Shatel: Altman, Jays need return to roots

ST. LOUIS — Well, we wanted Dana Altman to take Creighton basketball to another level.

This isn't quite what we had in mind.

For the first time since 1997, Creighton won't be attending the NCAA tournament or the NIT. For the first time since 2006 — and only the third time since 1998 — the Jays went one-and-done at the Missouri Valley tournament.

Careful what you wish for.

When Altman came back from his one-day commitment to the University of Arkansas in April 2007, the assumption was that he was coming home to elevate the Jays to the vaunted “next level.'' Which, in many minds, meant Gonzaga.

Creighton can't be Gonzaga. Different (easier) league, different situation, different coach.

Creighton has to be Creighton. And Altman has to be Altman.

If that's not good enough for CU, then it can decide to move on and find another way to win basketball games.

Funny, though, the program Altman had before 2008 made a lot of Creightonians proud, filled Qwest Center Omaha to the brim and raised the price of Jays basketball that fans complain about now.

Altman and CU fans want their shot at the Sweet 16, the Final Four for mid-majors. But it seems that we all forgot what put the Jays in position to dream in the first place.

Since the spring of 2007, in an effort to upgrade talent and athleticism, Altman and assistant Brian Fish hit the recruiting ranking charts and the left coast. CU fans were dazzled as the name players came rolling into Omaha.

Didn't we learn this lesson a few years ago, about 60 miles to the west, in a different sport?

Altman seemed to forget the very lesson he taught everyone from 1998 to 2007.

That is, talent doesn't win in the Missouri Valley. Fundamentals win. Passion for basketball wins. Passion for winning.

The Valley doesn't attract big-time talent. It gets players with potential who have to be developed. The backbone of the Valley lies in the runts and the gamers from all the small-town hoop hotbeds from Indiana to Nebraska.

Yes, the Jays tied for the Valley crown last year and won 25 regular-season games. But a heady point guard and go-to scorer hid a lot of competitive deficiencies, things that were exposed in alarming fashion this season.

Creighton has forgotten how to do the little things that win big games — a pattern that started at Dayton, went to Michigan and continued. Bradley reminded CU of what it used to be on Friday.

The Jays swept the Braves in the regular season, but in the biggest game of the three, Bradley made the plays.

Altman doesn't help his own cause. Right after freshman Ethan Wragge hit his second 3-pointer to make it 15-8, Altman used the first TV timeout to substitute Cavel Witter, Kaleb Korver, Wayne Runnels, Darryl Ashford and Casey Harriman for the starting five — the five players who were on the verge of running Bradley out of the building.

You have to give yourself a chance to win. It's March. The starting five don't need a rest. And Wragge looked as if he was just getting warmed up.

By the time the starters came back, three minutes later, Bradley had cut the lead to 15-12.

The second half was more telling. Bradley, which had fought back to lead 32-31 at halftime, got serious. The first 10 minutes of the second half, the Braves worked harder, played better defense and flew to the basket.

The Kodak moment came when Chris Roberts, a 6-4 guard, leaped over everyone and slammed home a rebound with one hand, bringing the Bradley crowd to life.

The man of the moment was Sam Maniscalco, a 6-foot junior guard from Chicago, who scored 31 points — 17 in the second half. He drove Altman batty by going to the line three times after drawing fouls on 3-point attempts. Maniscalco made all nine free throws, and 18 of 19 from the line.

The CU staff would bemoan Maniscalco's ability to throw a shoulder into the defender and sell the foul.

“That's bad coaching,'' Altman said of his team getting sucked into Maniscalco's game.

That's good basketball. That's what Ryan Sears and Nate Funk used to do.

I predicted CU would win this weekend because someone would step up and take over the proceedings and will his team to victory.

That someone played for Bradley.

Before the tournament, Altman gathered his players in the Scottrade Center to show them the championship banners with Creighton on them and remind them of the tradition. But tradition is inspiring only if you care about it enough.

Bradley wanted the game more than Creighton and took it. And the Jays let it happen. Afterward, they walked to the locker room with faces painted more with resignation than pain.

“Our guys don't like to lose,'' Creighton Athletic Director Bruce Rasmussen said. “But they don't hate to lose. Maniscalco hates to lose. He did all the little things he could to win that game. We used to hate to lose.

“To get to that next level, you think you have to have better athletes. There's a balance. We have lost a little bit of that toughness. The way to tell if a kid has bought in is if they do the things you haven't asked them to do. Our kids do the work they are told to do. We used to have guys who would do extra, spend more time in the gym and do whatever it took.''

A lot of people say Altman has lost his passion for coaching at Creighton since the Arkansas deal. That's easy to say. I say he lost the players who shared his passion — and it makes it look as if he's lost it, too.

“Dana hasn't lost his passion for it at all,'' Rasmussen said. “What he's got to do is find the kids who have it, too.''

What it means is that Altman's future at CU is at a crossroads.

The lack of leadership and attention to detail is like a virus in the program. Some players probably won't be back. But you can't get rid of them all. What Altman must do is find some new blood — or old-school blood — to show the rest the way. The coaching staff and recruiting philosophy need examining. So do strength and conditioning.

“It's a combination of both,'' Altman said. “We need some new guys coming in, but we also need the guys returning to rededicate themselves.''

The program needs a serious tweaking, not an overhaul. But the virus must be removed.

It should be an interesting offseason.

Contact the writer:

444-1025, tom.shatel@owh.com

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