ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, February 21, 1996 TAG: 9602210026
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LEXINGTON
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK
On the VMI post these days, the hot topic isn't what's happening on the Supreme Court, but on the basketball court.
At Cameron Hall, where three of the four largest crowds in the arena's 15-year history have appeared this season, the only single-sex controversy surrounds the VMI cheerleaders. Where will the women come from, now that neighboring Southern Virginia College is closing?
Some would call VMI's success this season justice. After all, the Keydets (15-8) have clinched only their fifth winning season in 55 years. It's about time, right? No, it's about having someone in the right place - under the hoop - at the right time.
Bart Bellairs is in his second season as the Keydets' head coach, and his players have not only bought his aggressive push-and-shoot system, they've learned it. Five seniors played their final home game in Monday's loss to streaking Davidson, and that leadership has been crucial in VMI's turnaround.
Who VMI plays has something to do with the Keydets' prosperity also. The Southern Conference isn't as imposing at the top as it was in recent years, when East Tennessee State, UT-Chattanooga and Marshall were better than respectable. Davidson (21-3) needs two victories to complete the first perfect Southern Conference season in 21 years.
Then, it's VMI and the Thundering Herd chasing the Wildcats. The big reason the Keydets are there is 6-foot-7 freshman Brent Conley. The West Virginia schoolboy scoring champ two seasons ago before a prep year at Fork Union Military, Conley is the Keydets' most productive ``rat'' since another West Virginian, Gay Elmore, began shooting his way to the school's career scoring record.
Conley is averaging more than 15 points and eight rebounds per game, but the numbers don't add up to his value. It's his presence. Conley's play has given VMI sorely needed strength inside - huge in a league in which 6-8 is big. His paint play has relieved some of the scoring - and defensive - pressure from senior Lawrence Gullette, who will finish his career among VMI's top 10 scorers.
Without Conley, VMI is a different team. It's last year's team. It's the team that went from Davidson's heels to one that lost by 19 after Conley fouled out with 6:17 remaining. Bellairs and his staff thought Conley could be a good player. This soon? No way.
Conley leads the conference in rebounding, and is probably the biggest impact freshman in the league since Calvin Talford jumped from Castlewood High to ETSU in 1988-89. However, as VMI heads toward the Southern Conference tournament after a visit to North Carolina's Dean Dome Thursday night and two finishing league road dates, it isn't quite the same club it was last week.
Freshman point guard Jason Bell, who was averaging 15 solid minutes per game and left the team last week to deal with family matters, will be missed. Against Davidson's quickness, Bell's ability to apply backcourt pressure was needed. VMI's depth, crucial in Bellairs' hurry-up attack, is diminished, too.
With two more victories, VMI will have its most wins in 20 years. In preseason, the Keydets were picked last in the Southern's North Division, and just exceeding last year's 10 wins seemed a realistic goal. Now, the speculation isn't so much about the future of the program as it is the future of the coach.
It's a notion fueled by some outsiders who see success at VMI as a ticket to ride elsewhere. It's also driven by this season's struggle up I-81 at James Madison, where Lefty Driesell, for whom Bellairs worked from 1989-94, may be asked not to return.
During a game, Bellairs is anything but a fresh prince. He coaches at the same furious pace his team plays. He's part teacher, part cheerleader, part coach, part sweatball, but mostly hoarse. Where's he going next? Maybe to athletic director Davis Babb's office to sign a contract extension said to be six years in length.
``We're close,'' Babb said.
``Very close,'' Bellairs said.
Winning will do that for you.
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ERIC BRADY/Staff. 1. A group of cadets harass Marshall'sby CNBJason Williams during last Saturday's game in Lexington. More cadets
and fans have been attending games this season, mainly because the
Keydets are winning. 2. Bart Bellairs has helped VMI clinch its
fifth winning season in the past 55 years. color.