Texas Tech University Athletics
Texas Tech-Saint Joseph's Preview
March 19, 2004 | Men's Basketball
March 19, 2004
GAME: No. 8 Texas Tech (23-10) vs. No. 1 Saint Joseph's (28-1).
REGIONAL: East Rutherford, Second Round.
TIME: Saturday, 5:30 p.m. EST.
SITE: HSBC Arena; Buffalo, N.Y.
Saint Joseph's coach Phil Martelli caused a stir recently with some brash comments. Texas Tech's Bob Knight can certainly relate.
In a matchup featuring two combative coaches, Martelli and the top-seeded Hawks meet Knight and the Red Raiders in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Jameer Nelson scored 22 of his season-high 33 points in the first half, leading Saint Joseph's to an 82-63 victory over Liberty on Thursday in the first round.
It was the first game for the Hawks since their bid for a perfect season ended with an 87-67 loss to Xavier in the Atlantic 10 quarterfinals on March 11.
It was also their first contest since Martelli created a stir on national television Sunday, angrily responding to Billy Packer, a CBS analyst, who argued that the Hawks weren't worthy of a No. 1 seed.
As for Packer's comments having an influence on his players, Martelli said: "They don't even know who he is because his time has passed. These kids are impacted by a different group of people in the media."
Knight, Martelli's counterpart, is perhaps the nation's most controversial coach.
Texas Tech beat Charlotte 76-73 in the first round Thursday, giving Knight his first NCAA tournament win since 1999.
Knight led Indiana to 24 tournament appearances in his 29 years there. Before his tourney appearance in Buffalo in 2000, Knight had to defend his basketball program and coaching methods after former Indiana player Neil Reed alleged that he was choked by Knight during a practice.
The sixth-seeded Hoosiers then lost to 11th-seeded Pepperdine, 77-57. He was fired six months later.
"I'm glad the outcome of this game replaces the outcome of the last game in Buffalo," Knight said after the 43rd tournament victory of his career, fourth all-time and one more than Lute Olson and Denny Crum. "I feel pleased for our kids to have the chance to go on."
Martelli still found something to criticize Thursday, lamenting the Hawks' tired-looking second-half performance in which Liberty outscored them 37-36. He did note that his team might have been rusty, playing only its third game in 16 days.
Nelson, already the program's leading scorer, surpassed the 2,000-point plateau, giving him 2,029 career points.
"I said to him, 'Today, this is what great players live for. Great players lead in this situation,"' Martelli said. "And he has an innate ability to understand what leading means. ... That's why he's the best player in the country."
Delonte West added 18 points and nine rebounds for Saint Joseph's.
The Hawks advanced to the second round for the 10th time in school history and first since 2001. It also was their largest margin of victory in 37 NCAA tournament games, topping a 65-48 victory over Providence in a 1966 first-round game.
Senior Andre Emmett and freshman Jarrius Jackson each scored 11 points to lead a first-half Texas Tech surge Thursday.
In his three seasons at Texas Tech, Knight has turned around the program and produced a winner, leading the Red Raiders to two NCAA tournament berths and another in the NIT.
Jackson finished with 17 points and Michael Marshall had 15 points and four assists for the Red Raiders.
This is the first meeting between the teams.
The winner faces Manhattan or Wake Forest in the regional semifinals on Thursday.
PROBABLE STARTERS: Texas Tech - F Emmett (20.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg), F Devonne Giles (9.0 ppg, 1.5 bpg), C Robert Tomascek (7.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg), G Jackson (11.2 ppg, 2.6 rpg), G Ronald Ross (10.2 ppg, 3.2 apg). Saint Joseph's - F John Bryant (3.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg), F Pat Carroll (11.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg), C Dwayne Jones (4.2 ppg, 6.3 rpg), G West (17.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg), G Nelson (19.7 ppg, 4.7 apg).
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Texas Tech - At-large berth; beat No. 9 Charlotte 76-73, first round. St. Joseph's - At-large berth; beat No. 16 Liberty 82-63, first round.
ALL-TIME TOURNAMENT RECORD: Texas Tech - 6-12, 12 years. Saint Joseph's - 16-20, 17 years.
