DATE: Thursday, November 20, 1997           TAG: 9711200633

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C7   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: HARRY MINIUM

                                            LENGTH:   61 lines

ODU REPORT [BRIEFS]

Slow but steady at Dayton for ex-ODU star, coach Purnell

FAIRBORN, Ohio - One prominent Old Dominion alumnus from the Dayton area was missing Tuesday when the Monarchs' basketball team played at Wright State - Oliver Purnell.

Purnell, who captained ODU to its Division II national championship in 1975 and coached ODU for three seasons, is head coach at Dayton University. And silly as it might sound, NCAA rules prevented him from watching his alma mater fall to Wright State 66-54.

``Oliver wanted to be there in the worst way, but couldn't,'' said ODU sports information director Carol Hudson, who stayed with the Purnell family in Dayton.

Had Purnell attended, it would have counted as scouting visit, which the NCAA restricts. Dayton hosts Wright State this season.

Though ODU lost, Purnell got good news this week when he signed a two-year contract extension through the 2001-2002 season. After taking ODU to postseason play in each of his three seasons in Norfolk, Purnell has gone 7-20, 15-14 and 13-14 in three seasons at Dayton. Hardly stellar records, Dayton athletic director Ted Kissell admits, but much better than the 4-26 and 6-21 finishes prior to Purnell's arrival.

Kissell notes that Dayton was in limbo during Purnell's first recruiting season because of the demise of the Great Midwest Conference. Dayton eventually joined the Atlantic 10, but Kissell says the independent status crippled Purnell's early recruiting.

``We believe Oliver Purnell is the man to lead us to national prominence,'' he said.

ODU's young guns

ODU coach Jeff Capel saw progress in one area during his

team's loss at Wright State - the play of his three newcomers. Freshman guard Michael Williams (four points, four rebounds in 17 minutes), freshman center Paul Reed (two points in 14 minutes) and junior college transfer Curtis Pass (one point, three rebounds in 12 minutes) all gained valuable experience.

``You can't generate the kind of intensity in exhibitions that you have in a real game, and I think they all learned a lot,'' Capel said.

``Mike Williams came in and made things happen. Paul Reed has to be more physical for us, but that will come.''

All three will continue to get plenty of playing time. With Reggie Bassette out for two months with a hand injury, Capel has but nine able-bodied players.

Around the rim

When asked if he was surprised that Portsmouth native and Wright State standout Marvin Rodgers took eight 3-point shots against ODU, Capel said: ``He's been shooting that shot ever since the eighth grade. I wasn't surprised he took them. I was surprised he made them.'' . . . ODU may have been looking into its own future when it walked into Wright State's 10,653-seat Ervin Nutter Center. ODU athletic director Jim Jarrett traveled to Wright State several years ago to tour the building, which is one of several the Monarchs are using as a model for their on-campus convocation center. Like the proposed ODU building, the Ervin Nutter Center has luxury suites and was acoustically designed to host concerts. ODU expects to pay at least $40 million for the convocation center, which might open for the 2000-2001 season. . . . ODU opens at home Saturday against Hampton University at Scope.

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