Update: In the 3 days since I have written this Gonzaga has not only added a 2012 recruit, but handed out several offers for the 2013 class and beyond.
I've recently written on the stacked 2012 recruiting classes of the WCC's two up and coming teams, Loyola Marymount and San Francisco. LMU looks to continue their ascent in the conference standings next season with their incoming freshmen while USF is trying to battle a serious case of the transfer bug and maintain their place in the standings with their class. Of the conference's "Big Three" only BYU has a full class at this point, with 5 incoming players. Saint Mary's, as of now, will be adding two new players next season. Gonzaga, the king of the conference, will be losing four players in the offseason, two to graduation and two to transfers. To fill that hole for next season they currently have nothing. No signed letters of intent and no verbal commitments.
A national powerhouse program, like Gonzaga, doesn't recruit simply for the next season's roster. Powerhouses are able to sustain success over the long term. That said, thanks to Gonzaga's recent recruiting classes I am confident the Zags could win the WCC next year without adding a single player to the roster. I hope they don't have to, and am equally confident that is not why the Zags are already looking forward to their 2013 class.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Loyola Marymount: From Surprising to Sustaining
Last season LMU was the biggest surprise in the WCC. That's because the year before the Lions finished with 2 wins in league play, and only 11 total. Despite suffering thru more injuries than most teams could imagine dealing with, only one Lion played in all 34 games last season (Anthony Ireland), Loyola Marymount added ten wins to their previous season's total. This incredible turn around against all odds earned Max Good the WCC coach of the year award and his team a post season berth in the CIT.
Next season looks to be even better for the Lions, despite losing four seniors. The most important of those is Drew Viney, the Lions second leading scorer (15.2), rebounder (5.5), and ball stealer (1.2). Joining Viney in the alumni ranks are LaRon Armistead, Tim Diederichs, and Kelsey Chine. Other than Viney, Armistead is the only serious loss for the team, as he averaged 8 points per game.
It's hard to replace a player like Viney, who is a big reason for the turnaround of the LMU program. The Lions aren't in any trouble though. Just like San Francisco, Loyola Marymount has assembled a recruiting class of steals and under the radar players. Unlike San Francisco, Loyola Marymount isn't replacing nine players this off season. What does that mean? I'm willing to wager that if it's not the Zags who win the WCC this year, it will be the Lions (though my money is on Gonzaga).
Last season's injuries brought playing time to the Lions bench, which should prove invaluable in November and December as the departing players are replaced and the freshmen acclimate to the D-1 game.
Next season looks to be even better for the Lions, despite losing four seniors. The most important of those is Drew Viney, the Lions second leading scorer (15.2), rebounder (5.5), and ball stealer (1.2). Joining Viney in the alumni ranks are LaRon Armistead, Tim Diederichs, and Kelsey Chine. Other than Viney, Armistead is the only serious loss for the team, as he averaged 8 points per game.
It's hard to replace a player like Viney, who is a big reason for the turnaround of the LMU program. The Lions aren't in any trouble though. Just like San Francisco, Loyola Marymount has assembled a recruiting class of steals and under the radar players. Unlike San Francisco, Loyola Marymount isn't replacing nine players this off season. What does that mean? I'm willing to wager that if it's not the Zags who win the WCC this year, it will be the Lions (though my money is on Gonzaga).
Last season's injuries brought playing time to the Lions bench, which should prove invaluable in November and December as the departing players are replaced and the freshmen acclimate to the D-1 game.
Monday, April 16, 2012
Kayla Standish and Katelan Redmon Head to the WNBA
The number of Zags in the WNBA has just doubled. Before today Courtney Vandersloot and Vivian Frieson were the only Zags to be drafted. Now that the 2012 WNBA draft has happened, the number of Zags is up to four. Kayla Standish and Katelan Redmon go from former teammates to future adversaries.
Kayla Standish, who was invited to the event, went as the 7th pick in the second round. Her new team, the Minnesota Lynx, is coming off winning the WNBA championship last season. Katelan Redmon heads across the country to play in the big apple for the New York Liberty. While neither of them landed with Vandersloot's Chicago Sky as I was hoping, they will get reunions soon enough. By May 22nd their three teams will have all have played each other. Vandersloot will get to see both Redmon and Standish in preseason games while Redmon and Standish will face off in New York in a regular season game. While they will be reunited very soon, but I won't get to see either of them play in Chicago until July.
This is great news for these players, obviously, but also for the Gonzaga basketball program. Having players drafted in three straight years, on top of selling out home games, making the sweet sixteen on the regular, and almost always being ranked in the top 25... what more does a recruit want?
Best of luck to Katelan Redmon and Kayla Standish in the WNBA. They are already two of the all time great Zags, now they have a chance to earn that honor on their professional teams. I can't wait until the Sky host the Lynx and Liberty. I'll be rocking my Zags gear at the game because it's not often that two former Zags will be playing professional basketball in the same building.
Kayla Standish, who was invited to the event, went as the 7th pick in the second round. Her new team, the Minnesota Lynx, is coming off winning the WNBA championship last season. Katelan Redmon heads across the country to play in the big apple for the New York Liberty. While neither of them landed with Vandersloot's Chicago Sky as I was hoping, they will get reunions soon enough. By May 22nd their three teams will have all have played each other. Vandersloot will get to see both Redmon and Standish in preseason games while Redmon and Standish will face off in New York in a regular season game. While they will be reunited very soon, but I won't get to see either of them play in Chicago until July.
This is great news for these players, obviously, but also for the Gonzaga basketball program. Having players drafted in three straight years, on top of selling out home games, making the sweet sixteen on the regular, and almost always being ranked in the top 25... what more does a recruit want?
Best of luck to Katelan Redmon and Kayla Standish in the WNBA. They are already two of the all time great Zags, now they have a chance to earn that honor on their professional teams. I can't wait until the Sky host the Lynx and Liberty. I'll be rocking my Zags gear at the game because it's not often that two former Zags will be playing professional basketball in the same building.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Surging San Francisco Transfers out of the Fast Lane, Part 2
This is the second part of a two part series on San Francisco's already tumultuous yet promising off-season. If you haven't read part one yet please do so and then come back for part two.
As I explained in part one, San Francisco is having a personnel problem. They've lost the bulk of their roster in terms of stats, minutes, and simply, players. They haven't lost them all, and that is important, at the very least as a starting point to build on for next season.
Most important among those returning players is starting point guard Cody Doolin, who will be a junior next season. Doolin has started for both of his seasons as a Don making him by far the most experienced player on the roster. Comparing his stats from his Freshman and Sophomore years you can see they remained mostly stagnant except for the noticeable jump in scoring. Doolin attempted and made more field goals this past season than his first, leaving him at 9.3ppg compared to 7.7.
Doolin is a streaky player. Three times last season he shot 0% from the field and 11 times below 30%. The flip side of that is that when he's hot, he's very good. It's not just that he can have very solid games that's important for the Dons, it's when he has those games. From the Dons' 1 point loss to BYU on February 16th, the third to last regular season game, until the end of the season Doolin was straight up ballin. In the WCC quarterfinals against Loyola Marymount he poured in 16 points and pulled down 7 rebounds along with dishing out 4 assists. Then in the semifinal against #21 Saint Mary's Doolin played out of his mind. In 39 minutes he scored a career high 28 points on 10 of 16 shooting and 4 of 7 from long range. He also managed to dish out 5 assists and pull down 5 boards, all while committing only 1 turnover in the high stakes game.
Most important among those returning players is starting point guard Cody Doolin, who will be a junior next season. Doolin has started for both of his seasons as a Don making him by far the most experienced player on the roster. Comparing his stats from his Freshman and Sophomore years you can see they remained mostly stagnant except for the noticeable jump in scoring. Doolin attempted and made more field goals this past season than his first, leaving him at 9.3ppg compared to 7.7.
Doolin is a streaky player. Three times last season he shot 0% from the field and 11 times below 30%. The flip side of that is that when he's hot, he's very good. It's not just that he can have very solid games that's important for the Dons, it's when he has those games. From the Dons' 1 point loss to BYU on February 16th, the third to last regular season game, until the end of the season Doolin was straight up ballin. In the WCC quarterfinals against Loyola Marymount he poured in 16 points and pulled down 7 rebounds along with dishing out 4 assists. Then in the semifinal against #21 Saint Mary's Doolin played out of his mind. In 39 minutes he scored a career high 28 points on 10 of 16 shooting and 4 of 7 from long range. He also managed to dish out 5 assists and pull down 5 boards, all while committing only 1 turnover in the high stakes game.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Surging San Francisco Transfers Out of Fast Lane
Dons' head coach Rex Walters has done a magnificent job turning around the San Francisco basketball program. A mid-twentieth century powerhouse with two national championships that fell into serious disrepair over the past 25 years. Walters took over in 2008 with the Dons coming off a ten win season. He's improved on that every year since, including hitting 20 wins last season and making a second straight post season appearance.
There were some questions about next season, as starters Angelo Caloiaro and Rashad Green would be lost to graduation. Rarely seen reserve Jay Wey will also be graduating. Caloiaro lead the team in points with 14.2 per game and was second in assists and rebounds. Green ranked third in points with 11.8 per game. San Francisco sat in a similar position at the end of last season, with two seniors graduating, yet managed to improve despite the loss.
For the same to be said in 2012-2013, Rex Walters will need to do the best coaching job of his career. He will need to pull a national coach of the year worthy performance out of his hat. While no mid major coach will get the award for putting together a team that wins 20+ games, Walters will be more deserving than any major conference team that overcomes whatever personnel losses they suffer. Why do I say this? Well...
There were some questions about next season, as starters Angelo Caloiaro and Rashad Green would be lost to graduation. Rarely seen reserve Jay Wey will also be graduating. Caloiaro lead the team in points with 14.2 per game and was second in assists and rebounds. Green ranked third in points with 11.8 per game. San Francisco sat in a similar position at the end of last season, with two seniors graduating, yet managed to improve despite the loss.
For the same to be said in 2012-2013, Rex Walters will need to do the best coaching job of his career. He will need to pull a national coach of the year worthy performance out of his hat. While no mid major coach will get the award for putting together a team that wins 20+ games, Walters will be more deserving than any major conference team that overcomes whatever personnel losses they suffer. Why do I say this? Well...
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Zag Star Kayla Standish Invited to WNBA Draft
For the second year in a row the Gonzaga women's basketball program will be represented at the WNBA Draft. 15 of the top WNBA prospects are invited to the event which is held at the headquarters of ESPN in Bristol, Connecticut. There will be 36 players drafted. The 15 that are invited to the event are essentially guaranteed to be selected. Last year Courtney Vandersloot represented Gonzaga at the draft. She was selected 3rd by the Chicago Sky. Vivian Frieson, while not invited to the event, is the only other Zag who has been drafted. She was taken with the 31st pick by the Tulsa Shock in 2010.
The WNBA draft has three rounds of 12 picks, one for each team. Though like most drafts teams can trade for better position. Standish is expected to go late in the first round or early in the second.
The 6' 2'' forward had a solid junior year putting up 617 points, second only to Vandersloot, for an average of 17.1 points per game while playing in all 36 games. Standish also led the team with 59 blocks and rebounds with 304.
The WNBA draft has three rounds of 12 picks, one for each team. Though like most drafts teams can trade for better position. Standish is expected to go late in the first round or early in the second.
The 6' 2'' forward had a solid junior year putting up 617 points, second only to Vandersloot, for an average of 17.1 points per game while playing in all 36 games. Standish also led the team with 59 blocks and rebounds with 304.
Saint Mary's and the 2012 Anaheim Classic Field
The sixth annual Anaheim Classic, formerly the 76 Classic, has confirmed the 8 team field that will participate in this year's event. The early season tournament takes place over the Thanksgiving weekend with games on the 22nd (Thursday), 24th, and 25th.
Saint Mary's will represent the WCC in the event. Pacific is also slated to participate. Next season will be their last season before moving to the WCC. Pacific is currently a member of the event's host conference, the Big West.
For fans of the WCC this should be a good event, not just because of the two WCC ties, but for the level of competition that the Gaels will be matched up against in their normally weak non-conference schedule. Of the eight teams involved, six played their way into this past post-season. One of those six, obviously, is Saint Mary's. If you can't remember last month the Gaels were a 7 seed in the NCAA tournament but fell in their first game to Purdue.
Joining the Gaels on the marquee will be another non-power-six powerhouse, the Xavier Musketeers. Xavier, who lost at home to Gonzaga last season on December 31st, went all the way to the Sweet Sixteen. Another NCAA participant who will play in Anaheim are the Golden Bears of California. Cal barely made the field of 68 and fell to South Florida in a First Four match-up.
Saint Mary's will represent the WCC in the event. Pacific is also slated to participate. Next season will be their last season before moving to the WCC. Pacific is currently a member of the event's host conference, the Big West.
For fans of the WCC this should be a good event, not just because of the two WCC ties, but for the level of competition that the Gaels will be matched up against in their normally weak non-conference schedule. Of the eight teams involved, six played their way into this past post-season. One of those six, obviously, is Saint Mary's. If you can't remember last month the Gaels were a 7 seed in the NCAA tournament but fell in their first game to Purdue.
Joining the Gaels on the marquee will be another non-power-six powerhouse, the Xavier Musketeers. Xavier, who lost at home to Gonzaga last season on December 31st, went all the way to the Sweet Sixteen. Another NCAA participant who will play in Anaheim are the Golden Bears of California. Cal barely made the field of 68 and fell to South Florida in a First Four match-up.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Ryan Spangler to Transfer from Gonzaga
Just yesterday I started hearing whispers about this being a possibility. Now today it's confirmed. Ryan Spangler, who has been homesick all season, has been granted a release from the basketball program at Gonzaga. It's expected he'll be heading for a school in Oklahoma, or much closer to the state than Gonzaga.
This is shocking news because the last Gonzaga fans heard Spangler's name was due to his solid 4 point 8 rebound performance in the Zags blow out of West Virginia during the NCAA tournament. Spangler developed over the season into the team's most effective rebounder. He lead the team in offensive and defensive rebounding percentage.
In a statement made about the decision Spangler said “I’ve made a lot of great friends this year at Gonzaga and love it here. But I want to see my family more, and I want my family to see me play more." He also stated that the move has nothing to do with the minutes he's been getting.
This is shocking news because the last Gonzaga fans heard Spangler's name was due to his solid 4 point 8 rebound performance in the Zags blow out of West Virginia during the NCAA tournament. Spangler developed over the season into the team's most effective rebounder. He lead the team in offensive and defensive rebounding percentage.
In a statement made about the decision Spangler said “I’ve made a lot of great friends this year at Gonzaga and love it here. But I want to see my family more, and I want my family to see me play more." He also stated that the move has nothing to do with the minutes he's been getting.
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