Ties that bind?or blind
Central Illinois club coach Verdell Jones had a big influence on Shaun Livingston's rise to basketball prominence, but when Jones allegedly said the Peoria Central star listened to him more...
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Wink and a nod: Colleges schedule club teams
College athletic departments are paying thousands of dollars to some of the nation's top club basketball programs. The reason, college coaches say, is to improve?or at least not hurt?their chances...
Power brokers
Neither Larry Butler nor Mac Irvin has run a high school basketball program. Neither has worked full time for a school district or the Illinois High School Association, the governing...
A two-way game
The chatter told Gina Wright something was coming. She didn't know exactly what it was. She didn't know about the persistent basketball coaches who would call in hopes of talking...
Recruiting system’s a recipe for scandals
Football recruiting is like politics. Each has an image problem, and each deserves it. Some years are worse than others for the reputation of football sales, and the current one...
Out of the risk pool at last
John Cowhey is stoic, determined and has a pain threshold you wouldn't believe. That's a perfect recipe for a swimmer, but swimming has not been an option for the Lake...
`Special kid’ leads Leyden’s revival
Two years ago, Aaron Jimenez was not a pretty sight as a basketball player. He was a tall, skinny and awkward freshman. He wore corrective goggles that gave him a...
Clock ticking on Hales fiasco
You would think the most shocking thing about Hales Franciscan's dance of disaster with the Illinois High School Association is that last year's Class A state basketball champion may not...
Have a (crystal) ball
Here's 2004, seen through a cracked crystal ball: Monday: The Illinois High School Association announces it will allow Hales Franciscan, banned from the Class A basketball tournament for rules violations,...
Playing big sister at Neuqua Valley
Neuqua Valley's girls basketball team defeated East Aurora 46-17 Thursday night, but if you thought that was something, you should have seen the pregame show. The Wildcats, one of the...