COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Former Missouri basketball player Al Eberhard will join the Tigers' coaching staff as a part-time assistant to help fill the void created by coach Norm Stewart's illness and the suspension of an assistant coach.
Eberhard, 36, was a two-time all-Big Eight Conference player during his playing days at Missouri. Athletic Director Dick Tamburo said he will assist interim head coach Rich Daly in the day-to-day operations of the basketball program, including practice and game preparation.
Dwight Evans, 26, one of two graduate assistants on the staff, will move into the full-time vacancy caused by Stewart's illness. The move will allow Evans to participate in the off-campus evaluation and recruitment of prospective athletes, Tamburo said.
The changes became necessary following the suspension of first assistant coach Bob Sundvold earlier this month and Stewart's illness. Sundvold was suspended with pay Feb. 8 after he revealed to school athletic officials that he might have violated NCAA rules.
A day later, Stewart collapsed on a team flight to Oklahoma and was found to have bleeding ulcers. A week later, he underwent surgery in Columbia for cancer of the colon and to remove his gall bladder. He remained hospitalized Monday and is not expected to return to coaching the No. 7 Tigers this season.
The suspension and illness left only Daly, Evans and another graduate assistant, Sam Moore, to coach the team.
'Rich and I have discussed the staff situation on a day-to-day basis ever since Norm became ill in Oklahoma on Feb. 9,' Tamburo said. 'With the Missouri high school tournament now under way, Rich felt it was important that our program be represented.
'I visited with Norm this morning to discuss bolstering the basketball coaching staff and he was very supportive of this action.'
Missouri had received permission from the NCAA to hire an additional coach.
'Al will be a big help to the University of Missouri basketball program, and to me,' Daly said. 'He'll be involved in practice and in assisting me on the bench at our remaining games. Plus, he'll free Dwight Evans to represent us on the road during the course of the Missouri state high school playoffs.'
Eberhard lettered at Missouri from 1972 thru 1974, was a first-round draft choice of the Detroit Pistons and spent four years in the NBA. He has previous coaching experience at the University of Tulsa.
