Three interviews next week.

[Green Cookie Monster]

This should make the majority of the board happy. The three are all well qualified.

http://www.hornetsports.com

HORNET ATHLETICS TO INTERVIEW THREE MEN’S BASKETBALL COACHING CANDIDATES NEXT WEEK

3/28/2008

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Sacramento State Athletics Director Terry Wanless announced today the first group of interviews for the vacant men’s basketball coaching position will take place next Tuesday-Thursday, April 1-3.

On Tuesday, Washington assistant Cameron Dollar will be interviewed, followed by San Joaquin Delta College head coach Brian Katz on Wednesday, and Cabrillo College head coach Tony Marcopulos on Thursday.

Below are capsules on each coach.

CAMERON DOLLAR
• In his sixth season as an assistant coach at Washington
• Helped direct the Huskies to a combined 119 victories during his six seasons (119-72 over that span)
• Helped recruit back-to-back classes that were ranked among the best in the nation in 2005 and 2006
• Pivotal in the Huskies’ run to their first Pac-10 Tournament championship in 2005 and first-ever No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament
• Prior to his arrival at Washington, Dollar served three years as an assistant coach at Saint Louis University, where he helped the Billikens to a 2000 Conference USA Tournament championship and NCAA Tournament berth
• Became the nation’s youngest head coach in 1998 when, at age 22, he took over the reins of Southern California College (now known as Vanguard University of Southern California) in Costa Mesa, Calif.
• Began his coaching career as an assistant on the staff of head coach Pat Douglass at UC Irvine in 1997
• A four-year letterman at UCLA from 1994-97, Dollar achieved national recognition in 1995 as a pivotal player in UCLA’s NCAA championship season when he took over for injured starter Tyus Edney in the title game
• Received his bachelor’s degree in history from UCLA in 1997

BRIAN KATZ
• Fifteen-year head coach at San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton, and a 26-year career as a basketball coach at the high school, junior college and NCAA Div. I levels
• Holder of a .716 winning percentage (348-138) at Delta College
• A six-time conference coach of the year during his Delta College career, he has led the team to 14 playoff appearances, six conference championships, three Elite Eight appearances, and one Final Four appearance
• At the beginning of the 2007-08 season, of the 108 players that came through the Delta program, 102 of them had advanced to four-year institutions
• Led Lassen College to an 87-47 record in four seasons as head coach (1989-93)
• Assistant under Carroll Williams at Santa Clara where two teams earned NIT bids during his three-year stay (1987-89)
• Head coach at Center High School in Antelope (1983-87), where he led the team to a four-year combined record of 53-34, including one league championship and three Sac-Joaquin Section playoff appearances
• Received his bachelor’s degree in English from Sacramento State in 1980, and his master’s degree in counseling psychology from Santa Clara in 1989.

TONY MARCOPULOS
• Has spent the past eight seasons as the head coach at Cabrillo College in Aptos, Calif.
• Completely rebuilt Cabrillo from a once moribund program into one that has won two straight Coast Conference championships and combined for a 41-18 overall record and a 20-4 conference mark over the last two years
• The conference championships were the first for the men’s basketball program since the school was founded in 1959
• Has led the team to six state playoff appearances during his eight-year tenure
• Has 12 years of Div. I assistant coaching experience (1988-00)
• Spent one season (1999-00) as an assistant at Portland
• Worked alongside head coach Bob Thomason for 11 years for Pacific (1988-99)
• During his tenure at Pacific, The Tigers amassed eight winning seasons, two Big West Conference titles, one NCAA Tournament appearance (the first in 18 years at Pacific) and one NIT appearance
• Received his bachelor’s degree in physical education from Cal State Stanislaus in 1987, and his master’s degree in physical education from Pacific in 1990

 

[scfp]

Congrats to all three, but I think Katz should be the one chosen. He's the only one with local experience and the only one who currently lives in Sacramento. More importantly, he has the support of most of the high school coaches in the immediate area, and is the only one who get hit the ground running. This is a monumental opportunity for Sac State to, once and for all, turn this program around....after many, many false starts.

 

[Kadeezy]

Notice this says "the FIRST round of interviews"...

 

[scfp]

Well, the school newspaper may have used the phrase "first round of interviews," but that's not what the Bee was reporting. The tone of the Bee article is that the final choice will be one of three being interviewed this week. I guess that, if none of the three were to wow the selection committee, they could call in some other applicants, but that would put Sac State precariously close to the April 16 date. I wouldn't hold my breath that there will be more than three interviewed. The next Hornet coach is more than likely going to be of the three that will visit this week.

 

[jmb]

John Schumacher was on 1140 today with Jim Crandell. He made it seem unlikely that there would be more than 3 candidates interviewed. He also thought an announcement would be made within a week and a half.

Is anyone else bothered by the very poor record that Dollar did have in his single season as a head coach?

 

[antngtown]

i dont know if anybody noticed in the resemes of the 3 canidates ,it mentioned in brian katzs' that he had 102 out of 108 student basketball players go on to four year colleges, that is imperssive and shows he not only cares about wins, but cares about his players, that is big, if players know that their coach cares about them inside and outside the lines, it makes a world of difference.

 

[duke51]

i dont know if anybody noticed in the resemes of the 3 canidates ,it mentioned in brian katzs' that he had 102 out of 108 student basketball players go on to four year colleges, that is imperssive and shows he not only cares about wins, but cares about his players, that is big, if players know that their coach cares about them inside and outside the lines, it makes a world of difference.

I think that's an interesting point... and a good area for all to consider when looking at each candidate. How many players go on to 4-year schools and also how do players perform in the classroom. I know that Marcopulos has done well in these areas. He emphasizes that his players must go to class... not just so that they can remain eligible, but so they have something to lean on beyond their playing days. The vast majority of players that spent two years at Cabrillo were able to graduate. Plus, many have had further opportunities to attend play at a 4-year school.

It also seems like a team's work ethic demonstrates how well they respond to their coach. Marcopulos has been able to develop quality relationships with his guys and it shows... his teams play very hard for him.