Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, March 11, 1991 TAG: 9103110079
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SCOTT BLANCHARD SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Today or Tuesday, Allen likely will find out whether he will be Tech's fifth-year coach, or Tech's former coach.
Tech athletic director Dave Braine said Saturday that he will meet with Allen to evaluate the basketball program either today or Tuesday. Allen has one year left on his contract, but the fact that Tech did not extend the pact last year, coupled with the Hokies' third straight losing season, has prompted speculation that Allen will lose his job.
On Saturday, Braine would not comment on whether he already has made a decision concerning Allen's future. Allen, reached at home Sunday afternoon, said he didn't have time to be interviewed.
Allen is 56-61 in four years at Tech, including 19-33 in the Metro and 1-3 in the league tournament. He's eighth on Tech's list of winningest coaches.
Allen's fourth Tech team may have hurt his chances to remain at Tech because of a stretch in which it lost 10 of 11 games. But the team's late-season turnaround - it won five of seven games - made Allen optimistic.
Tech won just 13 games last year with Bimbo Coles, and most observers predicted a last-place Metro finish for the Hokies this year. But Louisville's worst season in 50 years, which included two losses to Tech, kept the Hokies out of the Metro's basement most of the year until Tech's late surge.
The Hokies were at times abysmal, missing 22 of their last 23 shots in a home loss to Richmond, and at times excellent, hitting a tournament-record 78 percent from the field in the second half against Cincinnati.
The Hokies lose leading scorer Antony Moses and two other seniors, David Herbster and Ibraheem Oladotun, who rarely played this year. Moses was the player who provided part of the scoring lost when Coles left, but he was inconsistent and is not as serious a loss as was Coles.
Tech returns a core of Rod Wheeler, who struggled in mid-season and lost his starting job but regained it late in the year; forward John Rivers, a consistent rebounder and defender; and Thomas Elliott, an athletic forward who can finish a fast break or hit a 3-pointer.
Freshmen Jay Purcell, Jimmy Carruth and Don Corker played well at times and may develop into solid players. Purcell, despite a 4.8-point average, 38 percent field-goal shooting and more turnovers than assists, made the Metro's all-freshman team.
Corker distinguished himself as a defensive player. Carruth joined the team in January after recovering from a stress fracture and improved dramatically to become a contributor by season's end. He led the team with 32 blocked shots despite missing seven games.
Several players are question marks for the 1991-92 Hokies.
Seven-footer Erik Wilson was productive early and won one game with a last-second shot, but he faded as the season wore on and must get stronger and increase his stamina to be a factor next year.
Guard J.J. Burton and swingman Dirk Williams, a 1989-90 Metro all-rookie team member, rarely played near the end of the season and their future contributions are uncertain. Guard Mike Holland, who has rarely played at Tech, is scheduled to return after sitting out this year with a knee injury.
Allen has signed 6-foot-8, 235-pound Jay Thompson from Hargrave Military Academy, and reportedly still is involved with South Carolinians John Smith, a 6-8 forward, and Tyrone Wilson, a 6-3 point guard, and Pennsylvanian Del Savage, a 6-5 swingman. Smith and Wilson are highly rated recruits.
Two other players enter the program next year: 6-4 guard Steve Hall, a transfer from the University of Washington, and 6-6 forward Johnny Tooley, a transfer from Arkansas-Little Rock. Hall is regarded as an excellent transition player with good offensive capabilities, and Tooley could earn some work inside.
Allen said he believes his recruiting efforts have been hampered by his "interim" tag in his first year, Tech's probation the next two, and the Metro's expansion troubles this year. Braine must now decide whether to allow Allen to coach out his contract, or whether to begin a search to hire the school's 24th basketball coach.
by CNB