Thomas has 1st practice with FIU

MIAMI (AP) -- Isiah Thomas was finally back on the court Saturday.

Holding his first official practice as Florida International's coach, the Hall of Fame player ran up and down with his new team, yelling out pointers on how to defend off the dribble. Far from his past coaching home with the New York Knicks, Thomas said his focus is on rebuilding the Golden Panthers, who finished 13-20 last season.

He led stretching drills and cheers, looking agile and carefree in his new gym.

"Today is here, I'm prepared for it and I'm ready for it," Thomas said. "I'm very excited."

So are players and fans.

The season-opener at defending national champion North Carolina is about three weeks away, but FIU is already reporting that ticket sales have jumped 166 percent ahead of last season's pace.

"We're well ahead of where we've ever been," said FIU spokesman Rich Kelch.

So hiring Thomas is already paying off.

Thomas -- who is working for a base salary of $0 this season, although he will collect income from other sources -- was brought in to transform the program. FIU has seen plenty of national attention since.

But to win, Thomas knew he needed to overhaul the team first. Of the 14 players on the roster now, eight transferred solely to play for him. That includes Marvin Roberts, last year's leading scorer at the junior-college level, and Temple transfer Martavis Kee.

On Saturday, Thomas was still uncertain of what kind of talent he had on his current roster, but he wasn't ready to focus on offense.

"Defense will be our staple," Thomas said. "We're very small so we'll have to depend on our scrappiness and tenacity. Here in college it's just a matter of expanding on the things that they've already done. It'll be new for me. My job right now is to teach and then observe, then try to piece it all together."

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)