Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Florida Atlantic-Alabama Preview
3/11/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 11, 2002
From the Associated Press
GAME: No. 15 Florida Atlantic (19-11) vs. No. 2 Alabama (26-7).
REGIONAL: South, First Round.
TIME: Thursday, 3 p.m. EST.
SITE: The BI-LO Center, Greenville, S.C.
Mark Gottfried knows all about being in the NCAA tournament with Alabama.
Now he finally gets to show his players what it feels like.
One year after being omitted from the field of 65, the Crimson Tide received a No. 2 seed in their long-awaited return to the NCAA tournament, and will face Florida Atlantic in a South Regional first-round matchup.
Gottfried played guard for the Alabama teams that advanced to the round of 16 three straight years from 1985-87. He was unable to get the Tide to the NCAAs in his first three seasons as coach, including last year's heartbreak when 25 wins wasn't enough because the selection committee penalized the program for playing a weak schedule.
"I hear people say we're so much better than last year," Gottfried said. "Well, we were pretty good last year, we just didn't get in the tournament."
There was no doubt Gottfried's squad would get a bid this season, having gone 12-4 in Southeast Conference play to win the school's first regular-season title since 1987. The Tide's wins included non-conference victories over tourney teams Notre Dame and Utah.
"It says a lot from where we were to where we are," said Gottfried, who has the program back in the tournament for the first time since 1995. "We've won 51 games in two years, so these guys have done a lot for Alabama basketball already."
What Gottfried has done in Tuscaloosa has been impressive, but it's hard to say that Sidney Green's work with Florida Atlantic has not been just as good.
A veteran of six teams in 10 NBA seasons, Green has led the Owls to their first trip to the NCAAs after totaling just nine wins in his first two seasons with the team. Florida Atlantic upset top seed Georgia State in the Atlantic Sun Conference tournament title game as Green defeated coaching icon Lefty Driesell.
"All the individual accolades that I achieved - high school All-American, college All-American, NBA - it doesn't compare to this," said Green, whose pro career included stints playing alongside Michael Jordan, and under coaches Chuck Daly and Larry Brown. "That's one reason that I wanted to coach - to try to make a difference."
The player who has made the biggest difference for Alabama is Erwin Dudley, who led the team in scoring and rebounding en route to SEC player of the year honors.
The 6-foot-8, 260-pounder has the ability to dominate inside, but could get a battle in the post from 6-10 forward Raheim Brown, the Owls' top scorer and rebounder.
Florida Atlantic could have an equally tough time handling swingman Rod Grizzard, who averaged 19.0 points and 8.7 boards while making 10 3-pointers in three SEC tournament games.
PROBABLE STARTERS: Florida Atlantic - F Brown (16.4 ppg, 8.4 rpg), F Andre Garner (9.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg), C Daryl Dingle (8.5 ppg, 5.1 rpg), G John Smart (1.6 ppg, 1.3 apg), G Jeff Cowans (11.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.6 apg). Alabama - F Dudley (15.3 ppg, 8.9 rpg), F Grizzard (14.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg), C Kenny Walker (9.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg), G Terrance Meade (8.5 ppg, 3.1 rpg), G Maurice Williams (9.6 ppg, 4.5 apg).
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Florida Atlantic - Automatic bid, Atlantic Sun Conference tournament champion. Alabama - At-large bid, Southeastern Conference.
ALL-TIME TOURNAMENT RECORD: Florida Atlantic - first appearance. Alabama - 15-14, 14 years.
