ibruce1 Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 ST. LOUIS -- Porter Moser, who was fired as head coach at Illinois State on March 5, will be named this week as one of Rick Majerus’ assistants at Saint Louis University, the Pantagraph has learned. Majerus is back in coaching after a three-year break for health reasons, taking over a St. Louis team that hasn’t been to the NCAA tournament since 2000. “I saw this as an opportunity,†Majerus said. “I’m looking forward to it. I don’t think I forgot how to do it.†The Billikens introduced the 59-year-old Majerus at a news conference Monday, three days after he agreed to a six-year contract. Majerus, who has been an analyst with ESPN the last three years, comes to Saint Louis with a career record of 422-147 with 15 postseason appearances. Less than two weeks ago, the 38-year-old Moser had been considered a candidate for the top job at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. An announcement of Moser’s hiring is expected Tuesday or Wednesday. Majerus replaces Brad Soderberg, who won 20 games in the last of his five seasons but failed to generate even an NIT bid his last three years. Soderberg, fired April 17, was 80-74 overall. Majerus coached Utah to the NCAA final in 1998, losing to Kentucky. He stepped down in January 2004 due to health reasons. He accepted the coaching job at Southern California in December 2004, only to change his mind three days later. Fans and students attending Monday’s news conference cheered wildly when Majerus entered the room. “Today a new chapter in Billiken basketball begins with the hiring of one of the most successful coaches of all time,†Saint Louis president Lawrence Biondi said. Majerus led Utah to 10 NCAA appearances in 15 seasons. He also has coached at Ball State and Marquette, and with the Milwaukee Bucks as an assistant. Last year, he turned down an offer to become an assistant coach with the Denver Nuggets. That decision, in part, was made because he wanted to be closer to his mother in Milwaukee. Majerus, who has lived in Milwaukee since joining ESPN, has said his health is no longer an issue. The Billikens have four returning starters, losing only senior center Ian Vouyoukas. Forward Tommie Liddell, who will be a junior, led the team with a 15.4-point average. Saint Louis finished in the middle of the pack in the Atlantic 10 Conference last season. When Soderberg was fired, the school said the move was tied to the school’s new $80.5 million arena under construction, which is about $7.5 million short of its fundraising goal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTIME Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 Great, he had a really good recruiting class last year. He wasn't able to coach them up though. The class included 2 of the 3 JUCO All=Americans in school history as well the #1 and #4 preseason top impact recruits in the Valley according to scouthoops.com. Hopefully he can recruit well at SLU. Majerus' name gets him in the door and he closes the deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shempie Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 out recruiting for SLU over the weekend at an AAU tourney. Akron maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtside Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 King James Shooting Star classic in Akron/Cleveland. Another big one this weekend was Next Level Ballers tourney in Dallas. Both were loaded with heavyweight coaches. Georgia Stars won in Cleveland with WI Playground Warriors taking the 16's. Gateway sent their teams to Akron/Cleveland. In Dallas, Texas Blue Chips defeated Kansas City Pump N Run in 17's....STL Eagles sent their 16's to Dallas. Some coaches hopped private planes to make both events. Mike Anderson was front and center in Dallas to see Travis Releforde among others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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