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January 23, 2008

Transcript: College Hoops Chat with Paul Kenyon

Paul Kenyon: Hi everyone. It’s nice to be here on game day. I’m not like the players and coaches. I’m happy to talk on game day. So let’s get started.

Pam: I'm a Duquesne alum -- why do you think the Atlantic 10 is so competitive this year?

Paul Kenyon: Hi Pam. There certainly is no doubt about how competitive the A-10 is with everyone having at least one loss already.My personal opinion is that there are two big reasons for the upswing. One is that the schools have done a good job hiring coaches. The league went through a down cycle when it lost coaches like John Calipari, Thad Matta and Oliver Purnell to higher paying jobs and John Chaney to retirement.Your alma mater, for one, made what looks to be a great move with the hiring of Ron Everhart from Northeastern. The Dukes are good this year and will be even better next year. It takes coaches some time to get their program in place. To coin a phrase, it’s a process. The fruits of the process are now becoming visible at Duquense, URI and many of the conference schools.The second factor, I think, is just normal a normal cycle. The top conferences do not have ups and downs. But conferences like the A-10 must deal with that issue. There were losses to the MAC and Colonial and other conferences in the last several years. Those conferences are in more of a down cycle now, the A-10 very much on the up side.

rocky rhode: Paul, if URI does not win the A-10 tournament, is there any shot at an at-large NCAA bid?

Paul Kenyon: Hi Rocky. There most certainly is a chance for URI and all the conference schools to receive NCAA Tournament bids this year beyond the one automatic for winning the A-10 tournament.The conference is holding strong at seventh on the RPI. It has eight schools in the top 100 in the RPI. It has had so much success on non-conference games that it is now all but a certainty that the conference will get multiple bids.Virtually every forecast I’ve seen in the last couple weeks has the A-10 getting at least three bids and perhaps four. I’d agree with that. Some are worried that the conference teams will beat each other up, as has been happening already. But the position is so strong there will be a strong A-10 representation in the tournament this year.

gorhodyMA: Paul, George Washington's defense seems to be almost as good as St. Louis's. Do you see URI continuing to struggle tonight, or do you think they'll break out of their slump?

Paul Kenyon: Hi GoRhody. It will be a major surprise if URI does not get back to scoring well tonight. GW is second to Saint Louis in a number of defensive categories, but it plays very differently than the Billikens do. Saint Louis made it a half court game. GW is more willing to move, maybe not as much in the past, but it still has some excellent athletes. Besides that, the game is at the Ryan Center, where URI’s numbers have been outstanding this season. The Rams shoot very well in their building. Finally, if you have been around the tam you have heard the emphasis on ending the GW hex after six straight losses. I know GW has struggled a bit offensively, but I expect a lot of points tonight
woosterbilligs has entered the room "college hoops"

friar1: Hi Paul - will URI be able to retain JB is he is approached by higher eschelon schools who could double his current salary?

Paul Kenyon: Hi Friar. Welcome. As you saw last week, the Baron talk already has begun. Former Friar coach Fran Fraschilla recommended him to Big East and ACC schools in his blog. If one of those schools does come calling and really wants Baron, there is nothing URI can do. If it does offer him a chance to double his salary, he obviously would have to listen. That being said, I think the only way that happens is if URI not only makes the NCAA Tournament but wins a couple games in the tournament. I fully expect Jim Baron to be back coaching the Rams next season

Paul Kenyon: Hi Wooster. If one game can be considered a stall, then yes, that is where the Rams are.

woosterbilligs: Hi Paul, Just wondering if you think the Rams have stalled a bit since URI has played a relatively scant schedule since mid-December?

Paul Kenyon: To continue with the response to Wooster. The Saint Louis game was the first I have seen all season in which the Rams had a bad day. Saint Louis dictated the pace and feel of the game, URI never got in a rhythm and it lost a game it would expect to win. Unless a team is Memphis or Kansas, you have to expect some nights like that. URI is good, but not so strong that it cannot expect to have an off night. With six days to regroup, there is no reason not to expect the team to return to playing better tonight

woosterbilligs: But, It really isn't a one game situation. They played some poorer teams that gave them a game, like those games in Texas, and then looked tired against Dayton and downright confused against an assailed St. Louis squad. Don't get me wrong, I like this team and where they are headed, but this seems a longer trend than one game, no?

Paul Kenyon: I don’t know if I would agree with you, Wooster. I did not see the games in Texas so I can’t speak for those, but for the vast majority of time URI has done a good job of getting games played the way it wants. It has played hard and it has played well

tomg: Paul, will Providence red shirt Curry? It seems the injury is taking a long time to recover from.

Paul Kenyon: If we see Curry playing again this season I think it will be a major surprise. It gets less and less likely that he will return with each passing day. Not only does Curry have the foot problem, but his family situation is difficult, too, with a younger brother who is going through difficult times. From all I hear, the odds are strong that Curry will sit out the rest of the season.

woosterbilligs: Not questioning the effort or the results, just noticed a trend watching from afar in comparison to some other highly touted teams. Trust me, after a long hiatus from owning season tickets, Jim Baron has brought me back into the fold with his playing style, his players on a talent and overall basis, and his approach to our fan base. Sorry if my question seemed negative because I am not when it comes to my Rhode Rams.

Paul Kenyon: I’m sure the Rams are happy to have you back, Wooster. Your questions are fair. I just disagree. The loss at Dayton had much more to do with Dayton playing well than the Rams playing poorly. URI was good in that game. Dayton was excellent. I was impressed with Duquesne, I think the Dukes are going to be very good. URI did not play great in that game, but I thought it played solidly. The SLU game is the one game that was a poor outing for the Rams. Their job now is to make sure it is only one game.

rhodyrudder: Hi Paul. So you expect that the problems displayed in the SLU game (bad fouls by Will, poor shooting by everyone, a lack of sharing the basketball) are a minor blip, and the team will be able to get back to running on all cylinders tonight?

Paul Kenyon: Hi Rudder. I think you describe my view well. That is very much the feeling I get from the team. It did not play well in Saint Louis, even with support from fans like you who were there. It was just one game. There is every reason to expect the team to get back to scoring a lot of points tonight. The job will be to stop GW from scoring. I can’t believe GW is only averaging 62 points. I like its personnel. If point guard Travis King was not out with a knee injury I would have expected the Colonials to be a major factor again this season.

Posted by Rich Lee at 1:07 PM | Permalink

January 23, 2008

Transcript: College Hoops Chat with Paul Kenyon

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