Former Hoosier All-American tabbed new Hawks coach\nFormer IU basketball standout Mike Woodson was named the new head coach for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association Thursday. \nWoodson now has the task of transforming a long struggling franchise into a playoff contender. The Hawks finished the 2003-04 season with a 28-54 record, good for seventh place in the Central Division. Woodson has been given the reigns to a young, inexperienced bunch that includes former IU recruit Josh Smith, the No. 17 overall pick in the 2004 Draft and will look to Atlanta's elder statesman, former Hoosier Alan Henderson, for veteran leadership.\nA two-time All-American, Woodson led the 1978-79 Hoosiers to the NIT Championship, averaging 21 points per game during his junior season. That following summer, Woodson served as the captain for the U.S. team in the Pan American Games, leading the team to the gold medal. \nWoodson currently ranks as the fifth-leading scorer in IU history with 2,061 points. He averaged 19.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in his career and left IU with a degree in physical education.\nFollowing his college career, Woodson spent 11 years in the NBA compiling 10,981-points during his professional stint. He played for seven teams in the NBA after being selected as the 12th pick in the 1980 Draft by the New York Knicks.\nWoodson entered the coaching ranks soon after the conclusion of his playing days. Last season, Woodson earned himself an NBA Championship ring as an assistant on Larry Brown's Detroit Pistons. He served as Brown's top assistant last season and was an assistant under Brown in Philadelphia from 2001-03. \nPrior to working with Brown, he worked as an assistant with the Cleveland Cavaliers (1999-2001) with former Hoosier Randy Wittman and the Milwaukee Bucks (1996-99). \nWoodson replaces Terry Stotts who was fired in May.\nWoodson's hiring makes him the second IU alumnus who will be a head coach next season -- the other being New Jersey Nets coach Lawrence Frank. IU is currently the only university to boast more than one current NBA head coach.
Overton ranked No. 10 amateur golfer\nIU senior Jeff Overton, the reigning Big Ten Golfer of the Year, has vaulted to No. 10 in the most recent GolfWeek/Titleist U.S. Men's Amateur Rankings.\nThe Hoosier All-American has capped off his junior season by continuing his stellar play this summer. Overton won the Indiana Golf Association State Amateur June 28-July 1 by four strokes. Overton claimed the competition's top spot last year as well, making him only the fourth golfer to win back-to-back IGA Amateur championships. \nPrior to the Amateur, Overton finished sixth at the Sunnehanna Amateur and placed in a tie for 12th at the Northeast Amateur. \nFresh off the heels of his state amateur title, Overton is heading to Japan this week to compete in the 2004 Fuji Xerox U.S.A. Collegiate Golf Championship. The event pits a dozen college golfers from the U.S. against Japanese opponents in a match play format.\nWhen Overton returns from the Far East, he plans on competing in the Western Amateur, the Porter Cup in New York and will attempt to qualify for the U.S. Amateur Championship in August.
