Wednesday, November 16, 2005

By ALEX ABRAMS, The Times-Union

At first, Antonio Cool didn't want to divulge who won when he played Cliff Warren in one-on-one basketball this summer.

But it didn't take much prodding for Cool to give up the details, especially when it involved the first-year coach who has made Jacksonville University's players run more than ever during preseason practices.

"I won," said Cool, the Dolphins' starting small forward and their top returning scorer. "You know I won."

Warren's one-on-one games against players younger and almost always taller than him have become legendary. Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt remembers Warren and former Yellow Jackets guard Will Bynum going back and forth, with neither willing to concede anything.

But that shouldn't come as a surprise considering Warren's energetic nature. He's a 37-year-old former gymnast and a 5-foot-something ball of excitement who looks and acts much younger than his age.