Abatemarco = win?

1-25. So what.

Tom Abatemarco, head coach of the men's basketball team, knows well of the record that stands before him from the '97-'98 season.

But don't tell him he can't win.

He sits in his cramped, two-toned office surrounded by stacks of papers and broken down furniture and he has a vision.

A native of Brooklyn, New York, Abatemarco grew up with dreams of coaching.

"I knew I always wanted to coach. I went to college and got a degree in education so I could become a better coach," he said.

At a young age, Abatemarco would sneak into Madison Square Garden to watch St. John's and the New York Knicks play. He also volunteered his time to work in the arena just to follow his hometown teams.

"I fell in love with basketball going to these games, and it was a great experience for me," he said.

He never thought of himself as a great player, but always knew that he wanted to coach and that he had a good eye for talent. His track record proves it.

In his collegiate coaching career, he recruited NBA standouts like Spud Webb, Thearl Bailey, Buck Williams, and Nate McMillan, all of whom have made names for themselves in the national league.

"In my career, I've been very lucky to be involved with recruiting a lot of future pro players," he said.

He is proud of his accomplishments and is not shy about sharing them. Whether it's pictures with coaching greats Digger Phelps and Dick Vitale or candid photos with the North Carolina State team he and the late Jim Valvano help guide to a championship in 1982.

A veteran of college coaching, Abatemarco knows what it takes to win and he wants to show his team how to do it and he is hoping that his past sucess comtinues into his career at Sac State.

He has gained support from fellow coaches and Athletic Director Judith Davidson.

"She was the one who sold me on the idea of coaching at Sac State, and I felt this was a program I could help build from the ground on up," he said.

The ground floor starts with the addition of nine new players who joined the Hornet squad this year. In fact this year's squad has gained national recognition as one of the top 50 recruiting classes in the country -- a contrast to a team that had only two scholarship players and lost nine players at the end of the season.

In one year, Abatemarco and his staff have revamped a struggling program starting with the addition of two standout guards, Nate Murase and Rene Jacques.

Both Murase and Jacques garnered much of their success at St. Joseph's High School in the Bay Area.

"We're getting noticed from people associated with the sport, but we need to gain respectability from the university and the community," said Abatemarco.

With a new crop of freshman, it will be difficult for them to gain respect as the new kids on the block.

"These new kids coming in, really don't have any role models, or anyone to sit them down to tell them how hard things are in Division I, so it's a shock to them," he said.

Abatemarco is a strong advocate for academic excellence. He stresses books as much as he does athletics.

"A player who is prepared off the court will be better prepared on the court," he said.

Abatemarco assures that his team is working hard and showing improvement.

"We will make mistakes, but we will do some good things this season," he said.

"It's easy to watch a team win. But what's better, is watching a team grow each year. My job is to get them ready. All I ask for in return is for their respect and trust, because I know they're going to play hard."

With his experience and guidance, results may come sooner than we think.