Fresno
Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2011 1:33 amFirst year Fresno State head coach Rodney Terry inherited a mess of a program, that only got worse in his first semester as the Head man. Three straight losing seasons were enough to send former coach Steve Cleveland packing, and almost half the roster eventually left with him, including 3 players who were expected to play key roles this year. Sophomore center Greg Smith (12 ppg, 9 rpg) should have been the foundation that Fresno built around, but instead he entered the NBA draft, and went unselected and cant return. Guard Tim Steed, who was selected to the WAC All-Newcomer team after averaging 11 ppg, 4.5 rpg was kicked off the team for disciplinary reasons. Freshman forward Bracken Funk (6.5 ppg and 4 rpg) was one of the first subs off the bench last season and could have been a starter this year, if he hadnt transferred to BYU-Hawaii right after Cleveland was fired. Former Mustang forward Bennie Rhodes spent last year at Fresno, as well, he even started the season opener against BYU, but he's gone now, and I have no idea where he went.
Things got worse in September, when incoming freshman Julius Bilbrew didnt make it past the NCAA clearing house. Bilbrew hopes to be eligible in January, but for now he's out. Givon Crump, a 6'7 forward who transferred from Baylor and sat out last year, dropped out of school and is now at a junior college. 6'10†JC transfer Daequon Brown was expected to become the starting center after Smith's departure, but he is now contemplating transfer, as well. He was in street clothes, sitting behind the bench during Fresno's home opener last week.
With Smith gone, and Brown...... confused, Fresno will depend heavily on their guards for offense. Steven Shepp, Kevin Olekaibe and Jonathan Wills all started a few games last year, (49 starts between the three of them), and should form the starting backcout this season. Shepp is a point guard who doesnt score, but is a decent set up man, and defender. Shepp averaged 4 points and 4 assists per game last year, and he'll start at the point for the Bulldogs, in part because they really dont have anyone else with experience at the point, and he's the teams best ballhandler. Kevin Olekaibe was Fresno's leading scorer last season, doing it mostly from the perimeter, he averaged more than 6 three point attempts per game. Olekaibe is a volume shooter, he really doesnt shoot a very good perccentage, but he also doesnt appear to have a conscience, he'll just keep shooting until he hits a few. Oleikaibe started at the 2 guard in Fresno's first game, and racked up 18 points on 5/16 shooting. He was only 1/6 outside the arc, but 7/8 from the free throw line. Wills is a tall (6'6â€) wing player with a smooth shot, and capable of drawing a few fouls when he takes it inside. He should be starting at small forward. Sophomore Tyler Johnson played in every game as a freshman, averaging 4.5 points and 2 assists per game, he should be able to backup both Shepp and Olekaibe. Junior Garrett Johnson (8 ppg last season) should also see minutes at small forward.
With Daequon Brown in limbo, Fresno really doesnt have another true center. They do have several 6'8†forwards, though, so it looks like they will have to take a committee approach to their frontcourt. Freshman Grant Hefeng once played for the Chinese National Team (U17), and he has gotten the start in Fresno's first 2 games, but has been unproductive with only 2 points and 0/6 from the floor. Sophomore Jerry Brown missed all of last season with a knee injury, but started Fresno's first game against Illinois State, and turned in a solid performance with 8 points and 7 rebounds. Junior forward Kevin Foster started his college career at George Mason, and comes to Fresno by way of The College of Central Florida. Foster may be Fresno's most physical player inside, and may replace Hefeng in the starting lineup eventually. He's averaging 8 points and 6 rebounds off the bench.
Fresno's 2 weakness are a lack of size inside, and an overall lack of depth. The Bulldogs played a very close first half with Stanford, but faded after Wills got into foul trouble, and Stanfords superior depth allowed them to pull away. Rodney Terry was an assistant at Texas, and would like to play a more up-tempo game, but he doesnt have the roster he needs to win with that style of play. For now Fresno will have to win with scrappy play, hard nosed defense, and some timely shooting from Olekaibe.
Stanford won, 75-59. Olekaibe led all with 19 points, and Wills added 11. Foster had 8 off the bench. Daequon Brown is in the box score, so I suppose he played, but he didnt score. According to the box he had 1 foul and no points.
Things got worse in September, when incoming freshman Julius Bilbrew didnt make it past the NCAA clearing house. Bilbrew hopes to be eligible in January, but for now he's out. Givon Crump, a 6'7 forward who transferred from Baylor and sat out last year, dropped out of school and is now at a junior college. 6'10†JC transfer Daequon Brown was expected to become the starting center after Smith's departure, but he is now contemplating transfer, as well. He was in street clothes, sitting behind the bench during Fresno's home opener last week.
With Smith gone, and Brown...... confused, Fresno will depend heavily on their guards for offense. Steven Shepp, Kevin Olekaibe and Jonathan Wills all started a few games last year, (49 starts between the three of them), and should form the starting backcout this season. Shepp is a point guard who doesnt score, but is a decent set up man, and defender. Shepp averaged 4 points and 4 assists per game last year, and he'll start at the point for the Bulldogs, in part because they really dont have anyone else with experience at the point, and he's the teams best ballhandler. Kevin Olekaibe was Fresno's leading scorer last season, doing it mostly from the perimeter, he averaged more than 6 three point attempts per game. Olekaibe is a volume shooter, he really doesnt shoot a very good perccentage, but he also doesnt appear to have a conscience, he'll just keep shooting until he hits a few. Oleikaibe started at the 2 guard in Fresno's first game, and racked up 18 points on 5/16 shooting. He was only 1/6 outside the arc, but 7/8 from the free throw line. Wills is a tall (6'6â€) wing player with a smooth shot, and capable of drawing a few fouls when he takes it inside. He should be starting at small forward. Sophomore Tyler Johnson played in every game as a freshman, averaging 4.5 points and 2 assists per game, he should be able to backup both Shepp and Olekaibe. Junior Garrett Johnson (8 ppg last season) should also see minutes at small forward.
With Daequon Brown in limbo, Fresno really doesnt have another true center. They do have several 6'8†forwards, though, so it looks like they will have to take a committee approach to their frontcourt. Freshman Grant Hefeng once played for the Chinese National Team (U17), and he has gotten the start in Fresno's first 2 games, but has been unproductive with only 2 points and 0/6 from the floor. Sophomore Jerry Brown missed all of last season with a knee injury, but started Fresno's first game against Illinois State, and turned in a solid performance with 8 points and 7 rebounds. Junior forward Kevin Foster started his college career at George Mason, and comes to Fresno by way of The College of Central Florida. Foster may be Fresno's most physical player inside, and may replace Hefeng in the starting lineup eventually. He's averaging 8 points and 6 rebounds off the bench.
Fresno's 2 weakness are a lack of size inside, and an overall lack of depth. The Bulldogs played a very close first half with Stanford, but faded after Wills got into foul trouble, and Stanfords superior depth allowed them to pull away. Rodney Terry was an assistant at Texas, and would like to play a more up-tempo game, but he doesnt have the roster he needs to win with that style of play. For now Fresno will have to win with scrappy play, hard nosed defense, and some timely shooting from Olekaibe.
Stanford won, 75-59. Olekaibe led all with 19 points, and Wills added 11. Foster had 8 off the bench. Daequon Brown is in the box score, so I suppose he played, but he didnt score. According to the box he had 1 foul and no points.