He's a thirtysomething basketball coach on the hot list. He's got three returning starters, including a potential All-American, but a generally young team. He lacks frontcourt depth because a promising rookie isn't eligible. And he's not Thad Matta.

        We speak of Missouri's Quin Snyder. While that description fits Xavier's new coach, it also describes his opponent Saturday in the Wooden Tradition event in Indianapolis.

        Snyder is coaching the nation's fifth-ranked team. Funny thing is, Snyder looks at XU and sees a mirror image.

        “Xavier, in my mind they should be in the top 20 or maybe the top 10,” Snyder said. “They're basically the same as we are. We've just gotten more notoriety at this point.”

        XU has the 34-year-old Matta, an All-American candidate in David West, and a young lineup hamstrung by the absence of Will Caudle.

        Missouri has a 35-year-old Snyder, preseason All-American Kareem Rush, and a hole in the middle while 6-foot-11 junior center Uche Okafor waits for an eligibility ruling from the NCAA.

        Missouri is 4-0 after beating No.9 Iowa 78-77 late Wednesday. Not since the late 1980s have the Tigers been picked to win the Big 12, as they are this year.

        Rush, a 6-foot-6 junior forward who led the league in scoring last year (21.1 ppg), was second only to Duke's Jason Williams in preseason Associated Press All- American balloting.

        Snyder is quick to point out that he has just one senior and one junior on his active roster.

        “The expectations are there; they are what they are,” Snyder said. “Rather than run from them and give them more weight, we recognize them for what they are. I hope it's a positive commentary about the direction the program is going.”

        Snyder has been groomed for this role since he was a player at Duke, where he reached three Final Fours in four seasons in the late 1980s. He was an assistant coach under Larry Brown with the Los Angeles Clippers and under Mike Krzyzewski at Duke.

        This is his first head coaching job. He brought in Rush as his first on-campus recruit two weeks after he was hired in April 1999. They realized they shared the same birthday, Oct. 30.

        “It was a good omen for us,” Snyder said.

        Snyder signed Rush to anchor the first of three consecutive top-20 recruiting classes.

        “Kareem has that type of talent to be a national player of the year,” Snyder said. “But there's a bull's-eye on his forehead. On his back. On his left knee. Everywhere.”

        As proof, Alabama broke Rush's nose during a game Tuesday.

        Snyder went 38-26 his first two seasons.

        “We're still young; it will take time to train our younger guys,” Snyder said. “But as a program, I'm pleased with our progress. To do anything of real value takes time.”

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