Chanting Monmouth fans tear into Isiah Thomas' scandals as FIU loses
BY Matt Gagne
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Saturday, November 14th 2009, 4:00 AM
Rothstein for NewsCrowds at Monmouth unrelentingly chanted insults at former Knicks coach Isiah Thomas, as his Florida International team lost, 99-70. Related NewsIsiah's new hoops team to face North CarolinaJazz to make things worse for KnicksIsiah's shaky college coaching debutKnicks prove they have a pulseKnicks match worst start with loss to HawksWEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. - An hour away from the Garden, Isiah Thomas got the same reaction Friday night that he grew accustomed to in midtown, and it wasn't pretty. But then, neither was the result for Thomas' new team, as Florida International came out on the wrong end of a 99-70 drubbing in the opener of Monmouth's new $57 million arena.
Back in the New York area, Thomas couldn't escape his controversial and tumultuous past in Manhattan. The former Knicks president and coach may have turned to college basketball looking for a new start, but Thomas still was ridiculed as if he were the one leading Mike D'Antoni's squad to the worst start in franchise history.
"I'm used to being in a hostile work environment as athlete and former Bad Boy, every place we went to was this kind of environment," said Thomas, a Hall of Famer who won back-to-back NBA titles with the Pistons in the 1988-89 and 1989-90 seasons. "It's all in good spirit and good fun, that's what being a fan is all about. ... I thought the students were well in line and in bounds with the chants that they were saying."
And there were many chants, covering all of Thomas' scandals. During pregame introductions, he was showered with chants of "sexual harassment" from the student section, located on the baseline closest to the Golden Panthers' bench. Prior to that, he was the target of "take Lunesta" chants, referring to his accidental overdose of sleeping pills last fall that was initially thought to be a suicide attempt.
Five minutes into the Hawks' rout, the student body started chanting "Anucha Sanders," referring to the former Garden executive who accused Thomas of sexual harassment and won a multimillion-dollar lawsuit two years ago. Monmouth (1-0) led by as many as 17 in the first half and 31 in the second, but there was little sympathy or compassion for Thomas, whose mother is home in Chicago recovering from heart surgery earlier this week.
The student body also chanted "Magic hates you," referring to the accusations Magic Johnson made in his new book that blindsided Thomas and may forever ruin their friendship. As Thomas walked on the court to tend an injured player late in the first half, he was greeted with boos and chants of "you (stink)." As he walked across the court at the end of halftime, the student body pointed at Thomas in unison and made a one-word chant out of a seven-letter profanity.
Through it all, Thomas kept his cool, even as he came off the court following the final buzzer and an adult fan accosted him, repeatedly saying "---- you" nearly a dozen times, according to one eyewitness.
"I don't even think he's a student here, he's not in college," Thomas said. "He got out of line and security put him in line."
He may be used to hostile crowds, but the experience was all new for Thomas, who fell to 0-2 in his college coaching career. All new, except for one familiar chant that seemingly still echoes at the Garden. With the Golden Panthers trailing 55-38 four and a half minutes into the second half, the Monmouth student body leaned back, opened their lungs and began chanting: "Fire Isiah! Fire Isiah! Fire Isiah!"
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/college/2009/11/14/2009-11-14_monmouth_req.html#ixzz1J2nDR8Au
11/14/2009 4:48 PM