Mckay Hired To Revamp Men’s Basketball Team At Portland State

Ritchie McKay, assistant coach at Washington and former assistant at Bradley, was hired Tuesday to bring back men’s basketball at Portland State.

The Vikings dropped the sport in 1981 but are bringing it back, starting in the fall of 1996, as part of a move from NCAA Division II to the Division I-AA Big Sky Conference.

McKay, 30, was assistant to Bob Bender at Washington the past two seasons. Before that, he was assistant to Jim Molinari at Bradley for two years.

NCAA rules won’t allow Portland State to compete in the Big Sky tournament for the conference’s automatic NCAA postseason berth for eight years. School officials hope that rule changes. If it doesn’t, the school still will be eligible for an at-large postseason bid.

Former Kentucky forward Rodrick Rhodes announced he plans to finish his college career at Southern California.

Rhodes will have to sit out the 1995-96 season, but will be able to practice with the Trojans. He will complete his eligibility during the 1996-97 season.