ATLANTA (AP) North Carolina's Roy Williams, Villanova's Jay Wright, George Washington's Karl Hobbs and Tennessee's Bruce Pearl were named finalists for the Naismith coach of the year award on Thursday.<br>
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Williams took the Tar Heels back to the NCAA tournament even though they lost the top seven scorers from their national championship team. Under Wright, Villanova won its first Big East regular season title since 1997, earned a No. 1 seed in the tournament and was still alive heading into the round of 16.<br>
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Hobbs guided George Washington to an unbeaten record in the Atlantic 10. Tennessee was a surprising winner of the Southestern Conference East in Pearl's first season.<br>
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The Atlanta Tipoff Club also announced the finalists for women's player of the year. Last season's winner, Seimone Augustus of LSU, was joined by North Carolina's Ivory Latta, Oklahoma's Courtney Paris and Rutgers' Cappie Pondexter.<br>
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The coaching award will be handed out in Indianapolis, site of the men's Final Four, on April 2. The women's player of the year will be honored at a banquet in Atlanta on April 7.<br>
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(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
