NCAAB Mountain West Hoops
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Mountain West Hoops Preview: 2007-08
U.N.L.V.
Hats off to fourth-year Head Coach Lon Kruger, who has built up a good team in the Mountain West desert, going 30-7 SU, 20-12 ATS while reaching the Sweet 16. This is an athletic bunch with lots of speed. Junior Jo'Van 'Wink' Adams (13.9 ppg) will take over the reigns from Kevin Kruger (the coach's son), who directed the offense last season. Adams averaged 13.9 points and 2.3 assists per game, second best in scoring. Senior Curtis Terry will share time in the backcourt.
Point guard Marcus Lawrence and 6-6 junior shooting guard Rene Rougeau will get more time in the backcourt. The frontcourt will be the strength of the team. Senior 6-6 senior Corey Bailey is back, and teams with Troy Cage and 6-8, 240-pound Matt Shaw. 6-7 junior Joe Darger is a strong three-point shooter, so there is versatility and depth.
The big story was 7-foot Beas Hamga coming to UNLV after getting offers from Kentucky and Indiana. See what a good tourney showing can do! He's 225-pounds with a long wingspan and averaged 13 points, 12 rebounds at Decatur Christian, Illinois, last season. 6-7 small forward Lamar Roberson comes in, a transfer from Houston, along with 6-10 Ammanuel Adeife. The Rebels have always been tough at home, which was the case again, going 18-1 at home.
UNLV was also stellar on the road, going 9-5 SU and 10-3 against the spread! They had a strong season, beating Hawaii both home and away, losing at Arizona by 14, upsetting Nevada on the road (58-49) as a +9 dog, and winning at Texas Tech (74-66) as a +6 dog, and upsetting Georgia Tech and Wisconsin in the tourney. Said one UNLV player, "We are smaller than other teams so we have to use our athleticism to play defense and run. We can outrun taller teams." They were a stellar 7-5 SU, 9-3 ATS as a dog! Their uptempo attack is why they went 16-11 "over" the total three years ago and 18-16 over last season.
San Diego State
A veteran San Diego State team (22-11) had a fine season with excellent balance, some star power in the backcourt and a deep frontcourt for 61-year-old coach Steve Fisher. San Diego State has won 24 and 22 games the last two years, but they lose a pair of aces in guard Brandon Heath (19 ppg) and 6-10 Mohamed Abukar, their top two scorers. The good news is everyone else is back.
The frontcourt will have 6-6 junior F Lorrenzo Wade (10.5 ppg, 5.3 rpg), the second leading rebounder. He's a former transfer from Louisville. The Aztecs also return 6'-5" junior Kyle Spain (4.1 rpg), who has played well as a freshman and sophomore. A guy to watch in the frontcourt is 6-8, 257-pound junior Ryan Amoroso. He sat out last season after transferring from Marquette, an important muscle man up front. He once scored 30 points with 12 rebounds for Marquette against South Carolina.
Keep and eye on Richie Williams, a 5-9, 158-pound junior guard, who averaged 33 minutes last season. He led the team with 4.6 assists per game, and chipped in 7 points and 4 rebounds each contest. He had averaged 20.8 points, 5.6 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 4.6 steals as a senior for a Steele Canyon High team three years ago that finished 30-2, and claimed the San Diego CIF Division II section championship.
Fisher also adds guard D.J. Gay, a 6-0, 165-pound guard, who attended Poly High in Sun Valley, Calif., where he ranked fifth in the state and 21st nationally in scoring, averaging 29.4 points per game as a senior. During his final year at Poly, Gay also averaged 4.6 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 2.5 steals and shot 81.3 percent from the foul line in leading the Parrots to a 24-6 overall record. "D.J. is a terrific young man who excels in both the classroom and on the basketball floor," Fisher said. "He is a prolific scorer who will be a very good addition at the guard spot." As one of the top scorers in the country, Gay had games of 30 or more points on 12 different occasions in 2006-07, scored at least 40 points three times and posted a school-record 56 points in one game.
Gay chose San Diego State after receiving interest from Arizona State, USC, Oklahoma State, Iowa State, Oregon State, UC Irvine and Pepperdine. A surprise might be 6-7 freshman Billy White, a scorer from Las Vegas. SDSU was 14-2 SU/8-5 ATS at home, and 6-8 SU/7-6 ATS on the road. SDSU has some new faces but could be one of the better teams in the MWC again.
Air Force
Air Force (26-9 SU, 12-17 ATS) had another strong season. Even though coach Joe Scott left, they continued to play tough, disciplined defense under coach Jeff Bzdelik (56 ppg allowed). However, Bzdelik is also gone, off to Colorado, so Jeff Reynolds steps in as head coach. He had been an assistant coach at Air Force the past two years and will keep the same defensive style. They don't dazzle and they're not tall, but no one wants to play this disciplined offense and defense. But Air Force was a veteran team last year with 4 senior starters, so a rebuilding job is in order. The Falcons were 13-10 UNDER the total three years ago, 15-8 UNDER two years ago, and 16-13 UNDER last season.
They lose guards 6-5 Dan Nwaelele (15 ppg) and Matt McCraw, and up front 6'-6" F Jacob Burtschi (14 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and 6'-8" center Nick Welch, so 4 starters are gone. Senior guards Tim Anderson (9 ppg) and 6-6 Andrew Henke are the two backcourt returnees with experience that have to step up. Anderson started and played in 35 games, while Henke played in 33 games. Senior guard Adam Hood battled injuries and played in only 16 games.
Their best frontcourt players are gone, so there is a lack of rebounding experience for this season. 6-7 sophomore Grant Parker and 6-8, 240-lb senior Keith Maren are back, but were marginal role players last season. 6-7 Freshman Phillip Brown looks like the guy to step into the frontcourt, as Bzdelik called him a "big time recruit." Air Force's 17-1 start was their best ever, bettering the team's record of 16-2 from two year's ago. The Falcons have been close to unbeatable at Clune Arena the last four seasons. Including the final home game of the 2002-03 season (a 68-60 victory over New Mexico), Air Force won 49 of 50 home games!
The team was 13-0 in `03-04, 12-1 in `04-05 (lost to Utah, 65-56, on Feb. 19), 15-0 two year's ago and went 17-1 last year. AFA's 53-2 home record since the beginning of the 2003-04 season is the second-best in the country for winning percentage, behind Gonzaga. Air Force is patient, working the ball around and looking for the three-pointers, while playing aggressive, slow-down, suffocating defense. Air Force did all right when stepping up in competition, beating UNLV, Texas Tech and Wake Forest, while losing 71-65 to Duke as a +5 dog. No one wants to play this unusual defense, but Air Force lacks height and will struggle when playing against teams with strong frontcourts. They love the three-pointer, and will take advantage of teams that are soft at defending the three, but this looks like a rebuilding season.
B.Y.U.
You have to give a lot of credit to BYU men's basketball coach Dave Rose. Under the direction of then first-year coach Dave Rose, BYU was the second-most improved team in the nation in 2005-06. BYU went 20-9 in what was expected to be a rebuilding season, then went 25-9 last season! Three senior starters are gone, along with sparkplug guard Mike Rose, so it's a bit of a retooling campaign. He prefers an up-tempo, attacking offense.
You can't teach height and Brigham Young has and a ton of height to crash the boards, led by 6-11 junior Trent Plaisted (12 ppg, 6.5 rpg) and 6-10 senior Vuk Ivanovic. They present mismatches up front. Even the guards are tall with 6-6 junior Lee Cummard (9 ppg, 5 rpg) and 6-6 sophomore Jonathan Tavernari. 6-9 Freshman Chris Collinsworth has the potential to be a force in the conference, so this front line could be very good. This is a fine offensive team averaging 78 points per contest, as they went 20-10 over the total. Two years ago BYU was 17-8 OVER the total.
Mike Rose scored his career-high 27 points and tied his own school record with eight 3-pointers to lead Brigham Young past a strong UNLV squad, 90-63! Of course, that was at home where they play their best ball (17-2 SU, 11-6 ATS). On the road the Cougars were just 6-7 SU, 4-8 ATS. There is good depth, too, with senior guards Sam Burgess and Ben Murdock. A backcourt face to watch is 6-5 Archie Rose, a JC transfer who was recruited by LSU and Oklahoma.
One concern is that they don't played well on the road, or when stepping up in competition. BYU lost 82-69 to UCLA and 76-61 at Michigan State. They also were just 2-6 SU/ATS as a dog. Two years ago, BYU was terrific at home (15-1 SU, 9-4 ATS) and 5-7 SU/ATS on the road. Six years ago, BYU was 15-0 SU/9-3 ATS at home, but 1-10 SU/3-8 ATS on the road, and five years ago they went 15-2 SU/10-6 ATS at home and 8-7 SU, 8-5-2 ATS on the road. Four years ago, BYU was 15-1 SU, 9-4 ATS at home, but 6-8 SU/ATS on the road, and three seasons ago they were 6-9 SU/3-9 ATS at home and 3-9 SU on the road.
Yes, they like home court, but struggle on the road. Despite winning 20+ games the last two seasons, the Cougars also didn't play well when stepping up in competition, losing at USC, losing by 16 at Air Force, and by 10 at Houston. This group should be good at home again and eat up smaller teams, but the fact is they haven't played well away from their home court or as a dog.
Utah
Didn't Utah used to be a powerhouse basketball program? Not anymore, after 14-15 and 11-19 seasons. However, new coach Jim Boylen hopes to change that. Boylen was the top assistant at Michigan State University the past two years and spent 13 seasons coaching in the NBA. As Tom Izzo's top assistant the past two seasons, Boylen helped direct the Spartans to a 45-24 record and a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances. Michigan State ranked in the top 10 in the NCAA in three defensive categories: 7th in scoring defense (57.2 ppg), 7th in field goal percentage defense (38.4) and 9th in rebound margin (+7.0 rpg).
So like the old days under Rick Majerus, expect Utah to get back to being a monster defensive team. The new coach catches a break as almost everybody returns. 7-foot-1 junior Luke Nevill is in the middle, who averaged 16.8 points and led the team in rebounds with 7.7 per game. Throw in 6'-8" sophomore Shaun Green (6.1 rpg) and their top two rebounders return. The backcourt returns starter senior Johnnie Bryant (15 ppg), who was second on the team in scoring. Junior Lawrence Borha adds depth in the backcourt, while JC transfer Tyler Kepkay should take over PG. Kepkay is a 6-foot, 185-pound guard from the College of Eastern Utah.
Carlon Brown, a 6-foot-4, 210-pound guard from Riverside, Calif., is aboard. ScoutHoops.com listed Brown as the fourth-best wing player in the West. Brown was also named to the all-CIF Southern Section first team in 2007. He was honored as the Riverside County Player of the Year this past season, and made the roster for the 2007 Inland Empire All-Star Team. Brown averaged 17.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game in his fourth year as a starter. The new coach should continue Utah's tradition of terrific defense, and a better season is likely with so much experience back. While Utah went 18-10 over the total, that might change if the Utes play defense like Michigan State!
Wyoming
A young Wyoming team impressed with a 17-15 record, and a sizzling 19-11 ATS under Steve McLain. A change is in store as Heath Schroyer is returning to Wyoming as its 20th head basketball coach. Schroyer, 35, returns to Wyoming where he was an assistant coach during the Cowboys' NCAA Tournament season of 2001-02. He replaces Steve McClain who had been head coach for the past nine seasons. Their top three scorers return, too. They like to run going 19-11 over the total.
The backcourt is the strength of the team, led by junior Brandon Ewing, who led the Cowboys with 19.9 ppg. He teams with senior guard Brad Jones (18.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 4.5 apg) and 6-4 senior James Spencer (10.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg). The backcourt gets senior Sean Ogirri (11 ppg), who transferred from Wichita State, though Ogirri will sit out this season under the NCAA transfer rule, and will have one season to play for the Cowboys. The 6-2, 200 pound guard was a high school star at Denver East.
Wyoming loses some height in the frontcourt, so they will have some new looks. 6-8 senior Joseph Taylor averaged 5.5 rebounds per game. The Cowboys adds freshmen 6-9 Adam Waddell and 6-8 soph Ryan Dermody. They get some depth with the signing of Marios Matalon of Thessaloniki, Greece, to a scholarship to play for the Cowboys beginning in the 2007-08 season. Matalon is a 6'-2", 185-pound combo guard who has been a top junior player for the Greek Under 18 National team.
Sophomore Eric Platt, a 6-5, 215-pound shooting guard adds depth to the backcourt. Wyoming was 12-3 SU, 11-2 ATS at home last season, but 2-9 Su, 5-6 ATS on the road. They are also 8-38 SU, 19-27 ATS on the road the last four seasons. They will struggle again this season on the road and will struggle against good rebounding teams.
New Mexico
It wasn't the best of seasons for the New Mexico Lobos (15-18 SU, 13-14 ATS), but just about everyone returns, including 4 starters, for new coach Steve Alford. The backcourt will lead the way, with senior 6-5 Tony Danridge (12.5 ppg) and 6-5 senior J.R. Giddens (15.8 ppg) back in the backcourt. The duo led the team in scoring and Giddens was second in rebounding (6.5 rpg).
There isn't a lot of height, so the offense (75 ppg) will have to carry the load again. 6-6 junior Chad Toppert (9.5 ppg), senior guard Darren Prentice and 5-9 senior Jamaal Smith provide young legs to keep the offense running.
Coach Alford brings in 6-10 forward Monquel Pegues, a 2007 NJCAA All-American. He joins 6-1 guard Dairese Gary and 6-8 forward Johnnie Harris in the first recruiting class assembled by Alford. A key for this team is that they were 13-5 at home last season, but 1-11 SU, 6-5 ATS on the road! That's common with this group. Three years ago they were 18-1 SU at home, 5-5 SU on the road. 4 years ago New Mexico was 14-4 SU/10-5 ATS at home, but 0-10 SU/5-5 ATS on the road. 5 years ago New Mexico was 10-7 SU/5-7 ATS at home, but 0-11 SU/6-5 ATS on the road!
Colorado State
It's been a disappointing four-year run for the Rams, one plagued by injuries. Three years ago they limped through an 11-17 season, and two season's ago they crept up to 16-15 but were expected to be much better, as was evident in a poor 9-17 ATS mark. Despite 5 starters returning last season, CSU went 17-13. Colorado State basketball first-year coach Tim Miles also loses skinny 7'-0" junior Jason Smith, who left early for the NBA.
So what's left? 7-foot, 260-pound senior Stuart Creason provides bulk and some scoring, after finishing with 10.2 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. A transfer from the University of Mississppi comes over in 6-foot-8, 245-pound forward Andy Ogide. Last season for the Rebels he averaged 2.4 points and 1.2 rebounds per game and shot 50 percent from the field. Ogide averaged 25.3 points, 10.,3 rebounds and three blocked shots per game as a senior at Paulding Counting High in Dallas, Ga., as a senior.
The starting backcourt is new with juniors Marcus Walker and Willis Gardner, a pair of JC transfers. Gardner is a good defensive player. The backcourt depth will be with freshman guard 6-foot-5 guard Josh Simmons from Houston, Texas, so there are a lot of new faces. Colorado State went 10-4 SU/6-4 ATS at home, but 5-7 SU/6-6 ATS on the road. CSU is 10-26 SU/17-17 ATS on the road the last 36 road games. All in all it looks like a rebuilding season and a probable losing record.
T.C.U.
Texas Christian joined the Mountain West two years ago and it's been a struggle. In their inaugural season it was a forgettable 2-15 season in the conference, and last season they were 6-13 SU, 7-11 ATS in the MWC and 14-17 SU, 8-15 ATS overall. TCU head basketball coach Neil Dougherty has 4 starters back plus the top 6th man.
This will be a balanced offense behind senior guard Brent Hackett (11 ppg), though they like to slow the pace down (63 ppg). The frontcourt has two decent go-to guys in 6-8 senior Kevin Langford (13 ppg, 6 rpg) and 6-7 senior Alvarado Parker (8.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg). Throw in 6-4 senior Neiman Owens (5.9 rpg) and their top three rebounds return. A huge key will be 6-11 center Luke Tauscher, a red-shirt freshman who missed last season because of a back injury.
6-foot-4, 215-pound guard Henry Salter comes in from Mississippi Gulf Coast College. Salter earned third-team All-America accolades from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). Nationally, he ranked fourth in scoring at 24.8 points per game and sixth in rebounds (11.8). The left-hander was the only player in the country to rank among the top 10 in both statistical categories. The Frogs will have a second low post option in the freshmen class in 6-10 center Daniel Ford, who comes to the Purple and White after a standout prep career at Aledo High School.
He joins John Ortiz, a 6-foot-8, 225-pound forward, from Colby (Kan.) Community College, who signed during the fall period. Dougherty believes that the Frogs landed a tremendous prospect in freshman Mike Scott, who enters the 2007-08 campaign as the oldest point guard competitor (21), but the youngest in terms of experience. Following an outstanding high school career at Franklin Learning Center, Scott attended a College Prep School in Lutheran Christian Academy.
TCU is 2-9 SU, 4-7 ATS on the road where they averaged just 57 ppg. They will be one of the worst teams in the conference again.
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