Flame Catch Case of March Madness

March 14, 2006 - NBA G League (G League)
Florida Flame News Release


FORT MYERS, Fla., March 14 - Eight players and one coach from the Florida Flame have participated in the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament and National Invitation Tournament, while four players hail from schools recently seeded in this year's NCAA and NIT tournaments - potentially providing some interesting locker room banter over the Flame's final ten regular season games.

Flame players Duane Erwin, George Leach, Reed Rawlings, E.J. Rowland, Theron Smith, T.J. Sorrentine, Lenny Stokes, and Bracey Wright all have NCAA Tournament and NIT playing experience under their belt during their college basketball careers. Flame Assistant Coach Terry Thimlar has NCAA Tournament coaching experience during his college coaching days. Memphis, Indiana, and Cincinnati are among the universities currently participating in this year's postseason tournaments that are represented on Florida's roster.

Two members of this year's Flame squad, Leach and Wright, played for Indiana. The Hoosiers are the sixth seed in the Oakland bracket and open NCAA Tournament play against 11th-seeded San Diego State in Salt Lake City, Utah on Thursday. Leach was a member of three NCAA Tournament teams with the Hoosiers in 2001, 2002, and 2003. The 6-11, center was a member of Indiana's 2002 club that advanced all the way to the NCAA title game before falling to Maryland. Wright appeared in one NCAA Tournament (2003) and one NIT (2005) while in Bloomington. The 6-3, guard tallied a team-high 17 points in the Hoosiers first-round win over Alabama in the 2003 NCAA Tourney.

Erwin's Memphis Tigers earned the number-one seed in the Oakland bracket by winning the Conference USA Tournament this past weekend and will start their NCAA Tournament schedule on Friday against 16th-seeded Oral Roberts in Dallas, Texas. The 6-9, forward was a member of two NCAA Tournament clubs (2003 and 2004) and two NIT clubs (2002 and 2005) during his collegiate days at Memphis. The 2005 Tigers advanced all the way to the NIT semifinals in New York City with victories over Northeastern, Virginia Tech, and Vanderbilt before falling to St. Joseph's at Madison Square Garden.

Stokes' Cincinnati Bearcats were snubbed by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee, but earned a number-one seed for this year's NIT. The Bearcats receive a first-round bye and will host the winner of Charlotte and Georgia Southern in the second round. Stokes participated in four NCAA Tournaments under former head coach Bob Huggins from 2000 through 2003. The Bearcats advanced to the second round in 2000, the Sweet 16 of the West Regional in 2001, the second round in 2002, and were ousted by Gonzaga in the first round of the 2003 tournament. The 6-5, swingman played the greatest game of his college career in the 2002 tourney, hitting for 39 points and 10 rebounds in a 105-101 second-round loss to UCLA.

Smith played in one NCAA Tournament and one NIT while attending Ball State. In 2000, the Cardinals fell to UCLA, 65-57, in the first round of the NCAA tourney, but in 2002 the Cardinals advanced to the NIT's Elite Eight with wins over South Florida and St. Joseph's.

Rowland helped lead St. Mary's (Calif.) to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1997 last season as a senior. The Gaels earned a 10th seed but were ousted in the first round by Southern Illinois, 65-56, as Rowland tallied seven points and three assists.

Sorrentine led the Vermont Catamounts to the first three NCAA Tournament bids in school history in 2002, 2004, and 2005. As a senior in 2005, Sorrentine led the Catamounts to the NCAA Tournament for the third time, averaging 18.7 points, 4.3 assists, and hitting a team-high 116 three-point field goals. In two tournament games, Sorrentine scored 43 points and hit 11 three-pointers as Vermont advanced to the second round for the first time. In Vermont's opening round match-up, Sorrentine tallied 17 points and hit a game-clinching, 30-foot three-pointer in overtime to help the 13th-seeded Catamounts pull off a stunning 60-57 upset of fourth-seeded Syracuse. Sorrentine also poured in 26 points in Vermont's 72-61 second round loss to Michigan State.

Rawlings led Samford to its first two NCAA Tournament bids in 1999 and 2000. As a senior, Rawlings was a Third-Team All-Trans America Athletic Conference selection while leading Samford to the 2000 NCAA Tournament. In Samford's first-round match-up with Syracuse, Rawlings posted 28 points and tied a career-high with five three-pointers. As a junior, Rawlings led the Bulldogs and finished fifth in the TAAC in scoring (16.5 ppg) as Samford reached the NCAA Tourney for the first time in school history.

Thimlar has NCAA Tournament experience as a coach. Thimlar was an assistant at Indiana State in 1979 as ISU posted a perfect 28-0 regular season record led by Larry Bird and advanced to the NCAA title game in Salt Lake City. The Sycamores lost to Magic Johnson and Michigan State in one of the most memorable NCAA championship games in history.

The Florida Flame is the official D-League affiliate of the NBA's Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Orlando Magic. Showcasing the best young talent in professional basketball outside of the NBA, the Flame play a 48-game schedule during the 2005-06 season with 23 home games at Germain Arena. Led by a group of local investors, the Flame is now in its second season of providing affordable, family entertainment to sports fans throughout Southwest Florida.

For additional information, please visit floridaflame.com or contact Florida Flame Director of Media Relations, Tim Becwar at (239) 561-8130 and tbecwar@floridaflame.com. For additional information on the NBA Development League please visit NBADLEAGUE.com.



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