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 Tuesday, January 11
The new Bobby Knight?
 
 Has Indiana's Bobby Knight gotten soft and relaxed a little bit as a head basketball coach? Yes and no, says ESPN college basketball analyst Digger Phelps, and a lot has to do with the make up of Knight's current squad.

During a recent chat with ESPN.com users, Phelps talked about this season's Indiana team and says the Hoosiers are very coachable and that makes things easier on Knight. Digger also offered his thoughts on the Big East and Big 12 conferences and surprised no one by predicting a Sweet 16 appearance for the Duke Blue Devils.

If you missed Digger's Jan. 11 chat, an edited transcript follows.

Digger Phelps: Good afternoon. Ready to take your questions. Looking forward to two great games (Tuesday). The Michigan State-Indiana game is the first Big Ten major showdown. Mateen Cleaves played only 20 minutes vs. Iowa, but his presence gave Morris Peterson the confidence to score early and often. A. J. Guyton needs a big game like he had vs. North Carolina in the Meadowlands for Indiana to win.

Game two is a battle of the turnovers. Can Auburn stay with their average of forcing 19 turnovers a game as well as pounding the offensive boards with consistency? Can Kentucky's improvement, especially with Keith Bogans and Marvin Stone as maturing freshmen, give them a road victory? Two great matchups on ESPN at 7 and 9 p.m. ET.

Jeff Burson: I was wondering what you thought of Wisconsin's chances of making it back to the NCAA Tournament?

Digger Phelps: I was fairly impressed with their win over Illinois. They played fairly well vs. Indiana in a four-point loss. Their schedule is ranked among the nation's hardest, which helps the power rating. If they do well in league play and in the conference tournament, they have a shot as an at-large.

Christian: I think that you've got to like Michigan State (Tuesday) considering their rebounding prowess. What is your take on the game?

Digger Phelps: If Jeffrey Newton and Kirk Haston can neutralize Andre Hutson and A. J. Granger, it could be an interesting matchup. The fact that Mateen is back gives Michigan State the edge. The Spartans have lost games because of lack of leadership, blowing leads in the second half. I still think the key is shutting down Peterson, who to me is still the best player in the country.

John Craft: Give me your thoughts on (Tuesday's) Auburn-Kentucky game. Also, what's your take on Jim Harrick's comments about Auburn's "adequate" backcourt after a 15-point loss to the Tigers?

Digger Phelps: I think Auburn plays as good as they have to. This year they are a target and teams are ready for them. Believe it or not, their forced turnovers and offensive rebounds are similar to last year when they were blowing people out. When you are an established program ranked fifth in the nation, teams play you tougher. Example: they beat Florida State by one, beat Virginia Tech by 10, Southern Miss. was a 56-50 game. So Doc Robinson and company play to the level of competition. Auburn has too many players with the likes of Porter and Pohlman. Kentucky will have the right mindset going into this game, having his team prepared. Porter can't afford to play soft, like he did last year in shooting 33 percent against Kentucky. Auburn has the homecourt edge. I give Kentucky the win in a slight upset.

Irish 3: Any chance of Notre Dame going to the dance and is Murphy a top-five caliber player right now?

Tues. Jan. 11
Phelps, who enjoyed two successful decades as Notre Dame's head coach, joined ESPN as a college basketball studio and game analyst in November 1993. He works in the studio each Monday and Tuesday, and calls select games. He also teams with Dick Vitale to provide studio and on-site analysis during Championship Week, the NCAA Tournament and Final Four.

Prior to ESPN, Phelps served as a college basketball analyst for CBS Sports during the 1992 and 1993 NCAA Championships, handling both studio and game analysis. In 1984, he served as commentator for ABC Sports' basketball coverage at the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

During his 20 years as head basketball coach at Notre Dame (1972-91), Phelps won more games (393) than any coach in Irish history. His teams advanced to the NCAA Tournament on 14 occasions -- including six of his last seven seasons -- and reached the Final Four in 1978.

Digger Phelps: I think that the Big East, as I said (Monday) night, is looking for an identity. Is it a weak conference this year? I say yes. Georgetown is 0-3 and Providence has lost to the likes of Holy Cross, Central Connecticut and Fordham. There are many teams who have not established themselves as traditional powers, like the Big East has had in the past. This is the year the Irish can make its move to be one of the top 3-4 teams in the league. The win over Connecticut, as well as Ohio State, were not flukes. Troy Murphy and company have a showdown this Sunday at the Carrier Dome. I felt St. John's got a big lift from 6-8 Donald Emanuel. He's a frontline bruiser, which they need to establish. They have the quickness but lack the size. The Irish schedule gives them an advantage so they do play a lot of the weaker teams home and away. It will be a different UConn team visiting South Bend in Feb. Miami, Seton Hall, Villanova, those will be the challengers for that fourth league berth. The rest of the league is out of sync. I predict the Irish will get an NCAA bid this season.

HoopDreams: Do you think John Calipari is serious in his supposed interest in the University of Memphis coaching position?

Digger Phelps: Yes, I believe there is interest. He told me last year he'd go back to college coaching if he found a job where he could win a national title. If Memphis decides not to hire Johnny Jones at the end of the season, then Calipari, who has talked to Memphis officials already, would strongly consider taking the challenge of winning a title at Memphis. On paper, DePaul and Cincinnati on the court would be the two main challengers every year, if Memphis could recruit and keep its players home. He's an excellent coach, he would turn the community on and he belongs in college basketball with his personality.

Muskies1: What do you think Xavier's chances are (Tuesday) against Dayton?

Digger Phelps: I think this will be an excellent game. Xavier had to battle to get past Rhode Island on Sunday. Dayton is trying to stockpile wins to make the NCAAs and Oliver Purnell has done a good job. Key to the game: Williams of Xavier playing big.

Jason Cox: What do you think about Oklahoma State in the Big 12 and NCAA tourney?

Digger Phelps: I was surprised by their loss to LSU. Eddie Sutton has a veteran club which is capable of challenging in the Big 12. Having a good passer in Doug Gottlieb is a steadying influence, and Desmond Mason is underrated nationally in my opinion. NCAA tourney bid, definitely.

Dennis: Has Bobby Knight taken a more relaxed position with his team this year (resulting in some success) or do you feel that this team has more talent than in recent years?

Digger Phelps: I don't think they are as talented as they are coachable. The senior leadership of Guyton, Lewis and Jiminez as mentors gives the Big Brother approach. I talked to Knight after the Wyoming win and he was still talking about the Indiana State loss. The same happened after the Jimmy V. Classic win. This is a good Indiana team, not a great Indiana team. A lot will depend on who is the No. 1 seed in the Midwest based on the conference tourney.

Illinois is still a team that will get better by March and Lon Kruger knows that. Michigan State will be a solid team by March. Ken Johnson and George Reese have to score big if Ohio State is to be like last year's team come March. Minnesota and Wisconsin will be the spoilers. Michigan needs to gain maturity. They beat Georgia Tech, played well vs. Duke but then lost to Boston College. They need the maturity for game experience. I feel the Big Ten is the best conference. Indiana is No. 3 in the Sagarin rating and having a 12-1 start puts them in a key position, win or lose (Tuesday) vs. Michigan State, to do well in March.

Erin: Duke's on a roll since their opening losses in NYC. With the ACC season heating up, what do you see as the keys to the Blue Devils' continued success?

Digger Phelps: Hi Erin. After the loss to Connecticut at MSG in the Coaches vs. Cancer third-place game, I talked to Coach K. Carlos Boozer was still trying to get his game together, especially replacing Elton Brand. Mike said he (Boozer) could not explode to the basket with authority at that time. His confidence grew when he got 25 points vs. Michigan. He had 17 points and 15 boards vs. Maryland and has completed the package for Duke's offensive consistency.

The second factor Coach K and I talked about was the young players learning Duke's defensive concepts. He has done a great job teaching, and the result is 11 straight wins going into (Wednesday) night's game vs. Georgia Tech. I feel while North Carolina has played with inconsistency in December, Duke has grown to be the power of the ACC this season. Coach K lost five key players who would have been mentors for this team, he himself has done a great job of mentoring this team, especially with the leadership of Battier, Carrawell and James bringing along the rookies. This team will show up in March when it counts, and a legitimate shot at the Final Eight, which is a Duke tradition.

Joe: If the tournament was held today, who would you make your Final Four?

Digger Phelps: Cincinnati if Huggy Bear keeps his composure with Logan and Satterfield; Stanford will regroup following their home loss to Arizona; but then it is up for grabs. Arizona will really miss Richard Jefferson, who might get back in time for the tournament, but stress fractures are tough to deal with. Lance Williams of DePaul played 12 minutes the other night, and Pat Kennedy is concerned...Williams suffered his foot injury at the start of training. Duke and Michigan State would round out the four if we picked them today.

Teddy: Many people are talking about Bobby Cremins being fired. What do you think?

Digger Phelps: I think Georgia Tech has a good team this season. Akins is a good floor leader, Jason Collier and Alvin Jones are solid up front. They still have a shot, in my opinion, of becoming the challenge to N.C. State and Wake Forest to be the fourth best team in the conference. He has to get some big wins, and the potential is there. Wake is a mystery team, falling apart after a great start. Go figure the Florida State loss at Wake, shocking everyone. We will have to see who falls into that position in the ACC. Cremins should not be fired. He's still the right guy in the tradition of Georgia Tech.

DCGeneral: Are you still thinking about running for President?

Digger Phelps: Why not. I'm letting Trump, Ventura and Warren Beatty set the tone for 2004. As a Reagan democrat, and youth violence still the main issue in our nation, it is not going to go away until we have a domestic storm in every community with the same mindset we had with Desert Storm like we did in the beginning of the 90s.

KC and the Sunshine Band: Other than the UCLA game in '74, what was the most memorable game of your career?

Digger Phelps: Beating Notre Dame at Madison Square Garden when I was coaching Fordham in 1971. It solidified a 26-3 season and the theme of the season was KC and the Sunshine Band song: Get Down Tonight. Because New York did a little dance after that big win over the Irish. It was probably the game that got me the head coaching position in South Bend the next season.

Poncho: Syracuse gets a lot of heat for its early season schedule (even though the players can't worry about that). Do you think that they are a legitimate top 10 team, or will this early season joyride come back to haunt them in February-March?

Digger Phelps: We'll find out soon. Their schedule is ranking around 300 in the power ratings, and it is nice to see Coach Boeheim finally got his team on the road. The talent is there, with solid players. Playing at South Carolina Thursday after (Tuesday's) game at West Virginia could take its toll against Notre Dame, which I feel will zone the whole game.

Greg: Do you feel that the Big 12 power teams, like Kansas, Oklahoma St., or Texas will be able to make some noise in the NCAA tournament?

Digger Phelps: I wasn't impressed with the way Oklahoma was pounded at home by Cincinnati. Texas losing at Wisconsin after their Arizona loss was not a good sign, especially losing to Connecticut (Monday) night. As good as Kansas is, they didn't fare well against Big Ten teams Michigan State and Illinois. The fourth team, Oklahoma State, has a low schedule ranking. Oklahoma is also 228. Oklahoma State and Oklahoma have played weak schedules. Iowa State could be a sleeper in the conference. Young team, well coached and could creep up on the big four. It should be interesting to see how these teams show up in March.

IU4life: I notice Matt Doherty is going head-to-head right now with Knight in recruiting some talented juniors in Indiana. Do you think he could succeed? How did you fare in recruiting against Knight?

Digger Phelps: Bobby and I had an agreement. He kept all the kids in the area from Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. I recruited the kids from the East coast. Doherty has to get some good point guards to be consistent in winning at Notre Dame. He did not sign a true point guard in the fall signing period. Let's see if he gets one in the spring. Even though I had Joseph Price from Marion, Kenny Barlow and Scott Hicks from Indianapolis, it is always tough to recruit against Indiana in-state. Jared Jeffries is a good example.

Dr Heel: What do you think has been UNC's main problem this year?

Digger Phelps: Playing a tough schedule with difficult back-to-back games too early. The wear and tear of playing at Buffalo the night before facing Cincinnati at the Great Eight. Then Indiana at the Jimmy V. and then a short turnaround going to Louisville. The travel can beat you up. Now that they are in the conference, they should settle down and keep winning. North Carolina has too many good players and that winning tradition not to excel in the ACC. Cota and Haywood have to lead the charge. Kris Lang and Jason Capel are important factors. Joseph Forte has been impressive as a freshman. I still feel Max Owens is a key, after a solid showing in the ACC tournament last season.

Thanks for your questions. One closing statement. Every conference has no team that can dominate. We have seen a number of upsets already in conference play. It is going to be a great exciting season, and we have it here for you on ESPN and ESPN2. See you next week.