University of Salt Lake City - Struggle for Respect

[PilotMan]

I am going to attempt a shot at a dyanasty. I enjoy reading them and I think its time to get one of my own. This is going to be based upon my Simulated Sports college basketball team. I hope I can keep you entertained.

Each league is made up of 32 conferences. Each representing various geographical areas. Each conference is made up of 2 divisions, 4 teams apiece. That works out to 256 teams overall, all human controlled. Recruiting is done weekly. The amount of recruiting that can be done varies based on the size of the school. Size is determined by support. Small=free, medium $2 per season, large $5 per season, and sponsor $25 per season. There are some benefits but all teams can be competetive at the small level. Recruiting is only directly affected by the amount you can spend each week. There is a weekly maximum per player as well. Each city has 3 highschool recruits, 768 total to pour over during the season. Recruits have preferences as well, and play games coincident to the college games. Recruiting takes place until after the completion of the National Tournament.

Each team playes a 15 game regular season schedule with 3 exhibition games, followed by a conference tounament and 4 concurrent national tournys that are tiered into National, Provincial, Regional, and District. All teams finish with 24 games before the recruits commit and the season restarts.

Games are played on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday nights. Here we go.

[PilotMan]

When I got into the business they asked me. "What kind of team nickname do you see yourself with?" To which I replied " I guess growing up in the midwest the Ice Storm always appealed to me." This raised some eyebrows for sure, as Salt Lake City doesn't get that many Ice Storms. In the end though, that is how this little university came to be known as the Salt Lake City Ice Storm.

I can't believe that they actually gave me what I wanted. I mean, I have no idea what I am doing, and to think I have to start recruiting soon. My god, where do I begin?

This is how I felt when I took over the team, and didn't it show.

[PilotMan]

My first season we were coming off a 13-11 record andthe District Tounament Title, not highly regarded, and not very prestigious. I had taken over the team after the previous coach had become dissolusioned with the team and the athletic board asked him to resign. We were already through the preseason games so I had very little to go on.

(note: due to stats and names being long gone this look back will be quick and informational)

We started to season losing 16 straight games, morale was terrible and I had lost interest in the team. I had started doing some work recruiting, but appently when your losing 16 straight, the top recruits sort of bypass your school. We picked up a suprise win the Conference tournament and moved on to the District Tournament.

Quickly we exited but, came back and rattled off some wins to take the District Consolation Tournament. I was back in the groove, and ready to give it another shot next season. I had done some recruiting and reevluated my team. Looked to see what seniors were leaving and where I could start rebuilding this team.

We finished season 17 with a 6-18 record, I didn't feel it was too bad, out of 256 teams we had the toughest schedule of all.

As expected noone from the school went in the first 4 rounds of the pro draft.

[PilotMan]

Considering how much of a flop I was at coach last season, we paid for it in recruiting. Out of 768 possible recruits we managed to get:

#629 Terry Ingle a 6'9" C who averaged 10.8ppg and 8.3rpg in highschool. Poor in skill all he provided was a warm body to spell the star.

#765 Louis Houston 6'1" SF 3.5ppg, 2.1rpg. Terrible.

#768 Garry Blevins 5'10" SF 1.9ppg 2.7rpg. Ditto.

It is quite possible that these two were playing the wrong position, but they probably won't get the opportunity to show me in game time.

Lets meet the rest of the team.

The Seniors

Antawn Ridge 6'7" the big boy and team MVP from last season, he will move to the post and expect another big year from him. 32 min 16.7ppg, 7.3rpg, .449fg%

Melvin Thorne 6'7" another post type player, he started last year at C will be moved to the PF slot, and platoon. My only other real rebounding presence. 24min 4.5ppg 7.4rpg, .456fg%

Roger Collins 6'1" He was a starter before I showed up and has no been relegated to backup SG. He will be given a look at starting guard slot. 12min 5.4ppg 1.4rpg .434fg%

The Juniors

Gomer Maloney 6'8" Came off the bench at C, good shooter, poor ball handler and rebounder. That is probably why he will not start this year. 15min 7.0ppg 3.0rpg .465fg%

Terrance Wayne 6'3" He has been a reserve guard and SF last year, will be looked at but no real shot. 12min 3.6ppg 1.3rpg .400fg%

Marcus Wynne 6'5" Starting PG since his freshman year he is a good ball handler who will start this year. 29 min 7.2ppg 2.4rpg 5.1apg .439fg%

The Sophs

Sebastian Hamilton 6'3" He was the starting SG last year as a freshman, he may need to move to fill a void at SF, unless someone can develop there in the preseason. 27min 12.5ppg 3.0rpg .373fg%

Jaron Hale 6'3" Jaron rode the bench and was innactive for most of the season, he will get a shot this year as well. 10min 1.8ppg .8rpg .250fg%

Vinnie Griffith 6'4" His size would be good for the SF slot, but he saw no action as a freshman.

[PilotMan]

The preseason went well, as a matter of fact we were undefeated. But the preseason is the preseason for a reason. An update on the positional places.

PG - A three way split Marcus Wynne(JR), Jaron Hale(SO), Roger Collins(SR). Wynne was it last year, avg 5.1 apg, but his scoring was down. Collins rode the bench and Hale was inactive. Hale may get a shot, because he can handle the ball, better than Collins, and Wynne may have to move to SF due to my teams diminutive size. Collins, however, had 12pts in 19 min in the last exhibition game.

SG - Jaron Hale, or Sebastian Hamilton(SO). Hale would likely get the start here if Hamilton was moved to SF for his shooting and D. Hamilton owned this pos last year avg 12.5 pts. Hale showed promise in preseason dropping in 14, his second game was not so hot as he only made 3 of 12.

SF - Hamilton or Wynne. Wynne has the height at 6'5", but in his first experience here played 29 min and went 0 for 2 with 4 assists and 3 steals. He is much more natural at the point running the floor. Hamilton's first game here was better as he had 16 pts, but I fear at 6'3" he is to short to be here.

PF - Last year this was my team MVP Antwan Ridge, he has been moved to post and this year will see SR Melvin Thorne, and JR Gomer Maloney. Last year at C they combined for 11.5 ppg, and 10.5 rbg. So far in the preseason 16.5 ppg, and 13 rpg. One shoots and the other plays D and rebounds.

C - The only sure thing SR Antwann Ridge. At 6'7" I really wish I had someone taller, but he still manages to play consistant BB, I have no one to replace him with so I am looking BIG for this years recruiting class. AVG 16.7 ppg, and 7.3 rpg at PF last year. His numbers should improve this year 20.5 ppg, and 12 rpg in the preseason.


Everyone else is reserved a spot on the bench and will be called upon later.

[PilotMan]

Topeka Kickboxers 91 Salt Lake Ice Storm 90
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I really think that going undefeated in the preseason is an omen for failure in the regular season. I felt like I had a shot to win, lead for the majority of the game. The team I was playing barely had a better record than me last year, and he had two FR starters. Of course, my team may have gotten weaker, as I lost a avg SF with really noone behind him. However, the choice of SO Jaron Hale, for me at SG may be a big break, he scored 19 last night. Not a bad move to go from being inactive to starting in one offseason. Anyway, my schedule isn't nearly as painful as it was last year, when after the regular season, I had lead the league in strength of schedule, of course I lost all the games, but I should definately look for some kind of improvement this year.


Salt Lake Ice Storm 86 Tallahassee Tabby 83
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Well I would have to call the season a success at already, as I have very low expectations for this ballclub. Since I managed to beat a team who did have a winning record last year. This game saw the Ice Storm down by 9 with six minutes to play. SF Sebastian Hamilton led the team back with 22 pts and 5 reb. The only drawback was his 3 turnovers, the good thing was that I only had 7 for the game. My best performance since assuming the coaching position. Also productive was PG Marcus Wynn who had his best offensive performance with 13 to go with his 7 assists. C Antwan Ridge was steady as usual although his numbers are down playing against bigger men scoring 18 and grabbing 7 boards. One weakness that I am seeing is the lack of rebounding do to my diminutive size. Small bits of success.

Panama City Coyotes 88 Salt Lake Ice Stom 86
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Well this sucked. We had the lead for the whole game and a chance to go 2-1, against a team that hadn't lost yet. We choked in the last 5 minutes and SF Sebastian Hamilton missed a shot as time ran out. DamnDamnDamnDamn.....Now we go against a big program, and the in conference play begins. Let's see, I'm undersized and have poor rebounding...thet're giants with big rebounding..I guess I can't miss a basket the whole game.

My Big? men did have a good game as Antawn Ridge dumped in 22 with 11 rebounds and my PF tandem of Maloney and Thorne added 23 with 10 boards. Hamilton had a horrible day as he couldn't get the ball off. Six shots turned into 7 pts. The worst day belonged to inconsistant SG Jaron Hale, 7pts 5reb...8 turnovers..ouch!! He may ride the bench against the Kings.

[PilotMan]

North

Olympia Wild Donkeys
Last 10 Years : 17 - 7, 17 - 7, 13 - 11, 10 - 14, 19 - 5, 18 - 6, 20 - 4, 16 - 8, 18 - 6, 16 - 8
A top notch college, who are usually nationally ranked.

Roswell Half-wits
Last 10 Years : 16 - 8, 11 - 13, 8 - 16, 9 - 15, 5 - 19, 6 - 18, 4 - 20, 3 - 21, 10 - 14, 9 - 15
The model for my sucess a preseasin top 20 and fully rebuilt program.

Long Beach Platypi
Last 10 Years : 5 - 19, 8 - 16, 6 - 18, 4 - 20, 10 - 14, 8 - 16, 8 - 16, 14 - 10, 13 - 11, 17 - 7
Similar to mine, seen better years and trying to rebuild.

Eugene Ninja Pacifists
Last 10 Years : 19 - 5, 16 - 8, 15 - 9, 16 - 8, 7 - 17, 9 - 15, 10 - 14, 12 - 12, 9 - 15, 3 - 21
Another nationally ranked powerhouse.

South

Salem Diazonium Ions
Last 10 Years : 14 - 10, 18 - 6, 13 - 11, 17 - 7, 14 - 10, 8 - 16, 13 - 11, 10 - 14, 6 - 18, 8 - 16
Very talented team whose consistantly tough.

Carson City Demolition
Last 10 Years : 9 - 15, 9 - 15, 8 - 16, 6 - 18, 7 - 17, 7 - 17, 12 - 12, 10 - 14, 13 - 11, 8 - 16
Pretty much my only shot at a conferece win besides Long Beach, becoming more competetive year by year.

Tucson Kings
Last 10 Years : 15 - 9, 16 - 8, 18 - 6, 22 - 2, 24 - 0, 22 - 2, 13 - 11, 8 - 16, 8 - 16, 11 - 13
2 time national champions and rock solid team.

Salt Lake is in the South and this conference is among the top 5 toughest in the league.

[PilotMan]

Tucson Kings 92 Salt Lake City Ice Storm 62
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This was was a mismatch. The game could not have gone any worse for this ballclub. We shot near 33%, were outrebounded by almost 50%. In fact the only high point was shooting almost 50% from 3pt land. Otherwise this game was a wash.

We were frustrated to only go to the foul line 7 times when we had been making a living there so far this season. Also, dissapointing was a comparasion of my ass/stl/TO vs. Tuscon. We really need to improve to compete on the next level.

The next game was a narrow defeat to Salem, we lost by 9, but you know that really could have been a great win. We were up during almost the whole game. By 11 at one point, but I just couldn't seal the deal. Let them back in the game. The final score was their biggest lead of the game.

I was happy (again) with the performance of Antawn Ridge, as he scored a team high 19 and grabbed 5 rebounds. SO Jaron Hale had a good game at SG as he added 15. The PF combo of Maloney and Thorne gained me 17pts and 10 reb. And PG Wynne had a career high 9 assists.

It was from this game that I could feel that we were developing as a team.. We could come together and .....Beat Carson City?

Reality Check ....we choke
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I don't think we could have played a worse game than we did against Carson City. we were completely torched. Nobody could score. I guess this is just a reminder that a 6-18 team will not improve when you get 3 walk ons for recruits. Even though, I think that this may be a better team..barely..at least I have the knowledge that I play in one of the toughest divisions in the whole league and that 1-5, when you have a tough schedule, isn't that bad. We are really looking to the next game as a possible win, as its against a very beatable team.

[GoldenEagle]

Nice thread. Ill keep reading.

[PilotMan]

Originally posted by GoldenEagle
Nice thread. Ill keep reading.

Thanks, we are still trying to catch up the past seasons, it will get more interesting once we are caught up.

The team went through a bit of a dry spell, we managed to pick up a win against Long Beach, and continued to fall against others. We played Olympia and almost pulled off the win, as we came from almost 20 down but still lost. We dropped another to Tuscon but played a very good game. They just dominated our small team on the boards. As the season progresses, I have continued to look for talent to come to Salt Lake next year.

Recruiting Strategy

With horrible rebounding, poor shooting and an overall lack of talent on the team, we believe that there is only one way to go--up. We have employed a strategy of only looking within the conference. As those players may give me a little advantage being realtively close to home. With such competition I need to aim a little lower to prevent a recruiting fiasco that I had last year. Salt Lake highschool is very good. but their graduating seniors are not top notch, certainly they wont turn us into a winner overnight.
I have vowed to add height to this years class so anyone under 6'6" need not apply. SLCHS has two graduating guards both are averaging over 16ppg, but neither really fit the bill. Their C does however look to have some potential, we will be going after him. We need to bring in 3 so we will also look for some backups in case they are heavily recruited. We cannot be left with the dregs again. It is already going to be at least 3yrs to recover from what was ranked 254/256 of all recruiting classes.

[PilotMan]

As we headed into the conference tournament, we had picked up 2 wins against Long Beach in conference, and our first matchup was against Olympia. They were the #2 seed in the North Division, and I was the #7 seed overall. I felt that we had a descent shot, since they were one team I could rebound with. It was not to be however, and I was sent to play Carson City in the Conference Consolation round. We managed a W against Carson City then set up a rematch against the Tuscon Kings. This time Tuscons coach was experimenting a little, and our MVP Antawn Ridge had an enormous game, as we shocked the Kings for the biggest win in school history.

We advanced to the District Tounament with our first matchup against of all teams the Long Beach Platypi, a team we had beaten twice during the regular season. Perhaps it was that we had looked ahead, and didn't take them seriously, but they kept my tournament losing streak alive, well at least we have the consolation tourney to look forward to.

In the consolation tounament we went on a nice little winning streak and tried out some different players at different positions. Notably, Vinnie Griffith was given a shot at SF with Sebastian Halmilton moving back to SG after I had become increasingly annoyed with Jaron Hale's inconsistancy, and his penchant for being a ball hog and turning the ball over. Griffith did well and will be looked at next year. We end up playing for the Disrtrict Consolation title, and its a great game, it goes to OT where we just can't pull it out. Oh, well at least I have the confidence of the athletic department.

[PilotMan]

End of Season Stats
Final Record 8-16

P Player 			 Height YR Gm MPG PPG RPG APG FGM FGA  3PM 3PA FTM FTA STL TO BLK 
PG Marcus Wynn    	 	  6-5  Jr 24  30 5.3  2.8 5.6  46 116  15  42  21  41 1.2 1.8 7 
SG Sebastian Hamilton 	  6-3  So 24  28 12.2 3.2 1.2 110 269  38 101  36  55 1.1 2.5 4 
SF Vinnie Griffith 	  6-4  So 24  16 7.0  2.8 0.7  63 140  11  32  32  41 0.5 0.8 3 
PF Antawn Ridge 	  	  6-7  Sr 24  33 16.5 7.5 1.3 164 344   8  26  61  80 1.1 1.2 22 
C Gomer Moloney 	 	  6-8  Jr 24  21 11.5 2.8 0.3 110 206   7  21  48  64 0.6 0.7 15 
P Player 			 Height YR Gm MPG PPG RPG APG FGM FGA  3PM 3PA FTM FTA STL TO BLK 
bPG Roger Collins 	 	  6-1  Sr 24  10 3.2  0.9 1.3  28  75   3  21  19  27 0.5 0.9 0 
bSG Jaron Hale 		  6-3  So 24  28 9.6  2.4 2.5  86 206  19  71  39  60 0.6 1.9 5 
bSF Terrance Wayne 	  6-3  Jr 24   9 3.5  0.8 0.5  29  65   7  15  19  23 0.3 0.5 3 
bPF Terry Ingle 	 	  6-10 Fr 24   8 1.6  1.7 0.4  17  39   0   4   4  11 0.2 0.4 5 
bC Melvin Thorne 	  	  6-7  Sr 24  20 2.7  5.0 1.5  25  66   0  10  15  23 0.6 0.8 11 
P Player 			 Height YR Gm MPG PPG RPG APG FGM FGA  3PM 3PA FTM FTA STL TO BLK 
NA Louis Huston 	 	  6-1  Fr  0   0 0.0  0.0 0.0   0   0   0   0   0   0 0.0 0.0 0 
NA Kendrick Rogers 	  6-2  Fr  0   0 0.0  0.0 0.0   0   0   0   0   0   0 0.0 0.0 0 
-- Team Totals -- -- -- -- 		      73.2 29.8 15.2 678 1526 108 343 294 425 160 272 75 
-- Opp. Totals -- -- 24 -- 		      80.6 33.7 14.5 778 1507 107 281 271 398 140 290 132

Looking back on the year I would have to say that Antawn Ridge was the team. He carried us when we were low and continually played against guys 4 and 5 inches taller, often dominating them. I really wish there was a way he could have played SF or PF instead of C. PG Marcus Wynne is not a scoring threat but his ability to dish the ball put him in the national leaders in assists. Vinnie Griffith and Jaron Hale battled for playing time. Neither did poorly, Jarons horrible fg% eventually put him on the bench at the end of the season. I tried my hardest to keep Terry Ingle out of as many games as possible, but somebody had to spell Ridge. Louis Houston and Kendrick Rodgers will never see any playing time unless we get some injuries.

[PilotMan]

Well, its my second season as coach, so I wasn't responsible for this recruiting class, but I will talk a bit about them.

Antawn Ridge Sr 6-7 95gms 31min 14.1p/pg 6.7r/pg 1.3a/pg .480fg% .273 3ptfg% .726ft% 0.8s/pg 1.6to/pg 78blks
He would have made a good PF or SF in my ideal lineup, but since this team is very small, he ended up playing C a lot, although he did get some games in at PF. He will go down as a 2 time team MVP.

Melvin Thorne Sr 6-7 71gms 25min 4.0p/pg 6.1r/pg 1.8a/pg .437fg% .000 3ptfg% .597ft% 0.6s/pg 1.1to/gm 42blks
He started for me last year at C and sat reserve PF for most of this season. He could be a rebound machine or a horrible liability. Used mostly for extra rebounding he kept us in some games.

Roger Collins Sr 6-1 47gms 11min 4.4p/pg 1.2r/pg 1.0a/pg .411fg% .269 3ptfg% .660ft% 0.6s/pg 0.9to/pg 4blks
Roger was a starter before I took over and then he became reserve PG for the rest of his career. Always a liability off the bench he could never keep the team going the way that our current PG can.

[PilotMan]

I have been really excited about recruiting. This is the first season that I have been succesful (read had any idea what I was doing). We have been actively recruiting 6 different guys all of whom have said they would like to make Salt Lake their school of choice. With the exception of one who is divided with another school. Its just a matter of who I want. We will have no walkons this year. Woohoo!

My zest for big men was the driving force for this season. We needed to be able to compete down low to have any chance at all. This season we were outrebounded 29.7-34.0. Not bad, but skewed by the fact of the teams I have been playing lately. Despite big hopes next year could be tough with up to 3fr in the starting lineup. They are...

Dejuan Higgons 6'7" 12.2ppg 6.7rpg 2.0apg 1.0spg 0.7topg 0.6bpg

His numbers are a little dissapointing, but I hope playing at C is the problem. He is projected at SF, but may be a poss at PF.

Buford Sabo 6-9 9.4ppg 8.0rpg 2.3apg 0.8spg 0.7topg 1.4bpg

Currently tied in conference. This big man will probably stay home and play here. As he can make an impact right away. Projected as a PF, he may need to go to C if needed.

Pete Knox 6-11 11.1ppg 7.4rpg 2.3apg 0.3spg 0.8topg 1.8bpg

He has been slow most of the year, but caome on with two huge games recently. Again, as with all, sweet hands and good board presence. Projected at C, hoping he is good enough to start.

Roderick Leis 6-8 14.8ppg 5.2rpg 1.3apg 0.6spg 0.5topg 0.6bpg

Another big man in the same mold as the others with a little more offense. Never really swayed by his ability to play, rebounding a little on the low side. Will probably need to go elsewhere, if the others sign.

Darryl Reed 6-6 19.3ppg 3.3rpg 1.2apg 1.3spg 2.0topg 0.5bpg

I was really high on his scoring, but at 6-6 he needs to be more helpful on the boards, t/o also were a concern. I am comfortable in my guards now, he is not really a priority.

Vern Sherman 6-6 21.4ppg 3.7rpg 0.5apg 0.6spg 2.1topg 0.7bpg

Another home town boy who was really a fall back plan. Resposible for Salt Lake HS 2 loss season, he does not grade that well to college. Similar in style to Reed, his t/o were a concern for a guard. He will walk on somewhere.

[PilotMan]

Here is a look at the opponents that we will face for the upcoming season:

Exh. 1	Wheeling Mustangs		18-6
Exh. 2	Louisville Nemesis		15-9
Exh. 3	Asheville Black Knights	18-6	
1	Alexandria Dragoons	13-11	
2	Topeka Kickboxers		7-17
3	Mobile Glory		17-7
4	Tucson Kings		15-9
5	Salem Diazonium Ions	14-10	
6	Carson City Demolition	9-15	
7	Cincinnati Roaches		8-16
8	Olympia Wild Donkeys	17-7	
9	Roswell Half-wits		16-8
10	Long Beach Platypi		5-19
11	Eugene Ninja Pacifists	19-5	
12	Kissimmee Rabid Chickens	16-8	
13	Tucson Kings		15-9
14	Salem Diazonium Ions	14-10	
15	Carson City Demolition	9-15

This looks to be a pretty tough schedule, I think that we will be lucky to repeat our 8-16 record from last year. The conference games are always tough and this years out of conference games look tough too.

[PilotMan]

As the new season draws near, I was sitting in the office and watching the SIMBA draft, when out of the blue, my boy, Antawn Ridge, went with the 26th pick of the first round. I am proud as he is the only one in my two years at USLC to be drafted into the SIMBA.

This week the new recruits show up. I can't wait to get a look at them.

We were able to recruit all of the guys that we had gone after, so I guess this will be the first class that I have been directly responsible for.

Buford Sabo Fr 6'9'' 27gm 32min 9.2ppg 8rpg 2.4apg .453fg%

Sabo chose to stay home, he is a hometown boy, and he likes his mommas home cookin'. I am really hoping to see him at PF, but he may be the new C. 6'9'' is ok, not the brute I was looking for. He uses his body well and gets in great position for the rebound, shooting is a little suspect. He makes crisp passes and is often able to find the open man. Defensively solid. He will be a starter somewhere, and I hope he matures quickly.

Dejuan Higgons Fr 6'7'' 27gm 30min 12ppg 6.7rpg 2apg .463fg%

Dejuan is pegged as a SF, although he played C in HS I think he is to small to play C here. PF is also a possibility. He may be the reason that neither Vinnie Griffith or Jaron Hale start this year. Similar to Sabo, he is a good defender, and shooter. He is a descent rebounder and also can move the ball around the court.

Pete Knox Fr 6'11'' 27gm 31min 11ppg 7.3rpg 2.2apg .449fg%

Pete was the one that I thought would be the starter for me at C and give me the size down low to compete with the big boys. With stats similar to Higgons, his ability leaves a lot to be desired. I will give him a shot to start at C, but if he doesn't impress he will be reserve. Not a great shooter or defender, descent rebonder, but his biggest upside are his great hands. Reminds me a lot of Sean Bradley, just hope he is a little more productive.

[PilotMan]

Buford Sabo 242/768
DeJuan Higgons 405/768
Pete Knox 525/768

A little dissapointed with the grades, especially when I saw some others that were commited to me that I passed on. One of the guards from SLCHS was rated 97. I guess I have to live with it, I needed size badly.

Overall Team Grade
152/256

Again, about average, next year we will be pointing the sights higher in an effort to compete in my conference. If we can get 2 more descent classes in we should be able to break .500 for the year.

[PilotMan]

Exh. 1	Wheeling Mustangs		18-6	L	68-88

One thing about all the recruits is they can all handle the ball well. I am looking forward to some low turnover games for me. I also know after last nights experiment, we will NOT be running an upbeat offense. We started last night with 4 TO in the first minute resulting in a 10-0 deficit right off the bat. Ended up dropping by 20 and were never in the game.

Preseason outlook
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Some very obvious concerns came out of last nights game with the very talented Wheeling Mustangs.

1) With FR Knox at C, he played 19 min, had 0 pts,4 rebs, and 1 ass. Not the best way to start your college career.

2) His defensive assignment had 23 pts, and 10 reb.

This will guarentee that Knox will ride the pine as a reserve C for the year.

The other freshman did not fare much better.

Dejuan Higgons played 27, had 10pts and 1 rb at SF, he will be moved to PF for the next game.

Buford Sabo, played 30, and had 1pt and 6 reb at PF, he will be moved to the C pos, and will most likely play there all year.

We were horrible from the field shooting less than 40%, the high scorer was Sebastian Hamiltion with 19. He will need to be more productive this season, his career shooting % is near 40%, that cannot continue. Lets hope he has matured a little.

PG Marcus Wynn, in his senior year, was hot and cold. He had 5pts, 5reb, 1blk, 4 stl, and 9 assists. Sadly, he also had 7 TO's. So much for the upbeat offense.

The biggest suprise of the game was SO C Terry Ingle. Scoffed at by many, including me, he was one of the very worst recruits coming out of HS, avged 1pt and 1 reb in 9 min last year. Yesterday, he played 21min and had 10pts and 10 reb, and 2 blocks. I may experiment with him in the preseason.

I have also completed my intitial recruiting and have narrowd my field of players from 768 to 35, we will narrow that list down as the players get more games under their belts.

I will be looking for a PG to replace the smooth handed Wynn, he was near the top nationally in ass/pg. We will again go on a big man hunt, and look for a shooter and some depth off of the bench. Its still going to take at least 3 more years to recover from that inital recruiting class.

[PilotMan]

Exh. 2	Louisville Nemesis		15-9	L	68-76

Another preseason loss, good news---we were not out rebounded. Bad News 18 personal fouls led to 14 pts.

Freshman Report:
Knox - started game as reserve PF and 6pts 4reb and 1 stl in 16 min.
Sabo - Starting C mananged a dissapointing 0pts 7reb and 4ass, in 27 min.
Higgons - Starting PF, great game 22pts, 6 reb, in 24 min.

Analysis - No suprises, poor performance from JR SG Hamilton 6pts.

Exh. 3	Asheville Black Knights	18-6		L	60-88

Capping the preseason winless for the first time ever. a blowout.
Good News - shot 50% from the floor - good for my team.
Bad News - outrebounded -7, Foul trouble with 23, led to 28 pts. I am seeing a trend.

Freshman report:
Knox - Reserve PF 4pts 4reb - 23min. Not that hot. Shooting well.
Sabo - Starting C 2pts 4reb 2blk - 19 min - in foul trouble
Higgons - Starting PF 0pts 3reb - 17 min - terrible, inconsistant

Analysis - We may have found a shooter, a gem in the rough with former reserve C and PF moving to SF, Gomer Maloney. Reserve C Terry Ingle continues to suprise with 8pts and 6reb in 21 min.

[PilotMan]

With the preseason gone, it is time to take another look at the team in a postional analysis. With the same two being inactive this year and last year, it is just a matter of picking positions for everyone.

Point Guard
Sr Marcus Wynn has this position locked up. While I would like to see a little more offense, his ball handling keeps the team together. The reserve PG slot will be JR Jaron Hale. His ball handling is the next best on the team, and depending on how he plays, there is a possibility he could contend for the starting slot next year.

Shooting Guard
JR Sebasitan Hamilton will be happy to stay at the SG pos after playing SF most of last year. This is a return to his more natural position. His shooting is suspect, but he needs to lead the team. Reserve SG SR Terrance Wayne is serviciable, he has had some descent games, but really should be inactive.

Small Forward
SR Gomer Maloney has been a nice suprise in the preseason since his move to SF. I hope for a good year of productivity from him. Turnovers are always a problem when Gomer handles the ball. Reserve SF is JR Vinnie Griffith. Coming off of a season in which he finished as the starter at this position, he would probably be the starter again if not for the emeregence of Gomer Maloney.

Power Forward
FR DeJuan Higgons is locked at this position, we hope that he can develop into scoring and rebounding presence. He was quiet in the preseason but showed flashes of ability. Reserve PF is FR Pete Knox. At 6'11" he gives me good size off of the bench, however he was really looked at to be the starting C. His lack of defence or overall presence undrneath will ensure him limited action in his career.

Center
FR Buford Sabo is locked at this position as well. A wide body who gives up some size at 6'9". He could be a very dominating PF. However, he will be asked to rebound all day an night. Shooting ability would be nice, but hopefully his defence and rebounding will be sufficient. Reserve C is SO Terry Ingle. He grew an inch over the offseason but sadly his abilities have not improved. He had two good games in the preseason coming off the bench. My hope is that he is not too much of a liability. Otherwise, he would be inactive.

[PilotMan]

I have narrowed the field of players down from 768 to 35. This year instead of looking primarily in conference, we are looking outside of it. We are looking at players with talent who do not wish to stay local, nor who care if they play for a winner. The fact that they want to come in and be impact players right away is a big plus. In the end we will need to narrow this list down to 4 that we label as top recruits. Hopefully, as the season progresses it will look like either we are in the running and competetive with the others or out in the lead as the clear favorites. Since we are going after better individuals, we probably won't get everyone, so later in the year maybe we can recruit some others as a fallback plan.

PG				PPG	RPG 	APG	STLs	TO	BLK
	Jeffrey Vanwinkle		18	1.8	2.3	0.5	1.7	0
	James Staples		13.2	2.5	3.5	2.3	1.2	0.3
	Elmore Gates		17.7	1.7	1.3	0.7	2.5	0.2
	George Hargrove		22.3	2.3	2.7	2.7	0.5	0.5
	Janson Lyon		17.8	1.5	2.5	1	0.5	0.5
	Kendall Wyman		20.3	1.7	1.7	1.8	1.8	0
	Terence Potter		9.2	2	2.2	0.3	2.5	0.5
	Tarek Sachse		18.2	2	1.8	1	0.8	0
SG								
	Robbie Schultz		13.3	1.8	1.5	0.3	1	0.2
	Whayne Kelley		14	2.2	2	0.8	0	0.2
	Patrick Witt		10	3	2.5	1	1.3	0
	Emmitt Henderson		13.8	3.5	1.8	1	1.2	0.2
	Barry Lafollette		18.5	4.3	1.7	0.2	1	0.2
	Stanley Etherton		18.3	4	2	0.5	2.8	0.5
	Alex Gundy		13.7	4	1.3	1.2	3	0.7
	Christian Hannah		17.8	3.5	0.8	1.5	1.7	0.3
	Geoffrey Watkins		14.2	3.7	1.3	0.5	0.8	0.2
	Wesley Gaskins		15.3	5	1.3	1.2	1.8	0
	Jesper Summitt		17.8	1.8	1	0.8	1.8	0.5
SF								
	Tariq Vissing		12.3	4.2	1.5	0.2	0.8	0.2
	Darryl Winfield		9.3	2.5	1.7	0.7	1.2	0.3
	Chris McKinney		15.3	4.5	1.8	2.3	0.7	0.7
PF								
	Christian Dockery		12.7	6.3	1.7	0.8	0.8	1.2
	Trey Richard		27	5.7	1	0.7	1	0.7
	Elton Maas		17.2	6.5	0.8	1.3	1.2	1
C	
	Hank Thrasher		23.3	5.5	0.8	1.2	2	0.5
	Mathew Bennett		19.3	6.5	2.2	1.2	0.5	1
	Alex Walters		9	6.8	2.3	0.2	0.3	0.7
	Damien O'Brien		10	4.3	1.3	1	0.7	0.8
	Khalil Kane		13.7	9.8	1.5	0.5	0.8	1.2
	Paolo Vinaldi		16.3	8	0.7	0.3	1.2	1.5
	Roberto Trotter		17	8.8	0.5	1.5	1.7	1.7
	Raymond Ulrich		6.8	9.2	1.5	1.2	1.2	1.3
	Daniel Horton		8	9.2	2.2	1.7	0.5	3.7
	Mookie Gatlin		9	8.3	1.7	1	1.3	2.5

We will have this narrowed down after a couple more games.

[PilotMan]

When I look at the film of the Alexandria Dragoons I see a team that I can match height with. They start 3 SR which will give them an advantage against us in experience alone. They lack a big man , but make up for it with noone smaller than 6-5. They went 2-1 in the preseason, and like to play a slow offense with a mix of man and zone coverage.

We will be going with our standard normal offense and man coverage. Hopefully we can manage more points than the sixty somthing we have been getting. We will begin to see what the future holds for this young team.

[PilotMan]

1	Alexandria Dragoons	13-11		L	67-75

Promising start is still a loss. We played a good game, and it was close until the end. Matter of fact on paper we had the game won. We just don't believe as a team yet.

Good news - We actually outrebounded someone!!! We also had more steals and less turnovers. Gomer Maloney!!

Bad News - Personal Fouls I guess it is the underclassmen making their mistakes as well as the shakeup in team chemistry with Antawn Ridge missing.

Freshman Report
Knox - Best game yet, he donimated the offensive boards and grabbed 7reb and scored 2 with 2 assists in 11 min.
Sabo - Best game yet - 6pts 13reb and 4 assists in 33 min.
Higgons - Not Good - 2pts 5reb 2ass in 29 min 1-6 from the floor.

Analysis
My team gave up 12pts on foul shots and shot less than 40% from the floor. We will not win many games if that continues. We hit a gold mine in terms of Gomer Maloney. He was 15-22 from the floor for 34 pts. In fact the rest of the team was only 11-51 from the floor. That has to be a new record for futility. The should have's and could have's have defiantly come out for this game. We should have won. Another poor performance from SG Hamilton, while JR reserve SF Vinnie Griffith needs to find his way onto the court more often, I just cannot decide where.

The rebuilding continues.

[PilotMan]

Topeka Kickboxers Preview

W have played Topeka before and were beaten 90-91. They have a team similar to ours, with the exception of height. We give them 2 inches at C and 2 more at PF. They are led by SR SG Rayshard Derr who last year averaged 22 points a game. SO C Enrique Overton also looks to be a problem as he averaged 12 pts and 7 boards last year.

Their Last Game
They defeated the Tacoma Fightin' Lizards 100-86. They like to run a normal paced offense with a bias to the zone. Rayshard Derr had 25pts and Enrique Overton had 33.

Today's Drills
We continue to work on rebounding. We need to overcome the massive rebounding difference from last year.

Injuies
None

Lineup
PG Wynn
SG Hamilton
SF Maloney
PF Higgons
C Sabo

[PilotMan]

2	Topeka Kickboxers		7-17	L	67-78

This was another game that we should have won. We seem to have a problem putting the ball into the basket. We saw a good game under the basket, as well as, more baskets overall. We had more steals and less turnovers. But it was the inexperience of the young starters that lost the game. Twenty-three team fouls led to 27 pts, most at the end of the game. It was close until the end. The team really does not seem to be coming together yet.

Good News: Consistant scoring from SG Hamilton, as well as Maloney, and Higgons. Sabo owned the boards.

Bad News: Little bench scoring and big fouling issues. Cannot give that many free points.

Freshman Report
Sabo: Foul trouble, big game on the boards again. 28min 0pts 14reb
Higgons: Good game, would like to see a little more on the boards. 27min 15pts 6reb
Knox: No show off the bench. 13min 2pts 0reb

Others: SF Maloney, scored 17 grabbed 6reb good for him. And SG Hamilton scored 20. PG Wynn didn't score, but had 4ass and 3stls.

[PilotMan]

This will be our first meeting with the Glory. They have a stong team and finished with a strong 17-7 record. They like to start 3 seniors so again they have an experience advantage. Their height also appears to pose problems for us. We give 2 inches at C, 3 at PF, 6 at SG and 3 at PG. Their players to watch are, well, all of them. They have a very balenced starting squad, witch will be hard to defend against. They also have big height coming off the bench as well.

Their Last Game
They defeated fellow Conf 31 team, and North Division Champion, Eugene Ninja Pacifists 94-85. Their leading scorers were C Elmo Burden with 23pts and 9reb, SG Shey Lowery who added 20. They outrebounded the Ninja Pacifists 37-28. They prefer to run a high speed offense with a balance of man and zone covers.

Today's Drills
We know what we are up against and we continue to work on rebounding.

Injuries
None

Starting Lineup
PG Wynn
SG Hamilton
SF Maloney
PF Higgons
C Sabo

[PilotMan]

3	Mobile Glory		17-7	L	72-74

Everything that we needed to work on from the previous game, we succeded in. However, we were beaten on the boards. Taking a look back, if this was last years squad we would not have been competetive at all. Especially a team as talented as the Glory. We had the Glory in foul trouble, even though we were outshot by almost 20, we made it up converting 21-32 free throws. We really could have done better. This was a tight contest all the way as we closed the gap at the end game. With a minute to go down by 2, PG Wynn stole the ball and worked it around SG Hamilton missed a shot with :22 to play. C Sabo was right there and got it back, and SF Maloney misses a shot with :05 to play, but PF Higgons quicky grabbed the reb, and was fouled. Chance to tie.....misses the first and second...arghhhhh!! Game.

Good News
Hamilton had another good game, bench scoring was good, and we stayed out of foul trouble.

Bad News
Beaten on the boards, outshot by 19, blown chances at the end of the game.

Freshman Report
Sabo: Beaten on the boards, but overall good game. 28min 4pts 4reb 2ass 4blks.
Higgons: Misses 2 free throws to tie game .250fg% 25min 6reb 5pts 3to
Knox: Another poor showing. 15min 2pts 2reb 2to 0-4fg

Others
SG Hamilton carries team 24pts, 3-3 3ptfg. SF Maloney has poor game shooting 3-14 with 8pts. Bench shoots .467 which is a big improvement over the season. bPG Jaron Hale has a nice game in 9min of action. He shot 100% had 2ass and 9pts, #2 scorer for the game.

Defensively
Elmo Burden was held to 15pts and 5reb, while Shey Lowery had had 12pts with 5reb. Their best player again exposed the advantage at PF as Claude Kute had 21 with 6reb. We found their leading rebounder was the reserve C who had 8 in 16 min. That doesn't say much for our reserve C Terry Ingle, other than he needs work.

[PilotMan]

Well we have studied film, looked at promising prospects and weighed our decisions. We have come to one of the most important days of the year. When we decide who to go after and who to leave behind. If we shoot to high we risk getting another year of walkons. If we shoot to low we will not improve. We need to pick players that we will be to our advantage, if we max them out. If we miss a player, then that would be like a racehorse falling as he leaves the gate. He can still finish and he might not do bad, but he will never win.

We have 2 starting seniors leaving. PG Marcus Wynne and SF Gomer Maloney. We are also losing reserve SG Terrance Wayne. We believe in a system of getting the best athletes and plugging them into the system. We have elected to make the PG position a priority due to the lack of depth on the bench. No offense to Jaron Hale, I am still burning from his inconsistency last year. Followed by a big man to either play C and move Sabo and Higgons down or a SF/PF type player, and adyst accordingly. I would anticipate starting 2 more FR in next years lineup bringing the total to 4. That could make for a frustrating year, but we should still see improvment.

Tops on our list is PG Kendall Wyman from Arlington High School. The scouting agency gave us a great look at him. At 6'0'', he looks to be very well rounded. His ball handling could be better, but his shooting abilty makes up for it. He comes from a good HS program that went 24-3 last year and is 5-1 so far this year. He currently avgs 20 points a game and carries a 3.0 GPA.

Next in the same mold is another PG from Inglewood High School. Tarek Sachse stands at 6-6 and could easily be moved around the floor. In fact, if both he and Wyman came to USLC he would be moved to SF. The agency report is somewhat reliable so we have had to go on his game performances so far. He is a good athlete, a soft shot and soft hands. Tough on defense as well. He also comes from a solid program that was 16-11 last year, and an undefeated 6-0 so far this season. He averages 18ppg and carries a 3.1 GPA.

The third of our top 5 is a C from Aspen High School. Paolo Vinaldi plays small at 6'8", but his presence speaks for itself. We believe he could fit in one of the forward positions. The scouting agency is not very high on him, other than being a descent shooter and rebounder. We believe there is more talent there than that. Aspen is a top notch HS with a 24-3 record last year and a 5-1 record this year. He is averaging 16ppg with 8rpg and carries a 2.7 GPA.

Fourth is a big man from Tempe High School. Daniel Horton has all the signs of a dominating post player. Best on the boards, he rarely turns the ball over and can play good D. His shot needs some work, but we can live with the rest as he fits our team perfectly. The scouting agency is somewhat neutral about him. His high school went 17-10 last year and is 5-1 on the year so far. He is averaging 8 points, 9 rebounds and over 3 block per game and carries a 2.6 GPA.

That covers the our main recruits. The rest are players who I hope everyone else ignores, because I am out of rescouces to give 100% in the recruiting, so it is possible that I may not be competetive with any of these. With my remaining funds I go after 1 hometown player who I believe can be a great fallback plan. He is neutral about staying home, but is by far the best player coming out of SLCHS. 6'9" SF Chris McKinney, he recieved fair grades from the scouting service, but his performance speaks otherwise. He is averaging 15 points with 5 rebounds and over 2 steals per game. SLCHS is one of the premier highschools in the country right now as they went 25-2 last year, and carry a 5-1 record this season.

We should get an intial look at where we stand with our players soon, and a more detailed look after the ninth game of the season.

[PilotMan]

This should be our 7th meeting with the Kings as conference play begins. We have only beaten them once, and it was after the season no longer ment anything. This year they are still tough even though they are off to a 1-2 start. The loss of their seniors has had a significant effect on their team and now they 3 underclassman in the linup. If there was anytime for an upset now would be great. We talked this week about their big rebounding presence. They dominated me on the boards last year, but hopefully our new freshman down low can negate that a little. Their main players to watch are PG Klaus Baldwin and FR SF Wiley Heckman. 6'11" PF Jan Young will also create matchup problems for me down low.

Their Last Game
They came from almost 20 pooints down in the second half and squeaked out a win against Indianapolis 93-92. Scoring was balanced as 5 guys were in double digits with noone having more than 20. Jan Young led in rebounding with 8. They are a very good shooting team and out rebounded Indy 28-22. Tucson likes to run a Normal paced offense with a bias to the zone. Having seen the teams that have beaten them this year run a zone we intend to do the same.

Today's Drills
We shifted from a rebounding mentality to shooting. If we can't shoot more than 40% from the floor it is going to be a long season.

Injuries
None

Starters
PG Wynn
SG Hamilton
SF Maloney
PF Higgons
C Sabo

[PilotMan]

We got a look at the list of the top recruits and we find some of the players we are going after. That is not necessaily a good thing as it means more competition for us.

#8 Daniel Horton Tempe
Bit of a suprise, but everyone is searching for a big man

#23 Paolo Vinaldi Aspen
Apparently others see the same in him that I do.

#31 Chris McKinney Salt Lake City
This is hard to believe, we will end our attempts to land McKinney here.

#40 Kendall Wyman Arlington
No suprise

NR Tarek Sachse Inglewood
Great, a quality player. We will see more after game 9.

I am begining to wonder if I didn't shoot a little to high. We will stick to the plan and hope everone else drops out.

[PilotMan]

4	Tucson Kings		15-9	L	69-72

WOW what a game we played! I think that this team is certainly a step up from last years model. Tucson has been struggling a little, but they are still the favorite for South Division champs. We were able to keep the game close the whole time and even went into half with a 3pt lead. Tucson came out and leveled quickly in the second half and we changed hands for the lead many times. In the end, with 2:30 to play, Gomer Maloney fouls out. He had been the glue keeping it together. Tucson FR Wiley Heckman who had been shooting lights out makes all 3 foul shots. Sebastian Hamilton misses the jumper and opposing C Chris Staples grabbed the rebound. He killed us on the day as he had 15 rebounds. Inside 2 minutes, Maloney's replacement Vinne Griffith steals a pass and brings it back down. We hold the ball and Hamilton fires a three as the shot clock winds down. Brick...Tucson PF Young gets the ball, they miss a shot with :30 to play and Hamilton is there. Just as fast he throws the ball away. Griffith fouls Heckman with :17, he misses and C Buford Sabo gets the ball, he is forced to bring the ball down. Not able to find anyone to pass to he fires a 3 but it misses. Damn. We had a shot for this game too.

Good News
We stayed out of foul trouble again. Our shooting looked better. We were in the game until the very end.

Bad News
Out rebounded by 9, offense and defense still not good enough.

Freshman Report
Sabo: Not really a factor in the game, 31min 4pts, 7reb, 2blk, 2ass. Was pushed around by Staples.
Higgons: Terrible game, 30min 8pts, 5reb, 2ass, 1blk, 1stl. 1-9 from the floor. Even though he didn't shoot that well, he stopped Jan Young allowing 10pts and 5reb .333fg%.
Knox: Ho Hum..10min 2pts 2reb

Others
Gomer Maloney had shot 10-15 22pts and 5reb, but fouled out at a crucial time. SG Sebastian Hamilton scored 23 with 5reb, but was only 9-23 shooting, played good D. The bench was ok, but noone really stepped up.

Defensively
Higgons did good on Yound despite the size difference, PG Wynn did really good on Baldwin ollowing only 8pts and 3ass. SF Maloney didn't play any D on Wiley Heckman, as he had 23pts with 7reb.

[PilotMan]

Salem is currently ranked in the top 25 and is undefeated on the year. We have never beaten them, so we are really hoping to keep this close. Scouting Salem they have 1 senior starter and 2 underclassmen. They have been solid on the boards and are shooting the best in the conference. They havn't played the top teams yet, so thier record may be a bit inflated. Looking at the matchups they outsize me down low. This could pose a problem, we give about 2 inches at each F and C. PG Alan O' Reiley is one to watch as well as 6'10" SO SF Ray Daniel could pose a rebounding problem against Maloney. Sabo and Higgons should match up well low. And SG Fernando Canter is shooting .625 from the floor.

Their Last Game
A 60-50 win against the young and up and coming Carson City Demolition. O' Reiley led all scorers with 14, and Daniel Led all players with 8 rebounds. They also had a +8 rebound margin. They like to run a slow methodical offense with a zone look on D.

Today's Drills
We continue to work on midrange shooting to try and keep up with the hottest shooting team in the conference.

Injuries
None

Starting Lineup
PG Wynn
SG Hamilton
SF Maloney
PF Higgons
C Sabo

[PilotMan]

5	Salem Diazonium Ions	14-10		L	69-79

Another game that we could have won. Both teams started HOT! The teams were not missing anything and they had combined for 25pts in the first 5 minutes. We were doing the things that we needed to do to pull off the biggest upset in the league this year. By half-time we had led by as much as 9, but let it slip to 2 by half. The second half started out the way the first had ended with Salem storming back. Within 5 minutes we were down, SF Gomer Maloney had led us with 16pts in the first half, we hoped he could continue to lead us. Salem continued to pour it on and half way through the second half they were up by 9. We closed here and there, but never came back all the way.

Good News
We shot over 50% from the floor for the first time all year.

Bad News
We were still outrebounded, even if only by 3. Ball handling was tragic as we only had 10 assists vs. 15 t/o. Foul trouble reared its ugly head again, as we gave away 15pts, most came in the second half.

Freshman Report
Sabo: Foul Trouble, 2 fouls early kept him out most of the first half and he fouled out after only 17min. 1pt, 1reb, 1ass, 1blk.
Higgons: Same problem, he fouled out after playing 25 min. 9pts and 2reb.
Knox: Did well off the bench played 17min 7pts and 5reb .200fg%..yuck!

Others
The shooting of Maloney was the only thing keeping us in the game. He finished with 25. PG Marcus Wynn had another strong game, as he had 4 assists and 3 steals with no turnovers. PF Pete Knox's 5 rebounds led the team. C Terry Ingle had 9pts off the bench for Sabo.

Defensively
We could not control the best shooting team in the conference, as they shot .593% from the floor. Young PG Allan O' Reilley had 20 pts but the D of Wynn also forced 5 T/O's. SG Fernando Canter shot 6-9 and continues to be stellar from the floor. We managed to draw 20 fouls of our own as well as created 13 turnovers.

[PilotMan]

Here is a team in a very similar situation to us. They are in the process of trying to rebuild in a conference as challenging this one is. Our conference finished in the top 5 of all conferences last year. They were ranked as having one of the top recruiting classes of any team for this upcoming year. They are coming off of a 2-1 out of conference record, but are so far winless in the conference with losses to Salem 50-60, and Tucson 69-73. Having said that this is going to be a great matchup. I spent some time after the last game looking at tape, and I have come to the conclusion that we have a pretty descent defense, meaning we create a lot of turnovers and do fairly well at holding the ball. Since our shooting can be suspect at times, and our rebounding is weaker, we need to come up with a way to maximize our skills. We have decided that the best way will be to slow the pace down, and take less chances and try and rely on our defense and playmaking ability.

Looking at Carson City, they have 4 underclassmen starting, and no seniors. They spread the ball around a lot, with no one player really standing out. Height wise, we compare favorably, it should be pretty even. Their teams lack of experience may play into our hands, especiall with our senior PG and SF. PF Ron Atkinson is the teams leading scorer, but he is only averaging 10.2ppg, 3 others are averaging 9. They have been turning the ball over a lot, so that should play to our advantage as well. They also prefer to run a slow paced offense and favor man coverage.

Their Last Game
A 69-73 loss to the Tucson Kings. They shot well and even outrebouded the Kings. They turned the ball over only 10 times, but 7 were between 2 starters. They only managed 1 steal. They also like to shoot the 3, but they are only average at accomplishing it. SF Blair Bohn led the team in scoring with 15, and C Artie Allgeier led in rebounds with 6.

Today's Drills
We have shifted our focus to maximizing the ball, we have focused on defense, and hope it pays off.

Injuries
None

Starting Lineup
PG Wynn
SG Hamilton
SF Maloney
PF Higgons
C Sabo

[PilotMan]

The recruits that we are going after are very highly soughtafter commodities. This may pose a problem for us if we cannot land any of them, and lead to 3 walk on's who could really hury the program. I am hoping that the gamble pays off, or it could be 2 more years of rebuilding.

The most sought after player I am trying for is C Daniel Horton, we may be able to land him because our current big men Ingle and Knox are not very talented. He is currently the #4 most recruitied player overall. He is averaging 9pts, 10reb, and 3.7 blks per game. at 6'11'' would be a monster underneath.

Next on the hot list is #19 Paulo Vinaldi, his move up the list shows teams are still trying for him. He will be the hardest to land as we have some other talent at his height and playing position, namely Higgons and Sabo. He is averaging 18.2ppg and 7.8rpg.

We find PG Kendall Wyman has dropped a little to #43. We should stand a great chance of landing him with the departure of Wynn. He is averaging 21ppg, but only 1.8rpg. Turnovers are also reasonably high, he may be better suited at SG.

PG Tarek Sachse who was not in the top 75 last week, has moved up. Currently the #72 most sought after recruit, we stand a great chance of getting him too. He is averaging 17.3ppg and dishes out 2.3 apg, and grabs 1.8 stpg. At 6'6" he is a big PG, and if he grows any more may need to be moved to SF.

Our 5th for the week is the crapshoot. Local boy from Carson City SG Jesper Summit appears talented, we just hope noone else has talked to him yet. Another good shooter who is a whiz kid, keeping a 4.0 GPA in highschool. Turnovers are a problem. He is averaging 16.7ppg.

This is really shaping up to be an all or nothing class. I hope I have played my cards right and gave myself the best chance with the recruits. Convinving them that USLC is a great place and that we are going up. Now if we could just win a game.

[PilotMan]

6	Carson City Demolition	9-15		W	62-50

Alright, we have the first win of the year, and it was against a team that we had only beaten one time previous. Both teams came out in a slow pace. In fact it was almost 7 minutes that had gone by before we broke the 10 pt mark. Half way throught the first half and it was the Gomer Maloney show as he already had half of the team points and we were up by 8. That lead held and we went into half with an 8 point lead. The second half played much the same, they were good we were just a bit better. We were able to make better shots and grab a better share of the rebounds. We are very excited (as we always are about the first win of the year) about this win. We feel we have a good shot in the next game to get our 2nd win.

Good News
We shot over 50% from the floor, and also had a +6 in rebounding.

Bad News
We only shot 6/11 from the freethrow line. Not much else. We played a good game.

Freshman Report
Sabo: Not dominating, but solid. 27min 5pts, 5reb & 4ass
Higgons: Steady. 30min 8pts 5reb 2blk .500fg%
Knox: Quiet off the bench. 10min 4pts 1reb 2ass

Others
The story was the same, as the rest of the season so far. Our freshman are helping underneath and the emergence of SF Gomer Maloney is leading the team. At the same time SG Sebastian Hamilton doesn't have so much pressure to perform. Maloney led all scorers with 17pts and led the team in rebounds with 6. Hamilton added 14. A bit of concern about PG Wynn he is performing a bit less consistant than normal. He did great with 6pts, 6ass, and 3 st, but he also accpunted for 1/3 of the teams t/o's, with 3.

Defensively
PG Wynne dominated his mark, holdin their PG to no points, no rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 turnovers. Their SG Stewert Rutherford led the team in scoring with 14, and PF Ron Atkinson led all rebounders with 7.

[PilotMan]

Looking at the Roaches on tape I see a team we can finally beat. I mean we should beat, anyway. They have a 1-5 record on the year, the same as we do. This is the first time that we have played this team ever. Their only win came against the Abilene RedBull, a team with problems of its own. They prefer to run an uptempo game, we are hoping to impose our slow down game on them, cause a lot of turnovers and control the ball. They favor a man defense, and we will meet them with our balenced look.

Breaking their startes down we find their best player to be their SG 6'6'' Joseph Harvey is averaging 19 ppg. This also appears to be a favorable matchup for our PG. They have a SO starting who is averaging 3ass and 3t/o per game. We actually have a height advantage at the post with Sabo taking 2 inches from them. We also hold a good height advantage when our subs come in. Their bench is fairly deep, as they 2 seniors backing up. They are getting outscored, and outmuscled down low, we are hoping to exploit their weaknesses.

Their Last Game
A 92-77 loss to the talented Dayton Dog Soldiers. The most telling stat of the game was that they were blown out by 20 rebounds underneath. They also gave away 27 free points and caused 18 t/o's. Their leading scorer was SG Joseph Harvey with 17 and SF Denzel Cole had 15pts. Numerous players had 4 rebounds to lead the team.

Todays Drills
We continue to work on our new philosophy of defense. Hoping it will control the game and set up the offense.

Injuries
None

Starting Lineup
PG Wynn
SG Hamilton
SF Maloney
PF Higgons
C Sabo

[PilotMan]

7	Cincinnati Roaches		8-16	W	77-63

They game went just as we had prepared. The scorers were the story of this game as the Roaches could find no way to stop SF Gomer Maloney or SG Sebastian Hamilton. We played strong under the boards and our slow down offense led the way. We didn't manage 10pts until 8 minutes in and they didn't get 10 until halfway through the first half. I know when we went in at half with a 40-26 lead that the game was ours to lose. They played us even in the second half, but the game was never really close.

Good News
This was the first game that we have dominated..ever. It felt good. Our improved rebounding under the boards showed and allowed us to control the game. Again we shot better than 50% from the floor.

Bad News
I really hope that neither Maloney or Hamilton gets hurt or were screwed. Noone on the bench can bring as much firepower as they can. We had a season high 17 turnovers.

Freshman Report
Sabo: A descent game. 33min 4pts 8reb, 1ass
Higgons: Helped dominate down low. 30min 6pts 8reb 3ass. Scoring still too inconsistant .333fg%
Knox: He showed up. 10min 2pts and 3reb.

Others
This was a record setting day for Salt Lake as SF SR Gomer Maloney broke the single game record in points with 32. He was also 3-3 from 3pt land, and helped with 6 rebounds. When he was guarded SG JR Sebastian Hamilton added 24. He also had a couple of assists and steals. Aside from Dujuan Higgons noone else took more than 2 shots.

Defensively
We did a great job of controlling the boards, and keeping thier shooters off balance. They shot around .400% and were ourebounded by 12. PG Joseph Harvey and PF Trace Spear led with 16 points while C Kadeem Popham had 7 rebounds. We only had 14 team fouls, that helped but the 18 t/o's are a bit disturbing. I think that they have done that to other teams this year though.

[PilotMan]

Next, we take our little winning streak back to conference play, as we play the current #10 ranked Olympia team. This is sort of like David versus Goliath. The last time that we played them they beat us by 20. This year we have been playing much better basketball, but overall the South Division is weaker than the North, and it shows every year. This is the first of the cross divisional matchups.

Olympia likes to play a standard paced offense as well as a mix of man and zone coverage. They have a number of talented players, mainly led by SR SG Arron Parsons who was an all conference player last year. He has been averaging 24ppg and hits almost 50% from 3pt land. Another damaging player to watch will be Jr PG Jason Zirnheld, he has been averaging 20ppg as well as 4apg. Marcus Wynn, our best defender will have his work cut out for him. The rest of the team is stronger from last year. They were a little weak there, and have 2 SO and a FR at C to shore it up. They are solid players who will cause problems for us underneath. They are averaging outscoring their opponents by 10 points. In fact the only area where we may have an advantage would be rebounding as they are getting beaten on the boards regularly. At 6-1 their only loss was to Conference rival Roswell Half-Wits. We have our work cut out for us.

Their Last Game
An 87-70 smashing of unbeaten Ithaca Warrior Poets. They were lights out shooting the ball (36-68) and controlled the boards(34-27). Scoring was led by SF Eli Shaftlein's 21pts. Three others made it to double digits and Shftlein also led in rebounds with 8.

Today's Drills
We continue to build on our successes and work toward a perfect defense. We hope that we can control the boards enough to hold the ball and keep it close to the end, then hit the winner at the end. Yeah Right.

Injuries
None

Starting Lineup
PG Wynn
SG Hamilton
SF Maloney
PF Higgons
C Sabo