The Michigan Daily - Thursday, November 3, 2005 - 9A New coach replacing legend By Jack Herman Daily Sports Writer CHICAGO - First-year Purdue coach Matt Paint- er looked right at home fielding questions from the press about his new job during Big Ten Media Day on Sunday. He cracked jokes, made predictions and even deflected inquiries about his players' legal trou- bles. But if you ask Painter whether he ever imagined he'd be sitting in this chair when he began his college playing career with the Boilermakers 15 years ago, you'd get a somewhat unlikely answer. "People ask me, 'Do you feel any different about being here? Is this a dream come true?' - about being the next coach of Purdue," Painter said. "Well, I never thought about being the next coach of Pur- due because I always thought (former coach Gene Keady) would be the coach, similar to (how) coach (Bobby) Knight was at Indiana. You grow up in the state of Indiana, those guys are going to be like Yoda in coaching their universities forever." Before last season began, the second of those lega- cies ended. Knight was long gone to Texas Tech, and finally, the legendary Keady announced his retire- ment after 25 years at Purdue. In order to ease the transition, Painter joined the team as an assistant at the beginning of last year. But oddly enough, it was the events after the 2002-03 season that precipitated his hiring. When current Kansas coach Bill Self left Illinois to coach the Jayhawks, the Illini hired then-Southern Illinois coach Bruce Weber to fill the open spot. This not only allowed Painter to take over the Salukis at the age of 32, but also meant that Weber, who was an assistant coach for 19 years at Purdue before taking the Southern Illinois job, was no longer Keady's heir apparent. With Weber out of the picture, Painter's 25- 5 season at the Salukis' helm was enough to get him the job in West Lafayette. Painter might be hoping for just as much luck entering this season. Last year, Purdue posted a 7- AP PHOTO Ben Wallace (3) and the Pistons defeated Philadelphia, 108.88, in the season opener. " Hamifton nets 37 ~Pistons' opener RYAN WEINER/uaiy Former Purdue basketball coach Gene Keady, above, will be succeeded by Matt Painter this season. AUBURN HILLS (AP) - The only difference was the coaches. Richard Hamilton scored 37 points to lead the Detroit Pistons past the Philadelphia 76ers 108-88 last night in a game that looked a lot like their first-round series six months ago. With Flip Saunders taking Larry Brown's place in Detroit and Mau- rice Cheeks replacing Jim O'Brien, the Pistons were still too tough on defense and balanced on offense for the Sixers. Philadelphia's Allen Iverson scored 31 points, but he didn't have much help - much like in Detroit's 4-1 series victory en route to its sec- ond straight trip to the NBA Finals. Chris Webber had 16 points, but he was scoreless in the third quarter, and the other three starters failed to score more than eight. The Pistons unveiled their 2005 conference championship banner before the game, then took control for good in the first quarter. Detroit, which never trailed, led by 10 midway through the quarter while holding the Sixers to 2-of-13 shooting and maintained the cush- ion easily throughout its season opener. Philadelphia lost to Milwaukee 117-108 in overtime at home on Tuesday night, opening night in the NBA. Perhaps the back-to-back games wore down the Sixers, who appeared to be a step slow against a team that is motivated to prove it will not take a step back without a Hall of Fame coach. The Pistons say they can still be relentless on defense, one of Brown's trademarks, with a better offense with Saunders on the sideline. They showed a glimpse of that combination when Rasheed Wallace blocked two shots on one possession, leading to Tayshaun Prince's alley- oop dunk on a pass from Hamilton in the first quarter. Iverson looked and sounded frus- trated midway through the third quarter. He screamed at Andre Iguodala for not passing him the ball, then shouted, "Hey!" to his other team- mates as Prince beat the Sixers back down the court for an easy dunk and a 65-50 lead midway through the third quarter. Prince finished with 16 points, Chauncey Billups had 12 points and 10 assists and five other Pistons scored at least six. Philadelphia reserve John Salmons scored 13. 21 record, the worst in Keady's 25-year tenure. And this season has managed to get off to an even rockier start. For starters, forward Carl Landry, a second-team All-Big Ten player last year, missed the final three games of the season with a torn ACL and has yet to return to form. Painter has also already had to deal with three of his players running afoul of the law. The most notable of these incidents was that of Tarrance Crump, who was arrested after allegedly striking a pedestrian and leaving the scene of a hit-and-run, all while driving drunk. Monday, Painter suspended Crump, a junior college transfer expected to start at point guard, for the remainder of the season. With all this trouble, Painter has set just one goal this season - to return the Boilermakers to their basketball roots. "I think one thing Purdue is known for is their blue-collar approach and how hard they work' Painter said. "You know when you watched a Purdue team play that they were going to play hard. We have to get back to that. The past couple of years, I donut think that that's been a typical Purdue team." And, if he needs any reminder of what type of play that requires, his "Yoda" will still be around to show him the force. Keady plans to keep an office on the Purdue campus. "He's a great guy, and if it wasn't for him, L wouldn't be in this position," Painter said. "He's helped me with everything, and obviously he had tb give his blessing. He'll be there when I need him." 'MLNOTE McGuire wins award again, joins icon The Big Ten Conference announced the winners of the postseason cross country awards yesterday. The conference coaches named Michi- gan women's cross country coach Mike McGuire the Big Ten Coach of the Year for the fourth straight year after he guided his team to a fourth consecutive confer- ence title over the weekend. This marks the seventh time that McGuire has won this award. He won three straight from 1992- 94. McGuire's total ranks second all-time behind legendary former Wisconsin coach Peter Tegen, who won nine during his ten- ure in Madison. Two Michigan athletes were also nomi- nated for conference's Sportsmanship Award, which goes to the student-athlete that demonstrates sportsmanship, ethical behavior and good citizenship. The nominee from the women's squad was sophomore Alyson Kohlmeier, who placed second in the Big Ten Champion- ships and won the Big Ten Runner of the Week award three times. Senior Rondell Ruff won the award for the men's team. Ruff placed 30th at the Big Ten Championships and was the fourth Wolverine to cross the finish line. - Ian Robinson C-YA THERE! The Michigan Athletic Department is holding a meeting today to continue its dialogue with Michigan Hockey student season ticket holders. This latest hour-long, informal talk will build on last year's gatherings between the Athletic Department and student hockey fans. Mike Stevenson, Michigan's executive associate athletic director, will speak, among others. Here's a quick rundown of what you need to know: *What: Informal meeting between Athletic Department personnel and Michigan hockey student season ticket holders *When: This evening, from 5 to 6 p.m. *Where: The U Club Room in the Michigan Union *Who: All Michigan hockey student season ticket holders are invited, free of charge *Why: According to an e-mail from the Michigan Ticket Office, "a proposed agenda includes a recap of last season's initiatives, general game-day behavior, and future student initiatives." Note: The Athletic Department will be giving away free promotional items to all those who attend the meeting. C '(I, mi We give pr instead of Correct! izes grades / s A x You'll need to go to Health Services CA B . Someone could drop you from your 400 level class C _ Your mother could get a strange e-mail (from you) D $Both B and C Students, take the Computer Security 101 Final Exam at safecomnutina.umich.edu