Sean Gregory vs. Craig Robinson.
A conversation while shooting hoops between two former Princeton players.
Craig Robinson interview.
On the publicity tour for "A Game of Character: A Family Journey from Chicago's Southside to the Ivy League and Beyond" (Gotham Books), Oregon State head coach Craig Robinson estimates he's told the story of playing pick-up basketball with Barack Obama to parse the character of his sister's new boyfriend no less than 80 times.
While this anecdote has drawn repeated attention on talk shows, in print interviews and is the focus of many reviews, this moment is just a small part of Robinson's worthwhile biography, which begins in 1960s Chicago and concludes in contemporary Corvallis, Oregon.
It would have been easy for Robinson to capitalize on his unexpected fame and write primarily about his brother in law but "A Game of Character" is a book that instead tells the complete story of Robinson's life long before he became "Michelle Obama's big brother."
The tales of growing up under the watchful eye of Marian and Fraser Robinson have a distinct charm, but it is the time spent at Princeton playing for Pete Carril that should be especially worthwhile to visitors of this site. The two time Ivy League Player of the Year is the first former Tiger I can recall who has written in detail about what it was like to play for Carril, and the highs and lows of that experience shape Robinson as he first sets into the financial world and then returns to basketball as an assistant coach at Northwestern.
This morning I had a chance to speak with Coach Robinson about his story, his time at Princeton and his life since the release of this book. Robinson joined me by phone for over 32 minutes and I think you will find this wide-spanning discussion a worthwhile one that bypasses the questions Robinson has already answered ad nauseum.
Saturday News:
Two notes before we get to the news...
1. I'm testing out a new means of link protection in select places today that should make it harder impossible for non-members to access URLs in the future. If you are a subscriber and have any trouble with one of the following external links, please let me know!
2. I'm interviewing two time Ivy League Player of the Year/author/Oregon State men's basketball coach Craig Robinson on Monday afternoon. Questions you would like me to ask? Send an email my way.
Will Venable broke out of a prolonged slump with four hits against the Dodgers on Wednesday. Sliding up to the leadoff spot, Venable nearly hit for the cycle and reached base five times. It was the third four hit game of Venable's major league career.
Venable later joined Sports Radio San Diego (.mp3) to discuss his evening.
The Padres have shut down Chris Young's throwing and placed him on the 60 day disabled list.
Judson Wallace and Benetton Treviso were blown out by Montepaschi Siena 118-79 in the first game of their Lega A quarterfinals.
Mason Rocca scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds in Armani Jeans Milano's 72-65 win over Sigma Coatings Montegranaro on the other side of the bracket.
Rocca also represented AJ Milano at a press conference (video) to announce an exhibition game in Italy this October between his squad and the New York Knicks. See a photo of Rocca and Danilo Gallinari here.
Georgetown Director of Basketball Operations Matt Henry will leave the Hoyas to join Robert Burke on the Mount St. Mary's staff as an assistant coach.
Oregon State has added two big men to its 2010 recruiting class.
Northwestern coach Bill Carmody is encouraged by Kevin Coble's rehab effort.
Monday News:
The final day of Lega A regular season action saw Judson Wallace and eighth place Benetton Treviso blow out Mason Rocca's third place Armani Jeans Milano team. Wallace had 14 points and 12 rebounds in the win.
Craig Robinson visited the Job Radio Show.
His press gauntlet behind him, Robinson is excited about what lies ahead for Oregon State.
Will Venable was a "celebrity guest" at Rady Children's Hospital Auxiliary's Celebration of Champions.
Monday News:
Columbia has selected Kyle Smith from St. Mary's as their new head coach. Smith is close with Richmond coach Chris Mooney, as they were both assistants at Air Force under Joe Scott in 2000-01.
When Smith was up for the Hawaii job in March, Mooney said Smith "is the smartest man in college basketball. I think he has the best feel and overview of basketball programs and coaching of anyone I've ever met." High praise.
All eight Ivy coaching positions are now filled.
Columbia - Kyle Smith (2010)
Dartmouth - Paul Cormier (2010)
Cornell - Bill Courtney (2010)
Penn - Jerome Allen (2010)
Brown - Jesse Agel (2008)
Princeton - Sydney Johnson (2007)
Harvard - Tommy Amaker (2007)
Yale - James Jones (1999)
Sunday's rehab start by Chris Young in San Antonio went poorly. Young allowed five earned runs, surrendered four straight walks and could not make it out of the first inning.
Those of you with access to Princeton Alumni Weekly's Class Notes should check out the piece on page 36 about Class of '35 scholarship holder and Tiger freshman center Brendan Connolly.
Here's video from Craig Robinson's most recent appearance on Jim Rome Is Burning.
Robinson is also the subject of pieces in the Chicago Tribune and the Daily Barometer.
YouTube potpourri III.
A handful of videos I haven't had found the right moment to post that have been collected over this week, starting with part one of Craig Robinson's visit to Jimmy Kimmel Live.
Friday News:
The Chris Young rehab start that was supposed to happen yesterday has been pushed back. He is now likely to throw for AAA Portland on Sunday at Salt Lake City.
A diving catch by Will Venable (video) ended San Diego's 4-1 win over Florida on Tuesday.
TigerBlog took Wednesday's piece on this site about going to Harvard in 1989 and ran with it.
More from the Craig Robinson media bonanza: Video from his appearance on Charlie Rose, a feature on the ESPN web site, audio of his visit to NPR's Tell Me More and a Marin Independent Journal article on his visit to Dominican University.
Oregon State will visit Colorado in the 2010 Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood series.
A 6'8" guard from Louisiana has signed with Denver.
The Valley News has an worthwhile piece on new Dartmouth head coach Paul Cormier.
Craig Robinson tribute song.
I suppose it was only a matter of time before someone rewrote Simon & Garfunkel's lyrics in honor of the head coach at Oregon State...
Craig Robinson on The Colbert Report.
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |
| Craig Robinson | ||
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Beaver Nation met The Colbert Nation last night on Comedy Central.
Recognition for Tony Newsom.
Hoop Scoop's College Coach Rankings are in the latest issue of Basketball Times. Princeton assistant Tony Newsom is #35 on the Top 50 Low to Mid-Major Assistants list.
Other names of note...
Top 40 College Coaches:
19. John Thompson III - Georgetown
35. Bill Carmody - Northwestern
Top Up-and-Coming Coaches:
13. Craig Robinson - Oregon State
15. Chris Mooney - Richmond
You can compare to last year's rankings here if you're so inclined.
Sunday News:
Sunday, March 21st
(12) Cornell vs. (4) Wisconsin - 2:50 pm ET - CBS
NCAA Tournament
Monday, March 22nd
Princeton vs. IUPUI - 7:00 pm ET
CBI Tournament
How was your Saturday? Princeton recruit T.J. Bray was named 2010 Mr. Basketball by the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association yesterday. Bray also took home unanimous Division 2 First Team All-State honors.
Then Bray went out and scored 20 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, picked six steals and slung five assists as Catholic Memorial won the WIAA Division 2 state title with a 60-48 win over Maple Northwestern in Madison.
I had a chance to watch part of the third quarter and all of the fourth quarter. Bray has an poised, adult game and was never rattled with the ball in his hands. He's not particularly fast but his handle and his decision making were ace. A cross-court pass by Bray to set up a teammate for a three point shot at the buzzer to end quarter number three was marvelous.
Here's the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel report on the game.
As of right now, Princeton does not have a plan to broadcast Monday night's CBI game at IUPUI. The best chance to following the action is to stream video of the game on iupuijags.com. With the Jaguars' gym holding just over 1,200 people, I'd recommend anyone making the trip buy tickets in advance.
Princeton coach Sydney Johnson was a guest on "The Passing Game" with former Fork Union head man Fletcher Arritt. An excellent listen.
Oregon State is already looking to the future.
Thursday News:
Thursday, March 18th
MCCC vs. Pima C.C. - 12:00 pm ET
NJCAA Division II Tournament
(10) Saint Mary’s vs. (7) Richmond - 2:50 pm ET - CBS
NCAA Tournament
(14) Ohio vs. (3) Georgetown - 7:25 pm ET - CBS
NCAA Tournament
Friday, March 19th
(12) Cornell vs. (5) Temple - 12:30 pm ET - CBS
NCAA Tournament
In addition to our recap, read about Princeton's first postseason win in a decade on goprincetontigers.com, in the Trentonian, in the Trenton Times, in the Daily Princetonian, in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette and on goduquesne.com.
Bill Reynolds at the Providence Journal remembers the Princeton/Georgetown NCAA game from 21 years ago.
John Thompson II and Chris Mooney add their perspectives on that memorable matchup in the Boston Globe.
The Town Topics has an article from after Princeton's win over Penn.
The Northwestern (20-14) season came to an end with a 76-64 NIT loss at Rhode Island.
Oregon State (14-18) is also done, trounced by Boston University on the other side of the CBI bracket.
Richmond and Georgetown are both in Providence for NCAA Tournament games today.
The Hoyas' Greg Monroe is ready for the big stage.
Princeton recruit T.J. Bray was named Classic Eight Conference Player of the Year.
Around the Ivy League: Harvard (21-8 / 10-4) was blown out at Appalachian State, 93-71.
