Monmouth

Turnarounds: 31 Teams to Watch For: Part Three

Raphielle Johnson — Thu, 15 May 2008 07:50:42 -0700

With the off-season now upon us and the spring signing period well under way, this is a good opportunity to attempt to forecast some of the teams who could make the jump next season. Is there a team out there like this past season’s Drake Bulldogs, who went from ninth place to a dominating run through the Missouri Valley? Or how about Arizona State, a team that went from dead last in the Pac-10 to fifth place and could have the makings of a conference title run this season? With one pick for each conference, here are 31 teams you should keep an eye on next season.

Part Three

MEAC: Hampton

2007-08 Record: 18-12 (11-5)

Yes, the Pirates finished tied for second in the MEAC last season, but they saw their season come to an abrupt end with a harsh 75-74 loss to eventual conference champ Coppin State in the MEAC Tournament. They do have to replace leading scorer Rashad West, but of the five leading scorers on last year’s team three will be back. Look for Vincent Simpson, Matthew Pilgrim and Michael Freeman to take on even more scoring responsibility next year in attempts to win the MEAC. I think they’ve got a shot at getting to the NCAA Tournament next season, but they will have a fight on their hands from the likes of Morgan State and Delaware State.

Missouri Valley: Creighton

2007-08 Record: 22-11 (10-8)

Head coach Dana Altman was in Fayetteville for about two days before he decided that he had to remain at Creighton. His decision worked out for all parties involved as the Blue Jays notched another 20-win season and won a Postseason NIT game in the process. But more can be done, most notably contend for the MVC championship. With the exciting P’Allen Stinnett and many other key contributors due back next season, Creighton can definitely contend for the crown in 2008-09.

Mountain West: Utah

2007-08 Record: 18-15 (7-9)

Make no mistake about it; UNLV and BYU (if Lee Cummard and Trent Plaisted both return) are the favorites to win the Mountain West. But the slots in the standings behind those two are practically wide open, and the Utes could be the team that moves to the top of that list. The lone contributor to leave was guard Johnnie Bryant, who moved to the bench to make way for JUCO transfer Tyler Kepkay when the season began. Along with Kepkay due back is seven-footer Luke Nevill, who can score with either hand on the low block. With the number of players they have due back, look for Jim Boylen’s bunch to make a move up the standings to an area close to where we’ve been accustomed to seeing their program.

Northeast Conference: Monmouth

2007-08 Record: 7-24 (4-14)

It would be easy to choose Central Connecticut State here and proclaim them a favorite to win the NEC. But why not go way out on a limb and expect a team that only scored 59.2 points per game to compete in the top half of the conference? Last year’s team featured seven freshmen, four sophomores and two juniors. Jhamar Youngblood led the team in scoring with twelve points per game, but the year of experience should help this entire team when it comes to winning basketball games. Not sure how good they can be, but don’t expect the Hawks to be anyone’s whipping boy when conference play rolls around.

Ohio Valley: Southeast Missouri St.

2007-08 Record: 12-19 (7-13)

The Redhawks will welcome back three of their top five scorers next season, most notably forward Jaycen Herring and guard Kenard Moore. And their top departing scorer, Brandon Foust, only played in eighteen games last season so the core of this team should be used to playing without him. Six of their losses last season, five of which were in OVC play, were by four points or less and a little change in luck could put them in position to challenge at the top of the league. A change in those five results gives them a 12-8 record in the OVC last year, which would have been good enough for third place in the conference. They’re not too far off; it’s just a matter of finishing the job in crunch time.

Pac-10: Arizona State

2007-08 Record: 21-13 (9-9)

After the abomination that was the Sun Devils’ 2006-07 season, not too many went into last season thinking that come Selection Sunday they’d be debating the NCAA worthiness of Arizona State. But we were, and with stars James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph both returning to Tempe, Herb Sendek may have a team talented enough to make a run at a Pac-10 title. Granted, UCLA will head into the season as the overwhelming favorite and they should. But this has the makings of a big year for Sun Devil basketball, and they should have no problem whatsoever reaching the NCAA Tournament.

Patriot: Bucknell

2007-08 Record: 12-19 (6-8)

Talk about a shocker. Both the Bison and rival Holy Cross were the trendy picks to win the Patriot League; instead they both end up at the bottom of the standings. But the Bison went into the off-season on a positive, knocking off Navy in a Patriot League quarterfinal before losing at Colgate. John Griffin, who hit the miraculous game-winner at Navy, Darren Mastropaolo and Rob Thomas are the only departing seniors. The key to how much of an improvement the Bison make next season will be how they go about replacing head coach Pat Flannery, who retired after fourteen seasons on the job.

Part One: ACC, Big East, Big Ten etc

Part Two: Big 12, CUSA, etc

Part Four tomorrow: SEC, WAC, WCC

Metro Review Part 4: All-Rookie & Bottom Teams

Raphielle Johnson — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 07:56:27 -0700

Now we come to the bottom of the poll, where there wasn’t much in the way of positives to be found this season. NJIT (0-29) completed a historically bad season, the worst winless campaign in the history of Division I basketball. With head coach Jim Casciano stepping down at season’s end the Highlanders are also in need of a head coach. Whoever steps into that opening will have a lot of work to do in terms of talent along with the confidence level of the returning players. Princeton (5-22) also made history for the wrong reasons, with year one of the Sydney Johnson regime coming in as the worst in school history. Add to this the fact that their two leading scorers (Noah Savage and Kyle Koncz) are both seniors, and you have to hope that guys like Lincoln Gunn can step into those holes next season.

Stony Brook (7-23) once again had a tough season in America East, but they were able to win their first round conference tournament game before falling to eventual champion UMBC. Their top two scorers from this year, Ricky Lucas and Mitchell Beauford, are both out of eligibility so any improvement made will most likely rest upon the shoulders of returnees such as Demetrius Young and Michael Tyree. Monmouth (7-24) was the benefactor of some help on the season’s final weekend, resulting in a trip back to the Northeast Conference Tournament after a one-year hiatus. However, for Dave Calloway’s team to improve upon their seven wins they must improve on the offensive end of the floor.

St. Francis (7-22) came into 2007-08 feeling optimistic about their chances at competing in the NEC, and instead was one of the area’s more disappointing teams as they didn’t even qualify for the conference tournament. The loss of a few key seniors, most notably Robert Hines and Marcus Williams, will put Brian Nash’s program into rebuilding mode heading into next season. Finally, St. Peter’s (6-24) says goodbye to a trio of seniors in Todd Sowell, Raul Orta and Tim Spitler. They had the unenviable task of trying to get the program moving in a positive direction after the graduation of Keydren Clark and the retirement of Bob Leckie. But with youngsters such as Wesley Jenkins, Darrell Lampley and Nick Leon due back, John Dunne won’t have an empty cupboard in 2008-09.

Before the actual ranking of these last six teams, here are the members of the Metro All-Rookie team.

Metro All-Rookie Team

G Jay Gavin (Marist) – 12.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 77.1% FT

With Louie McCroskey missing a good chunk of the season due to injury, things could have headed downhill in a hurry for the Red Foxes. But they didn’t, thanks in large part to the play of Gavin, who’s been racking up the honors this off-season. He’s also been named MAAC Co-Rookie of the Year, CollegeHoops.net Honorable Mention Mid-Major All-Freshman, and CollegeInsider.com Freshman Mid-Major All-American. And with a number of key contributors out of eligibility, this young sharpshooter is capable of even more in 2008-09.

G Jeremy Hazell (Seton Hall) – 12.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.4 spg

The word explosive would be an accurate one to use in describing the scoring ability of Jeremy Hazell. The freshman from the Bronx, named to the Big East’s All-Rookie Team, was able to put on clinics at times this season. He lit up Louisville for twenty-nine points, and was also hot in losses to Connecticut (28 points) and West Virginia (30). But to underscore his streakiness, Hazell also have seven games in which he made no more than one field goal. Improved consistency could result in Hazell making one of the two All-Big East teams next season.

G Charles Jenkins (Hofstra) – 15.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.1 apg

Jenkins, named CAA Rookie of the Year, was the man to step into the role of being Hofstra’s number two scoring option. The freshman from Queens reached double figures in every game except for two: the season opener against Holy Cross, and their game at VCU January 12^th. And those are two teams who tend to do pretty well on the defensive end so there shouldn’t be much shame in that. His most impressive effort came in their BracketBusters win at Iona, a game in which he recorded his first career double-double (28 and ten rebounds). With Antoine Agudio moving on, more of the scoring load falls upon his shoulders. But Charles has shown this season that he can get it done.

G Wesley Jenkins (St. Peter’s) – 13.0 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 41.7% 3PT

Named to the MAAC’s All-Rookie Team, Jenkins led the Peacocks in scoring this season. Hailing from Newark, Wesley was one of three St. Peter’s freshmen among the team’s top four scorers, which should mean good things in the future. The first sign of thing to come from Jenkins came in the fourth game of the season, one in which he scored twenty-six in a loss to Rutgers. This remained his career-high until the BracketBusters game with Boston University in which he scored twenty-seven.

F Justin Burrell (St. John’s) – 10.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 73.5% FT

Of all the youngsters to enter the St. John’s program this season, Burrell was the most impressive. Leading the team in rebounding and ranking second in scoring, the Big East All-Rookie Team selection showed he was more than capable of banging inside with some of the more established post presences in the league. With some of the other post players around him gaining some experience as well, look for him to improve his numbers with additional help from the likes of Sean Evans, Dele Coker and Rob Thomas.

Honorable Mention All-Rookie

G Corey Chandler (Rutgers)

G David Devezin (Marist)

G Kyle Johnson (Long Island)

F D.J. Kennedy (St. John’s)

F Mike Ringgold (Rider)

Final Rankings 18-23

18. St. Francis (7-22)

Maybe I went into this season expecting a little too much from the Terriers, but is reaching the middle of the pack in the NEC too much to ask? When relying too much on the three, St. Francis struggled to win games. But when they got the ball inside to Robert Hines and resolved to attack the basket they were capable of doing some things, most notably their win at Sacred Heart. Five seniors, including three starters, now leave the program and it should be interesting to see whether or not the Terriers can make a move up the standings next season.

19. St. Peter’s (6-24)

Like the Terriers, St. Peter’s will have to replace some senior leaders. However, they should look forward to next season with some optimism since three of their top four scorers will be back. Oh, those three were all freshmen this season. Nick Leon will take over full-time at the point, and while talented he has a tendency to speed up a little too much at times. The key to the Peacocks improving upon their six wins will be finding a replacement inside for Todd Sowell. And that will not be an easy task for John Dunne and his coaching staff.

20. Monmouth (7-24)

The Hawks scuffled at times on the offensive end, averaging an NEC-worst 59.2 points per game. Jhamar Youngblood and Whitney Coleman both averaged double figures, but when your top two scorers both hover around twelve points per game you’d better be getting it done by committee. Dave Calloway had no such luck this season. The good news is that Monmouth didn’t have one senior on the roster, and Coleman was one of just two juniors (Alex Nunner the other). So inexperience was a factor, and this should mean that next year the Hawks will move up in the NEC pecking order.

21. Stony Brook (7-23)

Steve Pikiell will have to replace his starting backcourt of Ricky Lucas and Mitchell Beauford heading into next season. And how well players such as Demetrius Young and Michael Tyree do in expanded roles will determine if the Seawolves can get out of that 8/9 game in the America East Tournament. But along with Emanuel Neto, Lucas and Beauford are the only players who won’t be returning so some progress is possible. But in order for Stony Brook to improve their standing, they’ve got to shoot the ball better. 39% from the field and 32.6% from behind the arc will make it tough on just about anyone to win games.

22. Princeton (5-22)

Year one under Sydney Johnson was a tough one and it may not have been a good year in which to make the trip out to the Maui Invitational. Senior forward Noah Savage was named Second Team All-Ivy League due to his play, but the Tigers struggled mightily on the offensive end of the floor. Lincoln Gunn will be the team’s leading returning scorer in 2008-09, but their style of play is one that will light up the scoreboard. So the assist-to-turnover ratio, which was tied for last in the conference, and rebounding margin (last in the Ivy) must improve next year.

23. NJIT (0-29)

The best way for the Highlanders to get over this season is to erase it from memory. Secondly, they’ll need to find a new head coach who understands the challenges that come with leading a provisional program. Forward Nesho Milosevic was a bright spot this season, leading the team in both scoring and rebounding in his first season on campus. So the question remains: how much better can this team be in 2008-09? Hate to say it, but unless the new coach is a miracle worker they should be right back at the bottom of this poll again next year. Just hope that the Highlanders win a couple in the process.

More:

NYC Metro Year End Review: Part One

All-Metro Team & Ranking 1-5

NYC Metro Year End Review: Part Two

Ranking 6-11

NYC Metro Year End Review: Part Three

Ranking 12-1

Northeast Conference Tournament Preview

Raphielle Johnson — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0800

In what has been a topsy-turvy season for the majority of the Northeast Conference, it’s fitting that seeds along with who would play in the league’s conference tournament were not fully decided until the season’s last day. In a turn of events similar to the good fortunes experienced by the Kansas City Chiefs, St. Francis (NY) snagged the eight seed in the tournament by combining a win over Fairleigh Dickinson with losses by both Monmouth and Long Island. Sacred Heart got the two seed thanks to a win over Quinnipiac on the final day of the season, dropping the Bobcats to the three spot. And in a three-way tie for fourth in the league standings, Robert Morris was able to get the important quarterfinal home game over both Mount St. Mary’s and Fairleigh Dickinson. The only two teams that knew where they would be seeded were Wagner (seventh) and regular season champ Central Connecticut State. Just like the regular season, expect some surprises in this conference tournament.

Format: The top eight teams in the NEC qualify for this event, with the higher seeds hosting each game. After the quarterfinals, the four remaining teams are “re-seeded” so the highest remaining team plays the lowest remaining team in terms of seeding.

Dates: March 1^st, 4^th, 7^th

Quarterfinal Matchups: #8 St. Francis (NY) @ #1 Central Connecticut State (7 PM)

#7 Wagner @ #2 Sacred Heart (7 PM)

#6 Fairleigh Dickinson @ #3 Quinnipiac (7 PM)

#5 Mount St. Mary’s @ #4 Robert Morris (7:30 PM)

Semifinals (March 4^th): Lowest remaining seed @ highest remaining seed (time TBA)

3^rd Highest remaining seed @ 2^nd highest remaining seed (time TBA)

Final (March 7^th): At highest remaining seed (7 PM, ESPN2)

St. Francis (NY) @ Central Connecticut State

The Terriers found a way into the NEC Tournament when it looked like Brian Nash’s group was doomed to another year of missing out. They got some help in qualifying, but that would take away from the fact that the Terriers have been playing some good basketball down the stretch. They are the best rebounding team in the conference, something that they will need to rely on in order to compete with the tenacious Blue Devils. Forward Robert Hines has been one of the best players in the NEC over the past month, and the coaches took note of this in voting him second team all conference. The Terriers are the deeper team, but they’re going to have a tough time leaving New Britain with a win, but they did manage to go 4-5 on the road in league play.

CCSU boasts the league’s player of the year (Javier Mojica), two other members of the league’s first-team all conference squad (Tristan Blackwood, Obie Nwadike), as well as the coach of the year in the NEC (Howie Dickenman). As the top seed in the NEC Tournament, the Blue Devils are a perfect 6-0 all-time, and they went 9-0 at home during conference play this season. You don’t see much from this team in terms of sheer numbers when it comes to their depth, but they get quality out of each player expected to contribute. That’s why they’re the regular season champions. SFNY’s chances will hinge on how they contain Blackwood and Mojica, as well as the Terriers dominating the boards.

Wagner @ Sacred Heart

Wagner and Sacred Heart had two close encounters during the regular season with the home team winning both. This isn’t good news for a Wagner team that went 3-6 on the road in NEC play. Matt Vitale is the only member of the Seahawks to have won this tournament, but junior forward James Ulrich has been the team’s bell cow of late, and he averaged a double-double against the Pioneers this season. Wagner is a better rebounding team than the Pioneers, and this is an area that they will have to take advantage of if they want to have a chance to win.

Sacred Heart is the NEC’s best offensive team, leading the league in points per game (77.9) and three-point percentage (38.3%) while finishing second in the conference in field goal percentage (47.6%). First-team all conference selection Jarrid Frye has led the team in scoring, but he’s received help from freshman backcourt partner Chauncey Hardy. In their last game, and 87-84 win over Quinnipiac on Monday night, five Pioneers scored in double figures. SHU is a very gifted team on the offensive end with a plethora of options to turn to when they need a bucket. The Seahawks will have their hands full on the defensive end, but they should be able to score some points.

Fairleigh Dickinson @ Quinnipiac

In one of two games that are rematches of quarterfinals in last season’s tournament, FDU visits the Bobcats in a game that should go down to the wire like last season’s affair. A Gordon Klaiber bucket saved the Knights, but they head into this one as the underdog as opposed to the tournament’s top seed. Senior forward Andre Harris, a first-team All NEC selection, has scored in double figures in every game this season, so look for the Bobcats to focus their defensive efforts on him. Although head coach Tom Green lost the likes of Klaiber and Andrea Crosariol from last season’s regular season champs, he does have some experience on this team. Guard Cameron Tyler, third in the NEC in assists this season, was a part of last season’s success as well.

Quinnipiac has a pair of high-octane guards in senior Adam Gonzalez and junior DeMario Anderson, but they also receive notable contributions from forward Chris Wehye and center Victor Akinyanju. Head coach Joe DeSantis has gone about ten deep throughout the season, so foul trouble shouldn’t be too much of an issue for the Bobcats. Their issue will be finding points outside of Gonzalez and Anderson if those two have trouble hitting their shots. The two teams are about even on the glass, but Quinnipiac tends to turn the ball over more at a clip of sixteen per game. Turnovers and how much each team scores off their opponents mistakes will decide which team moves on.

Mount St. Mary’s @ Robert Morris

These two teams will meet for the sixth time in the past two seasons, and the games tend to be close affairs, including a 67-66 win for Robert Morris in last season’s NEC quarterfinals. Mount St. Mary’s went a putrid 3-14 on the road this season, with their only two road wins in the NEC being over two teams (LIU, St. Francis-PA) that didn’t qualify for the conference tournament. Senior guard Mychal Kearse is the team’s leader, and he scored twenty-one in their 81-78 loss at RMC earlier this season. Kearse, who was voted the league’s co-defensive player of the year, has help in the backcourt in the form of freshman Jeremy Goode. The question for the Mount will be how they do rebounding the basketball; they were the third worst team in the NEC in that category.

Robert Morris, preseason pick to win the NEC, has won the most conference tournament titles of any team in the league with five. Unfortunately for the Colonials, however, none of which have come after 1992. Sophomore guard Jeremy Chappell was the hero in last season’s quarterfinal win over the Mount with a three pointer late in regulation. But it was forward A.J. Jackson and guard Tony Lee who were voted onto the conference’s second team due to their play this season. Of the two teams, the Colonials do a much better job of holding onto the ball, and this along with having home court should help them out.

Arkansas St 69 - Monmouth 67 (OT)

Press Release — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 12:50:06 -0800

JONESBORO (11/12/06) - The Arkansas State men’s basketball team (0-3) was edged 69-67 in overtime by Monmouth (1-2) in its final game of the Cox Classic on Sunday at Old Dominion’s Constant Convocation Center.

Trailing 56-50 with 3:26 left to play, freshman guard Ryan Wedel hit a three-pointer that sparked a 9-0 Indians to give them a 59-56 lead with 1:04 remaining in regulation. However, Monmouth was able to force the game into overtime when Mike Shipman was fouled on a drive to the basket and converted two free throws with one second left that tied the game 60-60.

Neither team never held more than a one-possession advantage during overtime, but it was Monmouth who broke a 67-67 tie off a basket by Dejan Delic with 15 seconds remaining that proved to be the winning bucket. The Indians’ Chris Brown was able to get off one final jumper as time expired, but the shot was off and the Hawks were able to escape with the victory.

“The shot selection was fine, it just didn’t fall for us,” said Arkansas State head coach Dickey Nutt. “We broke down defensively by going for the steal (late in the game) and leaving a guy wide open for a layup. I have to give Monmouth credit. They are a patient and solid team.”

ASU hit 52 percent of its shots in the second half, but was unable to maintain its hot shooting in overtime as its percentage dropped to .333 in the overtime period. The Tribe finished the game with a 41.5 shooting percentage. Monmouth, on the other hand, was able to convert 50 percent of its shots in overtime and finished with a 42.6 field goal percentage.

Both teams pulled down 36 rebounds, but the Hawks recorded three more assists and committed three fewer turnovers than the Indians. Monmouth also recorded 10 blocks, but ASU posted five steals in comparison to the Hawks two.

ASU had three players scored in double figures, including junior guard Adrian Banks with a game-high 24 points. Junior forward Isaac Wells added 17 points and Wedel added 10. Wedel also pulled down a team-high eight rebounds, while junior forward Kewain Gant had seven rebounds and also chipped in eight points.

Monmouth had four players reach double digits in the scoring column, led by Marques Alston and Whitney Coleman with 16 points each.

- From ASU Media Relations

Northeast Conference Preview

CHN — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 10:41:22 -0800

Conference Previews | Top 144 | 06-07 Preview Home

Northeast Preview

Conference Rank: 28th

Conference Page

All-Conference

Player of the Year - AJ Jackson, Robert Morris, F

Jeremy Chappell, Robert Morris, G

Jarrid Frye, Sacred Heart, G

Obie Nwadike, CCSU, F

Durell Vinson, Wagner, F

Nat'l	Team (Click for Preview)	Conf	Tourney
133	Robert Morris	1	NCAA
171	Monmouth	2
183	Central Conn St	3
203	Long Island	4
205	Wagner	5
235	Quinnipiac	6
248	Sacred Heart	7
257	Fair Dickinson	8
268	St. Francis (NY)	9
304	Mount St. Mary's	10
315	St. Francis (PA)	11

Head Coach Q&A's

Mark Schmidt - Robert Morris

Other Articles

NEC Coaches Poll & All-Conference

NYC Metro Preview: Wagner, FDU, etc

NEC Coaches Poll & All-Conference

Press Release — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 11:09:48 -0800

Somerset, NJ -- Led by three returning starters, including a preseason all-NEC pick, defending tournament champion Monmouth has been tabbed as the 2006-07 NEC men’s basketball preseason favorite, according to a vote of the league’s head coaches. The preseason rankings, along with the league’s preseason all-conference team, were announced during a media teleconference with coaches this afternoon as a prelude to the NEC’s 26th season.

Looking to become the first league team since Rider in 1993 and 1994 to repeat as NEC champion, Monmouth earned six first place votes from league head coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own team. The Hawks narrowly edged out Robert Morris, which received the remaining five first place votes. With all five starters back, Long Island was chosen third, followed by Central Connecticut State and Quinnipiac tied for fourth. Wagner was picked sixth, while defending NEC regular season champion Fairleigh Dickinson landed in seventh. Rounding out the poll were St. Francis (NY) in eighth, followed in order by Sacred Heart, Mount St. Mary’s and Saint Francis (PA).

This year marks the eighth time that Monmouth has been selected the NEC’s preseason favorite by league head coaches, the most in conference history by a wide margin. Of the seven previous occasions in which Monmouth was picked first, the only one that resulted in an NEC title came in 1996 when the Hawks defeated preseason co-favorite Rider, 60-59.

Northeast Conference 2006-07 Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll

1. Monmouth (6)
2. Robert Morris (5)
3. Long Island
4. Central Connecticut St.
5. Quinnipiac
6. Wagner
7. Fairleigh Dickinson
8. St. Francis (NY)
9. Sacred Heart
10. Mount St. Mary’s
11. Saint Francis (PA)

2006-07 Northeast Conference Preseason All-Conference Team

Name School Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown
Marques Alston Monmouth F 6-4 230 Sr Neptune, NJ
Jarrid Frye Sacred Heart G 6-4 190 Sr Maspeth, NY
A.J. Jackson Robert Morris F 6-6 230 Sr Monessen, PA
Obie Nwadike CCSU F 6-4 224 Sr Jersey City
James Williams Long Island G 5-10 185 Sr DeSoto, TX