Downsizing turns net gains in Big Ten

CHICAGO - Has Big Ten basketball taken a page from the guidebook of corporate America? If becoming smaller, faster and collectively better defines "downsizing," then consider these teams acute corporate strategists.

Walking through the field of talent at the Big Ten's preseason press conference yesterday, it was hard to find a player that towered significantly over the cameras and recorders that surrounded him.

It was tougher to find a camera that wasn't pointed at the conference's two defending Final Four coaches for a majority of the morning.

"The last couple of years, it has really gravitated toward the backcourt," said Ohio State coach Jim O'Brien, of Final Four fame. "There are not as many dominant low post players in the conference - it probably goes in cycles, but it seems like right now there are a lot of very good guards in the league, and I'm sure teams will play towards that - as we will."

And O'Brien will, with the best healthy guard in the league.

Scoonie Penn - a marquee man for the Big Ten's backcourt show and the coaches' pick for preseason player of the year - has done much to heighten expectations in Columbus.

"Any time you return guys like Scoonie or somebody like Michael Redd, you have to think you have a chance to have a half-decent team," O'Brien said. "It's funny, you know people kid around - I think - about getting back to the Final Four, but I don't think people totally appreciate just how hard that is."

If O'Brien thinks his last act will be tough to follow with a so-far healthy roster, what must Michigan State coach Tom Izzo feel like?

"It's not only the player we lost, it's the position. That's the killer," began Izzo. "Had it been a forward or a center, you can adjust easier in my mind than if it's your quarterback."

Mateen Cleaves - who shares top billing among Big Ten guards with Penn and was the media's choice for player of the year - will watch from the bench as his Spartans face an unforgiving early-season schedule, including road games at North Carolina and Kentucky. Recovering from surgery on his left foot, Michigan State's go-to guy won't return to the lineup until January.

And the obstacles in the road of a return trip to the Final Four don't stop there for Izzo - even in the face of a No. 1 Big Ten ranking this weekend.

Due to academic issues, it's likely that Izzo's top recruit and Michigan high schools' Mr. Basketball 1999, Jason Richardson, will be Michigan State's Mr. Ineligible this season.

"It's not etched in stone yet," Izzo said. "We should find out this week, but it hurts us enormously. We've only got two McDonald's All-Americans on our team, and as of today, none of them are playing.

"Even though it bothered me," said Izzo, "I think (Dick) Vitale was right in what he said. When you rate a team one, and then they lose their No. 1 point guard and maybe everybody's All-America, and then you lose a McDonald's All-America and top-10 player in the country - take both off that team, and how could you be as good?"

Said O'Brien: "You never know what's going to happen. You look at Michigan State and Cleaves getting hurt - it can change everything. You always have to be cautious in your optimism."

Should everything, or perhaps even anything more change for the conference favorites, there will be little breathing room in the standings. True to Big Ten guard-star form, Cory Bradford and Illinois could well challenge for the top seed in the Big Ten Tournament.

"I'm really excited about the matchup with Scoonie and Michael Redd, because they're one of the top backcourts in the country," said Bradford. "They've played a lot of basketball with each other. They've got experience and great chemistry."

Purdue isn't far behind either, and even Gene Keady, traditionalist, seems to have bought into the Big Ten backcourt bonanza.

"Why can't we?" said Keady. "We tried it, and our kids didn't want to do it last year. But I think we'd be more apt to do it this year because we have a better-conditioned team. I think that'd be great."

Running and shooting at Mackey Arena? It might be even more at home at Ross-Ade Stadium these days in West Lafayette - and Keady's not afraid to steal a few pages from that playbook, either.

"Ha," chuckled Keady. "That's basketball on grass."

11-01-99