Its said that timing is everything, and Israel Ingle can attest to that.

Five years ago, Ingle, the son of former Kennesaw State mens basketball coach Tony Ingle, was hired to restart the program at Gordon College, which had been dormant since 1993.

When I was coaching at Kennesaw State, the elder Ingle said, I suggested to the (Gordon) president that they should restart the basketball program and hire one of my assistants to get it going.

After all, Tony Ingle had a successful history with Gordon, a junior college in Barnesville, about halfway between Atlanta and Macon. He coached the Highlanders from 1985-88 and led the team to a 28-10 record and region runner-up finish in 1988.

By the time Gordon reinstated mens basketball, Ingles assistants had found other jobs. Instead, the administration turned to the next-best candidate.

They interviewed Israel while he was still a senior in college, the elder Ingle said. Hed been around basketball his entire life, so they felt he was ready for the responsibility, and so was I. In fact, he had the coaching job before he had the diploma.

Israel Ingle had followed his father around as Tonys coaching career unwound, from Gordon to Alabama-Huntsville to BYU and, finally, Kennesaw State. Israel even played four years for his father at Kennesaw State and was part of the Owls 2004 NCAA Division II national championship team.

The hire proved to be the right move for Gordon as Ingle has guided the Highlanders (26-7) on a 13-game winning streak and their first trip to the National Junior College Athletic Association Division I National Championship, which begins Tuesday in Hutchinson, Kan.

Its the first trip to the national tournament for Gordon in the programs on-and-off history of more than 50 years.

Behind the play of Jarvis Williams (18 points per game, 10.3 rebounds per game) and all-region selection Ryan Fleming (11 points, 4 assists), Gordon finished second in its Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association standings and got past Waycross 60-57 in the first round of the GCAA tournament March 6.

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Ingle coaching tree extends to new generation