Saturday Basketball Observations & Notes
Yesterday, I watched three games: Indiana Wesleyan vs. Marian; Lincoln Memorial vs. Newberry; NW MO State vs. Rogers State. Here are a few observations and notes:
* Trevor Hudgins, NW MO State: I’m running out of adjectives. He’s just so poised, patient and under control. Clearly, he’s the engine that makes the Bearcats go. He’s now a junior, and the Bearcats are 70-1 with him as a starter. He was the MVP of the SCB National HOF Classic AND the Elite Eight as a freshman; he was the Player of the Year in the MIAA and an All American as a sophomore. Quite simply, he’s among the finest point guards in all of small college basketball during this era.
* Diego Bernard, NW MO State: Went 7-9 from the field and had 17 points in the first game of the season. Bernard got in foul trouble and sat quite a bit on Saturday, yet he uses his speed and athletic ability so well, as he plays really hard. Electric player.....
* Wes Dreamer, NW MO State: Wes, a 6′7″ sophomore, played really well. He looked really good during his first game as a sophomore. He can shoot it from deep, he can defend and rebound and he has a high basketball IQ. He’s already a good one, and it will be fun to watch his continued development.
* Daniel Abreu, NW MO State: Ohhh, he’s going to be a good one. Abreu had a tremendous high school career at Springfield’s Willard High School. He’s 6′6″ and can shoot it.....and he’s a natural scorer. As he gets more and more comfortable at the collegiate level, well, he’s really gifted.
* NW MO State: The Bearcats didn’t play their best game on Saturday, yet as usual, they played really hard. A couple of key players got in foul trouble and sat significant minutes. As good as they are (they are 70-1 in their last 2+ seasons), they still only have one senior that played any minutes yesterday. Of the nine players that saw action yesterday, the Bearcats played 4 freshman, 2 sophomore, 2 juniors and one senior.
* Rogers State: The Hillcats are quick, tough and well-coached. Coach Justin Barkley has done a fantastic job at Rogers State.
* Indiana Wesleyan defeated Marian 84-76 to move to 8-0 on the season. The Wildcats have won by an average of 29.7 point per game this season. They are good. Really good! With an incredible amount of attention that teams and defenses pay to Kyle Mangas, I have a couple of observations: 1) What Kyle Mangas is doing, well, it’s just remarkable! Teams are absolutely all over him, doing whatever they can to stop him, and he’s averaging 32.6 ppg, 7.9 rpg and 5.3 apg and shooting over 62% fg and 88% ft. He’s just so effective and efficient. If you haven’t had the opportunity to see him play, I encourage you to do so. He’s among the very best NAIA players of this generation. 2) Because so much of the attention goes to Kyle Mangas, sometimes people don’t realize how good the other team members are.....Seth Maxwell is a 7′0″ junior that was a Third Team NAIA All American as a sophomore. IWU is winning by large margins thus far this season, and Maxwell is only playing an average of 26.5 minutes per game, yet averaging 13.6 ppg, 8.8 rpg and 4.0 blocks per game. He’s shooting over 56% from the field. Dylan Alderson is a 6′5″ senior transfer from the University of Toledo, and he’s the second leading scorer on the team, averaging 15.6 ppg, while shooting over 56% fg. Alderson also averages 4.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. Noah Smith is a tough, heady point guard that is unselfish.....he averages 5.5 ppg, 4.1 apg and 3.1 rpg. As a primary ball handler, he has 33 assists and only 10 turnovers in their first 8 games. Also, I like Michael Thompson, who is a 6′5″ transfer from Trevecca Nazarene. He’s tough, plays hard and has quite a motor. Also, freshman Tayson Parker is really talented. He’s already averaging 12.9 ppg and shooting over 52% from the field. Folks, Indiana Wesleyan is a really good team.....and geez, they are well coached! Coach Greg Tonagel is among the most respected coaches in the country, at any level.
* Marian: This team is good! Coming into their matchup with Indiana Wesleyan, they were 3-0, having won by an average of over 31 points per game. I was really impressed with Christian Harvey. He’s really quick, yet under control. He can score, yet he’s unselfish. In short, he’s a really good point guard, quite possibly among the better points guards in all of the NAIA right now, and he’s only a sophomore. After I watch him play, I read a bit more about him, and realized that he was the Freshman of the Year in the Crossroads League, and was named First Team All Crossroads League as a freshman. (After redshirting his first year at Marian, this was not much of a surprise, as Harvey was selected First Team Hoosier Basketball All-State in high school, after averaging 27.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists during his senior season.) Also, Cameron Wolter is a 6′8″ senior that is really good and steady. He was named First Team All Crossroads League last season, and was named Third Team All American as a junior. He finishes nicely and he rebounds..... nice player, who plays under control, and is efficient. After 4 games, he’s averaging 18.3 ppg and 10.0 rpg, while shooting 59% fg.
* Lincoln Memorial: The Railsplitters opened up the season yesterday with an 80-62 win over Newberry. LMU came into this season with huge expectations, yet the reality is that they only have two starters back, and only one of them was available for the opening game. They came into this season-opening game with a remarkable 32-game win streak and a consensus pre-season Top 5 ranking multiple polls. Much of the preseason hype surrounding a team with only two starters remaining has to do with 1) the two starters, Cam Henry and Devin Whitfield, are really good, and 2) Coach Josh Schertz has built the LMU program into one of the nation’s finest, and most consistent elite programs in NCAA Division II basketball, 3) there is a great deal of additional talent surrounding Cam Henry and Devin Whitfield. Having said this, here are a few notes from yesterday’s season-opening win:
* Cam Henry played, and Devin Whitfield didn’t play. Henry is a 6′6″ wing that is tremendously versatile. He defends, rebounds, scores, passes, blocks...... He’s among the most versatile players in the country, and usually finds a way to help his team win, regardless of how many points he scores.
* Jordan Guest is a 6′9″ junior transfer, and he’s good! Guest has a strong body, and he can go inside and out. He’s active, and he can just play. Nice player....and an important player for LMU.
* Julius Brown came off the bench last year, playing behind senior Anthony Brown (no relation). He was good last year, and more will be expected of him this year in an expanded role.....and he sure looked good yesterday. Julius is really quick, yet he’s under control. As the team’s primary ball handler, his continued development will be important for the Railsplitters. He went for 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 0 turnover yesterday. He’s a good one....
* Xavier Bledson is a 6′6″ redshirt sophomore. Frankly, I didn’t know anything about him (he redshirted last year), yet I sure was impressed yesterday...... He reminds me of Cam Henry, which is a huge compliment. He’s got a good body, he moves very fluidly, plays hard and contributes in many ways. In yesterday’s opener, Bledson went for 6 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists.
* Alex Dahling hit 5 3′s yesterday, and could be important for the Railsplitters as a perimeter threat on a team of tremendous athletes.
* I was anxious to see Simon Wilbar. He’s a 6′11″ redshirt freshman that saw his first action as a collegiate player. I had heard that he has a chance to be quite elite and rather special, so was anxious to see him. At his size, he’s really fluid, and he has excellent hands. Based on watching 10 minutes of playing time, it should be fun to watch his growth and development over the next four years.