THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, March 9, 1996 TAG: 9603090551
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: GREENSBORO LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
Embattled N.C. State coach Les Robinson said after an 88-73 loss to Georgia Tech Friday that he will meet with athletic director Todd Turner next week to discuss whether he'll continue coaching the Wolfpack.
``I will sit down in the next couple of days with (Turner) and evaluate the season,'' Robinson said. ``I want to do what the people want me to do. But I want to coach.''
The Wolfpack finished the season 15-16 and is 78-98 in six years under Robinson.
Still, Robinson said the team has made great strides from last year, when it finished 12-15 and lost in the play-in game of the ACC tournament for the third straight year.
``I know a lot of people feel we made a lot of progress this year,'' Robinson said. ``It just didn't show up in the wins.''
Some N.C. State fans and alumni have called for Robinson's ouster. Robinson said after a January loss to Georgia Tech that he would make those people happy ``one way or another'' - either by resigning or by turning the team around.
Robinson has one year remaining on his contract. It's expected that Turner will either extend Robinson's contract or bring in a new coach next season.
Possible replacements for Robinson that have been mentioned in the media include Old Dominion coach Jeff Capel, George Washington's Mike Jarvis, Tulane's Perry Clark and Florida's Lon Krueger.
TWO-SPORT MAN: With guard Chris Collins already out with an ankle injury, Duke could have had heaps of trouble Friday when point guard Steve Wojciechowski sprained his right ankle late in the first half against Maryland.
Instead, the Blue Devils had Heaps to help.
Jay Heaps, a freshman point guard borrowed from Duke's soccer team, filled in for ``Wojo'' and played solidly, even in an 82-69 Blue Devil loss.
``Jay's been in bigger ballgames than anybody on our team except Jeff Capel,'' Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. ``They just haven't been in basketball. He wasn't going to be nervous about the crowd.''
Heaps, a soccer midfielder, was a key scorer on a Duke team that lost to Wisconsin in the NCAA national championship game in December.
He joined the basketball team last month when injuries left Duke with just eight scholarship players.
Heaps said being thrown unexpectedly into an ACC tournament game was no more nerve-wracking than playing in an NCAA championship soccer match.
``It's all the same. It's a matter of: you don't think about it,'' he said.
The 5-foot-9 Heaps played nine minutes and scored three points. He said the experience will help him should Duke get its expected NCAA tournament bid. And it could possibly help next season.
``I'm here to play soccer,'' he said. ``But if coach K wants to keep me on the team, I'll stay.''
ODDS AND ENDS: Signs and banners are not allowed in the Coliseum, but one enterprising N.C. State fan snuck in one that said, ``Will Rodgers never met Dean Smith. Go Pack.'''... Obviously, ACC tournament mania has not reached the Sunshine State. Just seven Florida State students purchased tournament tickets, and the Seminoles had few supporters at Thursday's play-in loss to N.C. State. ... Just holding a tournament is not enough anymore. Greensboro's Koury Convention Center is holding a three-day ``ACC Tournamania'' that features virtual reality games, an ACC highlights theater, shooting contests for fans, and youth clinics by former ACC greats like David Thompson. For $5, fans can watch games on big screens, and watch a live feed of post-game press conferences. MEMO: Landmark News Service contributed to this story.
ILLUSTRATION: It's been a long six years for Les Robinson at N.C. State. The
Wolfpack is 78-98 during his tenure.
by CNB