Douglass Takes First Steps in New Era

Pat Douglass didn’t get much of a chance to settle into the job of UC Irvine men’s basketball coach.

The Anteaters were coming off a 1-25 season. Douglass was hired March 26. The NCAA spring signing period began six days later. Three factors that left little time to hang pictures on the wall and dust.

“We’re making some strides [in recruiting],” Douglass said. “It’s just going to take some time.”

Douglass has time, in the form of a five-year contract. Yet there was an immediate need for a infusion of talent.

Douglass went scavenging for players left from the November signing period who hadn’t already been locked up. He returned with three--Matt Willard, Ben Jones and Malachi Edmonds.

Not among the top 50 in the nation, but three players who could fill a void. They are all billed as shooters.

Willard, a 6-foot-9 forward from Butte College in Oroville, is accurate from 15 feet and in. Jones, a 6-7 forward from Sonora High School, made 45% of his three-pointers. Edmonds, a 6-2 guard from Long Beach Poly, is also dangerous from beyond the three-point line.

They have other attributes, according to Douglass, but their shooting ability may be the most welcomed addition. The Anteaters shot 43% from the field as a team and made 25 of 133 three-point attempts last season.

“The one thing this program didn’t have was shooters,” Douglass said. “Matt can post up and hit short jump shots. Ben and Malachi can both shoot the three.”

Of course, where they fit in is to be seen. Irvine returns four starters and its sixth man. Still, there should be plenty of playing time to go around.

“The other coaches recruiting me would point out their record and what their team was doing,” said Jones, who has been on Irvine’s recruiting list for a year. “The Irvine coaches told me, ‘We’re 1-25, you could get time right away.’ It made a difference. If I went to a program like San Diego State, I would have to wait around a couple years.”

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Although the three recruits weren’t on any national lists, they do have potential. One or more could even be looked on as a steal in best-case scenarios.

Willard is still developing, coming to Irvine with three years’ actual experience. He was a scrawny high school kid, who went from being a 6-0 freshman to a 6-9 senior at Red Bluff (Calif.) High School. He played little until his senior year.

“All that growing kind of hampered my coordination,” Willard said. “My growing has pretty much tapered off. I got some coordination and that helped my confidence.”

Willard averaged 17 points and was fourth in the state in rebounding, averaging 12.3, last season. He said he has bulked up another 10-15 pounds since the season ended and now weighs 225.

Edmonds could also be a late bloomer. He played well at Long Beach Poly but was often overshadowed by guard Mike McDonald, who signed with Stanford. Even the hometown team--Long Beach State--seemed to think little of Edmonds, as 49er coaches concentrated on McDonald.

But when McDonald was injured last season, Edmonds picked up the slack. He played point guard--averaging five assists--and shooting guard--averaging 14 points. Poly was 16-3 when McDonald was injured and finished 27-5, winning the Southern Section I-AA title.

Jones isn’t the quickest player, but overcomes it well, according to Douglass. Jones averaged 15.9 points and 6.7 rebounds and shot 56% from the field last season.

“What he lacks quickness, he makes up for in understanding the game,” Douglass said. “He’s just a good all-around player and smart.”

Which, of course, is essential at Irvine. All three players have met Irvine’s academic standards.

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Who is Erick Joshua and where has he been? Those thoughts must be bouncing around the basketball office these days.

Joshua, a 6-3 guard who signed in November, is reputed to be a outstanding shooter. Yet, he averaged a mere eight points at Otero (Colo.) Community College. He played in 16 of the team’s 28 games.

“I can’t remember him,” Trinidad State Coach Jim Toupal said. “I remember some of their kids, but I don’t remember him.”

Trinidad State played Otero twice.

“They had two good guards I remember, but one was named Davis and the other Brown,” Midplains (Neb.) Coach Kevin O’Conner said.

Said Sheridan (Wyo.) Coach Bruce Hoffman: “That’s just Otero. They always have 20-30 guys and run them in and out.”

Otero did have seven players, including Joshua, who signed with four-year schools. But overcrowding wasn’t Joshua’s only problem.

“At the beginning of the year, he didn’t play hard and he didn’t play defense,” Otero Coach Steve Minter said.

Joshua graduated from Wallace High School in Gary, Ind., in 1994, where he was named all-city, and enrolled at Olney Central (Ill.). He stayed two months before coming home.

“The coach there told me I was going to live in an apartment,” Joshua said. “It turned out to be eight of us living in a house and we had to pay our own way.”

That January, he enrolled at Coffeyville (Kan.) College, where teams are limited to five out-of-state players. Joshua stayed one year--transferring to Otero in January 1996--without playing for Coffeyville.

Irvine coaches were unaware of Joshua’s time at Olney until last week and are attempting to clarify his academic situation.

Anteater notes

Skye Green broke her school record in the 400-meter hurdles for the second time in as many weeks and the fourth time this season. She had a time of 58 seconds Saturday at the Occidental Invitational. . . . The Anteater Golf Classic will be held June 23 at Mission Viejo Country Club. The tournament costs $190, with proceeds to benefit the athletic program, and includes green fees, cart, box lunch, hospitality bag, competition package and dinner. For more information call the Athletic Foundation office at (714) 824-5550.