Alderson Broaddus Basketball

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

More on Justin Curtis. He has some high accolades coming out of central Ohio.

http://battlerbeat.blogspot.com/2018...t-earlier.html

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

Cleveland Horton, out of Poly High in Baltimore, is heading to AB. He is a guard. I haven't had time to dig info on him. It seems he is a good defender. Poly was back-to-back 3A champs in Maryland & I know they have some D-I signees on the team. They beat Dunbar for the city title as well which is a big name over here. He is qualified according to scouting sites. He played for Team Baltimore in the Crab Ball Classic All Star Game. I will try to dig a little further.

Thx @MarcusHelton !! This young man is a flat out winner on and off the court! Locked up Scholarship players all year! 45% FG & 40% from 3! https://t.co/Z0lqZ1LNlr

— Sam Brand (@CoachSamBrand) March 16, 2018

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

I don't know what is going on at Wheeling Jesuit. But for them to terminate Danny Sancomb leads me to believe they have some financial issues. He is a big-time favorite of their alumni and by former players. He is one of the best coaches in D2. He was the country's leading scorer for Wheeling when he played there. This is just stunning to me. The 'rumors' circulating on social media and by WV reporters are that they did not want to pay him his salary. I am hearing they asked coaches to take a cut in pay because starting up football is a drain on their budget. I just don't understand this termination. He graduated players on time that stayed with the program. He could coach on the bench. He could recruit.

WJU's women's coach has been successful there too. She went to two straight NCAAs...won a MEC title. She leaves a month ago for another D2 job that has had below average results for some time.

I don't wish it on Wheeling, but I believe they are having some serious financial issues. They took a bailout from the Charleston diocese. I am wondering if the rumors of them going D3 are resurfacing again. Sancomb accomplished so much there.

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

JUCO signee with the women's basketball program:

BREAKING: DCB women's basketball sophomore Dior Dioum, previously committed to NCAA D-I Cleveland State, signed today for D-II Alderson Broaddus University of West Virginia.

— Courant Sports (@CourantSports) May 10, 2018

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

I was looking at the statistical data of what we return next year and what returns in the G-MAC. We finished 6th but had a chance going into the last week of the season of finishing much higher. We played that week without our second and third leading scorers.

We return out top three scorers and top rebounder:

Mike Davis 21.8 ppg and 4.4 rpg
Brandon Willis 15.5 ppg and 3.2 rpg
Malik Bocook 11.2 ppg and 10.2 rpg

We have to get a quality big and have to make sure the point position is solidified. Those are huge needs. We have plenty of depth at the two and three.

Against the teams that qualified for the NCAA:

we lost to Findlay on the road 79-72
beat Hillsdale at home 79-68
beat ODU at home 67-65
lost @ ODU 75-67 without Willis and Bocook
lost to Hillsdale in the G-MAC tourney 71-59

I broke down what the top seven teams in the G-MAC lost:

Findlay

Taren Sullivan 17.2 ppg / 6 rpg
Martyce Kimbrough 17.7 ppg
Elijah Kahlig 9.4 ppg

Walsh

Chandler Vaudrin is going D-I and they lose 15.5 ppg / 7.5 apg / 9.3 rpg
Steven Carpenter 7.1 ppg and 3.7 rpg

Walsh returns some very good players but Vaudrin was the heart-and-soul of that team.

Hillsdale

Ryan Badowski 13.3 ppg / 3 rpg
Stedman Lowry 14.2 ppg / 3.6 rpg

They lose their top two scorers from a pretty balanced lineup.

Ohio Dominican

Ronnie Williams 10.5 ppg
Shemar Waugh 10.2 ppg / 3.5 apg

ODU does return their top two scorers in Hasan Vance (14.3) and Sam Hickey (12.4). Their lineup was also balanced, but I did watch ODU in person and Waugh was able to create for others off of dribble penetration.

Malone

Ty Jordan 20 ppg / 5.6 rpg
Mitchell Spotleson 12. 8 ppg / 7 rpg
Djuro Pantos 7.3 ppg / 7 rpg

Malone loses a ton. They do return Nate Sheppard who was 2nd leading scorer.

Lake Erie

Michael Morris 7.6 ppg
Kyle Magey 1.8 ppg
Jordan Michael 0.6 ppg

They lose very little. They return a lot including leading scorer Gabe Kynard (15.4). This was the 7th seed in the G-MAC and a team that had our number this year.

As I said, we have to make sure we add another rebounder and big that can score. We also need a point man. We sat two quality players out this year that both had D-I offers coming out of high school. But we have a dire need of a big.

[Looking For 9]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

Thanks as always your info is interesting. Seems AB is offering many. Who is leaving? Any surprises.

Happy recruiting = call call call beg get a one on one visit call call call beg maybe sign. Cooper recruiting = call offer a visit, visit school with other recruits, show your stuff, prove you understand the Wesleyan Way, if you will not sign soon/now he will move on to those that understand the honor of getting offered to KWC. I would like to see a combo of both but I do know Happy wasted much time and money but did get skilled players that did not work out as hoped. Cooper's we know you, like you if you want to help us rebuilt sign now has turned some off.

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

No surprises. Three players quit during the year and we have their schollies. One quit in Sept, another quit after two games and another dismissed. Smith, Mitchell, Sanders and Harper were seniors. That is seven. I know two of the signees are walk-ons. Plenty more to recruit.

Happy, in my opinion, was a good floor coach. A lot will disagree with that. But I believe he knew how to coach the game. Bosley was a fantastic player. Jacks was a good transfer. Other transfers worked, others did not. But his big JUCO movement in his last year may have shown he got lazy in recruiting. I don't know. Others can decide that. I used the word "may" there. I know he did an excellent job at Georgetown. And I disagree with a lot of people's perception on NAIA. We were NAIA for a long time and I saw a lot of good basketball and good players. He won in the Mid South which is a heck of a conference. I watched his teams at KWC and he could flat coach. But something went bad with his last group of recruits. I believe that a lot of schools have to depend on some transfers. I know we have to. But you have to recruit four-year players to go along with transfers to build some chemistry and develop a knowledge of offensive and defensive systems. I thought Jason Mays had actually righted the ship before Christmas break. He won 8 out of 9 with the only loss being to Findlay. They beat Hillsdale, beat ODU on the road, beat Delta State convincingly, etc. But I think the momentum he had built got hurt over the break. Losing to Walsh at home was no disgrace. But losing to Malone by 30 at home showed that some wheels must have come off. It wasn't his fault. I had really thought he had them on a nice roll, but the break hurt them in some fashion.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

It seems, by and large, recruiting four-year guys at this level has become very complicated. It seems with most they are already a little bummed out they didn't get the D1 offer they were waiting for ... and then they get that big reality check that things are very real at the D2 level. I don't know the stats but I'd have to assume player retention rates for incoming freshmen who have to redshirt aren't very good lately. The 'transfer culture' in college basketball today is sickening.

I'd assume for many schools recruiting high school players is much more expensive -- at its simplest form just in the time investment. Other coaches prefer transfers because they've seen them play at a somewhat high level. Some prefer transfers because the players tend to appreciate the D2 offer more at that point.

I do agree it's a massive boost if you can recruit high school players, develop them and have them for all four years. It's becoming somewhat rare, however.

There are some teams in the PSAC -- I'll use it as the example just because I follow it closely -- who invest zero time in high school players. I think every situation is different. A coach on the hot seat would likely opt for the quick return. The more established programs can bring in kids and let them grow. Available money is a huge factor in recruiting method, too.

I know one PSAC coach personally and he says he much prefers transfers -- it's as simple as having to deal with a lot less difficult parents who all think their true freshman son should be a Day 1 starter because he was a big star at some Class A high school.

Each their own, I suppose. By and large, though, I think the top programs will always have a mix.

[KnightStalker]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

It seems, by and large, recruiting four-year guys at this level has become very complicated. It seems with most they are already a little bummed out they didn't get the D1 offer they were waiting for ... and then they get that big reality check that things are very real at the D2 level. I don't know the stats but I'd have to assume player retention rates for incoming freshmen who have to redshirt aren't very good lately. The 'transfer culture' in college basketball today is sickening.

I'd assume for many schools recruiting high school players is much more expensive -- at its simplest form just in the time investment. Other coaches prefer transfers because they've seen them play at a somewhat high level. Some prefer transfers because the players tend to appreciate the D2 offer more at that point.

I do agree it's a massive boost if you can recruit high school players, develop them and have them for all four years. It's becoming somewhat rare, however.

There are some teams in the PSAC -- I'll use it as the example just because I follow it closely -- who invest zero time in high school players. I think every situation is different. A coach on the hot seat would likely opt for the quick return. The more established programs can bring in kids and let them grow. Available money is a huge factor in recruiting method, too.

I know one PSAC coach personally and he says he much prefers transfers -- it's as simple as having to deal with a lot less difficult parents who all think their true freshman son should be a Day 1 starter because he was a big star at some Class A high school.

Each their own, I suppose. By and large, though, I think the top programs will always have a mix.

I think it is the nature of D2. There are always going to be kids who think they can make D1 and realize its not for them and D2 is good for them to continue playing basketball a few years. BU is probably one of the best at getting high schoolers. We benefit from being right in the middle of 2 crazy basketball states, KY and IN, which really don't have that many D2 schools. We also have probably the best salesman and motivator as a coach so that don't hurt none! Even with all that last year's roster still had 3 D1 transfers on it and may have as many as 5 next year. The core group is high school recruits but Scotty always picks up a few veterans particularly at point guard (Kendle, Whitehead, Davis) who finish out his best teams. So I think the use of transfers has always been a major facet of D2 basketball. Its really not all that new of a thing.

[Looking For 9]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

Agree with much above. Today there is one big difference. I think many kids come into college thinking they are in a mini NBA. Ear buds, tats, beards, tutors, never supporting other school teams, story after story describing why we should hate each other, etc. have become common place. Many schools have learned how to decide if players will add more than just basketball skill. Many schools have not learned and have been blinded by dunks and three point shooters. At one time D2 had very few transfers out it has grown each year. I do think there has to be a mix but chose carefully. I think juco and so called prep schools
players need to looked at closely. Bell has done this very well and having a really really good coach is what can make a difference. I think KWC is trying to follow this course.

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

And we are off.....

Next season we open the season on Saturday, November 10th against Grand Valley State. D&E and AB are hosting two GLIAC schools. I don't know the other one yet. GVSU went 14-15 last year and return their top two scorers. They played teams tough. Beat Lake Superior once and lost to Ferris by 6 and 11. This will be a tough test. We play them a week after we play WVU.

[Looking For 9]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

Nice little tourney, who's gym? I'm guessing we will be playing schools closer to home and some NAIA schools looking to build attendance and Ws.

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

Battlers just sign a stat-sheet stuffer with quality accolades from Cleveland. Tons of bounce with this kid as his videos show:

http://battlerbeat.blogspot.com/2018...veland-oh.html

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

I see where Kent McBride has resigned at Cal (PA) after two seasons. He cited personal reasons & wanting to devote more time to family.

We may recall that Kent's brother, Kevyn, was the NCAA D2 Academic Player of the Year his senior season at A-B. Kevyn finished with a 3.97 GPA obtaining only one B in a class as a mathematical engineering major. I wonder if Kent has similar smarts and wants to make more money in the private sector. It seemed he enjoyed coaching though. His star was bright at Concord. It just seems like a lot of shakeup with some of these WV guys. Two coaches had success with their respective schools and get canned. A couple of others have left on their own. We have been fortunate to have the same head coach for the past 18 years. You don't see that much at D2 anymore.

I went back to 1976 and researched how long our head men's basketball coaches stayed.

Dave Barksdale 1976-1983 (7 seasons). He left A-B for the head coaching job at Beckley Woodrow Wilson HS where he built a powerhouse that won multiple state titles.

Tim Brinkley 1983-1987 (4 seasons). He left A-B for the head coaching job at Flagler-Palm Coast HS in Florida. A month before he left, he recruited and signed Willie Davis who went on to become a three-time 1st-team All-American.

Tex Williams 1987-88 (1 season). He left A-B for a head coaching job in the CBA.

Steve Dodd 1988-96 (8 seasons). He left A-B because he didn't want to coach in the NCAA D2 ranks. He wanted us to remain NAIA. He left for the head coaching job at Lindsey Wilson. He inherited Willie Davis, but also recruited some very nice pieces to the team while at A-B.

Brett Vincent 1996-2001 (5 years). He left the team in October of 2001 during the start of practice. He left for the head boys job at Lewis County HS (WV). He had some decent seasons, but his last one was a mess.

Greg Zimmerman 2001-present.

There were a lot of coaches between the time Jack Funk was fired as head basketball coach and the time Dave Barksdale took over. Funk produced some good seasons and some good recruits......Andy Jennings, Tim Brinkley, etc. He was replaced because the president at A-B at the time had a son transfer in from D-I and apparently felt we needed a change. That turned out to be disastrous as we went about 8 years with a 20% winning percentage. Barksdale really got the program at a rebirth and brought some serious excitement in. His last season was the worst as he had a lot graduate the season prior. Brinkley did not leave the cupboard bare when he left. Willie Davis was our biggest signee ever in my opinion. There were some other good signees over the life of A-B basketball:

Rex Pyles signed Joe Miller, an NAIA All-American and Carl Hartman, an NAIA All-American (drafted by the Celtics)

Jack Funk signed Andy Jennings (drafted by the Cincinnati Royals) and Tim Brinkley

Dave Barksdale signed Willie Stewart and Ronnie Peyton

Tim Brinkley signed Willie Davis, Keith Blackwell, Jerry Smith and convinced Jay Donald Hampton to come back to A-B.

Steve Dodd signed Chris Morrow, state player of the year who after two years transferred to Marshall, Maurice Gandy and some other real good talent.

Brett Vincent signed Kevyn McBride, Josh Allen, Stephen Dye and Sean Hampton (WVIAC POY).

Greg Zimmerman signed Terrell Eargle (3rd-team All-American) and Stan Hall (2nd-team All-American) among others.

[JDonAB92]

Re: Alderson Broaddus Basketball

I hope our school has looked at the possibility of the MEC having some serious issues keeping schools down the road:

UVA-Wise and Shepherd are definitely leaving.

Urbana is shaky on many fronts.

Wheeling Jesuit is an absolute mess right now.

WV State is in debt and is continually raising tuition.

Only TWO of WV's public institutions showed a growth in enrollment the past five years as this article below shows. One of those would be Shepherd.

http://wvmetronews.com/2018/06/01/dr...ome-officials/

If ABU goes to the MEC, then likely the G-MAC fills our void with Notre Dame College. That would be another void to fill.

I am imploring my institution to remain in the G-MAC. We need to have some vision. The MEC is as fragile as it gets. I don't want to end up like we did six years ago. It worked out very well. But there were some serious anxious moments.