Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Appalachian State lives on in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.
The Mountaineers dismantled Marshall 80-72 in the quarterfinals Monday night, becoming just the fourth team in 19 games to win on Marshall’s home court this season and the first to win by more than four points.
Rebounding was a key. The Mountaineers dominated on the boards 47-28.
“If we keep doing that, we’ve got a shot to win this thing,” Coach Buzz Peterson said.
Next up for the Mountaineers is Pacific. They’ll play in the semifinals Thursday night at 8 o’clock in Boone. The winner will play for the CIT title next Tuesday at the survivor of Wednesday night’s Creighton at Missouri State game.
When ASU plays Pacific, it will be meeting a current member of the Big West Conference for just the second time.
The Mountaineers lost to UC Santa Barbara 29-26 in 1941 during the NAIA Tournament in Kansas City.
ASU is one of 32 Division I teams still playing this season. Sixteen remain in the NCAA Tournament, eight in the NIT and four in both the CIT and CBI.
If the Mountaineers (24-12) win Thursday night, they will match the 2006-07 ASU team (25-8) for most victories in a season. The 36 games played by ASU this season is a school record.
BOOTH’S EARLY EXIT
Jeremi Booth, a starting guard for ASU, apparently was a victim of circumstance when he was called for a technical foul along with Marshall’s Shaquille Johnson with 3:58 left in Monday’s quarterfinal game.
“He was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Coach Buzz Peterson said.
Peterson, in a reactionary moment, sent Booth to the locker room after the technical was issued.
“Jeremi kind of got caught in the wrong position,” Peterson said. “He wasn’t in the game, he didn’t say anything. Why the official called the technical on him, we don’t know. I probably over-reacted more than anything and sent him to the locker room. But it’s the third time we have gotten a technical after a timeout this year. That irritated me.”
Peterson said that he isn’t certain if anything was said or who said it as players were converging to huddle after a timeout.
“The next thing I know he gave Booth and a kid from Marshall a technical,” Peterson said. “It worked in our favor, because it was the other kid’s fifth foul.”
In regard to Booth, Peterson said that everything is fine now. He’ll be good to go when the Mountaineers play Pacific in the semifinals.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Dale Jones, a former All-SEC linebacker at Tennessee who has been an assistant coach at Appalachian State for 14 seasons, is settling in as new defensive coordinator.
By all accounts, the Mountaineers’ defense has performed well this spring.
Jones has tweaked some things, including abandoning the Bandit position and going with strong-side linebacker terminology in the 4-3 defense, and has plans to play some Cover 2 defense, with cornerbacks covering the run more and safeties playing deeper.
“We’re playing a little bit of hard Cover 2,” Jones said. “That’s something we haven’t done in the past against the run game. You’ll see them show up more. It’s been good for us, and it’s been good for those kids because we have big and physical corners.
“It fits us and it fits how I like to set up defenses.”
Jones also said that he is exploring a few other different ways to attack offenses this spring, and that a lot of things the Mountaineers will do on defense will be “easier on our kids.”
He said that he is seeing fewer mental mistakes from the defense as compared to last season.
“We’ve simplified what we’re doing up front,” Jones said. “And I think those guys are playing at a higher level. We will learn things to use for the future, but we are going with what we are good at right now.”
Jones said that he still draws from his playing days as a linebacker.
“A lot of times when I sit and watch film I see myself out there, and I consider what we are asking and telling our guys to do,” Jones said. “It’s an opportunity for me as a coach to play the game, but play it through the eyes of our kids. I try to evaluate how realistic and how simple it is. I don’t want it so complicated to where they have to do an overwhelming amount of thinking.”
Friday, March 19, 2010
It’s too early to tell who will be under center – and “under center” might be an operative term for next season – but DeAndre Presley and Jamal Jackson are both working this spring for an arguably unenviable position to become the successor to Armanti Edwards.
For more on the quarterback situation, you can check out Saturday’s Winston-Salem Journal, but here’s a glimpse of how the two candidates are progressing:
DeAndre Presley
“DeAndre has been impressive running the ball this spring,” said Brad Glenn, ASU’s quarterbacks coach. “I think that’s been his strong point. We knew he could run the ball, but I’ve been impressed with that this spring.
“He has a really strong arm and sometimes, at this point, I think that hurts him because he thinks he can thread the needle sometimes when it’s not there. He has almost too much confidence in his arm. But I think him being a better decision-maker will come with time.”
Jamal Jackson
“He just needs reps and experience and learn the offense better,” Glenn said. “That’s the thing that is holding him back right now. When he knows what’s going on and knows the reads, I think he makes pretty good throws. When he’s out there trying to think about 10 things at once he makes bad throws. Once he gets a better grasp on what we’re trying to do I think it will all come together for him.”
Comparison
Experience, advantage Presley – He has been a quarterback in 10 games, and is a rising junior. Jackson redshirted last season as a freshman. Glenn thinks that time at wide receiver last season has actually helped Presley as a quarterback, strengthening his overall awareness of the offense and recognition of opposing defenses.
Size, advantage Jackson – At 6-3, he is four inches taller than Presley which is an asset in terms of passing. “DeAndre has had some balls batted this spring that Jamal wouldn’t have,” Glenn said. “And Jamal will see some things on some straight drop backs that DeAndre might not be able to see.”
Ability, both have it – “Both have strong arms, but DeAndre has a very strong arm,” Glenn said. “I would say Jamal’s arm strength is above average. I think DeAndre’s arm strength is outstanding.
“I think DeAndre might be a little better runner. He has a little quicker feet. Jamal is more of a strider, but he is a very capable runner.”
By Tommy Bowman at 08:23 AM
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Thursday, March 18, 2010
There is no doubt that the goal of every college basketball team is to get to the NCAA Tournament.
Tournaments such as the NIT, and now the CBI and CIT, are relegated to secondary status, and understandably so – to a point.
But here is what a tournament like the CIT is about, from a player’s perspective:
“It’s an opportunity to keep playing,” Donald Sims of Appalachian State said.
“There are 200 and some teams sitting at home. We’re fortunate enough to still be playing.
“It is disappointing not to get to go to the NCAA, but it’s a chance to play the game we love…. It is an opportunity to keep playing and hopefully we can go out on a special note and win this whole tournament.”
Appalachian’s season will continue Monday in a quarterfinal game of the CIT at Marshall, an old Southern Conference rival.
Kellen Brand, a senior, said that he thinks constantly about how every game now could be his last.
“I get a chance to step out on the floor with my guys once again,” Brand said. “It’s going to be tough to leave because of all the bonds and friendships that I’ve made. I’ve had fun since the first day I came up here. I use that as something to motivate me and I use that as a reminder to the other seniors, that we can’t give up and we still have something to prove.”
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
Appalachian State didn’t win the Southern Conference Tournament, but for silver-lining seekers the play of forward Andre Williamson fits the bill.
Williamson, a 6-7, 225-pound sophomore, solidified himself as a player that could have significant impact when the Mountaineers try again next season.
He led the Mountaineers in scoring for the first time this season in the 56-51 loss to Wofford in the SoCon final. He scored 12 points, one off his career high, and grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked four shots in the biggest game of the season.
Williamson was instrumental in bringing the Mountaineers back from an 18-point deficit in the second half. With the Mountaineers’ top scorers continually misfiring, he fueled a 14-2 run with eight points in little more than six minutes.
“Andre had a heck of a game,” Coach Buzz Peterson of the Mountaineers said.
“I just do what I can for my team,” Williamson said. “I know we have scorers and I come out and try to rebound and block shots. I pride myself on my defense.”
Williamson could take on more of a scorer’s role next season, and has shown an ability to take and make mid-range jump shots.
“Post players think they have to play and score with their back (to the basket),” Peterson said. “That’s not the case. You need to hit that 12- to 15-footer. If Andre shoots it on the way up, he’ll make it. If he waits until he gets up, he’s not going to make it. That’s something we’ll work on, the ability to hit that shot.
“He’s going to get better and better. He brings great athleticism, and I think left-handed post players are tough to guard. He’s very active in there. Of all our players on our team, he’s one that has a huge upside.”
PHYSICAL GAME
App State and Wofford have engaged in some hard-nosed football battles in the past, and Monday’s basketball game had some football-like qualities.
“I figured we’d have (officials) that have called in a Final Four and had experience and a lot of times, and I’ve been around this long enough I know, they’re going to let you play,” Peterson said. “So it’s going to be a physical game. I told our guys…you’re going to have to adjust your game to that situation. That was the disappointing thing for me, those first 10 to 12 minutes I feel like we got the punch delivered to us.”
Peterson said the entire experience was a lesson learned.
“These kids are going to remember this next year,” Peterson said. “Now they’ve been there, they know what it’s like. This experience will help them a lot, playing in that championship game.”
NCAA TOURNAMENT
Peterson nearly picked up where he left off back in 2000, when he coached ASU to an NCAA Tournament berth before moving on to coaching jobs at Tulsa, Tennessee and Coastal Carolina.
“It’s so hard to get there, I’ve been in that (league championship) game six times out of 12 years as head coach,” Peterson said. “It’s so hard just to get to that game. It hurts. You have to seize that moment and make sure you play at your best. For 20 minutes (Monday) we did not play at our best.”
POST-SEASON POSSIBILITES
With an RPI in the mid 90s, and 11 losses to go with 22 wins, the Mountaineers are probably a long shot to get to the NIT.
The Mountaineers could very well end up in the CollegeInsider.com tournament (CIT), which began last season and is geared more toward “mid-major” programs, or the College Basketball Invitational (CBI), in its second season.
But Peterson offered an idea for the NIT.
“I’m trying to get those guys to think about North Carolina can’t play in the Smith Center – I think they’re renovating or something – so, hey, why don’t we go to Bojangles Arena (in Charlotte) and play North Carolina and sell it out,” Peterson said. “I think that would be great.”
By Tommy Bowman at 06:30 PM
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Monday, March 08, 2010
Kellen Brand, the most veteran player on Appalachian State’s team with 126 games played, did not get off to the start he wanted for his senior season.
Midway through the season, Brand was averaging 8.9 points a game – well below his junior-season and team-leading average of 14.8.
He was having a difficult time find his offensive rhythm and getting shots to fall. He was barely at 40 percent by mid season.
But things turned for Brand, and for his team.
The Mountaineers, once 7-7 overall and 1-2 against Southern Conference opponents, are 15-4 and 14-3 since.
And Brand’s numbers are up dramatically as well. Since his early-to-mid-season slump, Brand has shot 48 percent, nearly 40 percent from 3-point range, and has averaged 13.8 points a game.
Those numbers are more in tune with the ones that earned Brand All-SoCon honors last season.
Nearing the end of his collegiate career, Brand turned in his finest performance last night in the Mountaineers’ romp over College of Charleston in the SoCon Tournament semifinals.
Brand, a guard from High Point dubbed “KB” by his coach, scored a career-high 37 points. Far from the way he began the season, he made 14 of 19 field-goal attempts, including 5 of 6 3-point tries.
“It feels great to just finally explode,” Brand said after leading the Mountaineers to tonight’s championship game. “I felt really good out there. I was kind of shocked myself. I just kept feeling a boost from somewhere. It’s a blessing to be able to come out and play that way.”
Coach Buzz Peterson said: “He’s a young man that has worked hard for us every day in practice, never complained. He’s really given it all. For him to step up and have 37 points…I’m happy for KB.”
TONIGHT’S FINAL
The Mountaineers will try for their first Southern Conference championship and berth to the NCAA Tournament since 2000 when they play Wofford at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte.
The teams met just once in the regular season – way back on Dec. 7. The Mountaineers won 77-76 in Spartanburg, S.C.
Both teams had similar-type victories in the semifinals last night.
Wofford romped past Western Carolina 77-58. ASU rolled over College of Charleston 77-54.
Post play was central to both team’s success. The Terriers outscored Western 40-22 in the paint, and won the rebound battle by 10. The Mountaineers outscored Charleston 40-16 inside, and had a 20-rebound advantage.
“You want to let them know early you’re going to dominate inside,” said Ike Butts, a 6-10, 285-pound center for the Mountaineers who totaled 10 points and 11 rebounds against Charleston last night. He had 11 points and 13 rebounds against the Terriers earlier this season.
“I think me, Hunter and Andre did a pretty good job of that. We came out, rebounded and scored the ball when we got it down in there. When we can do that it allows our guards to do things like KB did.”
Peterson said of Wofford: “We are facing a team we have not played in a long time. We were fortunate to win that (first game). I’m sure they’re hungry for us. They’re very physical. They’ve got good inside play, and good perimeter play to go with it.”
ASU CROWD
A crowd of 5,440 was on hand for last night’s semifinals at Time Warner Cable Arena, and most in attendance were ASU fans.
“We appreciate the support,” Brand said. “It felt just like a home game out there. We fed off the energy of the crowd.”
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Buzz Peterson is glad to have his team in the Southern Conference Tournament semifinals, but he would have rather beaten any other team to have gotten there.
The Mountaineers eliminated The Citadel in last night’s quarterfinals, but Peterson doesn’t like having to play his close friend Ed Conroy, The Citadel’s coach.
“This game is not fun at all,” Peterson said.
Conroy was Peterson’s assistant at Tulsa, Tennessee and Coastal Carolina.
“Ed Conroy has meant so much to me and my family,” Peterson said.
How good of friends are they?
“When I took the Tulsa job, he drove my 125-pound dog all the way across the country and he’s allergic to dogs,” Peterson said. “When he got out there, you couldn’t even see Ed’s eyes they were so swollen…He’s a great loyal friend.”
Donald Sims, ASU’s junior point guard and the SoCon’s media player of the year, kept pouring in the points last night. He scored 30 against The Citadel.
Peterson said that his team has adjusted well to Sims’ role as chief scorer and has done a good job of getting the ball in his hands as much as possible.
“Ever since we’ve done that things have looked better for this ballclub,” Peterson said. “They respect him. He’s not one of these kids that walks around and talks about himself at all. He really complements his teammates very well.”
Quarterfinal surprises have been the norm the last two years in the SoCon Tournament, but that wasn’t the case this year.
The top four seeds all advanced into today’s semifinals. The last two years, teams without a first-round bye were a combined 4-3 in quarterfinal games. This time around, they were 0-4.
And, for or the first time in SoCon history, all four semifinalists have won 20 games or more. ASU is 21-11, College of Charleston 21-10, Western Carolina 22-10 and Wofford 24-8.
Thursday, March 04, 2010
A few notes and quotes going into this weekend’s Southern Conference Tournament in Charlotte:
Donald Sims on ASU’s mindset heading into the tournament – “You have to have that swagger and confidence going into the tournament. We have that now, but I don’t think we’re crossing that line of being too cocky. We know what we can do, we know we can play with anybody in this league, we just have to go out there and do it.”
Coach Buzz Peterson on the fact that the Mountaineers have eight of their last nine regular-season games – “Our guys really came together the last few weeks of the season. As a coach you like to see your team improve and I saw that from our guys. We had our roller coaster, up and down, early but when February rolled around we started playing better basketball.”
The Mountaineers took two days off after concluding the regular-season last Saturday. A week between games – the gap between the end of the regular-season and the start of the tournament – will offer some rest for all the teams but, for a team on a hot streak, there is a risk of breaking momentum.
Peterson said that he isn’t too concerned about going a week without a game, that the confidence his team has built is still intact.
“Confidence is the biggest thing,” Peterson said. “That’s where these guys have gotten a lot better. They now believe in themselves and their teammates, and they believe they can finish games.”
Sims is not only the Mountaineers’ leading scorer, but leads in minutes play with an average of 34.1 a game. He said that some rest was nice, but that he would have been ready to go regardless.
“I’ve always believed you rest in the offseason,” said Sims, the SoCon’s media player of the year. “Two days off were good, but we’re ready to get back at it.”
Peterson took away his team’s practice jerseys to motivate them earlier this season when things weren’t going so well. But he rewarded them before last Saturday’s final regular-season game for their late-season winning streak.
He acquired some unique shoes, a Jordan brand black-and-white model with a block A on them, and distributed them among players to show his appreciation for their hard work down the stretch.
The SoCon Tournament will be in one city but two sites this year. First-round and quarterfinal games will be played at venerable Bojangles Coliseum on Independence Boulevard in Charlotte and semifinals and championship game will be downtown at Time Warner Cable Arena, the home of the Charlotte Bobcats.
Coaches aren’t making an issue of a split site for the tournament.
“It’s the same for everybody,” Bobby Cremins of College of Charleston said.
“Everyone is on the same page,” Davidson’s Bob McKillop said. “Everyone is dealing with the same situation so whether it’s Bojangles or whether it’s Time Warner…”
Peterson hopes that the close proximity to Charlotte for ASU fans will be a boon to support for his team.
“We’re expecting a pretty good crowd,” Peterson said. “I’m sure the more you win the more people will come out. Hopefully we can get a good draw from our alumni base in that area.”
Peterson hasn’t been too enamored with the number of fans at ASU home games this season. Attendance for home games has averaged 2,007 in the 8,350-seat Holmes Center.
“I wish that I could get the students more involved, bigger crowds at the game,” Peterson said. “The place is so big and the weather hasn’t been great most of the time but we’re sitting there the No. 1 team in the North Division and I just feel like the attendance could have been a lot better.
“A lot of times when we travel off the mountain we get a lot of people to see us but during the weekdays and weekends I don’t feel like we get the support we need…. That’s something that has probably disappointed me more than anything, student attendance and turnout for the games.”
Peterson has an idea that might help.
“This may sound crazy but there is a 100-spot parking lot beside the arena and they need to make that a parking deck and build a walkway into the arena,” he said. “I think you could get students to drive down there and get more people come to the games that way.
“People have to park up the street a little bit and they don’t like that walk to the Holmes Center. I hear that all the time. I think that parking deck is something that has been talked about but right now we have to have the money to build it. I think that would solve a lot of problems.”
Wofford has never won a Southern Conference Tournament title in its eight seasons in the league, but probably has its best chance ever this season. The Terriers are 23-8 and won the South Division, and many consider them the favorite.
“As far as target on our back…Fantastic, give me that,” Coach Mike Young said. “This team has adhered to the thought of, ‘The heck with you hunting us, we’re going to hunt you. We’re going to come after you and give it our best shot.’ I don’t think this weekend will be any different.”
Sims thinks his ASU team, which is 20-11 and won the North Division, has a legitimate shot.
“We’ve done a lot, but we’re not done yet,” Sims said. “We still have goals to accomplish. To go to Charlotte and not come back with a championship will be disappointing.”
Players from past all-tournament teams (first and second team) in this year’s field: Bryan Friday of Samford (2009); Andrew Goudelock (2009), Jeremy Simmons (2009) and Tony White Jr. (2008 and 2009) of College of Charleston; and Sims (2009).
SoCon titles per team (year last won): Chattanooga 10 (2009), Davidson 9 (2008), Furman 6 (1980), Appalachian 2 (2000), College of Charleston 1 (1999), UNC Greensboro 1 (2001) and Western Carolina 1 (1996).
Top single-game performances this season: Points – Sims, 44 vs. Davidson; 3-pointers – Antonia Hanson (Georgia Southern) 9 vs. Elon; Rebounds – Ben Stywall (UNC Greensboro) 19 vs. Samford.
Memories of what Stephen Curry did for Southern Conference basketball, most notably his amazing scoring prowess and leading Davidson to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament, will linger for a long time to come.
But Donald Sims of Appalachian State did what he could this season to, at least in part, offset the SoCon’s loss of such a dynamic player.
Curry certainly did more overall and for a longer period, but Sims’ season has been rather amazing in its own right. And some similarities in Sims’ style of play to Curry’s in terms of offensive proficiency don’t make comparisons totally null.
In fact, references to Curry by SoCon coaches – from UNCG’s Mike Dement, Samford’s Jimmy Tillette to Davidson’s Bob McKillop – after witnessing Sims’ performances were frequent this season.
Sims displayed similar confidence and shooting ability.
“It’s definitely humbling to hear some of those comparisons, considering the things (Curry) did in our conference and with what he’s doing now,” said Sims, who followed two-time winner Curry by being named the SoCon’s player of the year by media today.
“To be mentioned in the same breath is humbling. I’m not saying I’m the same type of player he is, but I’ve always had confidence in my game and can do some of the same things. He definitely inspired me to work hard and be the kind of player I am.”
His 44 points at Davidson earlier this season certainly conjured up some images of Curry.
Sims, nearing school records for 3-pointers in a season and career, is averaging 20.4 points this year. His 95-percent accuracy from the free-throw line (151 of 159) leads all Division I players, as does his 102 3-pointers made. Sims is shooting 43 percent from 3-point range.
Curry, a catalyst for his team leading the Wildcats to 75 wins in three seasons as well as two SoCon titles and the memorable NCAA Tournament run, led the SoCon in scoring all three of his seasons and he also piled up an impressive number of steals.
His peaks: 28.6 points a game as a junior; 251 free-throw attempts as a sophomore, and an 89.4-percent accuracy rate; and 44 percent from 3-point range as a sophomore when he set an NCAA record with 162 3-pointers. He also led the SoCon in assists as a junior.
Sims has one season left to play.
“That’s huge,” Sims said. “Of course, now I’ve set the bar for myself. It will be challenging for me to go into next season having the type of year I’ve had this year. The bar has definitely been raised.”
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Paul Mance totaled 348 victories, the most in Southern Conference history, in his 33 seasons as wrestling coach at Appalachian State.
Last season was his final one as coach. He still attends matches, and is helping with fund-raising and ASU’s wrestling camp, but he said it’s been an adjustment.
“It’s a whole lot different sitting in the bleachers watching than it is on the bench,” said Mance, who guided the Mountaineers to eight regular-season and five Southern Conference tournament titles.
“It’s a funny feeling walking into the gym and not coaching after so many years. But everything ends at one time or another.”
He said he didn’t really want it to end.
“I think in my heart I would have liked to coach forever,” Mance said. “I was ready to retire as far as…letting go to someone who is a lot younger and is an eager-beaver. But it’s hard. Do I feel like I could still do it? Yeah, I feel like I could have done it for quite a while longer but I also want to do other things in my life so it’s good to be able to do that to.”
More free time is an upside, he said.
“The fun part is coaching wrestlers out there on the mat, and just working with the kids being with the team,” Mance said. “I miss that. But the recruiting part was never as much fun. You do a lot of work and don’t get the kid a lot of times. It’s not always easy.”
Among his career highlights are coaching Olympic wrestlers Ike Anderson and Dale Oliver, and establishing a thriving wrestling camp.
“Our camp has become so large that we now have literally 100s of guys that wrestled for us that now bring their kids to camp,” Mance said. “That’s very rewarding, knowing you hopefully had something to do with developing and influencing young lives. It makes you feel like you’ve done something useful.”
Mance was presented a plaque for his accomplishments with the ASU wrestling program a week ago before ASU’s final regular-season match. He will be honored for his Southern Conference accomplishments during this weekend’s league tournament at Davidson.
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