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Princeton University Athletics
Gary Walters Named To NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee
February 12, 2002 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 12, 2002
Gary Walters, a college basketball participant as a player, assistant coach, head coach, broadcaster and now administrator, has been named to the NCAA Division I men's basketball committee.
Walters, Princeton's Director of Athletics, will begin his term next season on the committee, whose responsibilities include the selection of the field for the NCAA tournament and administration of the tournament itself.
John Thompson, Princeton's men's basketball coach, has been selected to the Division I men's basketball rules committee.
"I'm humbled by the appointment," Walters said. "I have been richly rewarded in many ways from basketball. It's a way for me to give back to the sport. I'm delighted. The committee has a great deal of responsibility. The NCAA tournament is so significant, especially in selecting the most representative field for the tournament."
Walters is a 1967 graduate of Princeton who was a three-year starter at point guard for the Tigers. He played on two NCAA tournament teams, including the 1965 Final Four team, before embarking on a career that included head coaching stops at Dartmouth and Providence. Walters then spent time as the color commentator on Big East Conference telecasts while working in finance before returning to Princeton in 1994. Thompson, in his second year as coach of the Tigers, will be joining the very influential rules committee. Thompson led Princeton to the Ivy League championship and NCAA tournament in his first season and has Princeton in the thick of the current Ivy race.
"It's a great honor," Thompson says. "Any coach would love to have the opportunity to help maintain the sport and continue to shape it. I'm looking forward to it tremendously."
Thompson, a 1988 Princeton graduate, was a four-year starter on the basketball team. He ranks third all-time at Princeton in assists, and he served as team captain his senior year. He coached under Pete Carril and Bill Carmody before assuming the head coaching spot just prior to the 2000-01 season.