| |
LOCATION: New Brunswick, NJ
CONFERENCE: Big East
LAST SEASON: 19-13 (.593)
CONFERENCE RECORD: 9-9 (t-6th)
STARTERS LOST/RETURNING: 2/3
NICKNAME: Scarlet Knights
COLORS: Scarlet & White
HOMECOURT: Louis Brown Athletic Center (8,500)
COACH: Kevin Bannon (St. Peter's '79)
record at school 33-28 (2 years)
career record 309-179 (17 years)
|
ASSISTANTS: Tod Kowalczyk (Minnesota-Duluth '88)
Dan Hurley (Seton Hall '96)
Walt Townes (Clark '84)
TEAM WINS: (last 5 years) 13-9-11-14-19
RPI (last 5 years) 107-132-119-73-47
1998-99 FINISH: Lost in NIT second round.
ESPN.com Clubhouse
|
Now do you think Kevin Bannon is the man for the Rutgers job? There were those who believed the Scarlet Knights should have gone out and found the hottest young coach for the job, when Bob Wenzel was finally cut free after the 1996-97 season. They figured New Jersey's state university deserved the biggest name around. After all, it was in the Big East, and that meant it needed a high-profile name to take over. It's possible to criticize former athletic director Fred Gruninger for many things, but in the matter of Kevin Bannon, the man looks like a genius. Instead of hiring somebody with a big-time pedigree, he realized how important it would be to bring in somebody who had connections throughout the state and could strike up an immediate conversation with any coach or basketball impresario in any dank Jersey gym. Bannon's resume College of New Jersey, Rider didn't scream "Big Time!" It didn't have to. Bannon had spent his entire 15 years as a head coach in the Garden State, building contacts and meeting players through his highly successful (and highly profitable) summer basketball camp. Nope, the folks in Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles didn't know who he was when Bannon joined Rutgers, but the prep coaches and players in New Jersey sure did. After a 19-13 season that nearly resulted in the school's first NCAA Tournament bid in eight years and a recruiting effort that landed a talented, deep and (most importantly) Joisey-flavored class, Bannon stands poised to go from anonymous coach to a hot commodity. And with him, will come the Knights. "When you look at the attendance record we set and how we didn't get to the tournament but came awfully close, everything around the program is good," Bannon said. Now, the Knights must deal with the familiar refrain that accompanies any success by a formerly moribund program. Sing along, won't you: "Can they take the next step?"
|
Blue Ribbon Analysis |
|
BACKCOURT B BENCH/DEPTH B+
FRONTCOURT B INTANGIBLES B+
This Scarlet Knights team is interesting and could be quite exciting by season's end. Bannon has imported some impressive talent during the last two seasons, giving him a variety of options and answers galore in the event of injury or uninspired play. The best news of all is that much of it is local, and that was his charge when he took over the job: Keep the Jersey kids at home. So much of what Rutgers can accomplish depends on the point-guard spot, and that could cause some concern, because Billet and Brown are newcomers and therefore should be expected to experience some growing pains. Billet has great talent, but he is a freshman, while Brown will no doubt have an acclimation period after playing junior-college ball. If both can emerge as reliable contributors, Rutgers is in great shape. The rest of the bunch is choice. Jones is on the brink of stardom, while Greer is a solid wing man. Kent will no doubt love the opportunity to have some beef next to him, and Salvi can be counted on for his usual hustle and groovy play. If just one half of the Tompson/Axani entry produces, it's great news. If both come through, Bannon will be grinning. Rutgers has a great shot at the NCAA Tournament, but it will have competition. The Big East's Big Four (Connecticut, Syracuse, St. John's and Miami) have first dibs on the bids, and Rutgers joins Villanova, Georgetown and Seton Hall in the fight for the fifth and (maybe) the sixth invitations. Even if the Knights don't make it to the Madness, Bannon has the program headed in the right direction. Big time. |
Creating excitement, winning some big games and landing talented recruits are all great things to do, but after a while, the faithful want more. It may not be fair, but 19 victories and the second round of the NIT are but the appetizer. If you play for real in mid-March, then the party starts. Rutgers has the chance to do that this year, provided it can overcome a few obstacles. First, there are the departures of stalwarts Geoff Billet and Rob Hodgson, on whom the program relied heavily the last two seasons. They were the Knights' leaders, their top two scorers and major reasons for the 19 victories last year. They're gone, and though Bannon is careful to praise the two for their contributions, it's possible that the future may be even brighter without them. "The big question for us, is that while I like our talent, our size and our depth, we lost two players who were really great leaders and guys who were all about the right things," Bannon said. There is plenty left, and still more coming in. One reason for optimism is 6-5 sophomore swingman Dahntay Jones (10.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 38 steals), who gave every indication that he will be a star. Soon. One only need remember back to a 2:11 stretch last February during the Knights' loss at Villanova when Jones scored 11 points in just about every way possible with a three, two free throws, a driving layup and a double-pump lay-in. It was a remarkable stretch and showed just what Jones will be able to do when he's older, stronger and more confident. "I think he's destined to be an all-league player," Bannon said. "He's got a great upside. He plays at both ends of the court and is one of the better athletes in the league. He has 'Star' written all over him." Jones will play big guard and small forward and should average more than the 26.2 minutes he did last year. But Rutgers fans are eager to get a look at those who line up around him. One newcomer who is sure to cause a stir is 6-0 freshman point man Todd Billet (Christian Brothers HS/Middletown N.J.), Geoff's brother and one of the top prep points in the nation last year. Billet averaged 19.0 points and 3.3 assists last year and shot .434 percent from three-point range. He scored 22 in a victory over perennial New Jersey power St. Anthony's and 23 versus Simon Gratz, a Philadelphia titan. It may be too much to expect Billet to lead the team to the NCAA Tournament, but the young man sure has plenty of skills. "He's more of a pure point than his brother was," Bannon said. "Geoff was a scoring point. Todd has the intelligence, toughness and talent to make a major impact this year." The battle for the off-guard spot will be interesting. But first, this news about a "trade." The Knights lost 6-0 senior Earl Johnson (6.5 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 2.4 apg) to a late-summer transfer, but picked up junior college import Renardo Brown (Mott College/Southwestern Academy/Flint, Mich.), who helped Mott to a 27-6 record last year and proved he could swing between the point and the two by scoring 15.7 points and averaging 5.3 assists last season. He should just about fill Johnson's role. The shooting-guard job could go to 6-2 freshman Luis Flores (Norman Thomas HS/Washington Heights, N.Y.), who averaged an obscene 35.6 points and 6.1 rebounds last season. Flores scored 40 points or more 12 times and is an excellent long-range shooter. "He can bomb from the outside and is a tough, hard-nosed kid," Bannon said. There's always the possibility that Billet and Jones could form the primary backcourt this season, and one of a large pool of small forward candidates could end up in the starting lineup. Bannon has options. Connor Fox (0.2 ppg, 0.1 rpg, 10 appearances), a 6-1 sophomore, is one of them, although don't expect the walk-on to see very much time. Jeff Greer (11.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg), a 6-5 sophomore who found his way into the starting lineup for all but one game last year, plays the swingman's role well. He was third on the team in scoring and rebounding, but needs to develop some more consistency in his game. Bannon wants to see him improve on his 32-percent three-point shooting, but doesn't expect that to be a problem. Greer passes well, can get it done inside and could well be an unsung hero on this year's team. The Rutgers frontcourt received a huge infusion of talent with the arrival of the new recruits, giving the Knights excellent size and versatility close to the hoop. Of course, beefy 6-6 sophomore stalwart Rashod Kent (8.8 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 45 steals, .667 FG) will always have a key spot in the rotation, although this season, he won't have to handle the pivot work quite so often. Kent had a great year last season, despite often guarding much larger rivals and battling with foul trouble. If he can settle into the power forward spot, he will be extremely potent. That means freshman Kareem Wright (Mercersburg Academy/Philadelphia, Pa.) must emerge. Things could have been even bigger up front for the Knights had 7-1, 290-pound Leviathan Josh Moore qualified academically, but he was unable to make the grade, and he and Rutgers decided that it would be better if Moore were not part of the program. Wright may be even bigger than Moore, at 6-9, 310 pounds, although Bannon expects him to be about 285 by the time the season starts. He is active, capable of rebounding (8.8 rpg last year) and is characterized by Bannon as "a bigger version of Rashod Kent." Wright won't be expected to score that much (12.6 ppg last year), but he does bring defensive help and five fouls. Another pivot, 6-10, 225-pound redshirt freshman Eugene Dabney (Fork Union, Va., Military Academy/Woodlawn HS/Birmingham, Ala.), who averaged 1.6 ppg and 2.0 rpg in five games before tearing his ACL and getting a redshirt year, figures in the plans. He is athletic and capable of stepping out to 10 feet and hitting the jumper. But wait, there's more. Bannon hopes 6-11 senior center Alvydas Tenys (3.3 ppg, 2.0 rpg) can provide some interior scoring and a little help on the backboards. Most teams would be thrilled to have that kind of depth in the middle, even if it meant sacrificing some numbers at other frontcourt positions. But that isn't the case at Rutgers. Even without Hodgson, the Knights are in great shape and may have even upgraded their situation. In fact, Bannon has so many options, he may need to upgrade his cerebral hard drive to handle all the permutations. Rather than go into the options, we'll break down the participants. Everybody's favorite retro forward, Joel Salvi (4.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg) is back for his senior season. The 6-7 Salvi, whose Afro and high socks make him look more like a member of the Carver High School five on the seminal '70s hoops show, The White Shadow, than a late-'90s player, has a surfeit of energy and provides help defensively and on the backboards. He may not start, but he gets first mention here because we like his look. So there. The forward newcomers include 6-7 freshman Sean Axani (Red Bank Regional HS/Red Bank, N.J.), a strong inside player who averaged 12.8 points and 7.4 rebounds last year. Bannon likens Axani to Hodgson because of his inside-outside skills and expects the 220-pound lefty to make a contribution this year, even if his numbers don't impress. Even though 6-7 BYU transfer Mike Tompson (Brigham Young University/Winona, Minn.,HS/Nelson, New Zealand) weighs the same as Axani, his game is a little different. A sophomore, he has had the benefit of two years on a Mormon mission, so he will be a little more mature than the average newcomer. Tompson is also a little more polished offensively. He averaged 23.8 points and 8.7 rebounds his senior year at Winona High School and made 53 percent of his three-point shots. Tompson started as a freshman at BYU and averaged 2.7 points and 1.5 rebounds while showing good skills in the open court and the ability to post up defenders. "He's athletic and versatile," Bannon said. Rounding out the frontcourt is 6-5 junior transfer Ian Progin (West Chester University/Hillsborough HS/Hillsborough, N.J.), who will walk on this year and isn't expected to play much.
 | The 19th edition of Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook is on sale now. To order, call 800-828-HOOP (4667), or visit their web site at
http://www.collegebaskets.com
|
| |
Conferences
America East
ACC
Atlantic 10
Big East
Big Sky
Big South
Big Ten
Big 12
Big West
Colonial
Conference USA
Independents
Ivy League
MAAC
Mid-American
Mid-Continent
Mid-Eastern Athletic
MCC
Missouri Valley
Mountain West
Northeast
Ohio Valley
Pac-10
Patriot
SEC
Southern
Southland
Sun Belt
SWAC
TAAC
WAC
West Coast
|
