Palmer

SLIPPERY ROCK— Jamal Palmer holds no bitterness over being relieved of his duties as men's basketball coach at Slippery Rock University.

Palmer, 32, was head coach for two years before the university decided not to renew his contract Monday.

"It was a mutual thing, really,"Palmer said. "They had a different agenda and so did I.

"I wasn't going to resign without something else in place, but I was looking to better myself in another position."

Palmer, 12-42 in his two years at SRU, emphasized he wants to stay in coaching and is looking for an assistant position with another school.

He lives in Indiana, Pa., and hopes to land a job somewhere between there and Johnstown. His wife, Sasha Palmer, is head coach of the Pitt-Johnstown women's basketball team.

"The travel got to be a little rough and I'd like to improve on that," Palmer said.

He refutes any opinion that he wasn't ready to take over the SRUprogram, however.

"The program was down when I took it over and I understand everything that goes with that,"Palmer said. "But I'm leaving it in better shape than it was when I took over.

"There are better players in place there now and I had things moving in the right direction. There was nowhere to go but up."

Palmer has been in coaching for five years. He played four years of professional basketball in Europe before that.

"My playing experiences have helped me as a coach," he said. "Now I want to get on a staff and learn more from another head coach.

"(SRUathletic director)Paul Lueken was totally supportive of me the whole time I was here. I'm grateful for that."

SRUwas 4-8 in PSACWest play this season, falling a game short of qualifying for the conference tournament for the first time since 2000.

The Rock had no seniors on the roster for most of the campaign.

"I was an assistant on John Marhefka's staff when these juniors were freshmen,"Palmer said. "I would have loved to have finished it out with them next year, but the timing just wasn't right."

Asked what SRU's men's basketball program has been lacking in recent years, Palmer pointed to the region and recruiting challenges.

"Western Pennsylvania is a football area, not a basketball area," he said. "Good players from around here look at schools like Duquesne and Robert Morris first, then check out Division IIfull-scholarship programs like California (Pa.) and IUP. It takes a while before they get to us.

"Our players have made strides the past couple of years. Our record improved and they improved. I'm pulling for these guys to continue developing and getting better under the new coach."