Hutton: Need answers? Get them here

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Notre Dame's Scott Martin (14) makes a block on a shot by Rutgers' Eli Carter (5) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Monday, Jan. 16, 2012, in Piscataway, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Updated: February 26, 2012 8:14AM

The Answer Man is back. He’s been underground for the last five years or so, expanding his wealth of sports knowledge. He’s here today because he knows you have questions and he has the answers.

Why all the hysteria about Edison Learning shutting down athletic programs at Roosevelt High School?

The Answer Man doesn’t know for sure but it would be awful for Edison to shut down programs where participation is still high. That includes boys and girls basketball, track, baseball and football. The Answer Man can’t speak for the other programs because he doesn’t know what the interest is like for sports like tennis and golf, but there should be no reason to discontinue them if the interest is there and the coaches are available.

The Answer Man was pretty disappointed that state senator Earline Rogers decided to ask for a nonbinding resolution from the senate about keeping the Panthers’ athletic programs alive on a day when they were debating the most contentious bill (right-to-work) in recent history in the Senate. The Answer Man would prefer Rogers spend her time urging Roosevelt parents to attend community meetings that Edison is sponsoring about how to improve the school and its test scores rather than sound desperate about keeping sports programs alive at Roosevelt.

Edison has maintained from the beginning that extra curricular activities, including sports, are likely to continue and there is no reason not to believe that. The Answer Man wouldn’t be surprised if there is a batch of new coaches hired to try to instill a new culture of discipline and accountability.

How is it possible that Notre Dame’s Scott Martin is shooting 37.1 percent from the field?

Great question. Martin was a good shooter and a great scorer in high school, making more than 61 percent of his shots as a junior. He is shooting 21.6 percent from 3-point range, which is about 12 percent below the range for players who shoot from beyond the arc. Martin’s misses are mostly open shots, which means he’s not taking bad shots. The Answer Man believes that Martin is bound to start making shots because, though, he hasn’t been a great shooter in college (he shot 45.5 percent from the floor last year), he’s not a 37 percent shooter.

Will Martin return for a sixth season?

He’s trying to but it’s unclear what the Irish will do if both Martin and Tim Abromaitis are granted an extra year. Abromaitis has applied for a sixth season as well after tearing his ACL. As it stands, if Eric Katenda, who suffered a severed optic nerve in a pickup game last summer, returns as a scholarship player, ND could have 15 players on scholarship if Martin and Abromaitis get another year. That is two over the limit.

Notre Dame coach Mike Brey has maintained all along that the NCAA probably won’t grant Martin a sixth season because they typically don’t allow players who transfer another year because of injury. The Answer Man will have to wait on this one to see how it plays out.

Is Brey the best regular season coach in college basketball?

If not the best, one of the best. The Answer Man was set to cover the Notre Dame-Syracuse game but he decided not to because he thought the Irish just didn’t have a chance against the Orange, ranked No. 1. They had lost two straight to Connecticut and Rutgers and they were showing signs of drifting into oblivion.

Shows you what the Answer Man knows.

Notre Dame doesn’t have its two best returning players from last year — Carleton Scott and Abromaitis — and they are still 4-3 in the Big East. Brey knows how to get his team to play without fear at home. They also are a smart bunch and if they shoot well, they have a chance against most teams.

Giants or Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI?

Giants. This state belongs to the Mannings.