- Charlotte Observer: The biggest news around the conference (and country for that matter) is Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski attempting to pass Bob Knight as the all-time winningest coach in men’s D-I history Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. The Charlotte Observer has two terrific articles up on Coach K’s early years as well as his relationship with Bob Knight. Both articles help frame Krzyzewski’s coaching career by looking at his roots. I expect there will be plenty of great content from around the country on Krzyzewski and the milestone this week, so definitely keep an eye on our Morning Fives for more highlights.
- Associated Press: In news that didn’t surprise many college basketball fans, CJ Leslie has been suspended the first three games of NC State’s season for $410 of improper benefits. According to the university, a former NC State student let Leslie borrow his car and paid for his apartment application fees. Losing Leslie hasn’t hurt the Wolfpack so far, as they beat UNC Asheville (who gave North Carolina more of a game than it bargained for yesterday), and absolutely eviscerated Morehead State in their first two games. I’d be surprised if any more of this came from the NCAA investigation.
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Speaking of suspensions, Georgia Tech’s Glen Rice, Jr., was also suspended the first three games of the season for a “violation of team rules.” That’s fairly harsh punishment for an internal violation, which I and Atlanta Journal-Constitution‘s Mark Bradley take to mean new coach Brian Gregory means business:
“Brian Gregory isn’t a smooth talker. Ask him the time and he’ll tell you, but he won’t give you a tutorial in watchmaking. He’s a Chicago guy, and he’s as subtle as Dick Butkus. What has passed for standard operating procedure at Tech won’t cut it with this coach, who’s known, in suitable unadorned fashion, as BG.”
Gregory’s squad is off to a great start after dominating Florida A&M Friday.
- Wilmington Star-News: Mark Gottfried has been “part salesman, part carnival huckster” trying to get the word out about his NC State team (and inspire some confidence in a weary and wary fanbase). Probably my favorite anecdote from the article is when Gottfried threw his jacket in disgust after a questionable foul call. The problem is that no one initially saw it, so he threw it again to the pleasure of the RBC Center crowd. NC State has a history of and Gottfried looks to try to join those ranks.successful, super-energetic coaches
- Raleigh News & Observer and Winston-Salem Journal: Jeff Bzdelik has his work cut out for him in his second season as Wake Forest’s coach after an abysmal 8-24 first campaign. He’s instituted a motion offense to help account for lack of a post presence. But both of these articles focus on Bzdelik’s optimism on the upcoming season. No, the Demon Deacons aren’t going to compete for the ACC crown this year, but he believes that he’s starting to build a solid foundation for future success. He also has a good 2012 recruiting class that should infuse much-needed talent and size to the Demon Deacon roster next season.