IU takes Tom Crean from Marquette

According to an article on ESPN, Tom Crean has a new deal as coach of Indiana University. Crean is an excellent selection by IU to replace interim coach Dan Dakich, who took over for Kelvin Sampson. Crean has an excellent record at Marquette, and previously coached for Tom Izzo of Michigan State. The Big 10 coaches keep getting stronger and stronger, which has to be good for the conference overall.

Tony Bennett expected to take IU Head Coach Job

As posted here earlier, Tony Bennett was offered the head coaching position at IU, and is expected to accept the position. Tony Bennett is the son of Dick Bennett, who previously was the Head Basketball coach at Wisconsin. Tony took over at Washington State after his father retired, and was able to get his Cougars to the Sweet Sixteen before losing in this year's NCAA tourney. This is an excellent hire for IU, and should help them expedite the recovery of their program, after the Kelvin Sampson fiasco.

NCAA Head Coaches, Who's Out and Who's In

At Indiana University, Dan Dakich is out. Who's in? My local connections claim it will be either Bruce Pearl, Sean Miller, Steve Alford or Scott Drew. My money's on Bruce Pearl, a very successful coach and favorite among Illini basketball fans based on his investigative talent using sophisticated recording devices.

At Cal-Berkeley, Ben Braun is out. Replacements being discussed locally here are Mark Few of Gonzaga, Randy Bennett of Saint Marys and Mike Montgomery (what's he doing now?). A fourth name I heard earlier today is Bill Grier of San Diego.

My local sources in Portland, Oregon are suggesting that Ernie Kent will be out soon at Oregon. Oregon basketball fans had high hopes this season, and weren't impressed by the Ducks early exit in the NCAA tourney. What I'm hearing is that Mark Few is headed to Eugene, lured by big money to be offered by his pal and Athletic Director, Pat Kilkenny. Kilkenny is apparently new to the scene in 2007 and wants to elevate the basketball program. Would this be a good move for Oregon? Hard to say, but I do know Ernie Kent has a top-notch recruiting class in 2008, having landed Michael Dunigan, Matthew Humphrey, Josh Crittle, Teondre Williams and Drew Wiley.