Nov. 20, 2003
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NORFOLK, VA - The Old Dominion University Monarchs open the 2003-04 season Saturday night in the Dean Smith Center against #9 ranked North Carolina. Game time is 8 pm. The two teams opened ODU's Ted Constant Center last year.
MONARCH GAME NOTES
Current Record: 0-0
CAA Record: 0-0
HEAD COACH
Blaine Taylor (Montana '81)
Career Record: 167-96 (.635) in nine years
Record at ODU: 25-31 (2 years)
Record at Montana: 142-65 (7 years) 1991-1998
MONARCH PROBABLE STARTERS
F 10 John Waller, 6-4, Sr, Richmond, VA. 8.3 ppg/ 4.6 rpg
F 40 Alex Loughton, 6-9, So, Perth, Australia, 8.3 ppg/ 6.0 rpg
C 55 Janko Mrksic, 6-10, So., Stoney Creek, Ontario, 1.2 ppg/ 2.1 rpg
G 13 Troy Nance, 5-9, Sr, Virginia Beach, VA., 3.8 ppg/ 4.4 apg
G 1 Isaiah Hunter, 6-2, So, Charlotte, NC., 6.1 ppg/ 2.0 rpg
OFF THE BENCH
G 2 Drew Williamson, 6-0, Fr., Burlington, NC --- / ---
F 4 T.J. Waldon, 6-4, So., Lakeland, FL. 3.0 ppg/ 2.6 rpg
G 11 Abdi Lidonde, 6-2, Fr, Sutton, MA. ---/ ---
G 24 Kiah Thomas, 6-4, Jr, Norfolk, VA. 3.1 ppg/ 1.6 rpg
F 31 Arnaud Dahi, 6-7, Fr., Ivory Coast ---/----
F 42 Valdas Vasylius, 6-7, Fr., Klaipeda, Lithuania ---/---
ODU VS. #9 NORTH CAROLINA
Series: UNC leads, 6-0
In the Dean Smith Center: This is ODU's third game in this arena.
1989-90 L 90-78
1992-93 L 119-82
Last Meeting: Nov. 24, 02; UNC wins, 67-59
(First men's game at the new Ted Constant Convocation Center)
First Meeting: 1988-89 in Scope, UNC wins 87-77
The two teams also played in 1998-99 season in the Charlotte Coliseum with UNC winning, 63-61 in the Food Lion Classic.
ODU VS THE ACC
Clemson (1-0)
ODU wins, 61-59 (2 ot) 1979 NIT second round (A)
Duke (0-2)
Last meeting: 1995-96, 75-55 in Alaskan Shootout
Florida State (1-0)
Last Meeting: 1978-79, 80-76 (2 ot) in finals of ODU-Kiwanis Classic
Georgia Tech (0-2)
Last Meeting: 1986-87, 81-64 in Scope
Maryland (1-4)
Last Meeting: 1987-88, 70-65 in Scope
ODU's win: 1986-87 , 87-73 in Scope
N.C State (0-2)
Last Meeting: 2000-01, 87-78 in Scope.
Virginia (4-8)
Last Meeting: 1995-96, 87-49 (A)
Last ODU Win: 1993-94, 76-69 in Scope.
Wake Forest :(0-3)
Last Meeting: 1989-90, 60-58 in Scope.
ODU VS. NATIONALLY RANKED TEAMS
Last Opponent: 2001-02 vs. #12 Memphis ( L, 91-66)
Last Win: 1994-95 vs #9 Villanova (89-81 3 ot's) NCAA 1st round
Last Top Ten Opponent: 2000-01 vs. #5 Stanford ( 84-60) Puerto Rico Shootout
ODU IN SEASON ROAD OPENERS
Since the Monarchs moved up to Division I in 1976-77, ODU has a 20-7
record. In season openers on the road, ODU is 7-6.
Five Largest Crowds ODU has played before:
19,320 on Dec. 27, 1986 at. UNLV
18,807 on Dec. 1, 1992 at North Carolina
17,509 on March 14, 1997 in Pittsburgh, PA(NCAA) vs. New Mexico
17,265 on Nov. 23, 1999 at N.C. State
16,681 on Jan. 3, 1990 at North Carolina
HOMECOMING OF SORTS
ODU has two North Carolina natives on the squad in sophomore Isaiah Hunter from Charlotte, NC., and freshman Drew Williamson from Burlington, NC. Williamson was last year's North Carolina Male Athlete of the Year.
TRACKING THE MONARCHS
TV: Tonights game will be carried by WTVZ (channel 2 Cox) in the Hampton Roads area.
Radio: For the 11th straight season ESPN1310 Radio will be broadcasting all the Monarch contests. John Castleberry will be providing the play-by-play with Rick Kiefner and Billy Mann adding the color commentary at all home games and selected away contests.
Internet: The official Old Dominion athletics website is at www.odusports.com carries the most up-to-date information on the Monarchs. Bios, game stories, stats and box scores can be found along with game notes the morning of the scheduled contests. The live ESPN1310 Radio broadcast of all Monarch games can be heard over the web.
Coaches Show: Head Coach Blaine Taylor will join John Castleberry live on ESPN1310 Radio on Thursday's from 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. throughtout the season to review the previous week's games and give an insight into the upcoming Monarch matchups.
DID YOU KNOW
UNC and St. Joseph's in pre-season top 25
The Tar Heels rank 9th in the AP poll.
St. Joseph's is 13th in the AP poll.
Assistant coach Jim Corrigan is in his 17th year as an assistant on the collegiate level, all in the CAA.
Assistant coach Rob Wilkes is the son of legendary Stetson head coach Glenn Wilkes.
Assistant coach Travis DeCuire played for Taylor at Montana from 1991-94 and earned All-Big Sky honors in 1993 and 1994.
Of the eight Monarchs who have played in the NBA, two were first round draft picks. Chris Gatling (16th overall in 1991 by Golden State) and Cal Bowdler (17th overall in 1999 by Atlanta). Gatling played in the 1997 NBA all-star game. Both are currently playing overseas (Gatling in Russia & Bowdler in Italy).
MONARCH CO-CAPTAINS
This year's co-captains are seniors John Waller, Troy Nance and sophomore Alex Loughton.
MONARCH RECRUITING
ODU signed 6-5 forward Jason Thompson from Chatham Central High School in Bear Creek, NC. The Yadkin Valley Conference Player of the Year as a sophomore and runner-up last year averaged 21.3 points and 9.7 rebounds per game last year. He has scored 1,401 career points and hauled in 693 career rebounds. Chatham was 22-5 last year.