GARRETT WAIT
Sports Editor
The departure of men’s basketball Head Coach Paul Westphal leaves a void for the athletic department to fill. In the interim, assistant coach Patrick Whitlock will assume the role of head coach while the search for a full-time replacement gets underway.
Whitlock, a 1999 Vanderbilt University graduate, He came to the men’s basketball program in 2001-02 as the director of basketball operations. He was bumped up to assistant coach in the 2003-04 season. He said he plans on giving the team a break from practices to cope with the loss of Westphal.
“I’m going to give the guys a couple days off,” Whitlock said. “I just hope they’ll enjoy the NCAA Tournament for next few days. We’ll start doing more weight lifting again in a few days then do some individual workouts.”
With the news of Westphal’s departure, the intentions of star recruit Blake Wallace are up in the air. Whitlock said Wallace would likely take some time to make his decision.
“I imagine Blake will want to talk to the new coach before they make a decision whether they want to come,” Whitlock said. “I don’t anticipate Pepperdine releasing him from his letter of intent.”
Whitlock wouldn’t comment on whether he would petition to become the next head coach, however, he did express that he was loyal to Pepperdine.
“I want to stay at Pepperdine with the next head coach or in some capacity,” Whitlock said. “I love Pepperdine.”
Whitlock said he admires Westphal and was appreciative of getting the chance to play a role in coaching the Waves.
“This is how the business is,” Whitlock said. “I feel bad for Coach Westphal. I owe him a lot because he gave me a break. He’s as honorable and as good a person as you’d ever meet. I feel bad for these kids and our current staff that they have to make this transition. But this is what I signed up for when I got into coaching.”
03-16-2006