Season preview: HoopsHD interviews Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin

Posted on November 4, 2019 by Jon Teitel

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We continue our season preview coverage with Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin. He has had success everywhere he has been: the 1994 Elite 8 as a player at Purdue, the 2010 CIT title as coach at Missouri State, a Sweet 16 as coach at Tennessee, 2 straight 20-win seasons as coach at Cal, and an NCAA tourney appearance in his very 1st year as coach at Missouri in 2018. The Tigers backtracked last year with a 15-win season but hope to get things going in the right direction this year. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Martin about being a great 3-PT shooter and having a brutal non-conference schedule.

You were a player/assistant to Gene Keady at Purdue: what made him such a great coach, and what was the most important thing that you learned from him? Coach Keady pushed us to become men and challenged us to be great in all walks of life. I learned the kind of work ethic it takes when the lights are off and when no one is watching to truly be successful. That is where the separation happens: the extra time that you put in.

You set a school record with 8 3PM in a 1994 Sweet 16 win over Kansas and your 45.1 career 3P% remains the best in school history: what is the secret to making shots from behind the arc? Again, it is putting in the time and getting those extra reps up. When I got to Purdue, I really could not shoot the 3-ball and was encouraged not to because it was not part of my game…but I made it part of my game. I worked at it and worked at it and made it a part of my lifestyle. The repetition just gets to a point where you do not think about it because you have put in the time. Every shot feels the same and feels like it is going in.

In the 2010 CIT title game as head coach at Missouri State you beat Pacific: what did it mean to you to win a title? It was a great experience for those guys: any time you win a championship at any level it is special.

In the 2011 World University Games you were an assistant to fellow Boilermaker Matt Painter on team USA: could you have imagined at the time that Draymond Green would become a 3-time NBA champ? Yes, because of the type of guy he is in terms of how much he wants it and how hard he works on his craft. It does not surprise me: it only works out for guys like that.

You spent 3 years as head coach at Cal: how do you think that your job would have changed had the state legislature passed a Fair Pay to Play Act while you were still in Berkeley? Recruiting-wise you are still looking at players based on their character, work ethic, and who fits your system both on and off the court so that part would not change. It is still unknown what all the rules will be from an NCAA standpoint so it is hard to say how you would approach it differently in California compared to other states, regardless of your own state legislature.

Your brutal non-conference schedule includes games against Xavier/Butler/Illinois/West Virginia and 1 of Oklahoma/Stanford: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? True road games are always great and give our guys a chance to grow. The SEC is pound-for-pound one of if not the deepest and best leagues in the country so it is good to get those opportunities early and then learn from them.

You have 3 juniors on your roster named Smith (Dru/Mark/Mitchell): was that just a happy accident, and how is Mark’s left ankle doing after having surgery last March? Happy accident but we are thrilled to have all three who bring different things to the table for us. Mark is back and fully in the fold practice-wise.

Reed Nikko is the only senior on the roster: how much pressure is there on him to be a leader this year? Reed has always been a great locker room guy: just steady. He is one of the most vocal guys we have on the court and one of those guys who does not change his demeanor for anything.

There were 7 SEC teams who made the NCAA tourney as top-10 seeds last March: where do you think that your conference ranks among the best in the nation? As I said, one of the strongest in the country. Every night is a battle with how deep the league is. We were picked 13th in the preseason in the SEC. If we do end up finishing 13th that will mean this will be one of the greatest seasons for any conference in history!

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? I expect to be as good as anybody and compete for an SEC title.

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Bracketology: The 2019-20 Preseason Media Bracket

Posted on November 2, 2019 by John Stalica

For our extensive preseason coverage of the 2019-20 season – CLICK HERE

We are now just three days away from the beginning of college basketball’s regular season – now that the preseason polls from all 32 conferences have been released along with the preseason AP and Coaches’ polls, we have our annual preseason media bracket ready to be unveiled. The teams are sorted by average order of where they were slotted in the polls and single-bid UTR conferences are represented by the teams picked to win their respective conferences.

Every team above the first four (including UTR teams Liberty and Harvard) received votes in both the AP and Coaches’ polls; the teams in the First Four (Missouri, Cincinnati, Notre Dame and Wisconsin) were the top vote-getters that only appeared in one of the respective polls apiece.

And without further ado:

This is also the first season I can remember where the four teams in the Champions Classic (Michigan State, Kansas, Duke and Kentucky) are the top four teams in the preseason polls! Couple that with the ACC opening the regular season with conference games for everyone else and you’ve got a helluva Opening Night.

Also keep in mind that Gonzaga is eligible to play in Spokane since Idaho is the host institution for first and second round games being played at Spokane Arena this year. If these subregions ever came to fruition, good luck trying to get tickets if you’re not a resident in the Pacific Northwest.

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Sun Belt Media Day Recap and Response

Posted on November 2, 2019 by David Griggs

CLICK HERE for all of our extensive Preseason Content

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL

  1. South Alabama
  2. UT Arlington
  3. Georgia Southern
  4. Texas State
  5. Louisiana
  6. Georgia State
  7. Coastal Carolina
  8. UL Monroe
  9. Appalachian State
  10. Arkansas State
  11. Little Rock
  12. Troy

 

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Trhae Mitchell – South Alabama, SR F

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-SBC 1ST TEAM

Quan Jackson – Georgia Southern, JR G
Josh Ajayi – South Alabama, SR F
Trhae Mitchell – South Alabama, SR F
Brian Warren – UT Arlington, SR G
Nijal Pearson – Texas State, SR G

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-SBC 2ND TEAM

Justin Forrest – Appalachian State, JR G
DeVante Jones – Coastal Carolina, SO G
Ike Smith – Georgia Southern, SR G
Kane Williams – Georgia State, JR G
Michael Ertel – UL Monroe, JR G

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-SBC 3RD TEAM

Isaac Johnson – Appalachian State, SR F
Isaiah Crawley – Georgia Southern, SR F
Cedric Russell – Louisiana, JR G
JD Williams – UL Monroe, SR G
Don Coleman – South Alabama, SR G

COMMENTS FROM DAVID.  South Alabama, who didn’t even manage a winning conference record last year, is this year’s preseason favorite.  They did show signs of improvement a year ago, but they still only made it as far as the quarterfinals of the conference tournament and had a losing record against D-1 teams.  I do think they’ll be better.  I also think that most of the rest of the conference won’t be quite as good.  But I’m not entirely on board with them being the conference favorites.  They do have an impressive combination of both talent and experience, including the preseason conference player of the year, and they also have guys that can score.

UT Arlington is another team to keep an eye on.  After a miserable start to the season last year, they were much improved in the second half of the season and have all five starters back for this year.  It’s Chris Ogden’s second year as head coach, and it wouldn’t shock me if they ended up finishing at the top of the league.

Georgia Southern had a fairly impressive year last year despite the fact that they had to battle injuries for much of it.  They did lose one of their top players, but with three starters back and a quality JUCO player joining the roster, they should be able to contend again this year.

Texas State lost a lot of key pieces from last year’s team and are turning to some JUCO transfers in the hopes of getting some production right away.  They should get some pretty solid play out of their guards, but I don’t think they’ll end up being as good as the three previously mentioned teams.

Cliff Ellis is starting his 13th year at Coastal Carolina, which is kind of hard to believe.  They’ve got some key players back, including a solid PG in DeVante Jones, and have some pretty solid JUCO players joining the roster as well.  Coastal could end up having a better year than expected.

Louisiana has been one of the better teams in the league in recent years, but they appear to be in rebuilding mode now with just two starters back.  Bob Marlin has done a great job as head coach, but he’s got his work cut out for him this year.

Georgia State has been the flagship team of the conference in recent years.  They’ve won 20+ in four of the last five seasons, and captured last year’s title before winning the conference tournament.  The problem is Run Hunter, who was a big part of that success, left to be the head coach at Tulane.  They have just two starters back and look to be in complete rebuilding mode.

UL Monroe had a lot of guys that could score last year and were oftentimes fun to watch.  They are going through a fair amount of roster turnover, so it’s hard to say how good they’ll be this year.

At the time I’m writing this, Appalachian State’s football team is undefeated!!  They are having a HOT HOT HOT season!!  For basketball, it may be an entirely different story.  While four starters are back, the team won just 11 total games a year ago and finished near the bottom of the league.  I think they’ll be a little better this year just due to their experience, but I still think they end up finishing closer to the bottom than the top.  They do have a really good guard in Justin Forrest, but they’ll need some other players to step up as well.

Arkansas State lost four starters from a team that wasn’t all that good in the first place.  They are kind of in reset/rebuild mode right now.

Little Rock and Troy are also likely in for long seasons.  Troy made a fantastic coaching hire over the summer when they got Scott Cross, but he’ll need a few years to get them going.

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MAC Media Day Recap and Response

Posted on November 1, 2019 by David Griggs

CLICK HERE for all of our extensive Preseason Content

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL

East Division

  1. Bowling Green
  2. Buffalo
  3. Kent State
  4. Miami OH
  5. Akron
  6. Ohio

West Division

  1. Toledo
  2. Northern Illinois
  3. Ball State
  4. Central Michigan
  5. Western Michigan
  6. Eastern Michigan

 

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-MAC EAST DIVISION

Justin Turner – Bowling Green, JR G
Dylan Frye – Bowling Green, SR G
Philip Whittington – Kent State, SR F
Nike Sibande – Miami OH, JR G
Jayvon Graves – Buffalo, JR G

MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-MAC WEST DIVISION

Eugene German – Northern Illinois, SR G
Tahjai Teague – Ball State, SR F
Marreon Jackson – Toledo, JR G
Luke Knapke – Toledo, SR C
Michael Flowers – Western Michigan, JR G
David DiLeo – Central Michigan, SR F

 

NOTES FROM DAVID.  The MAC is consistently one of the strongest UTR conferences, and last year was no exception with Buffalo earning a #6 seed and making it to the Round of 32.  I don’t foresee anyone from this league getting that far inside the bubble again this year, but I do think that there are a couple of teams who can get close to it or even inside of it.

Bowling Green is the preseason favorite, and seeing as how they return four starters from a team that won 22 games, that that makes sense.  Their backcourt is really solid, and they should be able to get some help from their bench as well.  They didn’t exactly finish the season strong.  Four of their six regular season conference losses came in the final five games of the season.  But, up until that point they were one of the better teams in the league.

Kent State is another team that I’m big on.  I personally at least like them as much as Bowling Green, and maybe a little bit more.  Four starters are back from a 22-win team that went 11-7 in conference play, and with the addition of a couple of transfers they should get some decent help from their bench as well.

As was previously mentioned, Buffalo has owned this league for the past four or five years, but with head coach Nate Oats leaving for Alabama and the loss of several key players, they probably won’t be the dominant team this year.  They’ll still be really good, but not quite as dominant.  They will have an experienced backcourt, and Middle Tennessee transfer Antwain Johnson should help them out in the frontcourt.

Toledo is picked to win the West Division, and with three starters back from a 25-win team that’s a pretty solid pick.  They’ll have one of the better backcourts in the conference and also have one or two nice additions to the roster.

Akron has been one of the better programs in the conference over the years, but they finished below .500 against D-1 competition last year, and while they should be better this year they still look like they’re in building mode.

Miami OH, one of John Stalica’s favorite teams, has four starters back and should be improved this year.  They did lose five of their last six games, so there is quite a bit of room for improvement.

Northern Illinois has three starters back, including one of the best players in the conference in Eugene German.  I don’t think they’ll be in a position to contend for a division title, but it is a program that has shown improvement in recent years and will likely continue to improve.

Jeff Boals takes over at Ohio U, and he’s got his work cut out for him.  Just one starters is back from a year ago, and they don’t exactly blow you away with the experience that they do have.

Central Michigan won 23 games last year and has three starters back.  The media doesn’t seen to be big on them, but I like Keno Davis as a coach and think they can exceed expectations this year.  I realize they lost some key players, but with three JUCO transfers and three starters back they should at least be respectable this year.

The other two Michigan schools, Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan, could both be in for long seasons.

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Season preview: HoopsHD interviews VCU SR SF Issac Vann

Posted on November 1, 2019 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of our extensive Preseason Content

We continue our season preview coverage with VCU SR SF Issac Vann. The Rams finished last season as 1 of the hottest teams in the country: after losing at Rhode Island in late-January they reeled off 12 straight wins to earn a regular season title before a 5-PT loss to the other Rams in the A-10 tourney and then a loss to UCF in the NCAA tourney. Almost every single player on last year’s roster is back as they try to extend the school’s winning streak to 21 seasons in a row (dating back to 2000). HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Issac about making the NCAA tourney and celebrating his birthday.

You began your college career at Maine, where you averaged a team-high 16.4 PPG and were named to the America East All-Rookie team in 2016: how were you able to come in and contribute right from the start? They basically gave me the green light and I had the confidence of the coach. I put in the work and the result showed even though we did not have the kind of season that we wanted.

Why did you decide to transfer, and what made you choose VCU? I just wanted to play at a higher level. Coach Rasheen Davis was at VCU and had recruited me back when I was in high school so the connection was already there.

You play for Coach Mike Rhoades: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? He is very family-oriented and brings a lot of energy every day. I learned that you have to go out there every day and go to work no matter how your body feels.

Last November you had 30 PTS/11 REB/5 AST in a 1-PT loss to St. John’s: where does that rank among the best all-around games of your career? I would say top-3.

You finished the season with the 3rd-most PTS and 2nd-most STL on the team: how do you balance your offense with your defense? I just try to be a 2-way player. I am up to the challenge of guarding the best player on the opposing team and can also score.

In the 2019 NCAA tourney you scored 9 PTS in a loss to UCF: what did you learn from that game that will help you this year? You have to lock in on the small details. It is hard to prepare for a team that you have not faced before so I will focus on the little things in the scouting report this year.

Your non-conference schedule includes games against LSU/Purdue and 1 of Florida State/Tennessee: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? If I had to pick 1 I would probably say Purdue. They lost a lot of talent but have a great coaching staff so I do not think there will not be much of a drop-off.

You are 1 of 5 seniors on the roster: how crucial will all of that experience be to your team’s success? Very crucial. We have been through pretty much everything and are probably 1 of the oldest teams in the country. You see a lot of 1-and-done players on some teams but our experience will be pretty good.

You turned 24 last month: what did you do for the big day? Not much: we had practice.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? We would like to win an A-10 championship and make it back to the NCAA tourney. I want to be named conference POY and do whatever I can to help my team win.

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Season preview: HoopsHD interviews Murray State SO SG Tevin Brown

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of our extensive Preseason Content

We continue our season preview coverage with Murray State SO SG Tevin Brown. The Racers had a season for the ages last year: 28 wins, a conference tourney title, and a 19-PT win over Marquette in the NCAA tourney before losing to Florida State. Ja Morant was certainly the star of the show but there is still plenty of talent remaining in Murray even after he was taken 2nd overall in the NBA draft by Memphis last June. 1 returning player who will be relied on heavily is Tevin, who returned from an injury to become 1 of the best 3-PT shooters in the conference. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Tevin about making the NCAA tourney and celebrating his birthday.

You grew up in Alabama: what made you choose Murray State? They were with me from the start and never stopped talking to me throughout my high school career.

You play for Coach Matt McMahon: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him? His consistency that he brings every single day: he really knows the game.

You missed all of the 2018 season with a broken foot but started all 33 games last year: how difficult was it to get back onto the court? It was not very difficult: I just had to get into the gym and start working.

Last December you had 19 PTS/10 REB in a 5-PT loss at Auburn: how close did you come to pulling off the upset? We were pretty close at the end. We started off slow but then picked it up.

You finished the season ranked #2 in the conference in both 3PM/3P%: what is the secret to making shots from behind the arc? Practice and getting the reps up.

In the 2019 NCAA tourney you scored 5 PTS in a loss to Florida State: what did you learn from that game that will help you this year? The physicality of other teams and the elite condition that I have to be in when facing them.

Your non-conference schedule includes a road game at Tennessee: do you prepare for an SEC team the same way that you prepare for an OVC team? It is the same preparation as if it were any other game.

Your teammate Ja Morant was drafted 2nd overall last summer after being named 2019 conference POY/conference tourney MVP: how will your team try to replace 1 of the best players in school history? We do not try to replace him: we will just build on last year with the team that we have.

You turned 21 last month: what did you do for the big day? I had a 4-hour practice!

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? I want to do the best that I can and help my team win as many games as possible.

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