Gaudio brings Deacons back

Coach soldiers on after Prosser's death

When Chris Paul departed for the NBA in 2005 after two scintillating seasons at Wake Forest, the Deacons basketball program experienced a sudden downturn.

Then, two years later, the most devastating blow hit when coach Skip Prosser died of a heart attack at age 56.

But from that state of grief, Wake has risen again under Prosser's longtime assistant Dino Gaudio. Undefeated and ranked No. 4 nationally, the Deacons will play No. 3 North Carolina tonight in Winston-Salem's Joel Coliseum.

This Wake team is young, but Gaudio believes his starters and bench match up favorably with an experienced Tar Heels team he calls "the most talented in America."

Buttressed by impressive wins over BYU and Baylor, Wake's 13-0 record has made waves across the national landscape of college basketball. The Deacons boast the nation's second highest shooting percentage (51.2) and rank seventh in field-goal percentage defense (36.4).

Despite all that, they sit lower in the polls than traditional powers Duke (No. 2) and UNC, who have one loss each.

"We still have a lot to prove,'' Wake guard Jeff Teague said. "We beat Baylor and BYU. Duke and Carolina knocked off top 25 teams. I feel they belong ahead of us right now."

Difficult transition

Wake athletic director Ron Wellman counts himself among the multitudes excited about the Deacons' revival, calling it a "direct reflection upon Dino, his staff and the players."

"He had as difficult a job as anybody could have had while mourning his best friend's death,'' Wellman said. "He did it successfully and has continued to build on the foundation he started last year."

Wellman turned to Gaudio to take over the late Prosser's post in the summer of 2007.

"When we started the whole process, I said it would be long-term, not an emotional hire," Wellman explained. "I talked with Dino for eight hours. I appreciated his vision. I also knew him and felt he was capable."

Gaudio had previous head coaching stints at Army and Loyola (Md.), but after rejoining Prosser in 2001 to serve as an assistant under his friend at Xavier, he imagined his next step would be the pros. Gaudio expressed interest in becoming an NBA assistant and said Prosser had been trying to help him land a pro job. Now, he's happy to stay put.

The entire Deacons coaching staff has remained intact. No players left the program after Prosser's death, and all of the recruits, who were "re-recruited" by Gaudio, honored their commitments.

Those commitments included a 2008 recruiting class that was ranked No. 3 in the country by the Rivals scouting service. From that class, freshman forward Al-Farouq Aminu already ranks among the league's best rebounders, averaging 8.5 a game along with 16 points and two blocks.

Prosser's influence is indelibly evident, from his banner hanging among retired jerseys in Joel Coliseum to some of the schemes and drills Wake still runs. Yet while there are many similarities, Gaudio is putting his stamp on the program.

Wake still favors a fast tempo, pushing the ball and looking for the easy bucket while averaging 85.2 points per game.

Defense matters

Defensively, Gaudio has taken a different, more conservative approach. He installed a half-court man-to-man that emphasizes intense ball pressure and defending the basket, as opposed to a scheme that denies all perimeter passes while applying lots of fullcourt pressure.

His drills are lock-down intense and physical.

The result? Wake is holding opponents to 28.2 percent on 3-point shots, an area where it has been vulnerable in the past.