It’s not been a great couple of years for NBA folks dabbling in Division III, at least not in terms of longevity. Former NBA coach Chris Ford, who couldn’t get a D-I job and spent two years at Brandeis, bolted back to the NBA. Former Chicago Bull Rusty LaRue (see front page story) left Greensboro after one season.

We checked, though, Armon Gilliam, at left, is still the coach at Penn State-Altoona.

Now we hear another former NBA coach is looking to settle down and put down some roots as a Division III head coach. Unfortunately, there aren’t many jobs open right now. Some advice — your predecessors from the NBA have damaged your credibility right out of the box. You’ll need to do more than you expect to convince administrations that you’re not just looking for a transitional job to get back to Division I or the pros. But we wish you good luck!

The Wisconsin Radio Network is reporting that UW-Madison (non Division III people tend to refer to this school as just plain “Wisconsin”) has set its men’s basketball exhibition schedule for the upcoming season and will host UW-River Falls and Lawrence. The women will host Division III UW-Platteville and a Division II school.

UW-Madison men’s coach Bo Ryan won four Division III national titles at UW-Platteville. Women’s coach Lisa Stone coached 12 seasons at UW-Eau Claire, reaching the NCAA Tournament 11 times. She also coached three seasons at Division III Cornell.