FINAL FOUR Collection of castoffs fuels Oklahoma St.

SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Eddie Sutton was a fallen coach and recovering alcoholic when he arrived at Oklahoma State almost 14 years ago.
He found a program that needed rehabilitation almost as much as he did.
Sutton eventually turned the team around in Stillwater, rebuilding it and his tainted reputation by welcoming players in search of a second chance -- just like the one given to him. It's a philosophy that has served him and Oklahoma State well over the years.
The Cowboys, a team with seven transfers on its roster, have advanced to the Final Four with a hodgepodge of talent most elite programs have little use for. Connecticut, Duke and Georgia Tech have four transfers among them, and only two see any significant playing time.
"I think he's never going to hold mistakes against people, especially someone who makes one at a young age," said Sean Sutton, his son and assistant coach at OSU. "He thinks that people who make mistakes shouldn't be penalized for the rest of their life, or even later in life.
"It's always about giving guys a second opportunity, a second chance."
Bad background
Eddie Sutton understands the importance of starting over better than most.
He was forced out at Kentucky in 1989 after an NCAA investigation uncovered 17 violations, resulting in three years of probation and a two-year ban on NCAA tournament appearances. His final season, 1988-89, concluded with a 13-19 mark -- Kentucky's first losing record in 61 years.
He battled a drinking problem during that time, too. He was treated at the Betty Ford Center and was out of coaching for a year, hoping he'd get an opportunity to coach again.
Sutton wound up at his alma mater, which had been to the NCAA tournament only once in the previous 25 seasons. Since then, the Cowboys have gone to the tournament in 12 of the past 14 years, including the 1995 Final Four.
Second-chance standouts
Dozens of transfers during the past decade have rescued their careers under Sutton -- players such as Brooks Thompson from Texas A & amp;M, Doug Gottlieb from Notre Dame and Victor Williams from Illinois State became standouts at Oklahoma State.
"We've had great success in getting those players," Sutton said. "If we could recruit all the high school players, like Mike [Krzyzewski at Duke] does, we wouldn't go after junior college players, we wouldn't go after transfers.
"But we don't have that luxury of being able to compete at the national level with high school players. So we have an open door. It's amazing how many transfers call us and want to come, and we turn down a lot of them."
This year's starting lineup has only one player who didn't start his college career elsewhere -- fourth-year junior Ivan McFarlin.
John Lucas III wanted to escape the scandal-plagued Baylor program. Joey Graham and his twin brother, Stephen, left Central Florida hoping for a chance at a high-profile program with better fan support. Daniel Bobik transferred from BYU after spending two seasons on the bench and two years on a Mormon mission. Leading scorer Tony Allen arrived at Oklahoma State after spending time at two junior colleges.