North Carolina State University Athletics
Tony Haynes: Fire and Ice
10/29/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Oct. 29, 2003
When you think about it, fire and ice have absolutely nothing in common. It's like comparing oil to water; socialism to capitalism; red to light blue. But somehow, someway, NC State's version of Fire and Ice will be inexorably linked for the rest of their lives. Fire was the intense, emotional point guard, Chris Corchiani. Ice was his cool, composed backcourt running mate, Rodney Monroe. This Saturday, prior to the Wolfpack's annual Red/White basketball game at 1 p.m., Fire and Ice will mix once again when their jerseys are honored at the RBC Center.
"It still hasn't sunk in yet," Corchiani said of the honor he'll receive Saturday. "It's something you always dream of playing basketball, having your jersey honored. To have it honored with the teammate that I played four years with, there's no other way that I would want to have it done. It's really a nice storybook ending."
Since their final season together in 1991, Corchiani and Monroe have often been separated by oceans and continents. After coming up short in his bid to have a lengthy career in the NBA, the high-scoring Monroe settled on a long and lucrative career playing basketball overseas. Meanwhile, Corchiani had a little more time in the NBA before also opting for the foreign option.
But even though their careers often took them to opposite corners of the planet, Fire and Ice were always, to a certain extent, together. There were and still are phone calls on a regular basis, the conversation often centering on family and friends. Once a year, they would also gather to share their knowledge of the game with youngsters through a basketball camp called, appropriately enough, Fire and Ice.
From 1988-91, Corchiani and Monroe were so perfect together on the court that you would have thought they had been playing basketball with each other since grade school. So what was it like when this basketball marriage made in heaven first came together? Actually, they had about as much in common as fire and ice - and it showed when they went head to head during a pickup game prior to their first season at NC State.
"The funny thing is, one of our first encounters was a fist fight," Corchiani recalled. "We went at it at Carmichael [Gym] in a pickup game because we were a little threatened by each other. We both came in as guards; they didn't say 'you're going to be the point guard and you're going to be the shooting guard.' We both thought we were going to be competing against one another. When I found out he was coming to NC State, a light didn't go on and I was saying yea, yea! I was thinking I was really going to need to tighten up in order to get some playing time."
But it didn't take head coach Jim Valvano very long to realize that he might just have a perfect backcourt combination. Corchiani, a creator, penetrator and distributor of the basketball was the ideal compliment to Monroe, a lethal shooter and scorer.
Perhaps it should be no surprise that Corchiani is still the Wolfpack's all-time leader in assists (1,038), while Monroe ranks No. 1 in school history in points scored (2,551). By the time they were seniors, they could have gone on the floor blindfolded and known what the other was doing and thinking.
"I don't think it was until probably midway through our sophomore year that I knew I had something special with Rodney," Corchiani said. "I knew just where he was going to turn and I knew where he was going to run on the court. You can play with somebody for 10 years and never have that kind of relationship. It was something we were very fortunate to have."
And basketball fans at NC State were fortunate to have seen it. Somewhere along the line, the school's sports information department came up with the Fire and Ice moniker, a label that will stick to the two players from here to eternity.
"It's amazing, I'll be walking down the street and somebody will yell 'hey Fire!' Corchiani said. "It's really been a unique name and it fits us really well."
Corchiani and Monroe won't be the only former Wolfpack basketball players on hand this weekend. Anywhere from 30 to 40 others will come back to take part in a reunion that has been planned by the athletic department. Head coach Herb Sendek, in particular, has spent a great deal of time and energy reaching out to former players and coaches, hoping that they will again feel like they're apart of a basketball family that owns a storied and proud heritage.
"I think coach Sendek has done a remarkable job on and off the court, especially with trying to bring back the former players and trying to unite them in the program," Corchiani said. "All the former players are happy with what he's doing and we all feel like we're welcomed back any time. Even though we didn't play for coach Sendek, he's making it seem like a family again."
Chris Corchiani and Rodney Monroe are family, bothers in basketball who have demonstrated that Fire and Ice may actually go together better than we thought.
