ORONO – The University of Maine has called a 4:30 p.m. Tuesday press conference to announce the hiring of a new head men’s basketball coach. The leading candidate to replace John Giannini, who resigned 10 days ago to take the same position at La Salle University, is associate head coach Ted Woodward.

Woodward has 16 seasons of Division I coaching experience and has spent the last eight as Giannini’s primary recruiter. Woodward could be the likely successor based on the following factors:

. The short amount of time between Giannini’s press conference at La Salle and Tuesday’s press conference (eight days).

. Woodward’s familiarity with the program and the players.

. The short amount of time between now and the start of the preseason practice (42 days).