Thursday, March 22, 2012

Randall Transferring

Per ESPN, Kyle Randall has announced that he will graduate this spring and transfer to another university. The NCAA allows graduate students to transfer and be eligible right away.

I don't have any idea where he might end up landing. However, I do want to thank Kyle for the hard work he put in while at UNCG and wish him luck in the future.

Friday, March 16, 2012

Press Conference Video

In case you haven't seen video of Wes Miller's introduction press, here is the video from the UNCG's YouTube channel.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Miller Gets First Commitment

It took new UNCG coach Wes Miller less than a week on the job to secure his first commitment. Kayel Locke (6'-5" 240 lbs PF) out of Baltimore's McDonogh School has chosen to play next season with the Spartans according to multiple sources, including recruiting guru Dave Telep and Rivals.

There was a article in Sunday's Baltimore Sun about Locke's decision to come to UNCG. Among other things he discussed his relationship with the coaching staff and his interaction with AD Kim Record and Chancellor Linda Brady.


"From the beginning, we had a really good relationship,” Locke said. “I thought [the fact that Miller is so young] was cool because he really related to me on a lot of subjects. I think having experience is also a great thing. It’s also cool to be a part of a team with a coach who really can connect with his players and bring them together in that aspect. I see them playing hard for their coach. I knew that’s what I wanted. I thought it was definitely a good thing.”

Locke, who was selected to the MIAA A Conference first team after averaging 24 points and 11 rebounds for the Eagles, has visited UNC-Greensboro’s campus twice. He took an official visit there last year, and returned to Greensboro during the college season. Locke said he hit it off with the entire coaching staff, and also had good conversations with the athletic director and the school’s chancellor.

The Baltimore Sun named Locke as their Boys Athlete of the Week on January 4 2012.

The Baltimore Sun's Recruiting Report wrote a story about Locke last summer right after his performance in the Peach Jam Tournament.


Locke’s shining moment came during NBE’s 78-71 win over Virginia-based Boo Williams on the first night of pool play at the Peach Jam. Locke paced his squad with 23 points and 12 rebounds in 28 minutes. For the tournament, Locke averaged 11.8 points and 5.4 rebounds. He shot nearly 48 percent from the field in leading NBE to a 3-2 record.

Here are a couple of YouTube videos from that game. Locke is #33 in maroon.






There are several more videos of the game. I just decided to post a few.

ESPN Recruiting rates Locke a 79. He was also listed among their top players in the Maryland during the preseason. They also wrote an article about Locke back in 2009 when he was finishing his freshman season.


"Kayel can shoot it out to the three-point arc, and he has nice floor skills," Evans said. "He can pass the ball and handle it. He is a power forward for us, but I see him as a small forward in college. A lot depends on how much taller he gets. Kayel is a legit 6-4 now, and he has grown a little this year. He is only 14, and he has size 17 shoes. His father is 6-7 and his mother is about 5-7, so I don't think Kayel is done growing yet."

The Locke family puts a premium on education. They enrolled Kayel at McDonogh in the sixth grade, and Kayel has done well academically, maintaining a 3.0 GPA.

Locke played this past season for one the best AAU programs in the country. Locke was on the Baltimore Elite squad. He had 4 class of 2012 teammates (Donte Pretlow-Morgan St, Jared Jones-Loyola, Isaiah Miles-St Joes, Sam Cassell Jr-undecided) that will go onto play D1 basketball next season.

Below is a highlight video of that team.



There are plenty of other videos of Locke on YouTube. Fell free to search them on your own.

Locke joins Jordan Potts as commitments for the 2012-2013 season. Potts signed his NLI in the fall. Locke can sign his NLI during the official signing period which runs from April 11 to May16. The athletics department cannot discuss anything about recruits that haven't signed the NLI. So, there won't be an article on their website until then.

Welcome to the Spartans, Kayel !!!

Thanks Seniors

I know this post is a little late. After spending part of last week in Asheville, I spent the rest of the week playing catch up with work projects.

But, I think it's now time to write a post where I personally thank the effort and dedication given by UNCG's graduating seniors Aaron Brackett, Aloysius Henry and Elhanan Bone. Those 3 guys have really helped in setting the UNCG program back in the right direction.

Thanks guys !!!

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Interim No More

Wes Miller was named the UNCG men's basketball coach today. He had spent the last 2+ months as the interim coach after Mike Dement was let go. Miller earned an 11-11 record as head coach this season and lead UNCG to it's first outright division title in the Southern Conference. He is the 9th head coach in UNCG history.

Here is the AP story through the News & Record.

He (Miller) says the program's foundation is in place, and he wants "to take UNCG to the next level as a basketball program."
This article is from the News & Record's sports blog.

"The next level is to consistently compete for championships," Miller said. "What does that mean? That means Dancing. We want to Dance."
Here is the Winston-Salem Journal's article about the hire.

"Wes Miller is authentic, passionate and makes the people around him better. I feel strongly that not only will Wes have a significant impact on UNCG basketball, but he will make a mark on college basketball as his career develops over time," said UNCG athletics director Kim Record.
From WFMY News 2's DigTriad page, here are inteviews with Coach Miller and UNC-Chapel Hill head Coach Roy Williams.

WXII also had video from the press conference.

All-SoCon Tournament Team

All-SoCon Tournament Team

FIRST TEAM
De'Mon Brooks (Davidson)
Jake Cohen (Davidson)
J.P. Kuhlman (Davidson)
Harouna Mutombo (Western Carolina)
Trey Sumler (Western Carolina)

SECOND TEAM
Jack Isenbarger (Elon)
Eric Ferguson (Georgia Southern)
Trevis Simpson (UNCG)
Keaton Cole (Western Carolina)
Tawaski King (Western Carolina)

Most Outstanding Player
De'Mon Brooks (Davidson)

Day 4 Results

Monday, March 5 Results

Western Carolina 91
Davidson 93
2 OT

* Davidson wins Southern Conference Chamionship

Monday, March 5, 2012

Press Conference on Tuesday

UNCG has scheduled a press conference at 4:30 on Tuesday afternoon at the Greensboro Coliseum. It is expected that interim head coach Wes Miller will be named the full time head coach. I will have more of an opinion post later this week once this becomes official.

Here is the News & Record article.

WCU - SoCon Tournament Post Game

Post game press conference that I found here.

Hot Catamounts End UNCG Run

UNCG 77 - WCU 82

Asheville Citizen-Times
News & Record
UNCG Athletics
Western Carolina Athletics

Halftime UNCG 37 - WCU 42

UNCG Stats
Leader Points: Trevis Simpson (24)
Leader Rebounds: Derrell Armstrong (7)
Leader Assists: Derrell Armstrong (4)
Team FG: 28-60 (46.7%)
Team 3 Pt: 8-19 (42.1%)
Team FT: 13-14 (92.9%)
Rebounds: 30
Turnovers: 13

WCU Stats
Leader Points: Cole, Mutombo (17 tie)
Leader Rebounds: Trey Sumler (8)
Leader Assists: Trey Sumler (5)
Team FG: 29-62 (46.8%)
Team 3 Pt: 10-21 (47.6%)
Team FT: 14-19 (73.3%)
Rebounds: 36
Turnovers: 13

Thoughts
The last 5 minutes of the first half gave Western Carolina all of the margin they would need. After that, it was all about surviving every run that UNCG threw at them. That was a great game in a fun environment. I totally expected the Cats to get tired and eventually fade. It never happened.

Western Carolina deserves a lot of credit. They were the better team on Sunday night. I will absolutely be rooting against them in the championship game due to their fans being obnoxious assholes. I'll get to more of that in my trip wrap-up post sometime later this week.

For now, I'm just sad to see what had become a fun 2012-2012 season come to an end. The last 2+ months have been an enjoyable ride. I am already ready for next season.

Day 3 Results

Sunday, March 4 Results

Western Carolina 82
UNCG 77

Elon 67
Davidson 83

Sunday, March 4, 2012

ASU - SoCon Tournament Post Game

Post game press conference that I found here.

UNCG Comeback Stuns App

UNCG 65 - App State 55

Asheville Times-Citizen
News & Record
UNCG Athletics
App State Athletics

Halftime: UNCG 32 - App State 39

UNCG Stats
Leader Points: Trevis Simpson (17)
Leader Rebounds: Simpson, David Williams (9 tie)
Leader Assists: Williams, Derrell Armstrong (3 tie)
Team FG: 23-61 (37.7%)
Team 3 Pt: 5-14 (35.7%)
Team FT: 14-24 (58.3%)
Rebounds: 44
Turnovers: 9

App State Stats
Leader Points: Ike Butts (16)
Leader Rebounds: Ike Butts (10)
Leader Assists: Mike Neal (2)
Team FG: 21-58 (36.2%)
Team 3 Pt: 2-17 (11.8%)
Team FT: 11-13 (84.6%)
Rebounds: 36
Turnovers: 14

Thoughts
The Spartans were done. You could feel the air go out of the fans behind the bench. The score was 49-38 with about 10 minutes left in the game, and I wrote the word "Ovah" on my Twitter feed.

That was about the time UNCG remembered they were a better team than App and took off on a 27-6 run to thump App right on back to Boone. Trevis Simpson finished it off with a ridiculous windmill dunk.

I encourage everyone to get to Asheville to see today's game. It's a great place to watch basketball. I'll write a full post on my entire experience next week. But for now the UNCG basketball team rolls on. Hopefully this season can continue on a little longer.

Day 2 Results

Saturday, March 3 Results

App St 55
UNCG 65

Western Carolina 82
Wofford 59

Furman 54
Davidson 73

Georgia Southern 58
Elon 65

Friday, March 2, 2012

Saturday Tournament Participants

1N UNCG (12-18)
PPG: 69.9
RPG: 35.7
APG: 11.7
Leader Points: Trevis Simpson (18.2)
Leader Rebounds: David Williams (5.2)
Leader Assists: Drew Parker (2.7)
FG %: 40.2
3 Pt %: 33.5
FT %: 68.4

2S Wofford (19-12)
PPG: 64.1
RPG: 33.7
APG: 14.3
Leader Points: Kevin Giltner (15.3)
Leader Rebounds: Lee Skinner (5.7)
Leader Assists: Brad Loesing (5.5)
FG %: 44.0
3 Pt %: 33.8
FT %: 66.7

1S Davidson (22-7)
PPG: 77.9
RPG: 38.9
APG: 13.6
Leader Points: De'Mon Brooks (15.8)
Leader Rebounds: De'Mon Brooks (6.3)
Leader Assists: Nik Cochran (3.6)
FG %: 44.5
3 Pt %: 34.1
FT %: 76.6

2N Elon (14-15)
PPG: 70.4
RPG: 37.2
APG: 13.3
Leader Points: Jack Isenbarger (14.1)
Leader Rebounds: Ryan Beaumont (5.7)
Leader Assists: Austin Hamilton (3.0)
FG %: 41.8
3 Pt %: 35.7
FT %: 67.2

Day 1 Results

Friday, March 2 Results

App State 93
Charleston 81

Citadel 56
Western Carolina 68

Furman 75
Samford 66

Chattanooga 70
Ga Southern 76

6N Chattanooga (11-20) - 3S Ga Southern (14-14)

When: Friday, March 2 8:30 pm
Where: US Cellular Arena (7,654)
TV: None/SoCon TV

Chattanooga Athletics
GSU Athletics

12/1 Chattanooga 76 @ Ga Southern 84 Recap - Recap
1/28 Ga Southern 75 @ Chattanooga 72 Recap - Recap

Chattanooga Stats
Last Game: Samford (W 86-78) Recap
PPG: 70.6
RPG: 39.1
APG: 14.5
Leader Points: Omatr Wattad (12.4)
Leader Rebounds: Drazen Vlovaric (6.5)
Leader Assists: Keegan Bell (6.2)
FG %: 41.5
3 Pt %: 33.5
FT %: 68.0

Ga Southern Stats
Last Game: Davidson (L 54-71) Recap
PPG: 66.7
RPG: 31.7
APG: 12.3
Leader Points: Eric Ferguson (14.8)
Leader Rebounds: Eric Ferguson (7.1)
Leader Assists: Willie Powers (5.4)
FG %: 46.7
3 Pt %: 35.7
FT %: 67.0

My Pick
After the defensive sluggfest I expect in the 6 pm game, this one should have some real tempo to it. I expect to see both teams play sloppy, but at a frenetic pace. Since I feel compelled to pick an upset, I'm taking the Mocs to win for the first time away from the Roundhouse. Score ... 86-79.

5S Furman (14-15) - 4S Samford (11-18)

When: Friday, March 2 6pm
Where: US Cellular Arena (7,654)
TV: None/SoCon TV

Furman Athletics
Samford Athletics

2/18 Furman 49 @ Samford 55 Recap - Recap

Furman Stats
Last Game: @ Wofford (L 52-67) Recap
PPG: 64.7
RPG: 34.2
APG: 11.1
Leader Points: Brandon Sebirumbi (11.2)
Leader Rebounds: Brandon Sebirumbi (5.5)
Leader Assists: Richard Brown (3.0)
FG %: 41.4
3 Pt %: 33.8
FT %: 72.4

Samford Stats
Last Game: @ Chattanooga (L 78-86) Recap
PPG: 66.1
RPG: 32.3
APG: 14.1
Leader Points: Drew Windler (14.2)
Leader Rebounds: Jeffrey Merritt (6.6)
Leader Assists: Jeffrey Merritt (3.5)
FG %: 44.3
3 Pt %: 34.1
FT %: 65.7

My Pick
I think Samford's ability to spread Furman out and make shots will help in this low scoring game, 56-51. Defense rules in this one.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

College Sports Madness SoCon Awards

SoCon All-Conference Awards for College Sports Madness ...

All-Conference First Team
Eric Ferguson (Ga Southern)
Andrew Lawrence (Charleston)
Antwaine Wiggins (Charleston)
De'Mon Brooks (Davidson)
Miek Groselle (Citadel)

All-Conference Second Team
Brad Loesing (Wofford)
Kevin Giltner (Wofford)
Trevis Simpson (UNCG)
Jake Cohen (Davidson)
Trent Wiedeman (Charleston)

All-Conference Third Team
Harouna Mutombo (WCU)
Jack Isenbarger (Elon)
Omar Cater (App State)
Lucas Troutman (Elon)
Andre Williamson (App State)

All Conference Fourth Team
Trey Sumler (WCU)
Willie Powers III (Ga Southern)
Jeffery Merritt (Samford)
Drazen Zlovaric (UTC)
Drew Windler (Samford)

Player of the Year
De'MonBrooks (Davidson)

Freshman of the Year
Karl Cochran (Wofford)

Coach of the Year
Charlton Young (Ga Southern)

6S Citadel (6-23) - 3N Western Carolina (14-17)

When: Friday, March 2 2pm
Where US Cellular Arena (7,654)
TV: None/SoCon TV

Citadel Athletics
Western Carolina Athletics

2/16 Citadel 53 @ WCU 70 Recap - Recap

Citadel Stats
Last Game: Charleston (L 47-55) Recap
PPG: 64.4
RPG: 32.8
APG: 13.4
Leader Points: Mike Groselle (16.6)
Leader Rebounds: Mike Groselle (9.7)
Leader Assists: DeVontae Wright (2.7)
FG %: 43.5
3 PT %: 33.3
FT %: 66.5

Western Carolina
Last Game: App State (W 83-75) Recap
PPG: 70.3
RPG: 35.5
APG: 10.8
Leader Points: Harouna Mutmobo (13.3)
Leader Rebounds: Harouna Mutombo (5.9)
Leader Assists: Trey Sumler (4.0)
FG %: 41.7
3 Pt %: 33.8
FT %: 68.6

My Pick
I'll take Western, but they should be on upset alert. I think all 4 Firday games will be close. 67-64 OT.

Transitive Property

Someone has too much free time !!!

UNC Greensboro

UNC Greensboro def. Western Carolina def. UNC Greensboro

5N App State (12-17) - 4S Charleston (19-11)

When: Friday, March 2 11:30 am
Where: US Cellular Arena (7,654)
TV: None/SoCon TV

App State Athletics
Charleston Athletics

2/4 - Charleston 74 @ App State 62 Recap -Recap

App State Stats
Last Game: @ Western Carolina (L 75-83) Recap
PPG: 68.0
RPG: 34.7
APG: 12.4
Leader Points: Omar Cater (11.6)
Leader Rebounds: Andre Williamson (6.8)
Leader Assists: Miek Neal (3.1)
FG %: 44.0
3 Pt %: 34.5
FT %: 64.3

Charleston Stats
Last game: @ Citadel (W 55-47) Recap
PPG: 70.3
RPG: 36.0
APG: 12.0
Leader Points: Antwaine Wiggins (16.0)
Leader Rebounds: Trent Wiedeman (8.8)
Leader Assists: Andrew Lawrence (5.6)
FG %: 42.6
3 Pt %: 34.1
FT: 64.4

My Pick
Charleston is a better team that is finally getting healthy. I'll take the Cougars in a very close one, 71-67.