March 14, 2002

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) - Sidney Green heard the whispers when he went 2-28 in his first season as Florida Atlantic's coach.

Skeptics doubted he'd ever be able to turn the Owls into winners, much less lead them to the NCAA tournament.

"You will always have naysayers. You will always have doubters. But I let all that fuel my fire," the former UNLV star and NBA player said.

Green took over a relatively young program that had had just one winning season in Division I before his arrival. This year, he led the team to the NCAA tournament.

"We're looking at this as just another opportunity to accomplish our dreams. ... Who would ever fathom that we would be in this position?" Green said.

"Now, are we happy? Just looking into the eyes of these players. ... No, they're not happy. They're not satisfied."

This is Florida Atlantic's 14th year of basketball and just its ninth in Division I. The Owls, who earned their first NCAA berth by winning the Atlantic Sun Conference tournament, won seven games last season.

Green appeared in one NCAA tournament game when he played at UNLV, losing to eventual national champion North Carolina State 71-70 in the second round in 1983.

"It was a wonderful, wonderful moment," Green said.

"Back then, I embraced it. I enjoyed every second of it. And that's exactly what I told these guys: To enjoy it, to embrace it, but still understand that we've got a job to do."