Tag Archive for: NCAA
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/in News/by IPZPAT ANDREE TO BE REPRESENTED BY IPZ
/in News/by IPZWARREN, N.J., (April 16, 2020) — Pat Andree, an All-ACC Academic Team selection at North Carolina State University and one the NCAA’s Elite 3-Point shooters, has signed with IPZ, Andree and IPZ announced today.
The six-foot-eight stretch 4 power forward comes from Colts Neck, N.J., and Christian Brothers Academy, one of New Jersey’s perennial high school powerhouse programs, where he became the school’s leading scorer, breaking the 40-year-old record set by Bob Roma.
From CBA, Andree went to Lehigh University, starting in multiple games as a freshman on a senior-laden team that went to the Patriot League championship game. During his freshman season with the Mountain Hawks, Andree broke onto the national scene with an ESPN Top Ten performance, scoring a career-high 30 points against Saint Francis (Pa.). In that game, Andree made 10 threes (on 12 attempts) to set a school record.
During his sophomore season, Andree started in 29 of 30 games, averaging 12.6 points and shooting 42.9 percent from three-point range (79-184), helping the Mountain Hawks to the Patriot League Semi-Finals. Andree tormented league opponents as a match-up nightmare, stretching the floor as the league’s top Frontcourt 3-Point shooter, shooting 48.7% (55-113) from behind the arc in league play. He was 4th overall in the league in 3-point shooting, and 23rd in the nation, reaching double figures in 21 games and adding 5.8 rebounds per game. He was named First team All-Academic Patriot League.
During his junior season at Lehigh, Andree led the team in rebounds, was named to the Academic All-Patriot League team for the second straight season and had double-figure points in 22 of 29 games. He averaged 12.9 points and 6.2 rebounds and shot better than 42 percent from behind the arc in his final two seasons with the Mountain Hawks.
He was named to the Patriot League Honor Roll each year as a student-athlete during his tenure at Lehigh, graduating in three-years, and earning a degree in Psychology in May 2019.
At NC State, as a graduate transfer, Andree was named to the All-ACC Academic team, despite suffering an ankle injury versus Clemson in the 16th game of the season. Until that point in the season, he was averaging 9.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 22 minutes per game, starting in four of those games. He had shot 48% (23 of 48) from behind the three-point line up to that point in the season and was ranked among the top 5 in the ACC.
In the opening game of the season against Georgia Tech, Andree started for the Wolfpack scoring 12 points and pulling down 8 rebounds in his ACC debut. Against Florida Int’l, with the Wolfpack down 12 points in the first half, he came off the bench to score 14 consecutive points in under three minutes, including a 4-for-4 stretch from 3-point land to spark North Carolina State a runaway victory. On the road against UNC Wilmington, Andree knocked down 5-of-7 three-point attempts to lift the Wolfpack to a one-point Quad 1 win while surpassing 1,000 career points in NCAA-Division 1 play.
After knocking down a crucial 3-point shot versus Syracuse on the road, Andree suffered an injury to his ankle and his play was limited during the remainder of the season.
“Pat is a terrific young man and he was a great addition to our program,” said North Carolina State head basketball coach Kevin Keatts. “He is an elite-level shooter who has an incredible knowledge of the game. He also has a strong work ethic and is a fantastic teammate. Pat’s presence will make any locker room better and I believe he has a long professional career in front of him.”
“Patrick is not just an outstanding athlete, he is an amazing young man who has a tremendous basketball IQ and will only excel in the future,” said IPZ Managing Partner Robert Zito. “He has fully recovered from the ankle injury that impacted his season at NC State, and will be an asset to a professional team moving forward.”
“I had a great experience at North Carolina State, following my three-years at Lehigh,” said Andree. “I was so excited to play in the ACC and NCAA Tournaments, but the COVID-19 pandemic robbed everyone of that dream this year. I was pleased to have garnered the interest of several agents as my desire to continue to play basketball as a professional is strong and I am seriously committed to further developing my game. I feel very fortunate to have joined the IPZ family and proud to have their team of professionals helping me.”
Our Take on NCAA Issues
/in News/by IPZSeton Hall basketball: An expert’s advice on handling Isaiah Whitehead mess
Every now and then, you hear the phrase from an old-timer who still associates Seton Hall basketball with a 1961 point-shaving scandal.
“Cheatin’ Hall.”
That disgrace scarred the athletic department’s reputation for a generation.
Friday’s revelation by Yahoo Sports, that an unscrupulous agent listed former Pirate star Isaiah Whitehead on his payroll before the guard turned pro, is a far cry from throwing games. But it could leave a nasty stain. Exactly how nasty depends, in part, on how the university proceeds from here.
Bob Zito knows the deal. The seasoned public relations executive is managing partner of the Warren-based firm IPZ, which provides “strategic and tactical solutions” for professional athletes, media talent and entertainers. Among his past credentials: helping to build the New York Stock Exchange’s brand.
Gannett New Jersey asked Zito how he would advise Seton Hall, Whitehead and the NCAA as the FBI’s investigation into recruiting practices continues to rock college basketball.
“One of the big things in any situation like this — whether you’re a college, a basketball team or a Fortune 500 company — transparency is so important,” Zito said. “There are hundreds of (reporters) out there who will find someone to talk to them. You have to be transparent so no one can shoot at it. You can’t hide anything anymore.”
Seton Hall issued the following statement Friday afternoon: “We are aware of the Yahoo! Sports report. We have taken steps proactively to reach out to the NCAA and the BIG EAST Conference, and while we have not been contacted by investigators, we will be conducting our own internal review.”
Zito praised the statement as a good start. Fact-gathering always should be the first step.
“What Seton Hall has done so far is the exact right thing,” he said. “No. 1, you have to do your own internal review. That internal review has to be done by someone who is independent, but someone who knows what’s going on (in the sport).”
By independent, Zito means an investigator “who is not affiliated with the university,” he said. “That would be smart for Seton Hall.”
Speaking generally about someone in Whitehead’s position, Zito recommends telling the truth about agent relationships and letting the public assess a broken system.
“It’s, ‘Here’s what I did when I was 15, 16 years old, because that probably is the age when it starts,’” he said. “But he’s probably going to have to throw someone under the bus to do that, because my guess is it probably wasn’t his idea.”
So, expose whose idea it was.
“Young basketball players, people realize these kids are going to make money and latch onto them, give them bad counsel and steer them one way or another, and it’s just an ugly thing,” he said.
As for the NCAA, Zito recommends admitting failure as a starting point.
“Anybody involved in college basketball, quietly you know this stuff is going on, how it works,” he said. “The NCAA has turned a deaf ear to it.”
Each of his suggestions has a common thread: Transparency. That’s the first step toward earning public trust. As Seton Hall learned decades ago, that trust can be hard to regain.
FOUR NAGGING QUESTIONS
Here are four questions hanging over the program as the FBI investigation and Seton Hall’s internal probe unfold.
1. Did anyone employed by Seton Hall play a part in arranging for Whitehead to receive money from the agency ASM Sports?
2. Is there documentation that Hall head coach Kevin Willard knew about Whitehead’s ties to ASM while he was a student?
3. Did former assistant coach Tiny Morton’s reported $9,500 loan from ASM take place during his one season on the Pirates’ staff (2014-15)?
4. What impact, if any, does this have on the morale and focus of the current Hall team as it pursues a third straight NCAA Tournament appearance, especially given the seniors’ continued friendship with Whitehead?
View the story online.
