Martelli is king of Hawk Hill

YOU KEEP coming back to the arena because you never know if this is the game where you will see something you have never seen before. You might just appear at Hagan Arena on the night Phil Martelli wins more games than any coach in the glorious history of Saint Joseph's basketball. And, on that same night, you might see a power forward nearly get a triple-double without scoring a point.

Martelli, in his 17th season as St. Joe's coach, won game No. 310 as the Hawks overwhelmed Morgan State, 81-50. Sophomore Halil Kanacevic, playing his 13th game for SJU, had 10 assists, six rebounds and four blocks by halftime. He finished with 12 assists, eight rebounds, seven blocks and 0 points. It was that kind of night.

Almost everyone in the sold-out crowd stayed after the game as Martelli was presented with a game ball at midcourt. SJU athletic director Don DiJulia said: "In the 112 years of Saint Joseph's basketball, there have been great teams, great players and great coaches."

Bill Ferguson, DiJulia said, won 309 games in 25 years. Martelli, he said, got 310 in his 17th season.

"I hope for 310 more," Martelli said. "This is especially for my wife, children and father and for my main man Chris DiJulia."

That would be Don's son, the Hawks' No. 1 fan.

"I'm delighted to get the number with this group," Martelli later in the pressroom. "In a lot of ways, they've been knocked down because of the last 2 years. They were genuinely excited for me. It meant a lot to them to play in that game."

There wasn't much to analyze in the game. SJU (10-3) was quite sharp on offense early, as Kanacevic playing at the top of the key, picked apart the Bears zone with one smooth pass after another. The Bears (2-8) made five of their first eight shots. And missed 19 of their next 21.

Morgan State made 18 shots and had 17 others blocked, as the Hawks broke the school record they set against Drexel a month ago.

It was as if SJU was honoring the memory of Morgan State legend Marvin "The Human Eraser" Webster who averaged eight blocks per game for the 1974 Division II national champions before going on to a very good NBA career. Webster, sadly, passed away last year.

No way Kanacevic ever heard of the man, but he was channeling the Eraser and Larry Bird without scoring. (His assists led to 27 points.)