Story from The Commercial Appeal |
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By Bobby Hall
The Commercial Appeal
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Coach Rod Barnes
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OXFORD, Miss. - The cherished legacy of athletics at Ole Miss is deeply rooted in football, but consider this:
The men's basketball program is riding a longer streak of post-season appearances (four) than the football team (three).
"In the back of my mind, I've always thought basketball could become a very good program," said Rod Barnes, a former all-Southeastern Conference guard for the Rebels who is beginning his third season as head coach.
Barnes had the same thoughts when he was a player in the mid-1980s, but it didn't happen. His hopes were the same when he returned as an assistant coach on Rob Evans's staff in 1993, when it began to happen.
"When I played, it was right after coach (Bob) Weltlich left," Barnes said. "Enthusiasm wasn't really high, but it was a little bit better than it was years before and a little better than a few years later."
It was Weltlich's 1980-81 team that produced a Southeastern Conference Tournament championship and the school's first NCAA Tournament berth.
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"At that time, I think we had an opportunity to take our basketball program to another level. For a moment, it seemed like we had a chance, but it didn't happen," said Barnes, who played from 1984-88.
The lack of growth in the program bothered him as a player, while he was a graduate assistant in 1989-90, and when he as an assistant coach at Livingston from 1990-93.
Then with Evans, who arrived for the 1992-93 season with a hard-nosed system of discipline, intensity, and defense, the turnaround began.
Along came three consecutive 20-victory seasons and three consecutive NCAA Tournaments - both firsts in school history. There also were two Western Division titles in the Southeastern Conference.
"The last six or seven years, we've had a lot of growth, and I think that's going to continue for several different reasons," said Barnes, who was promoted from assistant to head coach in 1998 after Evans left for Arizona State.
"We're starting to recruit a little bit better in our state and in the surrounding areas."
The success attracted players.
"When I started to get recruited, I knew Ole Miss didn't have a winning tradition," said senior low post player Rahim Lockhart. "But when it was time for visits, I came up here and saw them beat Kentucky, and that became one of the big things in my mind."
Mainstays in Evans's program included players from Arkansas - guard Keith Carter and forward Jason Smith. Soon, there were several others from Arkansas.
"I knew Jason and Keith because they played AAU ball back home," said guard Jason Harrison, now a junior. "I just happened to turn on the TV and saw them.
"Then my teammate (at Little Rock Parkview) Jason Flanigan signed, and that got me interested."
Barnes is excited about the possibilities for this season and beyond, especially with the arrival of prized recruit Justin Reed, a 6-8 forward from Jackson, and other newcomers including guard David Sanders and guard/forward Aaron Harper.
"I've always thought, and I still believe, that we're going to win the national championship here," Barnes said. "No one else may believe it, but they didn't believe that we would win two Western Division titles and go to the NCAAs.
"You have to believe those things. So that's why in the back of my mind, I thought Ole Miss could become a very good program."
