Griz basketball begins practice Friday
10/15/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The University of Montana men's basketball team begins practice for the 2009-10 season Friday evening, Oct. 16th, and head basketball coach Wayne Tinkle begins his fourth season at the helm with a lot of anticipation and excitement
The Grizzlies return three starters and eight lettermen from a 17-12 team. Last year Montana finished tied for second place (with Portland State) in the regular-season with an 11-5 Big Sky Conference mark. UM was the third seed in the league???s post-season tournament, and its season ended with a 56-54 first-round 56-54 home loss to Montana State.
Tinkle, who is 48-43 overall at his alma mater, is anxious for the season to start and feels good about his eight returnees, as well as UM???s new players.
Leading the way is preseason All-American candidate Anthony Johnson, the Big Sky???s leading scorer a year ago, who was a first team all-league pick and runner-up for the conference player of the year award. The 6-3, 210-pound senior averaged 21.4 points a game in Big Sky games last season.
Prolific three-point shooter Ryan Staudacher, a 6-4, 210-pound senior, will be starting for his third season in a row at the two guard position, while senior forward Jack McGillis, one of three players to start all 29 games last season, is UM???s other returning starter.
The Grizzlies have a quality nucleus of returning lettermen, including 6-11 junior center Brian Qvale, 6-4 junior guard Michael Taylor, 7-0 sophomore forward Derek Selvig, 6-1 guard sophomore Shawn Stockton, and 6-3 senior forward Vassy Banny.
Montana will have to fill the void left via graduation by prolific scoring and rebounding forward Jordan Hasquet, work-horse forward-center Kyle Sharp, and guard Ceylon Elgin-Taylor.
Hasquet, who started in 116 career games, is ranked seventh in school history in scoring (1,396 points) and eighth in rebounding (718 boards), led the Grizzlies in rebounds (6.0 rpg) and was second in scoring (11.0 ppg) last season. Sharp, who played in 116 career games, was UM???s second-leading (tie) rebounder (5.0 rpg) and fifth in scoring (6.1 ppg), and shot 54.7 percent from the field.
"We???re excited about the returners and newcomers, but obviously we are approaching with caution because we do have some big shoes to fill," Tinkle said. "Jordan and Kyle Sharp played a huge role for us. Ceylon gave us some stability at the point guard position.
"We are really excited about the temperament of this team," Tinkle said. "We feel like all our guys are on the same page with the direction we are going, and the way we want to do things. But, we also know that it is going to be a work in progress."
Also back is 6-7, 236-pound forward Mathias Ward, who was slowed by an injury a year ago and eventually red-shirted.
"We were perhaps the best team in the league defensively last year, but we feel like we can get better in that area with the players we have, Tinkle said. "Offensively we were fairly consistent, but I think that we???ve got the potential to be even a little bit more explosive, and we are going to look to do more things in transition.
"I think we can defend a little bit better and score a little more efficiently, but rebounding is what hurt us down the stretch last year, and that is a key for us to be able to improve in that area," Tinkle said. "We???ve got the potential to be a dominating rebounding team, but that is definitely an area in which we need to improve upon."
Tinkle and his staff of Bill Evans, Andy Hill, and Freddie Owens also signed a talented junior college transfer and two prep players.
Raason Young, a 6-6 forward and a transfer from Hagerstown Community College in Maryland, should immediately vie for playing time. Will Cherry, a 6-1 guard from Oakland, Calif. (McClymonds HS) and 6-9 forward Eric Hutchison from Longview, Wash. (Mark Morris HS) are UM???s prep additions.
"We like our guards," Tinkle said. "One of the good things is that we know what to expect from three or four of those guys, where there was some question marks in years past. There is a nice compliment of players who can make plays off the dribble, and guys who can make shots from the perimeter.
"We are asking Brian Qvale to do a lot for us at center ," Tinkle said. "We???ve had some injuries at the power forward position, but we are certainly are certainly are excited about the ability that Derek Selvig and Mathias Ward bring to the table.
"We feel like we have some flexibility in moving some guys around," Tinkle continued. "If we want to go small we???ve got Jack or Vassy who can move over to the four spot. We can mix and match a bit, but we also need time for things to fall in place. The neat thing is, we???ve got a great attitude and great chemistry. We???ve got to continue to develop some toughness and discipline. But, I think before it is all said and done, if we can stay healthy, which is a key especially in a few positions, that we???re going to make a run at the Big Sky title."
