Haskins, former Shaw standout, led LIU into NCAA s,
ay 5AM DAVIS
Chronicle Sports Editor
A lot of people expected
Long Island University to just
roll over when the Blackbirds
took on Villanova in the first
round of the NCAA East
Regional last Thursday at
Lawrence Joel Coliseum.
Haskins wasn't one of them.
Haskins, a former standout
in Black College basketball at
Shaw University, fully expected
his team to battle the Wildcats
tooth and nail for the right to
advance to the second round.
Although his team came out
on the short end, Haskins and
LIU acquitted themselves well
and garnered the respect of the
14,360 fans in attendance. They
also proved to die national televi
sion audience that their 21-8
record coming into the tourna
ment was no fluke.
Those that know Haskins
aren't surprised at the success
he's had. Haskins was a standout
back in his native Brooklyn, N.Y.
He was a legend on the play
grounds and enjoyed an out
standing career at Shaw, where
he was a two-time A1I-C1AA
player and a small college All
American as a senior.
After obtaining his bache
lor's degree at Shaw, Haskins
returned to Brooklyn and high
school coaching. He led the pro
gram at Alexander Hamilton
High, producing a host of out
standing players. His teams also
captured five Brooklyn titles, a
state championship and a city
title. Haskins left the high school
ranks to accept the head coach
ing job at his alma mater prior to
tfce 1986-87 season, taking over
at program that had began to fal
ter. In one season at the helm he
ltd the Bears to a 13-14 record.
J He was lured back to New
York the following season,
Accepting an assistant coaching
jpb at Pratt University. He stayed
tfiere for two seasons before
going back to Hamilton and then
cm to Long Island as an assistant.
Me was named the LIU coach
jfiior to the 1995-% season and
ltd the Blackbirds to a 9-19
r After getting his team indoc
-t?. :??
trinated both on and off the
court, the expectation level was
Ray Haskins, former Shaw standout and AU-CIAA player, led LIU to a
21-9 record and an NCAA berth in his second season at the helm of the
program.
high for the 1996 season. Espe- i
cially with the arrival of Charles i
Jones and highly recruited Richie
Parker. I
The Blackbirds didn't disap- i
point, winning the Northeast i
Conference Tournament and I
posting their 21-8 record.
Haskins has built the pro- i
gram from the ground up and his i
players have been taught to i
respect every team it plays, but
fear none.
Haskins talked about that
aspect at the post-game press
conference after his team's loss.
"We have a lot of respect for
Villanova," Haskins said. "But
they didn't have a lot of respect
for us."
That caused a little friction
in the game. After taking a 10-0
lead in the first half, the Wildcats
began to talk a little trash to the i
Blackbirds. But LIU fought back 2
into the game and was ahead for
much of the half.
Even though the Blackbirds
faded in the second half, Haskins
said he was proud of what his
team did in his second year at the
helm.
"We played the kind of game
that we thought we could be suc
cessful playing," he said. "We
dictated tempo and that's what
we wanted to do. I feel that we
have a very good year and we
accomplished a lot," Haskins
said."
Coming to Winston-Salem
was like a homecoming for
Haskins.
"Wheri-the pairings were
announced I was hoping that
we'd get to come to North Car
olina," Haskins said. "North Car
olina is like a second home for
ne. I have a lot of friends here
ind I have a lot of fond memo
ies of my time down here."
Haskins isn't the only LIU
ie to Black College sports. Wen
lell Saunders, an assistant at
LIU, played under Haskins in
high school before going to
Shaw. Then, when Haskins
accepted the head job at Shaw,
Saunders played under Haskins
again.
After earning his degree at
Shaw, Saunders worked at Bish
op Lockland High in Brooklyn
before joining Haskins when he
took over at LIU.
"I've been with Coach Hask
ins a long time," Saunders said.
"The thing that impressed me
and a lot of the recruits is his
drive and determination. He
pushes everyone hard, but he's
very fair."
Haskins drew a lot of atten
tion to his program when he
decided to allow Richie Parker
join the LIU program.
Parker was one of the nation's
mostly highly recruited players
two years ago before confessing
to sexual battery. After being at
the top of the recruiting class, he
couldn't find a single Division I
program that would accept him.
Parker eventually ended up
attending junior college in Ari
zona, where he didn't play bas
ketball last season after protest
from feminist groups on campus.
Haskins nevertheless offered
Parker a scholarship for the '96
97 season.
"The provost let him in and
we decided to give him a
chance," Saunders said. "I think
everyone realized that Richie
appreciated getting a second
chance. The image that is pro
jected isn't really accurate.
"Richie is a very shy person,
he's not that vocal at all," Saun
ders said. "Now they know that
he's a good person. Sometimes
making a mistake can benefit a
person. We're glad we have him
at LIU and I think that everyone
else feels the same way."
Allison leads Hanes Hosiery All-Stars to victory
; The Hanes Hosiery 14 and
under All-Stars, winners of the
SWAC State Tournament in
Salisbury earlier this month,
graveled this past weekend to
Fort Mill, S.C. where they
< efeated the Ayden, N.C. All
! tars 81-48. The Hosiery All
! tars were paced by a offensive
larrage by Kenny Allison, who
inished with 29 points, and the
$uo of Junior Searcy and Bran
don Senter who each dropped
*
in 14.
Derrick Moore and Sheldon
Davis led the rebounding and
every Hosiery player scored in
the victory.
The Hosiery All-Stars
along with the Charlotte Meck
lenburg All-Stars, with whom
they have split a pair of games
in 2 different All-Star tourna
ments, will now travel back to
Fort Mill, S.C. and both teams
will represent the state of North
Carolina in a 4-state Southeast
era Regional Tournament. The
tournament will be played the
weekend on March 21- 22 at
the Charlotte Hornets training
facility and will feature All
Star teams from South Caroli
na, Georgia, and Tennessee.
The Regional Tournament is
sponsored by the Charlotte
Hornets and the NBA and is
expressly for teams that are
affiliated with the Charlotte Jr.
Hornets Basketball Program in
each of the four states
r? :
? Hones Hosiery 14 and under All-Stars
*
|l6 and Under Carolina Hornets tryouts
f
iThe 16 and under Central
YMCA Carolina Hornets AAU
^Basketball team will conduct
w Jtryouts at the R.J. Reynolds
' jHigh School Gymnasium on
4a
Friday, March 21 beginning at n
6:45 p.m. and on Saturday tl
March 22nd beginning at 9:45 h
a.m. Birth date of the athlete 2
must fall on or after September c
1, 1980. A parent or guardian
lust accompany and register
lie athlete For more info, call
ead coach Walter Faye at 721
100 ext. 2500 or Rana D^Hol
omb at 724-2828.
INDULGE [
IN THE
ADAM'S
MARK
EASTER
BRUNCH!
Our Holiday Brunch Features:
Carved Steamship Round, Honey Ham, Roast Leg of .
Lamb, Salmon, Fruit, Cheese, Salads, Wild Rice,
Twice Baked Potatoes, Green Beans, Hot Cross Buns,
Breads, Cheese Cake, Coconut Cake, Carrot Cake,
Chocolate Cake, Lemon Cake AND MORE!!!
FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY!
? t
V/sits from the Easter Bunny
Yo~ Yo The Clown 4 a Petting Zoo
MARCH 30
10:00 am - 2:30 pm
Adults- $17.95 t.
Seniors- $15.95
Children 5-12- $7.95
4 and Under- FREE i
. i
CALL 725-3500 :
* ?
to make reservations
adamfemcnalc
uilnvCanpkna
425 N. Cherry St. Winston-Salem
il?
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