RICHMOND, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky University men’s basketball team will feature a new look when the Colonels open the 2015-16 season versus Coppin State on Friday night at McBrayer Arena.
Eastern has a new head coach in former Minnesota assistant Dan McHale, a new style of play, several new players … even new Under Armour uniforms.
McHale was hired in April, inheriting a program that won 20-plus games each of the last three years. However, many key components of that run are now gone. Corey Walden, Eric Stutz, Timmy Knipp and company graduated, taking with them 72 percent of last year’s scoring and 67 percent of last year’s rebounding.
Only two returning Colonels played significant minutes in 2014-15 – senior wing Ja’Mill Powell (8.2 points-per-game) and junior guard Isaac McGlone (5.5 points-per-game).
Despite his team’s relative lack of experience, McHale believes the new-look Colonels have a chance to be deep, up-tempo and fun to watch.
“Looking at our roster, we are long, we are deep and I think we have a chance to be a very good, up-tempo team,” McHale said. “We’re going to focus on getting a lot of our offense from our defense. Whether we’re playing man, whether we’re playing a match-up zone, whether we’re pressing you full-court or three-quarters court, everything is dictated on having long arms, active hands and communication.”
Below is a position-by-position preview of the 2015-16 team.
Guards
McGlone is poised to be the leader of the Colonel backcourt in 2015-16. The 6-2 junior from Ohio appeared in all 33 games last year and started 28 of them. However, most of his minutes have come at the shooting guard position. McHale will have him at point guard to open the year.
“Isaac is going to shift over to point guard,” McHale said. “He’s comfortable with it, and I’ve adjusted my offense to fit him at the point guard.”
Despite playing shooting guard the last two years, McGlone has flashed the ability to distribute. He finished second on the team last season with 86 assists.
Sophomore Paul Jackson could also factor in at point guard. The 6-1 Georgia native played in 24 games last season, starting two of them. He showed flashes, especially when he started for the injured Walden at OVC Tournament champion Belmont on February 19. He played a career-high 30 minutes in that game, dishing out five assists and coming up with two steals.
Two newcomers who could see minutes in the backcourt are junior Cam Williams and freshman Dujuanta Weaver. Williams averaged nearly 21.0 points-per-game at North Platte Community College in Nebraska last year, while Weaver was named the Courier Journal Sixth Region Player of the Year while playing for Doss High School in 2014-15.
Redshirt senior K.J. Bluford could also prove to be a key piece of the backcourt equation. The former Iowa State Cyclone sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules, but McHale thinks his shooting ability could make him an instant-impact player for the Colonels.
“K.J. Bluford can really stretch the floor for us,” McHale noted. “He’s as good a shooter as I’ve ever coached.”
Walk-ons Tommy Matthews – who played in all 33 games last year – and Daniel Parke – a Richmond native and transfer from Transylvania – could also see minutes off the bench this season.
Wings
McHale’s small and power forward positions are interchangeable and can be consolidated into one word: wings.
The first-year head man likes what he sees at this hybrid position.
“Our wings are all 6-4 to 6-7 older guys who are battle-tested and who can shoot it,” McHale said.
Powell brings the most experience to the table. The 6-7 senior from Bridgeport, Connecticut finished fourth on the team at 8.2 points-per-game. He notably scored a career-high 26 points at BYU on November 29.
Reshirt junior Jaylen Babb-Harrison and senior Jonathan Hood are the other returners in the group. Babb-Harrison has struggled with injuries throughout his career, but, when healthy, he has shown the ability to score in bunches. The Ajax, Ontario native poured in a career-high 28 points against Kentucky Christian last November. Hood played in only 13 games last year, but McHale noted that he could cause matchup problems as an undersized (6-4) four-man who can shoot.
Reshirt junior JaVontae Hawkins and senior Jarelle Reischel are talented newcomers who will likely slide into starting roles immediately. Hawkins’ Colonel debut has been a long time coming. The former South Florida Bull sat out last season due to transfer rules, but whetted Colonel fans’ appetites by winning the 2014 Hoopfest Dunk Contest with an array of electrifying throw-downs. He only built on the hype by dropping a game-high 38 points in the Maroon-White Scrimmage on October 24.
Reischel was a valuable offseason pick-up by McHale and his staff. The versatile, skilled native of Frankfurt, Germany played the last two seasons at Rhode Island and should provide an important veteran presence in the lineup. Reischel scored 14 points and dished out five assists in the Colonels’ exhibition win over Union College last Sunday.
Posts
If there was a position hit hardest by graduation, it was the post position. Veteran big men Stutz and Deverin Muff graduated, leaving a trio of newcomers – sophomore Greg King and freshmen Nick Mayo and Anthony Pratt Jr. – to patrol the paint for McHale’s Colonels this season.
Mayo has arguably been the most impressive so far. The 6-9 native of Oakland, Maine started last Sunday’s exhibition win over Union and led the Colonels with 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field.
“The sky is the limit with Nick Mayo,” McHale said. “He has all the tools – good hands, great footwork, touch from outside, he’s long and very athletic.”
McHale is also high on King – a transfer from Chipola College – and Pratt Jr. – a native of the Bahamas who played prep ball at St. Louis Christian Academy in Missouri.
“Greg King plays with such a high motor; probably the highest motor on the team,” McHale said. “And Anthony Pratt is your ultimate energy guy. He’s the best rebounder on the team, he has a nose for the basketball and that’s why he’s going to play.”
Schedule
EKU will play at traditional powers Kentucky (December 9) and West Virginia (December 21), and will face mid-major challenges such as defending Colonial Athletic Association champion UNC Wilmington (November 16), Western Kentucky (December 1), Marshall (December 12), East Tennessee State (December 18), Florida Atlantic (December 15) and Manhattan (December 29) before settling into OVC play in January.
“We’ll definitely be tested,” McHale said. “But we need to see how we measure up against some great mid-level programs. I don’t want my guys to lose confidence, but I want them to play well and – win or lose – I want them to feel good going into OVC action knowing they played probably the toughest non-conference schedule in the league.”
http://ekusports.com/news/2015/11/11/MBBALL_1111154522.aspx
Comments
