Eustachy firm in his belief USM will prevail

By Rick Cleveland
rcleveland@clarionledger.com

Former National Coach of the Year Larry Eustachy has spent much of his first Southern Miss basketball season saying over and over again that he wants to lay the foundation for the future.

"To surround myself with players who work extremely hard, are extremely dedicated to playing the game the way it is supposed to be played and who are extremely receptive to coaching," Eustachy answered, when asked what he means by laying a foundation for the future.

Here's the bad news: He has failed. Eustachy admitted as much after USM's most recent defeat, an 85-73 defeat to Memphis Saturday afternoon in Hattiesburg.

Rick Cleveland"I almost feel like next year will be the first year," Eustachy said. "This is a unique situation for me. In the past, everywhere I've been I have inherited a corps of players that has formed the base to build on. It was that way at Idaho, at Utah State and at Iowa State. Here, because of the mental makeup of the team, if I coached the way I want to coach, we wouldn't have a team."

Eustachy scarcely has one now. In fact, he doesn't have enough players to scrimmage. Defections and injuries have taken a toll. The Golden Eagles, down to nine players including a walk-on, have lost seven straight and 13 of 14 heading into a Wednesday night game at East Carolina.

Steve Coleman/The Associated Press

USM coach Larry Eustachy pleads his case to a ref during Saturday's game against Memphis. The Eagles lost 85-73, falling to 10-15 and 1-12 in C-USA. Their chances of making the C-USA tourney are almost nil.

The bad

Hard to believe, isn't it, that back on Dec. 19, Eustachy's Eagles improved their record to 7-2 with an 88-84, overtime victory over LSU?

Jasper Johnson scored 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Eagles to that victory. But Johnson, the team's only talented big man, quit the team a month later after being told by Eustachy he could either finish the season or quit, but that he would not be returning for his senior season.

Eustachy freely admits that Johnson might have made a difference in a couple of close defeats since then. Nevertheless, Eustachy doesn't second guess himself.

"Look, I'm not saying I'm necessarily right and Jasper was wrong," Eustachy said. "I am saying he just didn't fit in. Some players are a better fit for certain coaches. Some coaches can adjust to players and are very good at it.

"I'm committed to this place, and I've got to get players who are committed to the way we play," Eustachy continued. "I've got to surround myself with a bunch of tough guys who are highly, highly competitive. Otherwise, it just won't work. I've got a system, and it works and it's gonna work here. Our program is more demanding than most. It's not for everybody."

The good

So, you've heard the bad news. Here's the good for USM fans: Eustachy says be believes now more than ever that he will be successful at USM. He says he has six "national caliber" recruits committed or signed. Rashaad Carruth, who scored 25 points, 23 in the second half against Memphis, could be joined by as many as four new starters — physically tough players Eustachy believes will buy into his rugged style of play.

"We played at Cincinnati the other night and they threw us around like rag dolls," Eustachy said. "Cincinnati plays the way we're gonna play. It's a matter of getting the players, and we're gonna get them."

Know this: Eustachy's task gets easier next season, no matter how well he recruits. Using Jeff Sagarin's current computer ratings, look what happens to Conference USA next season: