ESPN’s Seth Greenberg praises UNCW and head coach Kevin Keatts

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY ) — ESPN basketball analyst Seth Greenberg watched the UNCW men’s basketball team practice on Wednesday. Afterwards the former Virginia Tech head basketball coach praised the Seahawks basketball program and head coach Kevin Keatts. “Why can’t Wilmington be the next Butler?   Why can’t Wilmington be the next Wichita State? Why can’t be Wilmington be the next VCU? Well they can,” Greenberg told WWAY on Wednesday. “They have everything in place. Really what it comes down to is continuing to make a commitment. The goal is to make every game here not a game, but an event. I think something special is happening here. It has to be a shared vision with everyone.”

Seth Greenberg served as the guest speaker on Wednesday night at the inaugural UNCW men’s basketball kickoff banquet at the Burney Center on the UNCW campus.

WILMINGTON, NC (UNCW) — Popular ESPN television and radio analyst Seth Greenberg made a stopover in Wilmington on Thursday night and declared “you’ve got something special going on here” with UNCW’s defending Colonial Athletic Association men’s basketball champions.

Greenberg, speaking at the inaugural UNCW Men’s Basketball Kick-off Dinner at the Burney Center, spent 20 minutes addressing a crowd of nearly 350 fans and supporters. Proceeds from the dinner and two auctions benefitted the program.

The Seahawks officially begin practice next Friday, Sept. 30, in preparation for an exhibition contest on Nov. 6 vs. Mount Olive. UNCW kicks off the regular season with Claflin on Friday, Nov. 11, at Trask Coliseum.

Greenberg was following the Seahawks and two-time CAA Coach-of-the-Year Kevin Keatts intently when UNCW nearly stunned defending champion Duke in last year’s NCAA Tournament.

“You can’t afford to buy that kind of publicity,” Greenberg said of UNCW’s near-upset of the Blue Devils. “You can feel the culture of this program in this room. If you want to be a Gonzaga or a Wichita State or a Butler, you have to understand there’s a cost to doing business at that level. It doesn’t just happen.

“If you really aspire to be special, it has to be a shared vision. Coach Keatts is going to win. Everyone has to be in it together. If you do, they won’t be talking about UNCW making the tournament, they’ll be talking about UNCW advancing in the tournament.”

Greenberg visited with the Seahawk faithful before and after the event and had a special message for the players.

“You can play with anyone,” Greenberg told the Seahawks. “You’re going to get knocked back a couple times and that’s all part of it. But you’re at the point now where there’s no such thing as a moral victory. This program’s at the point where you come to practice every day, put your hard hat on and who knows what you can accomplish.”

Greenberg, 60, was a college basketball coach for 34 seasons before moving into his current position as an analyst at ESPN. He served as the head coach at Long Beach State, South Florida and Virginia Tech and guided his teams to11 post-season appearances, including three NCAA berths and eight NIT bids. In 2005 and 2008, Greenberg was named ACC Coach-of-the-Year at Virginia Tech.

Keatts is the first back-to-back Coach-of-the-Year honoree in the history of the CAA. In his first two seasons with the Seahawks, Keatts has racked up 43 wins, the highest total for a Seahawk head coach in his first two seasons. Keatts is also the first UNCW skipper to win consecutive regular season championships in his first two years.

The Seahawks soared to a 25-8 record in 2015-16, tying the program record for wins and setting a school-record with 11 straight wins last January and February. UNCW captured its first conference championship in 10 seasons with an overtime victory in the CAA Tournament over Hofstra. Keatts and his club then pushed NCAA power Duke to the limit in a narrow loss in the Providence Regional of the NCAA Tournament.

The 2016 Seahawks return nearly 75 percent of last season’s scoring attack that led the CAA in points per game. First-team All-CAA selection and preseason Player-of-the-Year candidate Chris Flemmings (16.2 ppg., 5.8 rpg.), Third-Team All-CAA performer Denzel Ingram (12.7 ppg., 3.3 apg.) and All-Rookie Team member CJ Bryce (10.1 ppg, 4.2 rpg.) will anchor the offense.