NEW YORK CITY — Buried in the far corner of Madison Square Garden’s theater lobby, Troy Bell looked almost relieved to see a reporter ambling his way.

“Good, somebody saw me,” Bell said. “I was starting to get lonely over here, like nobody remembered me.”

At yesterday’s Big East men’s basketball Media Day, it seemed the media had forgotten the Boston College point guard, once a Big East Player of the Year.

Instead, the focus was on Pittsburgh guard Brandin Knight, who won Big East Player of the Year last season and was announced as the conference’s Preseason Player of the Year yesterday.

So while Bell sat alone in the corner, Knight, silver earing flashing, smiled his way through an hour of interviews.

“Yeah, he’s the popular man today,” Bell said. “But it doesn’t bother me. We’ll see who all the cameras love at the end of the season.”

At Madison Square Garden a year ago, the media flocked to Bell. He was named the Big East’s best player after the 2000-2001 season and the Preseason Player of the Year prior to 2001-2002.

But Bell’s season — one that still earned him a spot on the all-conference team — fell victim to injury and inconsistency. Bell led the conference with nearly 22 points a game, but his shot left him early in the year. For the year, he shot just 30 percent from three-point range as Boston College stumbled to a 20-12 record and a loss in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Meanwhile, Knight scored 16 points a game and dished an average of seven assists to lead Pittsburgh to a 29-6 record and the NCAA’s Sweet 16.

“He had a good year, I had a bad year,” Bell said. “That’s why he’s getting the attention. But things are going to change this year. I’m looking to be a totally different player, work harder, win more.

“I’m going to prove I’m the best player in the Big East. And yeah, that means even better than (Knight).”

***

Sweet home

At first, Josh Yeager detested John Beilein, the first-year West Virginia head coach.

Yeager, a senior at West Virginia, hated how Beilein called to check on players during the day, making sure they were attending class. He hated how Beilein forced his team to attend study hall. He hated feeling like throwing up after every practice.

“At first, I really resented him,” Yeager said. “But he’s what this team needs. He’s telling us, ‘Put the team first.’ Since I’ve been here, that’s never been our identity.”

Last year, West Virginia didn’t have an identity at all. Long-time coach Gale Catlett fell sick during the season and handed the reigns to his nephew, Drew. Gale Catlett officially retired after the season — which the Mountaineers finished 8-20 — and West Virginia hired Dan Dakich only to watch him return to his old job at Bowling Green a week later.

Nearly a month later, West Virginia settled on Beilein, formerly Richmond’s head coach.

“For a few months there, it was like we didn’t have a coach,” Yeager said. “But now, we’ve finally found the guy who could turn this thing around.”

***

TV time

The Big East released yesterday the television schedule for the upcoming season. Syracuse games will be broadcast nationally 12 times before the Big East tournament in March.

ESPN2 will cover SU’s season opener against Memphis on Nov. 14 in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.

Syracuse will play twice on CBS (Jan. 26 at Miami and Feb. 23 at Michigan State) and once on ABC (March 1 at Georgetown).

Syracuse will play on ESPN2 three times, counting the Coaches vs. Cancer game. ESPN will broadcast the Orangemen six times, including three on Big Monday (Jan. 13 vs. Missouri, Feb. 3 vs. Georgetown and Feb. 10 at Connecticut).

Published on October 23, 2002 at 12:00 pm