2007-08 Men's Basketball Season Preview
10/31/2007 12:00:00 AM | General
The Seton Hall men’s basketball team marches into year two of the Bobby Gonzalez era and the Pirates are eager to build off a season of learning and growth. Although the 2006-07 team compiled an overall record of only 13-16, the youthful Pirates opened some eyes with their up-tempo, run and gun offense and their feisty, turnover-inducing defense. Picked to place 15th in the 16-team BIG EAST Conference, Seton Hall narrowly missed a BIG EAST Championship berth with a better-than-expected 13th place finish despite a roster devastated by injury.
Gonzalez believes last season’s hardships will make for a smarter, more battle-tested team this season.
“Last year’s team was undermanned and undersized,” Gonzalez said. “We certainly had our share of hard circumstances in trying to overachieve with what we had. The six guys returning have been through the battles and I think it makes them hungrier to succeed.”
Despite the loss of two of its captains and vocal leaders, Grant Billmeier and Stan Gaines, as well as backup guard Carl Marshall, the offensive core of the team remains largely intact. In addition to returning their top five scorers from a year ago, the Pirates will enter the season with a clean bill of health.
“Last year injuries took so much out of us,” Gonzalez said. “Missing John Garcia for the first half of the season, losing Grant for the second half and then watching Stan take his lumps while playing out of position really put us at a disadvantage. It’s really an incredible feeling to think that we have healthy bodies entering this new season.”
Seton Hall will need to remain free of injury in order to be competitive in one of the strongest conferences in the nation. To make the post-season road a little more difficult, the BIG EAST expanded the regular season schedule from 16 to 18 games. This season, the Pirates will play every team in the conference once and
“The BIG EAST is really incredible and the two additional games certainly won’t make the schedule any easier,” Gonzalez said. “I have never seen a league like this. There is no walk in the park, home or on the road, in the BIG EAST. If you think about the magnitude of this conference in terms of size, geographics, coaches in the league and styles of play... it’s truly amazing. It’s like a mini NBA.”
The Pirates will look to their lone returning captain, senior Brian Laing, for leadership both on and off the court this season. The
After averaging only 5.8 points per game as a sophomore, Laing became a BIG EAST Most Improved Player Award candidate in 2006-07 tying for fifth in the conference in scoring at 16.5 points per game. Named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team, he also led the Pirates in rebounding, double-doubles and ranked second in the conference in minutes per game. An All-Met Second Team selection, Laing exploded in Seton Hall’s final game of the season, lighting up
“Brian made a huge jump up last year,” Gonzalez said. “We think this year, with the added roster depth, he’ll be able to play more small forward, his natural position, and less power forward. We hope he can provide the same offense, but contribute more on the defensive end, on the backboard, and as a new captain, grow into more of a vocal leader on the court and in the locker room.”
Seton Hall’s lone other senior, Jamar Nutter, will also be asked to be a regular scoring option and the Pirates’ top three-point threat. Last year, for the second straight season, he averaged better than 12 points per game and continued to climb Seton Hall’s all-time record lists for three-pointers attempted and made. A strong defender, he rebounds well for a backcourt player and has the ball-handling skills to play the point if necessary.
A newly anointed captain, the 6-foot-2 Nutter will provide a veteran presence to a young group of Pirate guards.
“In addition to Brian, we hope Jamar becomes more of a leader this year as well,” Gonzalez said. “Even though his scoring average didn’t increase last year, we feel he became a better all-around basketball player. We hope he continues to progress by improving his shooting percentages and becoming more consistent. We also look forward to giving him more time as
The Pirates’ third and final captain earned the reputation as one of the BIG EAST’s best defensive players. Junior Paul Gause energized the team’s defense whether he was a part of the starting lineup or in his regular role off the bench as the team’s sixth man. The lightning-quick former high school running back led the BIG EAST with 3.10 steals per game last season while setting Seton Hall’s single-season record with 90 steals for the year. Offensively, Gause is quite capable of slashing to the basket for a quick two or draining a long three. But clearly his best attribute is his defensive harassment of opposing guards.
“Paul had a spectacular sophomore year,” Gonzalez said. “He is a unique weapon because there aren’t a lot of guys like him in the conference. Like Jamar, we’re looking for him to improve his shooting percentages, be more consistent from three-point range and keep that
same defensive intensity. Last year gave him a lot of confidence and I’m really excited to see what he’s going to do this year. Let me just say... I’m very happy that he still has two years remaining.”
When Gonzalez landed the jewel of his first recruiting class, Eugene Harvey, he indicated that
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Another impact newcomer last season was 6-foot-3 guard Larry Davis. A versatile player, he has good length on the defensive end and provides the Pirates with another potent three-point threat. Although he made nine starts last season,
“A big-time sleeper this year, we think Larry has the potential to have a breakout season like Brian did for us last year,” Gonzalez said. “He has worked extremely hard this spring and is striving to be more consistent with his shot. Larry’s confidence is growing; he’s getting stronger and I have great expectations for him this year.”
Healthy and stronger, redshirt sophomore John Garcia will look to shoulder much of the frontcourt load this season. After missing the first 16 games last season while rehabbing his knee, Garcia returned with a vengeance down the stretch, making eights starts and proving his worth as a low-post scorer and rebounder. The 6-foot-9 forward averaged 4.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and led the team with 1.6 blocks per game.
“Last season, John returned after being out for a year and a half,” Gonzalez said. “He was overweight and out of shape, but because Grant went down, we had to throw him in the fire right away. It may have been unfair to him, but because of that, we saw some great glimpses of what he’s capable of. This off-season he’s done a great job working on his body and the new recruiting class will take a lot of pressure off him. He is very capable of having a big season.”
Joining the six aforementioned returning players this season are five newcomers, which form Coach Gonzalez’ second consecutive impact recruiting class. The additions of 6-foot-11 Mike Davis, 6-foot-11 Augustine Okosun, 6-foot-9 Brandon Walters and 6-foot-6 Michael Glover restock and fortify a formerly thin frontcourt. Jeremy Hazell will provide additional scoring punch and depth at the guard positions.
“I’m very excited about this class,” Gonzalez said. “It is very deep, very athletic and I think it fits our style of play perfectly. Our number one need was front court help and I think considering that four of the six recruits are 6-foot-6 and taller, we addressed that need. Many times in a class this size you have one or two guys who you project to be only back-up, role type players. But in this class, I can honestly see all five guys being potential impact players for the program at some point. All can make a major impact down the road.”
Mike Davis, a
“He is a very versatile big man, has huge upside and gives us a legitimate center,” said Gonzalez. “He is a talented, tough kid.”
A native of
“Okosun is a terrific athlete who runs the floor extremely well and plays all ninety-four feet,” Gonzalez said. “He is a quick big man with great discipline and tremendous upside.”
A product of
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Glover is the gifted brother of former
“Glover is a warrior and a terrific addition to this class,” said Gonzalez. “He’s a deceptive player and a tough city kid who enjoys working hard in the post.”
Widely regarded as an excellent shooter, Hazell will provide the Pirates with the top scoring punch in this new class.
“He can really score the ball and reminds me of former Seton Hall great John Morton,” said Gonzalez. “He has a huge upside and the potential to be an offensive force for us in the future.”
The Pirates landed another big fish when 6-foot-6 Robert Mitchell decided to transfer to Seton Hall over the summer. The former
With eight players either freshmen or sophomores, Coach Gonzalez again has a young team to work with. But the lack of depth issue of a year ago has been addressed and the talent of this youthful group is unquestioned. It is clear that the Pirates are ready to take the next step in their ambitious goal of returning to elite status in the BIG EAST Conference. Add in the
"Last year we set the foundation in terms of playing everyone hard and being a tough out,” Gonzalez said. “We established a style of play and created an identity for ourselves. Now we need to take the next step. It may take us a little time to gel, but I think the key to this season is to take another step forward and see some results. We want to get to the BIG EAST Tournament, get to the post-season and make our first season in the
