Why University of Evansville men's basketball had best run in Division I under Jim Crews

EVANSVILLE, Ind. — With Jim Crews’ steady hand at the wheel, the University of Evansville men’s basketball program experienced by far its longest run of success at the Division I level, making four trips to the NCAA tournament and two NIT appearances.

He doesn’t want to take credit for that and doesn’t have a blueprint for the current Aces to rise from the ashes and return to prominence. However, Crews proved a small academic school where it's difficult to recruit can still thrive.

It's all about togetherness.

“The first thing is I didn’t do it,” Crews said by phone driving back to his home in Indianapolis after spending a few days in Evansville recently. “President Jim Vinson was outstanding and (athletics director) Jim Byers’ leadership was off the charts.”

Crews, who coached the Aces from 1985 until 2002, said they proved a small school could win by committee. It took everyone from sports information director Bob Boxell to trainer Daryl Buente to strength coach Jeff Sellers and “the rest of the staff. I haven’t even talked about the (assistant) coaches. We worked together. We were not in conflict. Everyone helped each other out.”

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Crews’ formula for success was recruiting “high-character kids.” Landing Big Ten transfers Marty Simmons from Indiana University and Scott Haffner from Illinois turned the Aces' program around dramatically. His talented staff also transformed gangly project Dan Godfread into a center talented enough to play for the Minnesota Timberwolves in 1990-91 and Houston Rockets in ’91. Haffner, a sharpshooting guard, played for the Miami Heat in 1989-90 and Charlotte Hornets in ’91.

“They believed in us and we believed in them,” Crews said. “We kept fighting through tough times and pushed to get better. A lot of time it’s a process you have to go through to be a really good team. Realistically, you start over each year. That’s an issue that’s true today more than ever.”

Crews said his players loved giving back to the community, such as helping underprivileged children learn to read. He always makes a point to say that UE is a special place.

“First of all, Evansville is not for everybody,” Crews said. “The basketball program is not for everybody. Academically you have a very good student-professor ratio. You know each other.”

At a big public school, classes sometimes range from 120 to 300 students, Crews said.

“You can’t get a personal relationship,” he said.

A positive attitude is a recipe for success.

“You want to help and encourage each other,” Crews said. “That’s the beauty of the University of Evansville.”

As a player, Marty Simmons led the resurgence

Crews has a special fondness for Simmons, who revitalized the UE program as a player. He ranked sixth in the nation with a 25.9 scoring average and lifted the Aces to the second round of the NIT in 1988. Haffner sparked them to the NCAAs a year later.

Once Crews’ assistant, Simmons later posted a 184-175 record in 11 seasons as UE head coach. When then-Aces athletics director Mark Spencer fired Simmons in 2018, he said he wanted a coach who could lead UE to a tournament with an “N” in the title (NCAA or NIT). Simmons guided UE to a CIT title, but never an NCAA or NIT berth.

“I love Marty,” said Crews of Simmons, currently head coach at Eastern Illinois. “He’s a great coach. Sports is like life. Sometimes it breaks your heart. You dust yourself off and move on.

“Marty gets it. He has a passion for the town and the University of Evansville. Unfortunately, things didn’t break the right way.”

Marcus Wilson, who sparked UE to its most recent NCAA tournament berth in 1999, was an assistant on Crews’ staff at Saint Louis along with local legend Calbert Cheaney. Crews led the Billikens to back-to-back NCAA tournament trips in 2013 and '14 before the program faltered.

“Calbert’s not really from Evansville,” Crews joked. “He hasn't eaten at the Log Inn. Calbert is one of the all-time great people.”

Cheaney was a finalist in 2018 for the UE head coaching position, which went to fellow Harrison High School graduate Walter McCarty, whose highs and lows coaching the Aces are well-documented — from stunning No. 1 Kentucky to the firing and investigation for conduct for allegedly violating Title IX laws

Todd Lickliter took over in January 2020. UE fell to its lowest ebb this past season, finishing 6-24 before he was dismissed.

"There's no need for my advice," said Crews, who posted a 294-209 record in 17 seasons coaching the Aces.

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His mother always said you can give an opinion without all the facts and that's all it is — an opinion. Crews is confident UE president Christopher Pietruszkiewicz and new athletics director Kenneth "Ziggy" Siegfried will make the right hire and steer the Aces back on course.

Jim Crews, Bob Knight still in contact

Crews stays in touch with Bob Knight, for whom he played for and served as an assistant at IU. But he did not want to comment on the state of Knight's health; Knight had problems with memory during a public appearance in 2019 and may be suffering from dementia.

"We've always had a relationship for 50 years," Crews said.

He said there was no way he could've envisioned the 1976 Indiana University Hoosiers would be the last NCAA Division I men's basketball team to go through the season undefeated.

"Never. Not even close," said Crews, a top reserve on that IU team. "After that year at our (team) banquet coach Knight said it was quite an accomplishment. It's cool."

In addition to talent, what separated that team from so many others was its intelligence. Using a football analogy, Crews said they were like a team of quarterbacks, who knew everything everybody else was going to do in advance.

"We always enjoy reminiscing," said Crews, noting the 1976 IU players get together every year. "We talk about our kids and go on with life. We're pretty forward-thinking."

He said Knight had a knack of putting his players in a position to be successful.

"He would maximize your assets and minimize your liabilities," Crews said. "He taught the players how to work together and understand the value of each possession."

Crews said Knight valued intelligence over everything else in terms of recruiting.

"The guys who played were very mentally quick," he said. "He sees the big picture. He taught it every day. He makes everyone a quarterback."

Now 68, Crews is enjoying retirement.

"Life is great," he said.

Before the pandemic, he helped former IU teammate Tom Abernethy coach first, second and third graders.

"That's right in my wheelhouse," Crews said. "The virus kind of knocked that out. I enjoyed doing it. I'm loving life."

Contact Gordon Engelhardt by email at gordon.engelhardt@courierpress.com and follow him on Twitter @EngGordon.

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Why Evansville men's basketball had best run in D-I under Jim Crews