Washington Post column: 'John Feinstein: The NCAA's version of justice is puzzling'

The following is this weekend's column for The Washington Post taking a look at the NCAA's  self-righteousness and secrecy in both their enforcement staff decisions and the tournament selection process.

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To paraphrase Jerry Tarkanian's oft-repeated quote involving Kentucky and Cleveland State, the NCAA must be so mad at Connecticut Coach Jim Calhoun that Radford's Brad Greenberg is going to get suspended for four games.

In truth, the NCAA didn't punish Radford's coach (the brother of Virginia Tech Coach Seth Greenberg) because the school did it first, suspending Greenberg for the final four games of the season. According to the school's news release, Greenberg was suspended for breaking NCAA rules involving, "team travel and associated extra benefits."

Here is what Greenberg did: He took Masse Doumbe with him to road games Radford played during Thanksgiving break and Christmas break even though he was ineligible. The NCAA had barred Doumbe from playing in the first 21 games of the season because he had played on a French team the NCAA deemed professional because one player on the team (not Doumbe) was being paid. Greenberg didn't want to leave him alone on campus during the holidays, so he brought him with the team.
That was the impermissible travel.

The extra benefits? Meals, and a bed to sleep in.

Imagine what might have happened if he had bought the kid an ice cream cone after a team meal.

But this is justice in college sports, whether it is meted out by a school trying to show it can really crack down on itself or the NCAA suspending Calhoun for three games next season for violations involving illegal contact with recruits and, specifically, the actions of a former team manager who was involved in the recruitment of a player.

Calhoun, who was never one to duck a tough question, has been reduced to putting out garbled statements from some lawyer about how Calhoun takes full responsibility but really this is no big deal and let's move on because there's a tournament to be played.

There is no one better than the NCAA when it comes to self-righteousness and secrecy. The simplest question is often met with absolute astonishment that it would even be asked. Last month, during one of the NCAA basketball committee chairman's conference calls leading up to Selection Sunday, Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith was asked by the Kansas City Star's Blair Kerkhoff, "Gene, can you tell us how many teams would be on your 'absolutely in' list right now?"


Click here for the rest of the article: John Feinstein: The NCAA's version of justice is puzzling

This week's Washington Post column - Seth and Brad Greenberg; AP Top 25 ballot

Here is this week's column from The Washington Post ----------

About two hours after Brad Greenberg's Radford basketball team lost to Winthrop in the semifinals of the Big South basketball tournament on Thursday night, his phone rang.

"You guys couldn't make a shot," Virginia Tech Coach Seth Greenberg told his big brother. "Tough to win -- even if you play good defense -- if you can't shoot."

The two brothers talked for a while about their mom and their families, and then -- inevitably -- more basketball.

"The difference between Brad and me is when he loses I wait a couple hours and call and he's fine," Seth Greenberg said. "When I lose he just texts me. Then he calls me the next day."

Brad and Seth Greenberg have been bonded as brothers and as basketball lifers since they were kids growing up on Long Island. Brad, who is 55, was a star at John F. Kennedy High School in Plainview, N.Y. Seth, two years younger, was his back-court mate when he was a sophomore and Brad was a senior.
"I was his inbounder," Seth said. "He did the rest."

"I would give him the ball back to dribble for a while if I got tired," Brad said. "Of course, I never got tired of shooting."

Almost 40 years later, they coach 15 miles down the road from each other: Seth in the Big Time -- the ACC -- Brad in the Big South. Brad has climbed the basketball mountain -- he was the general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers and drafted Allen Iverson in 1996 -- and is now happy and comfortable coaching in a one-bid conference far from the bright lights of the NBA or, for that matter, the ACC.


Click here for the rest of the article: Seth Greenberg, Brad Greenberg maintain brotherly bond

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Here is my ballot for this week's Associated Press Top 25 poll:

1) Kansas
2) Kentucky
3) Syracuse
4) Ohio State
5) Purdue
6) Duke
7) West Virginia
8) New Mexico
9) Butler
10) Temple
11) Michigan State
12) Villanova
13) Maryland
14) Pittsburgh
15) BYU
16) Kansas State
17) Tennessee
18) Baylor
19) Wisconsin
20) Northern Iowa
21) Texas A&M
22) Richmond
23) Xavier
24) Cornell
25) Siena