's Naismith Award winner, he'll rely on three other players to grab another conference championship: Antonio Davis, a power forward who averaged 14.3 points and eight rebounds a game last season, seven-foot center Greg Foster and a flashy little guard, Prince Stewart.

UTEP's stiffest competition in the conference will come from New Mexico, a team built around 7'2" Luc Longley. The Lobos were 22–11 last season under first-year coach Dave Bliss. With the loss of only one starter from last year, Bliss figures his team can only improve.

Colorado State, last year's conference winner, lost its three offensive starters to graduation: CSU all-time scoring and rebounding leader Pat Durham and three-point wizard Joel Triblehorn. Mike Mitchell, a three-year starter at Fresno State before transferring to Colorado State, will be coach Boyd Grant's main man.

Hawaii was the nation's most improved Division I team last year, finishing 17–13 after a 4–25 mark in the 1987–1988 season. The main reason for that improvement, guard Chris Gaines (16.6 p.p.g.), is back for one more season.

Brigham Young's best player, forward Michael Smith, graduated to the Boston Celtics and coach Ladell Andersen has retired. Assistant Roger Reid took over in time to recruit his son Randy, one of the top scorers in Utah high school history.

Independents

With 30 N.C.A.A. tournament bids awarded automatically to regular-season or conference-tournament champions and with powerhouse conferences such as the Big Ten and the Big East sucking up four and five extra bids each, it becomes harder and harder for independents to find their way into N.C.A.A. post-season play. That's why Maryland–Baltimore County, Central Connecticut, Akron and Northern Illinois are all headed to conference affiliations next year and why more independents will go the same way in years to come.

Notre Dame and DePaul, however, are two programs that have been too successful to change their independent ways. Last season was supposed to be coach Digger Phelps's rebuilding year, his time to teach an extremely young but talented team. Teach it he did—to 21 wins and into the N.C.A.A. tournament second round before the Irish fell to Georgetown. Notre Dame's best player, LaPhonso Ellis (13.5 p.p.g., 9.4 r.p.g.), will have to sit out the first few games of the season because of academic problems. However, Phelps expects Ellis to rejoin the four other returning starters in December.

DePaul will be short on experience but long on talent this season. Gone are mainstays Terence Greene and Stanley Brundy, last season's team leaders. But coach Joey Meyer has four super sophomores ready to establish a new DePaul basketball dynasty. David Booth and Stephen Howard started last season as the Blue Demons' freshmen sensations. But by season's end, Chuckie Murphy and Curtis Price, already described as the greatest leaper in school history, had pushed them from the starting line-up. Deryl Cunningham, a 6'7" freshman forward, should sparkle.

Jim Molinari, the guy credited with recruiting most of DePaul's basketball talent over the past several seasons while serving as an assistant to the Meyer clan, is now the head coach at Northern Illinois. Molinari inherits a solid returning five from former coach Jim Rosborough. Donnell Thomas (18 p.p.g., 9.6 r.p.g.) will be the Huskies' leader on the floor.

Miami, which reinstated its basketball program only four years ago, is faced with a rebuilding job. Without a true center, the Hurricanes will play a hurry-up offense this season.

U.S. International plays an offense-heavy game similar to UNLV's and LoyolaMarymount's. The Gulls averaged 89.3 p.p.g. last year, but the opposition cranked out an average of 96.1.

Akron and Wright State will be hard-pressed to repeat their winning seasons because of graduation losses. Southeastern Louisiana has suspended its basketball program for this season because of financial difficulties.

Here's hoping your team wins.

Playboy's Top 25

Possible Breakthroughs

St. John's, Villanova, Temple, Ball State, DePaul, Texas–El Paso, Creighton, Kansas State, Alabama-Birmingham, Houston, Loyola-Marymount, Iowa State.

For a complete conference-by-conference listing of the final standings, see page 212.

Special thanks to Sheraton World Hotel, Orlando, Florida

The Playboy All-Americas

Gary Payton—Guard, 6'4", senior, Oregon State. Averaged 20.1 points, 8.1 assists and three steals per game last season. Has a chance of breaking national career-assist record set last year by Syracuse's Sherman Douglas and setting OSU all-time career-scoring mark.

Rumeal Robinson—Guard, 6'2", senior, Michigan. Averaged 14.9 points and 6.1 assists per game last season. Made two free throws with three seconds remaining to seal Michigan's 80–79 overtime victory over Seton Hall for last year's national championship.

Kendall Gill—Guard, 6'4", senior, Illinois. Averaged 15.4 points per game last season. Illinois was 23–1 last year with Gill in the line-up.

Chris Jackson—Guard, 6'1", sophomore, Louisiana State. Averaged 30.2 points per game last season, the most ever by a freshman. His 55-point single-game mark against Mississippi was also a Division I record for a freshman.

Gerald Glass—Forward, 6'6", senior, Mississippi. Finished fourth in the nation in scoring last season with a 28-point-per-game average. Set S.E.C. record with a three-steals-per-game average.

Hank Gathers—Forward, 6'7", senior, Loyola-Marymount. Only the second player in N.C.A.A. history to lead the nation in both scoring (32.7 points per game) and rebounding (13.7 rebounds per game).

Derrick Coleman—Forward, 6'10", senior, Syracuse. Already Syracuse's all-time leading rebounder, Coleman needs 509 points (scored 625 last season) and 76 blocks (had 127 last season) to become all-time school leader in those categories.

Lionel Simmons—Forward, 6'6", senior, La Salle. Two-time Metro Atlantic Player of the Year. Averaged 28.4 points and 11.4 rebounds per game last season.

Dwayne Schintzius—Center, 7'2", senior, Florida. Consensus All–Southeastern Conference as a junior. Averaged 18 points and 9.7 rebounds per game.

Alonzo Mourning—Center, 6'10", sophomore, Georgetown. Led nation in blocked shots last season with 169. Averaged 7.3 rebounds and 13.2 points per game.

Lute Olson—Playboy's Coach of the Year, Arizona. Olson has compiled a 328–148 record in 16 years of coaching at Long Beach, Iowa and Arizona. In the past five years, his Arizona teams have won three Pacific Ten championships and last year's team finished the regular season as the number-one team in the nation.

Rest of the Best

Guards: Marc Brown (Siena); Vernell "Bimbo" Coles (Virginia Tech); Steve Henson (Kansas State); Bo Kimble (Loyola-Marymount); Mark Macon (Temple); Travis Mays (Texas); Rodney Monroe (North Carolina State); Brian Oliver, Dennis Scott (Georgia Tech); Keith Smith (California); LaBradford Smith (Louisville); Steve Smith (Michigan State).

Forwards: Stacey Augmon (Nevada–Las Vegas); Willie Burton (Minnesota); Cedric Ceballos (Cal State–Fullerton); Dale Davis (Clemson); LaPhonso Ellis (Notre Dame); Don MacLean (UCLA); Kevin Madden (North Carolina); Terry Mills (Michigan); Billy Owens (Syracuse); Mark Randall (Kansas); Brian Shorter (Pittsburgh); Doug Smith (Missouri); Stephen Thompson (Syracuse); Jayson Williams (St. John's); Trevor Wilson (UCLA).

Centers: Victor Alexander (Iowa State); Elden Campbell (Clemson); Duane Causwell (Temple); Chad Gallagher (Creighton); Chris Gatling (Old Dominion); Tom Greis (Villanova); Luc Longley (New Mexico); Alan Ogg (Alabama-Birmingham); Loy Vaught (Michigan); Brian Williams (Arizona).

Cole's 1990 All-Name Team

Bijou Baly Fresno State

Cheyenne Gibson Memphis State

Louweegi Dyer New Orleans

Coco Barry Maine

Edsel Bester Central Florida

Tim Jumper Mississippi

Chuck Lightening Towson State

Shaquille O'Neal Louisiana State

Jimmy Apple William & Mary

Frenchie Tomlin Rhode Island

Tommy Joe Eagles (coach) Auburn

Cole's 1990 All-Nickname Team

Ronald "Popeye" Jones Murray State

Herman "Skeeter" Henry Oklahoma

Rodell "House" Guest Colorado

Vernell "Bimbo" Coles Virginia Tech

Cameron "Smoke" Burns Mississippi State

Chester "Instant" Coffee Florida A&M

Greg "Boo" Harvey St. John's

Karl "Boobie" James South Alabama

Ron "Fang" Mitchell (coach) Coppin State

Playboy's 1990 College Basketball Predictions

American South

Standouts: Kevin Brooks, Sydney Grider, Aaron Mitchell (Southwestern Louisiana); Tony Harris, Willie Richardson (New Orleans); Anthony Dade, P J. Brown, Brett Guillory (Louisiana Tech); Greg Williams (Arkansas St.); Melvin Toomas (Texas–Pan Am); David Jones (Lamar).

Standouts: Christian Laettner, Robert Brickey (Duke); Scott Williams, Kevin Madden (North Carolina); Dennis Scott, Brian Oliver (Georgia Tech); Elden Campbell, Dale Davis (Clemson); Rodney Monroe, Chris Corchiani (North Carolina St.); Bryant Stith, John Crotty (Virginia); Chris King, Sam Ivy, Anthony Tucker (Wake Forest); Tony Massenburg, Jerrod Mustaf (Maryland).

Atlantic Ten

Standouts: Mark Macon, Duane Causwell, Mik Kilgore (Temple); Steve Berger, Chris Brooks (West Virginia); Tom Savage, Earl Duncan, Rick Dadika (Rutgers); Ed Fogell (Penn St.); Kenny Green, Eric Leslie (Rhode Island); Craig Amos, Marlon Miller (St. Joseph's); Clayton Adams (Duquesne); Michael Burnett (St. Bonaventure); Jim McCoy (Mass.); Ellis McKennie (George Washington).

Big East

Standouts: Derrick Coleman, Stephen Thompson, Billy Owens, LeRon Ellis (Syracuse); Alonzo Mourning, Dwayne Bryant, Mark Tillmon (Georgetown); Brian Shorter, Jason Mathews, Rod Brookin (Pittsburgh); Jayson Williams, Greg "Boo" Harvey (St. John's); Tom Greis, Rodney Taylor (Villanova); Eric Murdock, Carlton Screen, Marty Conlon (Providence); Anthony Avent (Seton Hall); Doug Able, Bryan Edwards (Boston College); Chris Smith, Tate George (Connecticut).

Big Eight

Standouts: Richard Dumas, Byron Houston, Royce Jeffries, Darwyn Alexander (Oklahoma St.); Doug Smith, Lee Coward, Anthony Peeler (Missouri); William Davis, Jeff Webster, Skeeter Henry, Smokey McCovery (Oklahoma); Victor Alexander, Mark Baugh (Iowa St.); Steve Henson (Kansas St.); Kevin Pritchard, Mark Randall, Rick Calloway (Kansas); Beau Reid, Rich King (Nebraska); Shaun Vandiver, Stevie Wise (Colorado).

Big Sky

Standouts: Riley Smith, Ricardo Boyd (Idaho); David Lowery (Boise St.); Kevin Franklin, Kevin Soares (Nevada-Reno); Daren Engellant (Montana); Steven Garrity, Craig Murray (Idaho St.); Michael Ostlund (Weber St.); Alonzo Stephens (Montana St.); David Peed (Eastern Washington); Steve Williams, Steve Lizzul (N. Arizona).

Big South

Standouts: Milton Moore, Brent Keck (North Carolina–Asheville); Phil Young, Vernon Brooks (Radford); Robert Dowdell, Bryan Penny (Coastal Carolina); Brad Childress, Mark Mocnik (Campbell); Sean Smith (Winthrop); Keenan Mann (Augusta); David Oliver (Baptist).

Big Ten

Standouts: Rumeal Robinson, Terry Mills, Loy Vaught, Sean Higgins (Michigan); Kendall Gill, Stephen Bardo, Marcus Liberty (Illinois); Willie Burton, Melvin (Minnesota); Eric Anderson, Lyndon Jones (Indiana); Perry Carter (Ohio St.); Matt Bullard, Ray Thompson (Iowa); Steve Smith, Ken Redfield (Michigan St.); Danny Jones, Willie Simms (Wisconsin); Stephen Scheffler, Tony Jones (Purdue); Walker Lambiotte, Brian Schwabe (Northwestern).

Big West

Standouts: Stacey Augmon, David Butler, Greg Anthony, Larry Johnson (Nevada–Las Vegas); Cedric Ceballos, Mark Hill (Cal St.–Fullerton); Keith Hill, James Anderson (New Mexico St.); Carrick DeHart, Eric McArthur (California-Santa Barbara); Wilbert Hooker, Tod Bernard (Fresno St.); Don Lyttle, Daryl Wolfe (Pacific); Tyrone Mitchell, Kevin Cutler (Long Beach St.); Rod Palmer, Ricky Butler (California-Irvine).

Colonial

Standouts: Ken Atkinson, Scott Stapleton (Richmond); Steve Hood, William Davis (James Madison); Steve Smith, Robert Dykes (George Mason); Ron Draper, Daryl Holmes (American); Joe Cherry (North Carolina–Wilmington); Gus Hill (East Carolina); Eddie Reddick (Navy); Jimmy Apple (William & Mary).

East Coast

Standouts: Kurk Lee, Devin Boyd (Towson St.); Mark Murray, Alexander Coles (Delaware); Derrick Flowers, Frank Walker (Hofstra); Dozie Mbonu, Scott Layer (Lehigh); Todd Lehmann (Drexel); Matt Roberts (Lafayette); Mike Joseph (Bucknell); Jim Cleveland (Rider).

Ivy League

Standouts: Kit Mueller, Jerry Doyle (Princeton); James Blackwell, Walter Palmer (Dartmouth); Ed Petersen, Dean Campbell, Todd Trimmer (Yale); Ralph James, Ron Mitchell (Harvard); Bernard Jackson, Shawn Maharaj (Cornell); Hassan Duncombe (Pennsylvania); Chuck Savage (Brown); Dane Holmes (Columbia).

Metro

Standouts: LaBradford Smith, Tony Kimbro, Felton Spencer (Louisville); Tharon Mayes, Irving Thomas (Florida St.); Elliot Perry, Ernest Smith (Memphis St.); Joe Rhett, Barry Manning (South Carolina); Louis Banks (Cincinnati); Vernell "Bimbo" Coles (Virginia Tech); Clarence Weatherspoon (Southern Mississippi); Greg Gary, Michael Christian (Tulane).

Metro Atlantic

Standouts: Lionel Simmons, Doug Overton, Jack Hurd (La Salle); Marc Brown, Jeffrey Robinson (Siena); Jasper Walker, Chuck Veterano (St. Peter's); Derrick Canada, Todd Mattson (Army); Peter Runge, Kelly Monroe (Manhattan); Ed Book (Canisius); Sean Green (Iona); Dan O'mullivan (Fordham); Dwight Pernell, Jim Nairus (Holy Cross); Patrick Jones (Niagara); Kevin Green (Loyola-Maryland); Harold Brantley (Fairfield).

Mid-American

Standouts: Curtis Kidd, Paris McCurdy, Billy Butts (Ball St.); Eric Glenn, Ric Blevins, Harold Walton (Kent St.); Lorenzo Neely, Brian Nolan (Eastern Michigan); David Jamerson, Dennis Whitaker (Ohio University); Ed Colbert, Clint Venable (Bowling Green); Jim Paul, Tim Stewart (Miami); Craig Sutters (Toledo); Mark Brown (Western Michigan); Carter Briggs (Central Michigan).

Mid-Continent

Standouts: Jason Reese, Steve Phyfe (Northern Iowa); Lee Campbell, Jeff Ford (Southwest Missouri St.); Brian Parker, Kenny Robertson (Cleveland St.); Tony Bennett (Wisconsin–Green Bay); Chris Harris (Illinois-Chicago); Bob Smith, Darrell Richardson (Western Illinois); Mike Jones (Valparaiso); Gerald Jones (Eastern Illinois).

Mideastern

Standouts: Reggie Isaac, Larry Stewart, Phil Booth (Coppin St.); James Jason McCoy, Damone Williams (Morgan St.); Tom Davis, Emanual Davis (Delaware St.); Terry Giles, Reginald Finney (Florida A & M); Travis Williams (South Carolina St.); Julious Grant (Bethune-Cookman); Tyrone Powell, Skip Bynum (Howard); Glenn Taggart (North Carolina A & T); Keith Williams (Maryland–Eastern Shore).

Midwestern

Standouts: Tyrone Hill, Derek Strong (Xavier); Dan Godfread, Reed Crafton (Evansville); Anthony Bonner, Charles Newberry (St. Louis); Tony Smith, Trevor Powell (Marquette); Anthony Corbitt, Negele Knight (Dayton); Keith Gailes, Keir Rogers (Loyola-Chicago); Jody Littrell (Butler); Shawn Williams, Bill Wood (Detroit).

Missouri Valley

Standouts: Bob Harstad, Chad Gallagher (Creighton); Lamont Randolph, Michael Scott (Tulsa); Jarrod Coleman, Rickey Jackson (Illinois St.); Rick Shipler, Freddie McSwain (Southern Illinois); John Cooper (Wichita St.); Luke Jackson, Xanthus Houston (Bradley); Sam Roark, Terrell Jackson (Drake); Eddie Bird (Indiana St.).

North Atlantic

Standouts: Steve Key, Ron Moses, Bill Brigham (Boston University); George Yuille, Dexter Jenkins (Northeastern); Lamont Middleton, Larry Griffiths (Hartford); Dean Smith (Maine); Kenny White, Rahim Huland El (Vermont); Jay Armstrong (Colgate); Eric Thielen (New Hampshire).

Northeast

Standouts: Desi Wilson, Glenn Harding (Fairleigh Dickinson); Andre Boyd, Scott Shepherd (Robert Morris); Alex Blackwell, Dave Calloway (Monmouth); Joe Anderson, Harkeem Dixon (St. Francis–Penn.); Steve Paterno (Marist); Dean Borges (Wagner); Anthony Robinson (St. Francis–New York); Timothy Pounds (Long Island).

Ohio Valley

Standouts: Earl Wise, Milos Babic, Jerome Rodgers (Tennessee Tech); Donald Tivis, Tommy Brown (Austin Peay); Gerald Harris (Middle Tennessee St.); Chris Ogden, Paul King (Murray St.); Nico Childs, Alburey Doss (Tennessee St.); Elbert Boyd, Brett Roberts (Morehead St.); Mike Davis, Mike Smith (Eastern Kentucky).

Pacific Ten

Standouts: Brian Williams, Chris Mills, Jud Buechler, Matt Muehlebach (Arizona); Trevor Wilson, Don MacLean (UCLA); Gary Payton, Will Brantley, Teo Alibegovic (Oregon St.); Eldridge Recasner, Mike Hayward, Dion Browne (Washington); Keith Smith, Roy Fisher (California); Tarence Wheeler, Alex Austin (Arizona St.); Adam Keefe (Stanford); Keith Reynolds (Oregon); Ronnie Coleman, Chris Munk (USC); Darryl Woods (Washington St.).

Southeastern

Standouts: Chris Jackson, Stanley Roberts, Shaquille O'Neal, Wayne Sims (Louisiana St.); Dwayne Schintzius, Livingston Chatman, Dwayne Davis (Florida); Robert Horry, Keith Askins, David Benoit (Alabama); Gerald Glass, Tim Jumper (Mississippi); Alec Kessler, Litterial Green (Georgia); Cameron "Smoke" Burns, Tony Watts (Mississippi St.); John Caylor, Derrick Dennison (Auburn); Eric Reid (Vanderbilt); Greg Bell, Ian Lockhart (Tennessee); Derrick Miller, Reggie Hanson (Kentucky).

Southern

Standouts: Greg Dennis, Keith Jennings (East Tennessee St.); Sam Gibson, Kemp Phillips (Appalachian St.); Hal Henderson, Bruce Evans (Furman); Ramon and Damon Williams (Virginia Military Institute); Patrick Elmore (The Citadel); Omar Roland (Marshall); Daren Chandler (Tennessee-Chattanooga); Keith Gray (Western Carolina).

Southland

Standouts: Anthony Pullard, Mark Thompson (McNeese St.); Ronnie Morgan, Kevie Gulley (North Texas St.); Anthony Jones, Fred Thompson (Northeast Louisiana); Derrick Williams, Dennis Green (Sam Houston St.); Willie Brand, David Allen (Texas-Arlington); Eric Scanlan (Northwestern St.–Louisiana); Stacy Bennett (Southwest Texas St.); Jeff Williams (Stephen F. Austin St.).

Southwest

Standouts: Lee Mayberry, Todd Day (Arkansas); Travis Mays, Lance Blanks (Texas); Craig Upchurch, Carl Herrera (Houston); Tony Milton, David Harris (Texas A & M); Craig Sibley, Reggie Smith (Texas Christian); Dana Hardy, Kenneth Rourke (Rice); John Colborne (Southern Methodist); Jerry Mason, J. D. Sanders (Texas Tech); Julius Denton, Michael Hobbs (Baylor).

Southwestern

Standouts: Fred West, Charles Price (Texas Southern); Carlos Sample, Joe Faulkner (Southern); Claude Newell, Darrell Harris (Grambling St.); Ivy Dobson, Darrin Mayo (Alabama St.); David Martin, Eric Strothers (Jackson St.); Michael Ervin, Steve Stevenson (Prairie View A & M); Reginald Brown (Mississippi Valley St.); Michael malone, Steve Thomas (Alcorn St.).

Sun Belt

Standouts: Andy Kennedy, Alan Ogg (Alabama-Birmingham); Chris Gatling, Anthony Carver (Old Dominion); Dee Brown, Reggie Law (Jacksonville); Fred Lewis, Radenko Dobras (South Florida); Carl Weldon, Martin Henlan (Virginia Commonwealth); John Jimmerson, Marvin Eackles, Karl "Boobie" James (South Alabama); Henry Williams, Cedric Ball (North Carolina–Charlotte); Jerry Anderson, Roland Shelton (Western Kentucky).

Trans America

Standouts: Carl Brown, James Scott, Derrick Owens (Arkansas–L.R.); Mike Harding, Mike Curry, Richard Sherrod (Georgia So.); Larry Robinson, Byron Steward (Centenary); Derrall Dumas, Frank Ireland (Stetson); Bruce Wheatley, Ronnie Ellison (Texas–S.A.); Arnold Hamilton (Samford); Rick Nickerson (Hardin-Simmons); Scott Bailey (Mercer); Chris Collier (Georgia St.).

West Coast

Standouts: Hank Gathers, Bo Kimble, Jeff Fryer (Loyola-Marymount); Tom Lewis, Dexter Howard, Craig Davis (Pepperdine); Jeffry Connelly, Nils Becker (Santa Clara); Joel DeBortoli, Kevin Ellis (San Francisco); Jim McPhee (Gonzaga); John Jerome (San Diego); Josh Lowery (Portland); James Dailey (St. Mary's).

Western Athletic

Standouts: Antonio Davis, Greg Foster, Prince Stewart (Texas–El Paso); Luc Longley, Rob Robbins (New Mexico); Mike Mitchell (Colorado St.); Chris Gaines, Terry Houston (Hawaii); Andy Toolson, Marty Haws (BYU); Raymond Dudley (Air Force); Reggie Slater (Wyoming); Rodney Jones (San Diego St.); Josh Grant (Utah).

Independents

Standouts: LaPhonso Ellis, Joe Fredrick (Notre Dame); Curtis Price, Kevin Holland (DePaul); Donnell Thomas, Stacy Arrington (N. Illinois); Joe Wylie (Miami); Demetrius Laffitte (U.S. International); Anthony Buford (Akron); Mark Woods, Dave Dinn (Wright St.); Larry Simmons (Maryland–B.C.); Gerald Collins (Chicago St.); John Shurina (Brooklyn); Ken Leeks (Cent. Florida); Scott Weeden (Cent. Connecticut); Todd Lark (Youngstown St.); Allan Hunter (Davidson); Robert Lee (Nicholls St.); Frank Molak (Missouri–K.C.).