Whittenburg gets Fordham job

NEW YORK, May 15 (UPI) -- Dereck Whittenburg, who guided Wagner to its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance last season, Thursday was named men's basketball coach at Fordham.

He succeeds the embattled Bob Hill, who was fired.

"After meeting with Father O'Hare and getting to know the Fordham basketball family, I realized that this is a great opportunity," Whittenburg said. "I look forward to building the type of program that everyone in the Fordham basketball family can be proud of."

Forever known as the player whose airball turned into the winning basket for North Carolina State in the 1983 national championship game, Whittenburg compiled a 67-50 record in four seasons at Wagner.

"Dereck Wittenburg's record, first as an assistant coach, and more recently as head coach at Wagner College, demonstrates that he is the kind of coach who can achieve athletic success on the hardwood while maintaining academic integrity," said Fordham President Rev. Joseph O'Hare.

The Seahawks improved their record each season under Whittenburg. In March, they lost to second-seeded Pittsburgh in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Midwest Region.

Before going to Staten Island, Whittenburg, 42, served as an assistant coach at his alma mater, North Carolina State, George Mason, Long Beach State, Colorado, West Virginia, and Georgia Tech. He turned down an assistant's job with the NBA's Vancouver Grizzlies, while they were coach by former Wolfpack teammate Sidney Lowe, before he was hired by Wagner.

Hill had his 10-year, $2.5 million contract terminated April 30 with six years remaining. The Rams' 4-24 record last season was the worst in school's 100-year history.