The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Tubbs, Ollie squarely on the hot seat
With evidence of corruption and illegal recruiting mounting against numerous high-level, Division I head coaches and programs, it’s a bit ironic that a pair of coaches not linked to any such behavior so far are on the hottest of hot seats.
Kevin Ollie and Tubby Smith go head-to-head on Sunday when UConn hosts Memphis at Gampel Pavilion (4 p.m., ESPN). Both are among the 10 active head coaches to boast a national championship on their resume, and both share numerous other similarities as well. Not the least of which is the remaining amount of money on their respective contracts. Both are owed around $10 million through 2021.
With UConn (13-15, 6-9 AAC) on the verge of a second straight losing season and third missed NCAA tournament in four seasons, Ollie may find his seat the hottest. While there are legitimate
reasons — led by that contract — for keeping him in place, there’s little doubt that Ollie’s days as the Huskies’ head coach could be numbered.
Smith’s tenuous status is more of a head-scratcher. In just his second year at the helm, Smith has survived a mass wave of transfers and graduations over the summer and overachieved. Memphis (17-11, 8-7) has won three games in a row, including road wins at SMU and Tulane and a 91-85 win at home over No. 23 Houston on Thursday.
Yet Memphis fans — who sat through seven seasons of Josh Pastner — are already growing restless with Smith, who’s won everywhere he’s been. Odd.
Of course, Smith’s job won’t get any easier over the final few weeks of the season. Jeremiah Martin, the American Conference’s leading scorer at 18.9 points per game, broke his foot in the Houston game and is out for the season. Memphis now has just 8.5 percent of its scoring back from a season ago.
It’s a tough loss for the Tigers, but Ollie could be excused if he doesn’t have a lot of sympathy. UConn has frequently been shorthanded the past two seasons, with Terry Larrier and Alterique Gilbert missing nearly all of last season and Gilbert again missing nearly all of this one.
When the Huskies played at Memphis on Jan. 16, they were without Gilbert and Larrier (who had suffered a fractured sinus two games earlier). The Tigers responded with a 73-49 blowout victory, one of eight UConn losses of 20 or more points this season and one of five by at least 24 points.
On Thursday, UConn was without leading scorer Jalen Adams, who developed flu-like symptoms shortly before the Huskies’ bout at No. 11 Cincinnati. The predictable result: a 77-52 Bearcat victory.
Adams went through a full practice on Saturday and was feeling better. Barring any setbacks, he is expected to play on Sunday.