Men’s Basketball – High praise: New UL coach makes good first impression

Cajuns players excited about chance to impress

Bob Marlin was introduced as the new UL men’s basketball head coach Monday afternoon during a news conference at the Cajundome. Marlin also met his new players Monday and got a high approval rating from returning players, as well as departing seniors. (Submitted photo)

Joshua Parrott • jparrott@theadvertiser.com • April 1, 2010

La’Ryan Gary wanted to make a good first impression on new UL men’s basketball coach Bob Marlin.

Unfortunately, Gary forgot to turn off his cell phone prior to the team’s first meeting with Marlin on Sunday night.

While Marlin was addressing his players for the first time, Gary’s phone dinged after receiving a text message.

Marlin’s response to Gary was simple: "You owe me one."

Gary, who said he normally turns off his phone for team meetings, is still unsure exactly what the ramifications will be for his slip-up given that Marlin is in Indianapolis for the Final Four until next week.

And to be honest, the senior forward is not sure he even wants to know.

But Gary is well aware of what the Ragin’ Cajuns got in Marlin after he logged a 225-131 record, six 20-win seasons and two NCAA Tournament appearances over the past 12 years at Sam Houston State.

Marlin was officially introduced as the 13th men’s basketball coach in school history during a press conference Monday held in the Cajundome’s Mardi Gras Ballroom.

"The first impression I got was that he’s a really, really good coach," said Gary, who played his prep ball at St. Thomas More and Carencro. "He knows how to win. That’s why he is here, and that’s what we need right now. We need somebody to teach us how to win and help us get the program to the next level."

Marlin replaces Robert Lee, who was not retained after posting a 13-17 record this season. It was the program’s fifth consecutive non-winning season as Lee finished with an 80-100 on-court mark over six years.

Under Marlin this past season, Sam Houston clinched the Southland Conference regular season and league tournament titles to advance to the NCAA Tournament as well as winning a school-record 25 games.

Marlin, a no-nonsense coach who demands discipline on and off the court, had good things to say about that first meeting with his new players.

"We had a candid meeting and talked about expectations and demands, what’s happened in the past and that this is a new day," Marlin said. "I’m going to form my relationships with those guys starting from (Sunday) night."

Marlin added that he met individually with a couple of the players after the team meeting. One of those players was forward Chris Gradnigo, who will be a senior next season.

Gradnigo averaged 14 points per game this past season, good for second on the team, but missed the final three games due to a back injury. His shooting numbers dipped to 42.7 percent from the floor and 28.9 percent from 3-point range — both career-lows -—so everyone involved knows there’s room for improvement.

"He just told me that I’m a senior now and that I need to show more leadership because he was going to count on me to be an example for the younger guys and the new guys," Gradnigo said. "I’m going to do the best that I can. At the end of the day it’s about basketball. As far as having a clean slate, it’s not like we’re bad kids or in junior high.

"We just have to make a good first impression, show him that we’re going to come in and work hard every day and everything is going to fall into place."

Colby Batiste, who started at center full-time this past season as a junior, was blown away by Marlin, who has a track record of winning games and graduating his players.

"He is definitely a good guy," said Batiste, a graduate of Teurlings Catholic. "I look at his record and what he accomplished at Sam Houston, and he’s definitely a winner at everything he’s done. That brings a new attitude to the team. With him, it’s going to be all about winning in school and winning on the basketball court.

"That’s what we want to focus on, so that’s good for us."

Javan Mitchell recently completed his freshman season with the Cajuns. After getting limited playing time off the bench, the St. Martinville native is eager to see what’s ahead for the program under Marlin.

With some additional seasoning, Mitchell could develop the skills to eventually become an all-conference player in the Sun Belt.

"I kind of feel like a freshman again because I’m going to have to start again from scratch if I want to get any playing time," Mitchell said. "I think things are going to be totally different. He’s going to come in with a new state of mind.

"He’s going to push us to work hard and challenge us to get better at everything."

Tyren Johnson exhausted his eligibility this past season and had his best all-around game in a 95-85 win at Sam Houston on Dec. 5, finishing with 31 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists. That was the lone home loss this season for the Bearkats.

Johnson, who was the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and an honorable mention Associated Press All-American, was pleased with hearing that Marlin would be leading the Cajuns into the future.

"I love the idea of the new coach," Johnson said. "After playing against Sam Houston and watching them play in the NCAA Tournament, I know that his teams played hard. That comes from good leadership."