Men's College Basketball

Longtime Syracuse men's basketball coach Jim Boeheim said Wednesday the university has worked to formulate a succession plan.

Boeheim explained on ESPN Radio Syracuse he didn't want to provide many details because it could impact the Orange's recruiting, but he said the school will decide when to make the information public, and he expects to have a say in choosing his successor.

"There's a plan," Boeheim said. "I'm just telling you there's a plan."

The 77-year-old central New York native played college basketball at Syracuse from 1963 through 1966 and then joined the team's coaching staff as an assistant under Roy Danforth in 1969.

Boeheim was promoted to head coach in 1976 and held the role for the past 46 seasons. His career record stands at 1,098-424 (.721 winning percentage), but he vacated 101 victories as part of NCAA sanctions levied against the program in 2015.

His 997 official wins rank sixth in men's college basketball history and second among Division I coaches. One of the most amazing distinctions about is tenure is the Orange have never finished below .500.

That remarkable streak is under threat this season, however, as Cuse stands at 15-15 heading into the final game of the regular season against Miami on Saturday.

Boeheim, who previously confirmed he doesn't plan to retire after this season, said the succession plan is to ensure a smooth transition whenever he does step away.

"At the end of the day, I can promise you that I'm trying to leave this program in the best position that it can be in when I leave," Boeheim told ESPN Radio Syracuse. "I think we will be able to do that."

Mike Hopkins, who was named Boeheim's successor in 2015, left the program in 2017 after 23 years as an assistant to become the head coach at Washington.

Dan Raley of Sports Illustrated reported in February that Hopkins could still be considered as a potential successor by Syracuse.

Boeheim's current assistants are Adrian Autry, Gerry McNamara and Allen Griffin.

The Tennessee Volunteers officially approved and promoted a GoFundMe fundraiser for freshman guard Zakai Zeigler after a fire destroyed his Queens home in New York City, according to Grant Ramey of 247Sports.com.

Just hours into the fundraiser, over $235,000 had already been raised for Zeigler's family. 

"We have been absolutely blown away by the outpouring of support and generosity!" Zeigler wrote on the GoFundMe page. "Any contributions above and beyond our final losses/expenses will be donated to charity. Thank you to everyone who has given."

"Our administration did a terrific job," Tennessee men's basketball head coach Rick Barnes added on Tuesday night. "Once they got the news they jumped on it and got after it. Been doing what they have to do to get things in order so that we can help."

Rick Pitino's return to high-major college basketball may be nigh.

Eric Bickel and Jason Bishop of 106.7 The Fan's Sports Junkies reported Wednesday that Maryland is "heavily pursuing" Pitino, who's in his second season at Iona.

Bickel said the 69-year-old is the Terrapins' "No. 1 choice" and that some donors are "leading the charge."

Mark Turgeon stepped down as Maryland's head coach in December following a 5-3 start to the season. The pressure had been mounting following a 17-14 finish for the Terps in 2020-21.

Turgeon's departure was an example of the high expectations in College Park. He compiled a 226-116 record in 11 seasons but couldn't overcome his relative lack of NCAA tournament success—one trip to the Sweet 16.

Pitino is a proven winner. He led Kentucky and Louisville to one national championship apiece and guided his teams to seven Final Fours.

His impact is already being felt at Iona, with the Gaels on pace to finish with their third-highest winning percentage (.828) thanks to a 24-5 start.

The dilemma for Maryland or any other major program is whether hiring Pitino is worth the inevitable scrutiny it would bring.

Louisville vacated its 2013 national title and its 2012 Final Four run in February 2018 after a former assistant coach allegedly paid to have exotic dancers at parties for players and prospective recruits at an on-campus dorm.

Pitino was already gone by that point, getting fired in October 2017 after the school was implicated in the FBI's investigation into corruption in college basketball.

Basketball insider Adam Zagoria reported in February that Pitino was discussing a "lifetime" contract with Iona, so any speculation linking him to Maryland or another school could be moot.

Because of his age, the legendary coach might nevertheless relish the opportunity to win one more championship before he retires. Maryland clearly isn't at that level right now but because of its general stature shouldn't require a long rebuild to be nationally relevant again.

Georgetown men's basketball coach Patrick Ewing received support from the athletics department Wednesday amid questions about his job status:

"Coach Ewing's dedication as well as his success in last year's Big East Tournament is a testament to his leadership," athletic director Lee Reed said in the statement. "This gives us confidence that he can strengthen our program going forward."

The vote of confidence comes amid a miserable 6-22 season for the Hoyas, including an 0-17 mark in the Big East. Georgetown has two regular-season games remaining, but it hasn't won a game since beating Howard on Dec. 15.

Ewing is 68-81 overall in five years as Georgetown's head coach, with only one season better than .500. The Hoyas' lone NCAA tournament appearance under Ewing came last year after a shocking run to win the Big East tournament, securing the conference's automatic bid. 

Georgetown was 9-12 last year before winning four games in four days in the conference tournament. The squad proceeded to lose to Colorado by 23 in the first round in the NCAA tournament. 

Georgetown has two commits for the 2022 recruiting class, including 4-star guard Denver Anglin, but it will take a lot for the struggling program to turn things around.

Georgetown hired Ewing in 2017 even though he had no head coaching experience. He spent more than a decade as an assistant coach in the NBA.

The 59-year-old should get extra leeway as one of the best players in program history. The Basketball Hall of Famer led Georgetown to three Final Four appearances and one NCAA title, and he won the Naismith Award as the national player of the year in 1985.

The No. 1 pick of the 1985 NBA draft went on to earn 11 All-Star selections with the New York Knicks.

Despite his struggles as Georgetown's head coach, Ewing will seemingly get at least another year to prove himself.