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  • Originally posted by crazznewt View Post
    My thoughts on Sunday night's games at the pro-am which resulted in 4 wins for both Drury programs:
    *Kudos to the the men's Coaching staff for what looks like a perfect mix of experience and youth on the roster. All the transfers will start IMO.
    *O'Connell and Cook have the athleticism that will contribute to a rebound in attendance numbers. Each had highlight reel dunks last night, including a couple in a crowded lane. Again, they also are very good players.
    Cook will start and play a lot. He's a legit Power 5 athlete.

    I'll be surprised if O'Connell starts - he has some things to figure out (namely rebounding and defense). It all depends on what his expectations are and how much he wants to work. Coach Foster is going to have a lot of options this year. Adam Moore is a much better player than O'Connell is right now.

    My projected starters, June edition:

    G Trey Young
    G Logan Applegate
    G Quenton Shelton
    G Preston Cook (listed as a guard, but could easily play the 4)
    F Adam Moore

    Second 5

    G Elijah Whitley
    G Ryce Piper
    G Andrew Dalton (another one who is listed as a guard, but could play a forward spot)
    F Riley Naegar
    F Brady O'Connell

    I'm looking for them to press more this year - they have the athleticism and the depth.

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    • Originally posted by DUPanther View Post

      Cook will start and play a lot. He's a legit Power 5 athlete.

      I'll be surprised if O'Connell starts - he has some things to figure out (namely rebounding and defense). It all depends on what his expectations are and how much he wants to work. Coach Foster is going to have a lot of options this year. Adam Moore is a much better player than O'Connell is right now.

      My projected starters, June edition:

      G Trey Young
      G Logan Applegate
      G Quenton Shelton
      G Preston Cook (listed as a guard, but could easily play the 4)
      F Adam Moore

      Second 5

      G Elijah Whitley
      G Ryce Piper
      G Andrew Dalton (another one who is listed as a guard, but could play a forward spot)
      F Riley Naegar
      F Brady O'Connell

      I'm looking for them to press more this year - they have the athleticism and the depth.
      O'Connell definitely has to mature in a couple of areas. Hopefully, having the chance to contribute from the start will be a big enough motivator for him. He has shown he has the resolve not to back down despite things not going his way. At the last game he had about three bad plays in a row, including getting his shot blocked and forcing plays out of frustration. The next play looked like he was still forcing the issue as he drove the crowded lane for an impressive dunk that fired his teamates up. I hope that determination combined with his athleticism will drive him to shore up the weakness in his game.

      Adam Moore is a good player and I don't see a weakness in his game. He shoots a high percentage and with range, plus He has shown great leadership qualities so far. He needs to let the beard grow back as that was a good look!
      Last edited by crazznewt; 06-16-2022, 06:27 PM.

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      • Based on what I've heard in the early going, you can only pencil in three guys in the starting lineup barring some injury before the season starts, those three being Trey Lewis, Preston Cook and Adam Moore. Ideally they'd like to play Cook at shooting guard. The hope is to bring Shelton off the bench as the sixth man for scoring punch against second units, but O'Connell's grasp of the system will determine if that happens. They'd like to start O'Connell but that's tbd. They are still looking for a center to fill the final open roster spot, but it may be too late.

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        • Drury Athletics hosted a "Meet and greet" for the basketball teams Wednesday night to a packed banquet hall in a show of support from the boosters, fans, and corporate sponsors. In addition, the Lady Panthers have had over 700 kids in their camps this month with golf tournaments, auctions, and Panther camps coming up.

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          • Both men's teams are undefeated in the pro-am. Before last season's session ended, It was obvious that team had issues. This team is fun to watch, and they, including the freshmen, do not back down from anybody.

            My starters:
            Jr G Quenton Shelton (Has improved) or Fr Trey Lewis (GLVC FOY?)
            Fr G Andrew Dalton (This guy is relentless on the glass and has a good all around game)
            Jr G Brady O'Connell (Long, athletic, and talented.) Or a much improved Riley Naeger
            Sr F Adam Moore (big talented leader)
            Gr F Preston Cook (elite athlete at this level and can play)
            This is a competitive bunch and my projection could change.

            The women will be without a national player of the year caliber player on their roster for the first time in several years. They also lost a ton of experience that four of the departed players provided. They do return three first team all league caliber players, including at least two All American candidates.

            My Starters so far:
            Gr G Kaylee DaMitz (Probably the best point guard in the league)
            Gr G Terrion Moore (Best defender in the league)
            Sr F Alana Findley (first team all league)
            These three showed they could carry a team without Paige Robinson and the other leaders who were battling injuries.
            So G Anna Hitt (Long, athletic, competitor)
            Fr F Reese Schaaf (Big, athletic, talented, Class 3 POY, fundamentally sound)

            This team has a lot of work to do to maintain the momentum this program has.
            When the schedules are posted, you can bet other league teams quickly take note of when they play the Lady Panthers. Let's DU this.
            Last edited by crazznewt; 06-30-2022, 03:00 PM.

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            • Sources: Drury has made a late addition for this season, signing 6'3 transfer guard Brock Wakefield from The Citadel. He's a 3x all-state player from Annapolis, MO. In limited minutes last season as a freshman, he shot 50% from three. Projected to be the starting shooting guard. Should be announced this week or early next.

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              • Wakefield is good. Saw him play Sunday at the Pro-Am. Looks like another athlete with range. Also heard second hand there is another scholarship available. Competition for playing time will be intense with this team.
                The Lady Panthers had the highest attendance numbers in D2 last season. What a nice piece of information to use in the recruiting process! Hopefully they pick up another impact player this summer because they don't have the depth they've had the last several years IMO.

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                • Comment


                  • Incoming transfer, 6'4" Preston Cook, executed one of the most incredible dunks I've ever seen in person a couple weeks back during the summer pro am. I knew the guy has an incredible vertical leap, but I had no idea it is actually 42".

                    Let's put this in perspective:
                    * 6'4" John Wall's pre-draft max was 39 inches.
                    * Legendary, 6'4" David Thompson's standing vertical was 44"
                    * 6'3" Ja Morant's is 44"
                    * 6'3" Bradley Beal's is 39"
                    * 6'5" James Harden? 37" if he would shave the beard, he might gain another 1/2 inch.
                    * 6'3" Russell Westbrook 36.5
                    These are standing verticals according to the Bleacher report.

                    Uncontrollable circumstances put the coaching staff behind the eight ball last season. They responded with one heck of an effort on the recruiting trail and have put Chris Foster in the early driver's seat for coach of the year honors. Wait, this is the GLVC, that wouldn't happen for a Drury coach even if they went undefeated.

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                    • The Lady Panthers proved the naysayers wrong (including an opposing coach), as they finished ranked nationally in these defensive categories from 2021-2022:

                      Number 2 in steals.
                      Number 2 in turnover margin.
                      Number 6 in steals per game.
                      Number 6 in turnovers forced per game.

                      With the current roster and barring injury, they will be ranked at or near the top of the conference again in all defensive numbers.

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                      • The Lady Panthers posted their national rankings for last season's offensive numbers on their Twitter page:
                        #2 free in throw attempts
                        #2 free throws made
                        #3 scoring margin
                        #6 scoring offense
                        #7 assists
                        Not bad considering all the missed practices and games by several important players.

                        I really like the addition of games with schools from the GMAC to the women's schedule. Drury will play Ashland and Cederville at O'Reilly, alternating with Truman State, showcasing what could be top 25 matchups on both days of their Thanksgiving classic.
                        Drury will play Kentucky Wesleyan and Trevecca Nazarine in the season opening SBU Classic, which should be a fun atmosphere in Bolivar.

                        The Lady Panthers also have made a roster addition that hasn't been officially announced yet.

                        The Men will play an exhibition against Creighton. It likely wont be pretty, but I feel a lot better about this game than how I did about last season's game against Drake when it was announced. It would have been nice to have a rematch against Evangel though. Praying Covid doesn't rear its ugly head, because this upcoming season at O'Reilly will feature 2 very entertaining teams in one of the best small college atmospheres in the country.

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                        • Things look good for Drury as Forbes.Com mentioned DU and several major universities in the same article reporting record freshmen enrollment at each institution. Optimism abounds as the scheduled opening of the 27 million dollar Enterprise Center (paid for with private donations), and a new recreation field for students complete with artificial turf and new lighting are nearly complete.

                          Panther Sports are on a roll, as they won the GLVC Commisioners Cup last season despite a down season for Men's Basketball.

                          Speaking of basketball, the Men will have one of the most exciting teams in the conference and will be the most improved.
                          The women also have a lot of athleticism and will also have a very entertaining team.
                          Despite losing a ton of experience, expectations are high again for the Lady Panthers as anything less than 25 wins and at least one ring is considered a disappointment.

                          It all starts in a little more than two months!

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                          • Looking forward to November 23. Ashland vs Drury in womens basketball. Should be a top 10 matchup!

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                            • Originally posted by unc4life View Post
                              Looking forward to November 23. Ashland vs Drury in womens basketball. Should be a top 10 matchup!
                              I was glad to see Ashland on the Drury regular season women's schedule. Ashland has an ambitious non conference schedule that includes 4 GLVC teams, 3 of these GLVC teams could end up being ranked in the top 20. Also glad to see there are 3 other GMAC schools on the Lady Panther slate, including another powerhouse and at least one other striving to achieve national prominence.
                              I have great respect for the GMAC schools and their mission statements.

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                              • Originally posted by crazznewt View Post

                                I was glad to see Ashland on the Drury regular season women's schedule. Ashland has an ambitious non conference schedule that includes 4 GLVC teams, 3 of these GLVC teams could end up being ranked in the top 20. Also glad to see there are 3 other GMAC schools on the Lady Panther slate, including another powerhouse and at least one other striving to achieve national prominence.
                                I have great respect for the GMAC schools and their mission statements.
                                I think the Ashland coaching staff feels like they have a team this year that can go the distance, and I think the schedule reflects that. I have a lot of respect for Drury and the willingness they show to schedule anyone in the country. It pays off in the tournament for sure. I also wonder what the GMAC will be like this year. Several schools (Walsh, Cedarville) had top upper classmen transfer to D1 schools. Really the first time we have seen this in the new transfer world we are in. Looking forward to a great year of basketball!

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