IN THE CASE against conference tournaments, Central Florida is Exhibit A. The team with a dreadful 11-18 record made the NCAA Tournament list this year by winning the Trans America Athletic Conference tournament. That earned the privilege of meeting Massachusetts (31-1) in the first round of the East sub-regional.
San Jose State, which won the Big West tourney championship Sunday, after finishing the year 13-16, is the other sub-.500 team in the field. The Spartans have a first-round meeting with Kentucky (28-2).Despite the fact that conference tournaments keep dreams alive, reality dictates otherwise. Usually, it's just a wasted berth. Since 1955, only nine other teams with losing records have made the NCAA field. Eight of those teams lost in the first round. The only exception was Bradley, which finished 7-19 in 1955 but made the cut as an independent. The Braves went all the way to the final eight before losing.
So for Central Florida and San Jose State, the message is clear: Enjoy your vacation . . . but pack light.
EASY RIDER: BYU football coach LaVell Edwards began spring football practices last week, patroling the sidelines on a golf cart. Which, if you ask him, is the only way to go.
Using a golf cart for spring drills is standard practice among NCAA coaches. The longtime BYU coach didn't start using a cart until two years ago, when he began having hip problems. "I never used one until then," said Edwards. "But I have a bad hip and can't stand for long periods."
The convenience, Edwards jokes, may have extended his career. "Two years ago, if I hadn't decided to use one, I wouldn't have been coaching now."
RISING TIDE: Though gender equity is moving slowly in some areas, it's doing well in basketball. The American Basketball Council reports that nearly as many high schools field girls' teams (16,029) as boys' (16,480).
The report also says girls have accounted for 42-44 percent of all high school players since the late 70s. When Title IX was initiated in 1972-73, only 17 percent of high school players were girls.
LOW PROFILE: The son of three-time Ohio State All-America and former NBA star Jerry Lucas, J.J. Lucas, left Vanderbilt this season for personal reasons and has transferred to Hawaii Pacific, an NAIA school.
The 6-foot-10 J.J. averaged 5.2 points and 3.3 rebounds for the Commodores as a freshman last season, but decided to transfer to Hawaii Pacific after the team returned from the Maui Invitational earlier this year.
"First of all," he said to the Associated Press, "I wanted to get away from all the hype and the spotlight of big-time basketball. So when (a former teammate) told me about HPU, I got really interested. And then when I talked to Coach (Tony) Sellitto, I liked what he had to say. I thought about it for a little while and finally decided that Hawaii Pacific would be a place where I could fit in."
Meanwhile, Lucas says he realizes even in Hawaii they know who his famous father is, and will make comparisons. "I don't think I'll ever get away from them," said J.J., whose initials stand for Jerry Jr. "But that doesn't bother me. It's like water off my back already. No matter what people might say, I'm not Jerry Lucas. I'm J.J. Lucas."
I.D. REQUIRED: Dallas Mavericks and former Weber State basketball coach Dick Motta wasn't always as well-known as he is now.
After winning his 900th career game in late December, Motta told the story of when he started in the NBA coaching ranks in 1968. Although he had been appointed coach of the Chicago Bulls, he'd never seen an NBA game.
As Motta tried to enter Madison Square Garden the first night for a game against the Knicks, but was detained by security guards, who didn't know who he was. Finally, the Bulls' trainer vouched for Motta and the guards allowed him in the arena.
FAST TRACK: In the hard-to-believe category comes this from the hockey front: former Salt Lake Golden Eagle Joe Mullen has now played in over 1,000 NHL games.
Mullen, who played with the Eagles from 1979-82, led the old Central Hockey League in points in 1980-81 with 117. Now 39, he's playing with the Boston Bruins.
"He's not supposed to score, he's not supposed to be fast," said New York Islanders coach Mike Milbury to reporters last week. "He just puts in 1,000 games and a Hall of Fame career, and he's a class act doing it. He's smart, he's got courage, and he could put the puck in the net. He's just outstanding."
QUOTEFILE: BYU baseball coach Gary Pullins, who ruptured his Achilles tendon while leaping from the dugout to celebrate a home run: "There goes my high jumping career."