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Briante Weber (VCU), Roosevelt Jones (Butler) Make Rothstein List
August 23, 2012 By 2 Comments
Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports had some kind words to say about two A10 players he listed in his “10 Least Appreciated Players In College Basketball”. He had this to say about the two:
Briante Weber, VCU:
THE SKINNY: Like a predator in search of his prey, Weber is nothing short of relentless each time he guards an opposing floor general. Blessed with boundless energy and a daily desire to get better, Weber has quickly become one of the better defensive guards in the country. He’ll play more point guard as a sophomore for VCU, who should again be formidable under Shaka Smart.
Roosevelt Jones, Butler:
THE SKINNY: The Bulldogs are much better suited to make the jump to the Atlantic 10 with this guy in their starting lineup. With brute strength and burgeoning point forward skills, Jones showed flashes of brilliance as a freshman, accumulating four double-doubles during the course of Butler’s season. Expect that number to at least double in 12-13.
Click here for the full story at CBS New York.
Atlantic 10 Conference Adds Butler University as Full Member
May 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment
NEWPORT NEWS, Va.–The Atlantic 10 Conference Council of Presidents has unanimously voted to formally accept Butler University’s application for membership the league announced Wednesday.
Butler, a nationally recognized private comprehensive university with a premier athletics program, will join the A-10 on July 1, 2013. The Bulldogs field 17 of the A-10′s 21 championship sports and will begin competition in those sports starting with the 2013-14 academic year.
“The Presidents of the A-10 member schools could not be more enthusiastic about adding Butler University to our conference,” said Father Michael J. Graham, Xavier University President and Chair of the Atlantic 10 Council of Presidents. “Butler is a distinguished institution of higher education, it takes the academic success of its student athletes seriously, and its athletic programs have achieved notable success. In these ways and more, Butler University will enhance the values the A-10 presidents all strongly affirm. We are excited as well to be able to add Indianapolis to our conference footprint and look forward to beginning competition with Butler in 2013-14.”
The addition of Butler is part of a five-year Strategic Initiative that the Atlantic 10 adopted in November of 2010. The first of five core principals in the initiative was conference membership. Within this core principle is the charge that the A-10 consider and evaluate membership applications based on institutional profiles in multiple areas, including academics, athletics and geography. Butler’s profile in these primary areas meets the high standards set by all current A-10 member institutions.
“Welcoming Butler University as the newest member of the Atlantic 10 Conference is an honor and privilege. Institutionally, they are a perfect fit for the league and bring a tradition of excellence in academics, athletics, integrity and personnel,” stated A-10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade. “As a conference driven by national prominence in men’s basketball, Butler further strengthens our league. Complementing their success in men’s basketball is a broad-based sports program that will compete well in the A-10.”
The Atlantic 10 adds a historically successful men’s basketball program in Butler to what is already the best basketball-driven conference in Division I. The only non big six conference to have 41 at-large NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament selections in the past 20 years, including three in 2012, the A-10 has boasted 62 postseason appearances in the last decade. For the fifth year in a row, the Atlantic 10 Conference earned at least three bids and multiple at-large bids into the NCAA Tournament. Over the last six years, the Atlantic 10 has had 12 at-large selections – the seventh most among all other Division I conferences. A record eight A-10 institutions received invitations to the 2012 NCAA and NIT postseason tournaments, more than all but two conferences.
Butler, a NCAA Final Four participant in two of the last three years, will be the seventh A-10 program with at least one appearance in the Final Four. The Bulldogs have been to the NCAA Tournament in five of the past six years and have advanced past the first weekend in three of those years. In all, Butler has 11 trips to the NCAA Tournament, and in five of those the Bulldogs have advanced to the Sweet 16 or beyond. Eight of those 11 trips have come since 2000. The Bulldogs have seven straight 20-win seasons and have had a winning season in 18 of the last 19 years.
“Butler University is pleased to be the newest member of the Atlantic 10 Conference,” Butler President James M. Danko said. “The universities in this conference are strong academically and they value the student-athlete experience. Butler fits well with them and we look forward to joining their tradition of excellence.”
Academically, Butler’s strong profile is consistent with the rest of the Atlantic 10. Academics is a hallmark of the A-10, and the league ranked third among all Division I conferences in the most recent NCAA graduation rates with an incredible 89 percent of student-athletes graduating. Butler’s latest GSR score was in step with the 12 A-10 institutions that garnered a score of 80 percent or better.
“Moving to the Atlantic 10 allows us to associate and compete with institutions with outstanding academic profiles and values,” Butler Athletic Director Barry Collier said. “They value the experience of the student-athlete.”
Atlantic 10, one of the premier women’s basketball league in the country, gains a program on the rise. Butler women’s basketball has made three post season appearances in the last three years and had four straight 20-win seasons. A-10 women’s basketball placed seven teams in the post season this year and has put 31 teams in postseason play over the past four years.
Butler also has had similar success to the A-10 in Olympic sports. The league has earned multiple NCAA bids in several sports, including a trip to the NCAA Men’s Soccer finals by Charlotte, and at-large bids in men’s and women’s soccer and volleyball. Butler, which sponsors 19 sports, nine for men and 10 for women, has had recent Olympic sports success in multiple trips to the NCAA men’s soccer sweet 16, NCAA appearances by the Bulldog baseball team and a national championship caliber cross country team.
During the 2011-12 season, Atlantic 10 men’s basketball conference teams played on television over 350 times, a record in the 36-year history of the league. One of just five conferences to have its men’s basketball championship air on network television (CBS), the A-10 currently has partnerships with CBS and ESPN. The league will enter negotiations in the summer of 2012 for a new media rights agreement. Butler’s entry into the league will coincide with the beginning of the new media rights deal which follows the league’s 2013 men’s basketball championship move to the state-of-the-art Barclays Center, a new NBA arena in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Butler adds the Indianapolis market to one of the most impressive media footprints in all of Division I. The Atlantic 10 institutions reside in cities that comprise 21 percent of all American television households. There are nine A-10 schools in the top 25 media markets in the country and all 14 institutions are within the top 65 markets. Indianapolis currently ranks as the 26th largest media market.
The move also extends the Atlantic 10′s midwestern footprint, joining the University of Dayton, Saint Louis University and Xavier University.
2013 A10 Championship Logo Revealed
May 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment
NEWPORT NEWS, Va.–The Atlantic 10 Conference unveiled Monday the 2013 Men’s Basketball Championship logo in preparation for the league’s marquee event to move to the new Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.
The championship logo, which was designed by the Barclays Center design team, features the Brooklyn skyline set against a stylized basketball over the A-10 registered trademark logo. The skyline image includes the iconic Brooklyn Bridge as the centerpiece of the logo.
“The new logo exemplifies our partnership with Barclays Center and Brooklyn,” stated Atlantic 10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade. “The basketball, the Brooklyn Bridge and surrounding skyline combined with the conference logo capture the essence of this partnership perfectly.”
The league announced in September that it had signed a five-year contract to take the men’s championship to the state-of-the-art Barclays Center, future home of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets. This will be the first time the A-10 Championship will be held in the number one media market, New York, N.Y.
The top 12 teams in the regular season qualify for A-10 Championship, with all 12 teams advancing to Brooklyn for the first round and quarterfinals. Tickets to the 11 games at Barclays Center in Brooklyn will go on sale Saturday, April 21 at 10 a.m. Tickets will be available through Ticketmaster by visiting www.barclayscenter.com or www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling 800-745-3000.
In addition to moving the men’s basketball championship to Brooklyn the Atlantic 10 recently signed on with Bevilacqua Helfant Ventures (BHV). Led by co-founder Chris Bevilacqua, the company will assist the A-10 in their upcoming media rights negotiation. The current rights agreement is due to expire in 2013.
BHV is a company focused on media and other commercial rights advisory services, valuation and analysis, business development and investment opportunities in the sports and entertainment industries. BHV is based in New York City and partners with professional, collegiate and amateur sports leagues, teams and governing bodies, as well as entertainment, marketing and media companies.
“Within the sports media industry, Chris Bevilacqua is regarded as one of the strongest architects of media rights deals. He brings an experience and industry knowledge to the A-10 that this league deserves,” stated McGlade.
Ferry Named Duquesne Head Men’s Basketball Coach
April 23, 2012 By Leave a Comment
PITTSBURGH - Jim Ferry, who led LIU Brooklyn to its second consecutive NCAA Championship appearance this March, has been named men’s basketball coach at Duquesne University, Director of Athletics Greg Amodio announced today.
Ferry, 44, reached an agreement with Duquesne on Tuesday afternoon.
The 16th head coach in the 95-year history of Duquesne basketball, Ferry will be formally introduced at a media conference on Thursday afternoon.
“Jim Ferry has been a winner at every level,” said Amodio. “Through a combination of hard work, strong character and outstanding leadership he experienced unprecedented success at LIU. I look forward to him using those same qualities to make his mark on the Duquesne basketball program. He is an aggressive recruiter whose teams are known for tough, physical play. Jim is the right fit for Duquesne right now.”
“I’m extremely excited about the opportunity to coach at Duquesne University,” said Ferry. “I look forward to the challenge of taking this program to the next level.
“I was very impressed by the commitment shown by president [Dr. Charles] Dougherty and Greg Amodio during the interview process. They have a clear vision of where they’d like this program to be. I look forward to making that vision a reality.”
Ferry, who grew up in Elmont, N.Y., has won 254 games in 14 years as a head coach at the Division I, Division II and Division III levels.
He took over a 5-22 LIU team in 2002-03 and guided it to 52 wins, a 34-2 record in Northeast Conference play and back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances in 2011 and 2012.
In 2011, the Blackbirds were the fourth-highest scoring team in the nation in finishing 27-6. The 27 wins were the most by an LIU team since 1937.
LIU ranked second nationally in scoring at 81.4 points per game in posting a 25-9 record this past season. It was the first time since 1941 & 1942 – then under legendary head coach Clair Bee – that LIU won 25 or more games in back-to-back seasons.
Ferry left the Brooklyn campus with a 27-game home win streak – second only to national champion Kentucky’s 52 consecutive home victories. The Blackbirds will return four starters in 2012-13 including 2011-12 NEC Player of the Year Julian Bond.
Ferry, who was named NEC Coach of the Year twice (2005 and 2011), coached one Player of the Year, two NEC Rookies of the Year, 11 all-conference honorees and eight all-rookie selections in 10 seasons at LIU.
Ferry went 82-11 in three seasons at Division II Adelphi College from 1999 through 2002. He led the Garden City, N.Y. school to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2000 and NCAA Elite 8 appearances in 2001 and 2002. He was named NIT/Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association Division II Coach of the Year all three seasons.
Ferry’s Adelphi teams went 62-4 in winning three-straight New York Collegiate Athletic Conference championships. His 2001 Panthers won 31 consecutive games in posting a school record 31 wins (31-1).
Ferry got his head coaching start at Division III Plymouth State University in Plymouth, New Hampshire where he led the Panthers to a 22-8 record and an appearance in the New England Tournament finals in 1998-99.
He was named New Hampshire Coaches Association Division III Coach of the Year following the season.
Ferry reached the 100-win plateau (104-19) in his first four seasons as a head coach.
A 1990 graduate of Keene State College in Keene, New Hampshire, Ferry started his coaching career as an assistant at his alma mater in 1990-91.
He served as an assistant coach at Bentley College in Waltham, Mass. for seven seasons prior to taking the head coaching position at Plymouth State. As an assistant, he helped the Falcons to a 1992-93 Northeast 10 regular season championship and trip to the NCAA Tournament.
Ferry grew up in Elmont, N.Y., as the son of a New York City transit police officer. He played one year at New York Tech before transferring to Keene State, where he posted a double-digit scoring average for his career. Ferry led the Owls in scoring as a junior and was team captain as a senior. He earned his undergraduate degree in public safety science.
Ferry and his wife, Kelly, are the parents four children: Victoria, twins Hannah and James, and Leo.
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