Jones Cuts The Nets

NT80 · March 11, 2007

reposted from the M&G board:

Subject: Jones Cuts The Nets

There are times when one must seize the moment and enjoy it to the hilt.

Winning a conference basketball tournament and claiming an NCAA tournament berth is such an occasion.

So it was with former LSU player and assistant coach Johnny Jones, whose University of North Texas basketball team defeated Arkansas State to claim the Sun Belt Conference tournament in Lafayette on Tuesday.

“When I looked up in the stands and saw my 78-year-old mom (Delorise) and the look on her face ... and the excitement of coach (Dale) Brown, I can’t tell you how great it made me feel,” said Jones, who prepped at DeRidder High School before getting his taste of NCAA playoff action several times as a player and as an assistant coach. As a player, he reached the 1981 Final Four and, as an assistant coach, the 1986 Final Four.

“I couldn’t have picked a better place for us to win, in Lafayette, in front of family and friends who were responsible for me being in the position we are in,” he said. “Coach Brown, my parents, loved ones, my wife (the former Kelli Vincent of Baton Rouge), my children and my friends were there.

“I’m just glad they were able to share in the excitement of what our team had accomplished.”

Today, Jones and the players will await word on who they play and where. It won’t matter. They’re all just happy to be in that position.

You see, people in Denton, Texas, aren’t too familiar with big-time, winning basketball.

Not only did Jones’ team set a single-season victory mark with their 23rd triumph, Jones — in only his sixth season — has become the all-time winningest coach at the school. The last time North Texas won as many as 20 games was in 1978 — while Jones was running the floor at DeRidder High School.

Jones’ teams have posted marks of 15-14, 7-21, 13-15, 14-14, 14-14 and, this season, 23-10.

Jones admits he has borrowed a chapter or two from Brown, including a few motivational ploys.

“When we were getting ready to leave our last practice, I pulled out a ladder and put it beneath the goal,” said Brown. “I told them I wanted them to practice cutting the net just the way we were going to do when we won the tournament.”

Although it was a great idea, it still didn’t feel the same as the real thing.

“I didn’t want them to get up there and not know what they were doing. They hadn’t cut nets down prior to me coming here,” he said. “I wanted to put in their minds and give them a vision.

“Man, it was wonderful to see them get up to snip nets just like we had practiced prior to leaving to go to Lafayette.”

But, really, North Texas doesn’t stand much of a chance, does it?

Jones reminds he was a graduate assistant on the Tigers’ 1985-86 team.

Anything is possible if everyone puts their minds to it. Don’t think he doesn’t keep reminding his players what can be accomplished.

“That was unbelievable in ’85-86. I told them recently after we lost a couple on last-second shots, that I could look back and see John Williams throwing an in-bound pass that Nikita Wilson let go out and Georgia tossed it in to beat us — but we came back and went to the Final Four,” said Jones.

Jones quickly assured this writer he wasn’t thinking of Final Four — just “the next game.”

I reminded him he was spouting coach talk.

“My biggest thing is just to make sure we play as well as possible,” he said. “Take care of that. I’m not sure what the score will be, but we will play as hard as we possibly can. We will leave it all on the floor.”

North Texas has been the third-leading scoring team in the Sun Belt and ranks in the top 30 of the county at 78 points per game.

There’ll be a lot more eyes than just those in Texas upon Jones and his team when the playoffs start this week.

(Sidenote: JJ has the third most wins behind Pete Shands and the great Bill Blakeley)