Interim Coach Places Focus On Strong Finish

Whistle in mouth, Don Newman waits at courtside, so intent on practice that he forgets he’s on all fours for a better look at the flow of play.

A moment later, he’s on his feet and under the basket, showing forward Mike Batiste how to set a pick.

“You’re going in there with a mission, and you want to make sure you get a piece of him,” the Arizona State coach says, his thick forearms massed across his chest, knuckles touching in the middle.

The voice is soft and musical, but Newman is intent. He was a two-sport pro who came close to making rosters in the NBA and the NFL, and players listen when he talks about making contact.

In a sense, he is a man with a mission as well - trying to convince athletic director Kevin White that he could repeat this season’s success for years to come.

The 40-year-old Newman took over a 10-20 team 2-1/2 months before practice began, was forced to deal with a point-shaving scandal involving two former players, and has a daily struggle to keep his overworked starters healthy.

The Sun Devils (16-9, 6-6) are finishing up with seven recruited players on scholarship.

But they beat Cincinnati on its homecourt, and came within one missed shot of upsetting both Kansas and Arizona. If they win four of their last six starting tonight at Oregon, the Sun Devils might get invited to the NCAA Tournament for only the third time in 16 seasons.

White declined to say whether there is any goal the team could reach that would make Newman a candidate.