A trip to Alaska is just another in the long line of coaching stops for Coastal Carolina women's head coach Alan LeForce, one of the most well-traveled figures in the history of amateur basketball.

LeForce, 74, is a legendary figure in both high school and college hoops. With more than 50 years of coaching experience, he is the only person to have won at least 100 games at both the Division I men's and women's level. Entering the tournament, he'd won 175 games at Coastal Carolina, and went 100-74 as the head coach of the men's program at East Tennessee State.

But that's not all.

LeForce has also won 100 games at the private high school, public high school and NAIA men's levels. He's in the Hall of Fame at the University of the Cumberlands, East Tennessee State, the College of Charleston and Williamsburg (Ky.) High.

After half a century in coaching, however, LeForce had never been to Alaska until this year's Shootout. He traveled with his squad to Portage to see the glacier earlier in the week, and said the trip had been a good one -- until Tuesday's blowout loss to UAA.

"It's been really a great trip for us," he said.

LaForce said he doesn't see much difference between all the levels he's been at.

"Basketball is basketball," he said.

It hasn't been all basketball for LeForce. He's also a father of two and grandfather of five.

Rockin' the round-robin

This year's six-team men's Shootout will feature a round-robin format, with two, three-team pools in which teams play two games each to determine seedings in the second round.

This means there could be a need for a tiebreaking system.

According to the FIBA international rules being used, the tiebreaker between two teams is head-to-head competition.

Simple enough, right? Not so fast.

In the event of a three-way tie, things get a bit more complicated. The first tiebreaker in a three-team scenario is point differential, followed by overall points scored, and, finally, overall points allowed. In the rather improbable scenario where that doesn't eliminate one of the teams, a drawing will be conducted.

The winners of each pool will play for the championship, the two second-place teams will play for third and the two last-place teams will play for fifth.

Thankfully, the women's tournament remains a traditional bracket-style event.

Bad shot turns out great

In 1996, the first year of the Shootout's Million Dollar Shot giveaway, local auto dealer Vito Ungaro (then with Cream Puff Auto) teamed up with elementary school teacher Ron Zandman-Zeman to steal the show.

In front of a national audience on ESPN, Zandman-Zeman put up one of the worst shots in Shootout history - and came away with a 1986 Corvette in the process.

Before practice Tuesday, UAA coach Rusty Osborne had his team in stitches recalling the first giveaway. Osborne said the Zandman-Zeman didn't appear to be much of a basketball player.

"He had hair down to his rear," Osborne said.

After Zandman-Zeman missed his half-court tries -- missed the entire basket, in fact -- Ungaro offered him another shot, this time from the free-throw line. For a car.

"Vito really wanted this thing to work," Osborne said.

Zandman-Zeman lined up his shot and gave it his best. Not good.

The ball was way too high, initially striking the very top of the backboard. And then magic happened.

"Boom!" Osborne said. "Straight up in the air, and straight in."

The shot sent the sellout crowd into a frenzy, and even garnered play-of-the-day recognition on SportsCenter.

Zandman-Zeman took it all in stride.

'"The only reason I'm out there is they couldn't reserve the dog who catches Frisbees with his teeth for two nights in a row,'' he told the Daily News.

Vito is still sponsoring the shot promotion (now with Vito's Auto Sales), along with radio station KGOT, Qdoba Mexican Grill and Brown's Electric. Anyone wishing to take a shot at a million bucks - or possibly, infamy - can visit KGOT.com to enter.

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