Florida's Shannon is 'Most Courageous'

Shannon has had limited vision in his right eye since the seventh grade, when he was hit by a rock. In recent years, the condition worsened.

Finally, last October, he was fitted with a prosthetic eye after having the damaged parts removed surgically.

"I think I've inspired a lot of people by being in the situation I'm in and continuing to play and contribute," Shannon said. "It just goes to show what you can achieve no matter what, if you just put your head to it."

Coach Billy Donovan said it's not just that Shannon has played, but the way he's played, that makes the story astounding.

"Here's a kid who lost his vision in the seventh grade yet overcame it and was recruited by some top-notch programs," Donovan said.

Complimenting Davis: Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun admires Iowa coach Tom Davis and the way he has handled his final season with the Hawkeyes.

"I think very few of us would have the decorum and the dignity with which he conducted himself," Calhoun said. "What Tom has done so wonderfully is he has talked about his team and the game of basketball. To me that is a lesson for all of us."

Calhoun said Davis was an innovator with his pressing defense, tactics he first showed in his days as coach at Boston College in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

"A lot of the stuff you see by Rick Pitino, by Jim Calhoun, by a whole bunch of coaches from our part of the country, really evolved from when Tom came to Boston College," Calhoun said. "His influence in college basketball continues to live on in literally hundreds and hundreds of teams across America."

Gaga over Gonzaga: Gonzaga coach Dan Monson says he's never seen anything like the statewide support his team has received in Washington over the past week.

Monson has a lot of experience in the state. The 37-year-old coach, was an assistant at the Spokane school for nine years before taking over as coach in 1997.

"We've almost had a sense of state pride, for the first time since I've been at Gonzaga," he said. "It's almost equal to what Washington State did a couple of years at the Rose Bowl. It doesn't matter if you're a (Washington) Husky or a (Washington State) Cougar, if you root for Eastern Washington. Everybody is for Gonzaga.

"It's like you're in the middle of a hurricane and everything is swirling around you and you're just watching it."

03-18-99