Rob Greenlaw is the new boys varsity basketball coach at Searsport High, replacing Richie Oliver, who resigned late last week due to philosophical differences with the school administration.

Greenlaw, who conducted his first practice with the Vikings on Monday, is a first-time coach at the varsity level, according to Searsport principal Greg Palmer, but has been affiliated with the district for a number of years.

Oliver stepped down after he was asked by school officials to reinstate three senior players he had cut after open tryouts at the outset of preseason practices two weeks ago.

“I have no ill feelings toward anyone there,” said Oliver, “but I didn’t feel like I could continue to coach there when my legs were being cut out from underneath me.”

Oliver, who has served as the varsity baseball coach at Rockland High School for the last six years, was hired earlier this fall to try to rebuild a struggling Searsport program – the varsity finished 0-18 last season, and the junior varsity squad won just one game.

“When I went in there, I told the kids they were all starting with a clean slate, that I couldn’t base anything on last year because I wasn’t here,” said Oliver.

Oliver cut the three seniors after three days of tryouts, but retained eight other seniors along with four juniors and a sophomore for a total of 13 varsity players.

“The three that I cut didn’t have great tryouts, and I didn’t think that keeping 11 seniors on a varsity team coming off an 0-18 season was beneficial in the long term for the program,” Oliver said.

It was only after the cuts were made that Oliver was made aware of the school policy that encourages coaches to keep a maximum number of players on their rosters.

“Our district has a policy, and I think the state is going in the same direction, of being committed to maximum student participation within MPA guidelines,” Palmer said, referring to the Maine Principals’ Association standard for basketball of allowing up to 15 players to suit up for a tournament game.

Palmer said he would have informed Oliver of that policy had he been involved in Oliver’s hiring process, but he wasn’t because he was tied up in the school’s filling of other administrative positions, including the athletic director.

“I don’t think the policy was well communicated to coach Oliver,” Palmer said. “He took the job and came in and did a great job, but we had a small philosophical difference.”

Palmer said there are 30 slots available for boys basketball players at Searsport, 15 at the varsity level and 15 for the junior varsity. All of those slots are now filled, he said.

Palmer said the issue of the player cuts came to his attention at the middle of last week.

“It involved some particular student-athletes, but there was no kicking down the doors and screaming about the situation,” Palmer said. “There wasn’t a lot of pressure involved.

“When Richie and I finally had that conversation, it was clear that small philosophical difference was still there. I wasn’t sure if some of the student-athletes that were cut still wanted to participate, but because of our policy we felt we had to ask them the question, and he was uncomfortable with that.

Oliver and school officials met about the issue Wednesday, and by Friday Oliver said it was clear that the reinstatement of the players was out of his hands, so he opted to step down during a phone conversation with Palmer.

“I didn’t agree with how it was handled, and I didn’t think it was something I could get past,” said Oliver, “so I told [Palmer] I should resign.

“But I have nothing against anybody there, and I wish them the best of luck.”

Searsport opens its 2005-06 season at home Saturday against George Stevens Academy of Blue Hill.

Minor rule changes set

The high school basketball season begins this weekend with only minor rule modifications, according to state basketball commissioner Peter Webb.

Perhaps the biggest rule change involves team control fouls, and the fact that no longer will any free throws be awarded when a member of a team in control of the ball commits a foul.

Previously, when players in control of the ball committed a foul, no free throws were awarded and the other team merely took possession of the ball. But when a player not in possession of the ball on a team with control committed a foul, the fouled opponent would be awarded free throws if that team was in the penalty situation, having committed seven or more fouls in a half.

Under the revised rule, no free throws will be allowed for any “team control” fouls, whether the foul involves the player in possession of the ball or not.

“Forty years ago, before the bonus came around, that was the rule,” Webb said. “It’s kind of how the original phrase ‘offensive foul’ came about.”

Webb said he believed the thinking at the national level concerning the rule change was that a team control foul was essentially a turnover, and giving possession to the fouled team was more valuable than giving it the opportunity to shoot free throws.

The new team control foul rule is similar to the rule employed in such situations at the collegiate level, Webb said. One difference is that in college, when a player is trying to inbound the ball, his team is defined to be already in control of the ball. In high school play, possession must be established inbounds before team control is established.

That means if an off-the-ball foul is committed by a member of the team trying to inbound the ball before team control is established, the aggrieved party still would be awarded free throws if the penalty situation is in play.

Among other changes this season, after any double foul or double technical foul, the ball will be awarded to the team that had possession before the fouls were committed. Previously the ball was awarded based on the direction by the possession arrow.

One physical change on the court this season is that the coaching box on each sideline will be extended from 6 feet to 14 feet in length.

Warman to guide Sabers

Mike Warman, the junior varsity boys basketball coach at Calvary Chapel of Orrington for the last three years, will serve as the Sabers’ head coach this winter.

Warman replaces Ross Bradford, who stepped down from the post after three seasons.

Warman actually already has a 1-0 record as varsity basketball coach at Calvary Chapel. Warman filled in during the Sabers’ 2004 Eastern Maine Class D quarterfinal when Bradford fell ill, and guided the team to an 87-63 victory over Van Buren.

Calvary Chapel went on to win the state title that year, and advanced to the Eastern D semifinals last winter before being defeated by Central Aroostook of Mars Hill, the 2005 state champ. The Sabers finished the 2004-05 season with an 18-3 record.