NCAAB Big West
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Big West Basketball Conference: 2007-08
Cal State Fullerton
Cal State Fullerton was all uptempo last season, averaging 82 points per game under fifth-year Head Coach Bob Burton. That resulted in a 20-10 season, 14-9 over the total. They lose sparkplug senior 6'-0" point guard Bobby Brown (20 ppg) but lose only two key seniors and return 3 starters. Fullerton is 29-18 over the total the last two seasons with their uptempo game.
The backcourt returns 6-4 senior Frank Robinson (11.9 ppg, 6.1 rpg) and junior Macus Crenshaw (11.4 ppg), who provided plenty of offensive punch. Senior guard Ray Reed adds more depth and experience to the backcourt. Up front, 6-5 senior Scott Cutley is a workhorse, finishing second on the team in scoring (15.6 ppg) and tops in rebounding (9.5 rpg). Cutley transferred from Kent State three years ago. 6-6 senior Andrew Green also helps out and weighs 255-pounds.
Edvaldo "Eddie" Lima, a 6-foot-9, 280-pound center from Arizona Western College in Yuma, has signed a national letter of intent to Cal State Fullerton. He will have three years to use two remaining seasons of eligibility. Lima started all 33 games in 2006-07 and averaged 7.4 points and 6.8 rebounds for the Matadors, who were 27-6 overall and 18-4 for a first-place tie in the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference. Lima was third in the conference in field goal percentage at .569. Fullerton needs to replace 6-foot-7 senior center Justin Burns, who averaged 10.5 points and 6.7 rebounds last year.
Greg Russell, a 5-foot-6 all-state point guard from West Valley College in Saratoga (CA), has signed a grant-in-aid from Cal State Fullerton and will join the Titans' men's basketball program as a junior for the 2007-08 season. Russell was a two-year starter for the Vikings. He averaged 16.8 points, 5.6 assists and 2.5 rebounds last season and 7.3 points and 3.7 assists as a freshman. Fullerton was 13-2 SU at home (5-4 ATS) and 7-8 SU/5-7 ATS on the road last season. Expect another winning season, and plenty of offense!
Cal Poly Mustangs:
Cal Poly athletics director Alison Cone and head basketball coach Kevin Bromley agreed to a contract extension running through the 2010 season.The contract extension comes on the heels of a 19-11 SU, 15-11 ATS season and a 9-5 mark in Big West Conference play. The 19 wins marked a Cal Poly best at the Division I level while the 9-5 record in conference play was good for a second-place tie in the Big West, also a best for the Mustangs. They lose 2 senior starters, but 3 starters are back but all of the bench.
The backcourt will be deep, led by 6-5 senior guard Dawin Whiten (11.6 ppg), junior Trae Clark (9 ppg) and junior Chaz Thomas (8.6 ppg). The frontcourt has 6-9 junior center Coby Leavitt and 6-7 junior Titus Shelton, who chipped in 8.7 points and 4.8 boards per game. The Cal Poly class of 2007 consists of Lorenzo Keeler from Mt. San Jacinto College, Shawn Lewis from Bishop O'Dowd High School in Oakland and Bo Henning from Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento.
Keeler a 6-2, guard, averaged 17.5 points in 28 games as a freshman at Mt. San Jacinto. He converted 41 percent of his shots from the floor and 31 percent from long range. At the line he made 133 of 162 shots (.821) while dishing out 3.0 assists per game. Keeler has three years of college eligibility remaining. Lewis, a 6-4 forward was named 2007 "All East Bay Player of the Year" and 2007 San Francisco Chronicle All-Metro Team member. As a senior Lewis averaged 20 points, eight rebounds and three assists per game. Henning a 6-2 guard averaged 23.9 points per game for his father and head coach Rich Henning at Christian Brothers High School. Henning led the Falcons in scoring, three-pointers (65), rebounds (136) and was second with 51 steals. The Mustangs were 13-2 SU, 8-4 ATS in home games a season ago but 5-7 SU, 6-5 ATS in road games. They are an up and coming program in the Big West, but might not have the frontcourt to find a winning season.
UC Irvine
Anteater head coach Pat Douglass is off a 15-18 SU, 12-17 ATS campaign, and returns three starters plus all of the bench. The Anteaters were an impressive 9-3 SU at home last season (4-6 ATS), but just 3-13 on the road (6-8 ATS.) The frontcourt will anchor the team, led by 6-7 250-pound senior center Darren Fells (10 ppg, 6.2 rpg) and 6-6 senior Patrick Sanders (12 ppg, 5.3 rpg) form a strong trio up front. 6-6 junior F Adam Templeton and sophomore wing Chad DeCasas help out off the bench. This team was 19-11 under the total playing good defense (67 ppg). In fact, they are 24-19 under the total the last two years.
The backcourt is young. Chukwuma "Chuma" Awaji, a 6-3 combo guard from Lon Morris College in Jacksonville, Texas, impressed last season, a JC transfer. Awaji, rated No. 65 in the JucoJunction.com list of the Top 100 JC players in 2006, averaged 7.9 ppg and teams with sophomore point guard Michael Hunter.
Trey Harris, a combo guard from McCook (Neb.) Community College, comes aboard. The 6-foot Harris averaged 12 points, 4 assists and shot 43 percent from three-point range en route to All-Region IX honors this past season. Harris had high-scoring games of 28 points versus Southeast Nebraska C.C., 26 against Western Wyoming C.C. and 21 in a victory over Northeast Nebraska C.C. He was named to the Omaha World-Herald's All-Nebraska Junior College team. They should be strong defensively, and a .500 season is more likely than a winning one.
Cal State Northridge
The Cal State Northridge Matadors under coach Bobby Braswell were a young team, and they stumbled in a 14-17 campaign. The good news is 3 starters return, and all were the team's top scorers. The Matadors have a strong frontcourt of 6'-6" senior Jonathan Heard (13.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and 6-5 senior Calvin Chitwood (13 ppg, 5.9 rpg). The duo led the team in scoring. The big frontcourt is why they shot over 44% from the field as a team and averaged 75 ppg.
The backcourt returns 6-5 junior Rob Haynes (8.5 ppg) and sophomore Jason Hill. 6-7 senior Mike McCrary, 6-3 senior guard Jordan Noblitt and 6-0 junior guard Sanford "Tre" Peters add depth. Those three were junior college transfers a year ago and completed the Matadors' recruiting efforts for the 2006-07 class. The Matadors were 10-5 SU in home games last year (5-5 ATS) but 2-11 SU in away games (5-6 ATS). They have the frontcourt to be competitive, but lack depth and defense.
Long Beach State 49ers
It was quite a season, and offseason, for Long Beach State. 49er Head Coach Larry Reynolds got the team to run the break and Long Beach surprised with a 24-8, 16-11 ATS season, making the tournament. However, they lost in the first round and Reynolds left after the NCAA began investigating possible recruiting violations. It was also a senior laden team, with all 5 starters gone.
So Dan Monson has been named as the new Head Men's Basketball Coach at Long Beach State. Monson has been a Division I head coach for 10 years, most recently at the University of Minnesota. In ten years as a collegiate head coach Monson has a career record of 170-123 (.580), with seven trips to post-season play. Monson was the head coach at Minnesota for seven-plus years, compiling a 118-105 mark and reaching post-season play in five of his seven seasons. In 2004-05 he engineered the second-best Big Ten turnaround in the pervious 20 years, finishing the season with a 10-6 conference mark after posting just three league wins the pervious season. Minnesota reached the 20-win plateau for the first time since 1992-93 and led Minnesota to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1999.
This team will have new looks everywhere. Brian Freeman (Center, 6-10, 230, Oregon City, OR, Clackamas CC) joins the 49ers. Freeman led Clackamas Community College to the 2007 NWAACC Championship with a 29-4 record and an undefeated Southern Region title (14-0). He was selected MVP of the Southern Region and was the MVP of the NWAACC Tournament. Freeman averaged 18.1 points and 14.4 rebounds per game last year for the Cougars while shooting .642 (217-338) from the field and .707 (128-181) at the free throw line. Of his 447 total rebounds, 137 were on the offensive glass. He also tallied 78 assists, 48 blocks and 43 steals in 31 games. During Clackamas' run through the NWAACC Tournament, Freeman averaged 23.3 points and 15.5 rebounds per game en route to tournament MVP honors.
Guard Greg Plater also comes aboard. Plater was a first team All-Class 6A Team selection this year after leading McKay High School to a 22-7 mark and a sixth place finish at the Oregon 6A State Tournament. Plater averaged 22.4 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.7 steals per game as a senior, shooting .450 from the field, .760 from the free throw line and .380 from three-point range. Ranked as the No. 1 point guard in Oregon by Northwesthoops.com, Plater was the 2007 Central Valley Conference Player of the Year, first team all-league. Plater led the Royal Scots to the state tournament where he averaged 26.0 points per game. As a junior, Plater averaged 20.0 points per game, was a first team all-conference performer and honorable mention All-State.
The offense averaged 80 ppg, which is why they have gone 17-9 and 16-11 over the total the last two years. However, this is a new coach with all new players, so it's not clear what to expect for this season. The 49ers were 12-1 SU at home last season (5-5 ATS) and 9-5 SU, 7-5 ATS on the road. But the new coach is building from scratch, so look for a rebuilding season.
Pacific
Pacific Tigers Head Coach Bob Thomason is off a rebuilding season at 12-19 SU, 11-17 ATS. Three starters return, including the top two scorers. Some good news is that two juniors are back, the two leading scorers in 6-7 225-pound Anthony Brown (14.3 ppg, 7.2 rpg) and 6-1 junior guard Steffan Johnson (9.7 ppg), a nice one-two punch. The Tigers were 6-6 SU at home last season (3-7 ATS) and 4-11 SU on the road (7-7 ATS). In fact, they are 33-17 ATS on the road the last four seasons!
The backcourt has 6'-2" senior Solomon Horsechief and sophomore C.J. Morgan. Guard Michael Kirby will enter Pacific as a junior for the 2007-08 season. Kirby is a 6-0 guard from North Highlands, Calif. and is a sophomore at Delta College in Stockton. As a freshman in 2005-06, Kirby earned honorable mention all-state honors, and All-Big 7 Conference First Team honors. In 2006-07, Mike averaged 8.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game, playing in just 11 games. He shot 66.0% from the field and 76.5% from the free throw line.
The frontcourt gets help with Bryan LeDuc, who will enter Pacific as a junior for the 2007-08 season. LeDuc is a 6-8 forward from Corona, Calif. Was a sophomore at Fullerton College in Fullerton. He earned honorable mention all-state honors, scoring 17.8 points per game and leading the state with 12.7 rebounds per game. He also earned All-Orange Empire Conference First Team honors. He had 63 blocks (2.1 per game) while shooting 59.6% from the field and 73.8% from the free throw line. All in all, they still will have some growing pains, but look for a better season.
UC Santa Barbara
The Gauchos are a tough defensive team allowing 67 ppg for Head coach Bob Williams. UCSB is off an 18-11 SU, 14-11 ATS campaign and went 19-8 "under" the total three years ago, 14-12 "under" the total two years ago and 16-10 "over" last season. The last four seasons they are 54-39 under the total! All that defense helped turn a winning season (18-11), however, they lost 3 starters. So there are plenty of challenges this campaign.
The Gauchos backcourt has the experience for this season, with junior James Powell (8.8 ppg) and sophomore Justin Joyner. Joyner was the starting point guard for Concord De La Salle High School's California State Division I championship team two years ago. Joyner, who made a pair of free throws with 7.7 seconds remaining in the state title game to help secure a 43-40 win, finished the season averaging 9.4 points, 5.1 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game. He also paced De La Salle in three-point baskets and had a better than 4-to-1 assist to turnover ratio.
D.J. Posley, an Honorable Mention All-American guard as a sophomore at John A. Logan College in Centerville, Ill., joins UC Santa Barbara. The 6-3, 180 pound Posley averaged 17.1 points, 5.3 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game while playing all three backcourt positions for the Volunteers during his sophomore season. In addition, he shot 46.0% overall, 43.0% from three-point range and 73.0% from the free throw line.
But the frontcourt lost its best players. Former Weber State Forward Nedim Pajevic transferred to UCSB two years ago and is eligible to play this season. The 6-foot-9, 235-pound post player started 23 of 27 games as a junior for the Wildcats, averaging 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds. A native of Bosnia, Pajevic previously played at Newport Harbor High School and Santa Ana Community College, and will have one season of eligibility with the Gauchos in 2007-08. This is not an explosive offensive team as they play tough defense. UCSB was 8-6 SU at home, and a strong 10-4 SU, 8-4 ATS on the road. They likely won't be as good on the road with so many new faces.
UC Riverside
The Highlanders are off a 5-23 and 7-24 seasons under Head Coach David Spencer, so he is gone. Jim Wooldridge has been named the sixth coach in the history of the UC Riverside Men's Basketball program. Wooldridge has a 312-237 record in 19 seasons as a collegiate head coach. The Oklahoma City, OK native has earned the reputation as a skilled program builder and coach whose teams emphasize teamwork, hard-nosed defense and rebounding. Wooldridge has coached at the collegiate or professional level for 29 years, including stops as head coach at Central Missouri State, Texas State, Louisiana Tech and Kansas State and two years as an assistant coach to Tim Floyd with the Chicago Bulls.
Wooldridge spent six years at Kansas State (2000-01 through 2005-06), leading the Wildcats to their first winning season in six years in the 2004-05 season when the team posted a 17-12 record in the Big 12 Conference. His teams never finished with fewer than 11 wins and his 83 wins rank sixth on Kansas State's all-time wins list. He will have to start with defense, as this team has been poor, allowing 79 and 73 ppg the last two years.
He will build around Josh Scott, a 6-8, 235 pound freshman forward, comes aboard after helping his team to Washington state championships in 2005 and 2007. During his senior season in 2006-07, Scott averaged 10.7 points and 12.4 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 3.6 blocks per game. The backcourt adds freshman guard Jalonni Diggs of Verbum Dei HS in Los Angeles. As a senior at Verbum Dei, Diggs, a 6-1, 180 pound guard, averaged 14.0 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. He shot 49% from the field (92-of-186) and 37% (30-of-81) from the three-point line. He had four 20-point or better games, including a 26-point effort against Notre Dame. Diggs played on the LA Dream Team at the Real Deal Tournament in Fayetteville, AR.
Sophomore transfer Cleavon Barlow joins the team from Imperial Valley College and Canyon Springs HS in Moreno Valley. Barlow, a 6-2, 205 pound guard, was a two-year letterwinner at Canyon Springs HS, playing on the 2003 Ivy League Champions and the CIF runners-up. He went on to play one season at Imperial Valley College during the 2005-06 season, averaging 10.8 points and 1.7 assists per game. He did not play during the 2006-07 season. Riverside was 2-14 SU, 9-6 ATS on the road, so the new coach has a lot of work to do.
Cal Davis
UC Davis will begin its first Division I season in 2007-08. The Aggies recently completed a four-year transition to Division I and will be official members of the Big West in 2007-08. The Aggies are off a 5-23 season and lose three senior starters. The backcourt sports junior Vince Oliver (12.7 ppg, 3.9 rpg), the second leading scorer, but little else. They will ask more of junior David Carter and 6-7 soph Shane Hanson. Adam Malik, an All-State Division III honoree from La Ca.5ada High School who averaged 24.2 ppg this past season, comes aboard. Malik, a 6-foot-8 guard, helped lead the Spartans to a 30-4 record and a berth in the CIF-Southern Section Division III-AA championship game.
Malik led his team in scoring (24.2), rebounding (8.2) and blocks (1.8) this past season while sharing the team lead in steals (1.3). UC Davis also adds 6-8 guard Joe Harden, a former NorCal Division III player of the year and transfer from Notre Dame. Harden spent last year as a freshman at Notre Dame after a standout career at St. Mary's High School in Stockton. He joins Adam Malik and Todd Lowenthal, who committed to the Aggies.
The backcourt will have to wait a year for Todd Lowenthal, a former standout at Poway High School in San Diego. Lowenthal, a 6-foot-3, 190-pound point guard, graduated from Poway High School in 2006 and transfers to UC Davis from the University of Hawaii where appeared in 15 games as a freshman last season. He will redshirt during the 2007-08 season and have three seasons of eligibility remaining after that. All of which means improvement might come next season, but this looks like another losing campaign.
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