Washington State fans lived in fear when coach Tony Bennett was mentioned in connection with recent openings at Indiana and Louisiana State. But Cougars fans had to feel pretty good when Bennett decided to stay in Pullman.Imagine the gut punch when Bennett accepted a job to a mid-card ACC team. (Seriously, Virginia?)
Now the Washington State program sits at a crossroads where it can either build on the success of Bennett's teams, or the program can slip back into the Pac-10 abyss.
Washington State officials have promised a nationwide search. Don't bother. The WSU job is third in the pecking order for open or likely open Pac-10 jobs, behind Arizona and Oregon (if Ernie Kent gets fired). Thinking of guys like Billy Gillespie and Reggie Theus is fun, but that's not going to happen. That nationwide search isn't going to get far out of the Pacific Northwest.
In fact, Washington State already has contacted Portland State coach Ken Bone, according to the Oregonian. The paper is already speculating that St. Mary's Randy Bennett, San Diego's Bill Grier and former UCLA coach Steve Lavin also will be candidates. But come on, Lavin isn't leaving ESPN. And it's hard to imagine Bennett and Grier making the move, either.
That leaves Bone, who is a really good choice. He's won everywhere he went and his buyout is only $50,000. Plus, there is this telling quote after the Big Sky tournament.
- "I really want to coach basketball in the Northwest where we can be successful," Bone said. "When you start looking around, there are a lot of schools like that in the Northwest, but I don't foresee those coaches going anywhere real soon."
