Mirror - Vol. 31, No. 14 - December 15, 2005

              Happy holidays and good luck with finals
WEEK OFOECEMBER 15,2005
Vol. 31, Iss. 14-16 pages
FREE - Take One
MThe IRROR www.FAIRFIELDMIRROR.coM
The independent student newspaper
of Fairfield University
Gai released by the 76ers after playing only two games
BY BEN DOODY I
In his career at Fairfield,
Deng Gai '05 was a man playing
amongst boys. But that wasn't the
case in the NBA.
Gai, who finished his college
career tied for sixth all-time on
the NCAA career shot-blocking
leader board and was perhaps
the best player in team history,
was released last week by the
Philadelphia 76ers after playing
just two games. He did not score
a point in the league.
"They told him that they re-ally
liked him and they thought
he could play in the league, but
it was kind of a business deci-sion,"
said Fairfield Associate
Head Coach Jerry Hobbie, to
whom Head Coach Tim O'Toole
referred questions. "What was
hurting Deng was that they were
losing...the way it sounded, I
think if they were winning they
would have never let him go."
Hobbie said that Gai was "a
little bit down, but positive" when
he received the news. He said that
according to Gai's agent, there is
a chance he could end up with
another NBAteam and that he has
received "a couple of lucrative
offers" to play in Europe, where
he could end up within the next
several weeks.
One possible suitor was ru-mored
to be the New Jersey Nets,
who are in need of low post help,
but Nets President Rob Thorn told
the Star Ledger that Gai "is long,
but he's really only 6'7" >/i."
The 76ers simultaneously
released Gai and forward James
Thomas, while signing forward
Matt Barnes, who was released
Dec. 3 by the New York Knicks.
Sixers Head Coach Maurice
Cheeks told PhillyBurbs.com that
the numbers simply didn't work
for Gai to remain with the team.
"Unfortunately, we didn't get
a chance to see Deng Gai as much
because he was hurt or we had too
many guys," he said.
Gai was the second former
Stag to play in the league and
the first to appear on an opening
day roster. The only previous
Stag to play in the league was
A.J. Whynder '87, who signed a
10-day contract with the Boston
Celtics in 1991.
Last year, Gai easily led
the nation in shot-blocking. He
averaged 5.5 blocks per game,
and finished his career with
444 blocks, the best all-time at
Fairfield and in the MAAC.
Gai was the MAAC De-fensive
Player of the Year three
times, and developed a shot-blocking
ability that the 76ers
deemed worthy of a spot on their
opening night roster.
But when the team began
to struggle, they opted to go
for Barnes, a more experienced
player with a more polished of-fensive
game.
"They felt they needed some-one
who could help right away,"
Hobbie said. "They were really
positive with him in practice,
[but] most people think he needs
to polish his game offensively to
stay in the league."
Mirror file photo
Deep sixed: Gai was the second
FU basketball player to play in the
NBA.
SNOW WOES
Mark Servidio/The Mirror
S'no Parking: Fairfield received its first major snowfall of the season last Friday morn-ing
during a storm which lasted approximately six hours. No classes were delayed or
cancelled, and many students found themselves battling icy roads and slippery walk-ways
as they made their way to class.
University asks for students1
patience during Kelley
construction
BY AMY DISANTO
During the 2000-2001 school
year, Fairfield students were bur-dened
with renovations being
made to the Barone Campus Cen-ter,
DiMenna-Nyselius Library
and Gonzaga Hall. Students have
been plagued with similar projects
during this school year with the
ongoing construction of the Kelley
Administrative Center.
Even though our current con-struction
situation on campus is
minimal in comparison to the past
projects, students are still com-plaining
about the inconvenience.
Martha F Milcarek, assistant
vice president for public relations,
say that students must be patient.
"Renovations and new construc-tion
at colleges and universities
are a sign of a vibrant, financially
sound and growing academic com-munity,"
she said.
FUSAPresident Jessica DiBu-ono
'06 also encourages students to
be patient.
"I think the construction is a
sign of progress for our university
as a whole," she said.
While both Milcarek and
DiBuono look at the construction
positively, they pointed out that it
may be an inconvenience to stu-dents
until completed. As a student
herself, DiBuono has accepted the
current condition of campus.
"Students will need to be pa-tient
as the building progresses,"
she said, "and know that the build-ing
will largely benefit them," she
said.
With the current construc-tion
of the Kelley Administrative
Center and initial plans for a pos-sible
new dormitory, students are
left to wonder how Fairfield plans
its additions. Here is a behind-the-
scenes look at the process
governing Fairfield's campus
construction.
Within the University admin-istration,
there is a formal process
in which the need, cost and timing
of the proposed project are care-fully
examined before any formal
proposals are made.
Before the construction pro-cess
can begin, every renovation
or building constructed at Fairfield
must be approved first by the
Board ofTrustees at the University
and by the Fairfield Town Plan and
Zoning Commission.
The university prepares a plan
complete with construction draw-ings
and on-site plans, which is
then brought by representatives to
SEE "UNIVERSITY" ON P. 5