I am not going to spoil all the fun, but will provide a few tidbits from coach Forrester and brief analysis to give the fan-base a little early insight on our new additions, and our one subtraction.
All three players signed during the late period are junior college transfers.
Alex Brown, who we may remember from his alleged run-in with an older woman at a convenient store where he was offered all kinds of goodies in exchange for sex (which he and two of his teammates allegedly turned down, despite keeping all of the free goodies) will not be joining the Cougars next season. Brown has signed on with John A. Logan, a junior college and did not make the grades to compete in Division I. Brown, as we may remember was kicked off of Herrin's team in January because of his little incident, which I still think was an inappropriate decision on the part of Herrin High School. I wish Mr. Brown the best of luck and hope the kid is able to get back on the right track on and off the court. School is cool.
Anyways, Brown's scholarship instead goes to Abel Tillman, a 6"8 junior coming in from Highland junior college in Freeport.
“He is versatile, very long and athletic and can block shots and rebound. He needs to hit the weight room pretty hard, and he is, but he can hit the 15-footer consistently and his ceiling is high for basketball.”Sophomore line on Tillman: 9.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 103 blocked shots (most in NJCAA)
Other schools vying for him: Detroit, Fresno State, Oral Roberts, SEMO and Tennessee Tech.
Where will he fit in? Tillman's shot blocking and rebound ability could have him positioned for the starting lineup at some point in the season. Tillman has an outstanding wingspan and vertical, giving Forrester many options at either the five, four or even three. It all depends on how big he wants to go inside, as Nikola Bundalo will likely be the team's starting center. Since Mark Yelovich is basically penciled in at the four position, Tillman could also provide him spells off the bench. Tillman is athletic for a big man, and is tenacious crashing the glass. He could potentially be an upgrade over guys like Zeke Schneider and Dob Mavrak at the post position.
The next two guys are from Wabash Valley junior college, and both of these guys were teammates with our old pal Brandon Dunson, who is also moving on up from Wabash, and headed to Arizona State.
First up is Cornelius Chatt, a 6"2, 190 pound shooting guard.
Forrester's comment on Chatt:“He adds a lot to our team as far as the way we want to play."Sophomore line on Chatt: 10.9 ppg, 45 percent shooter from the field.
Other schools vying for him: Albany, Austin Peay, Portland State, Sam Houston State, and SEMO
Where will he fit in? Chatt has a great build for basketball. He is a hard-nosed defender, and can push the ball in transition. As far as Forrester's quote, he is really looking to add physical toughness to his team. They need to develop a gritty attitude, which was something they lacked last season. The Cougars were soft in 2009-2010, and that's why they were pushed around so often, especially on the glass. Chatt is not necessarily a rebounder, averaging just under three a game, but you can't expect much on the boards from a shooting guard. He probably won't be a starter with all the players SIUE already has at the position, with Murphy destined to start and Stineman undoubtedly getting his fair share of minutes due to experience, but Chatt is a step in the right direction as far as fitting into Forrester's system and changing the team's approach.
The final addition comes in Corey Wickware, a 5"10 point guard.
Forrester's comment on Wickware: ““Shooting is a key, that is how you score. That’s what Corey brings to the table. He can also pass it and push it forward; he is an all around team player. All of these guys are."Sophomore line on Wickware: 11.6 ppg, 46 percent three point shooter, 86 percent free throw shooter .
Other schools vying for him: Montana State, Morehead State, Austin Peay and North Carolina A&T
Where will he fit in? Tillman may have the best rating according to Scouts, but Wickware is the real steal in this recruiting class. Point guard is the most important position in basketball, and with Aamir McCleary graduated, SIUE needs a replacement and they need it now. Wickware could potentially solve this problem, as he and Gerald Jones are the only two natural point guards on the team's roster. Wickware is very creative, and has great vision and basketball IQ. His 46 percent three point shooting last season was insane. As a team, SIUE averaged 31 percent last year, and if Wickware's numbers can translate well to the next level, we could be in for a pleasant surprise.
Forrester's latest recruiting class looks really good on paper, but then again, you never know how these things pan out until the guys are on the floor together. I was worried heading into a question mark filled off-season, but Forrester seems to have alleviated some of my concerns. The Cougars will have more depth in the paint, and I have the hope Zeke Schneider can develop into a better player over the course of the off-season. He was showing strides towards the end of the year, and the only way to go for him is up at the moment.
I really like the collection of guards, although I am a little worried about the potential minutes available to Murphy next season. His electric presence needs to be on the court as much as possible.
The point guard spot is kind of a wait and see at the moment. It's a JUCO guy, a freshmen and whoever is left over from shooting guard capable of doing the job in competition.
I would be happy to hear any and all fan feedback, it is very much appreciated in the early stages of this blog.
-Allan.
6 comments:
I hope Gerald jones starts over stineman I don't know what forester sees in stineman. He reminds me of a high school guard. Could you possibly talk about messer and jones? Is forester looking for anybody else or is he done? We still need a center that can switch with bundalow. Tillman will really only replace mark. Zeke is a bust. I would rather have dob be our backup than zeke. We need a 6 10 ish center badly.
Hey, thanks for stopping by. I did talk to coach about Messer and Jones, I'll throw some of that on here too soon, wanted to get these guys out of the way though. Agreed 100 percent on Stineman, I have a feeling its going to be like Stephen Jones last year, who had no business starting. We are not going to miss any of his offense. Recruiting is over, the official signing period ended May 19, and we are at our maximum allowed 13 scholarships. Only additions they can really make are walk-ons. As far as the Mav/Zeke battle, Zeke showed improvements down the line last season where I felt as if Dob got worse. Zeke at least has some athletic ability, although he lacks a little court vision. He has come a ways since looking like a clown in the exhibitions. Mav on the other hand, gives us nothing with no upside and kind of just stands there and tries to rebound with one hand. That's my take, atleast Bundalo is aware of his surroundings and when he is feeling it the hook shot is killer. Doesn't always have the confidence.
I am glad for this next season. I believe we got rid of some dead weight. Dane church and stephen jones provided little to nothing. Aamir seemed to lose it by mid season. Forester actually recruited well. We have a true shooting team now. Since we will not be about height anytime soon, we must have shooters. I think Murphy, rincker, boarden, messer, Gerald, and chat will all see good playing time. On the other hand, stuntman will also too. Lol. There goes our team. Forester needs to cut him and that one random walk-on last season. If stuntman does not play much this season, we will be deadly. Looking at the stats with zeke and dob, it's hard to see any improvement what so ever. They both only play well against non d1 teams. That means something. They are truly d2 material. Get rid of zeke, dob, andstineman. We would then have a great team. Predicted number of wins this season......13. We should do very well. The team looks solid on paper, but we are still missing a backup center.
I LOVE IT!!!! Finally we have people who care about the SIUE cougars. I will go on a slight diatribe so bare with me on this one? Here is the issue with the SIUE team and I like Lennox ok but he needs to stand up and get rid of dead weight. I think he is too much of a pacifist! Dob is nothing more than a D2 player (though I will give him credit for being one of the only Cougars to stay inside and bang). Zeke is young guys. It is very rare for a 6'8 white boy (sorry but true) to make it in Division I basketball unless he can shoot. So either Zeke needs to start working on shooting or get some ups and start dunking like a madman! What we needed and gosh I cannot believe I am going here was an Abel Tillman like player. A Big, Black beast of a man. This guy, when he gives the effort (which is his main problem) can dominate a game. And when I say dominate I mean dunking, blocking, killing it. He is trully a beast. Ok Leshaun Murphy is exciting but guys he is only 6 foot and unfortunately he doesnt have the good mix of shooting and ups. We can't always run back screens for alleyoops. So here is the thing, and dont take this the wrong way I like the kid, he is more like a 15 to 20 min energy guy to get you steals, dunks, blocks, rebounds whatever but unfortutnaley he cannot stay out too long. I think chatt will start eventually along with wickware. They are both strong heady players. Chatt wasn't just considered one of the best players in Illinois for any reason. Both he and wickware can shoot the balls lights out and hopefully Lennox will let them play a little bit because with Mark and those two and Abel in the middle really the fifth spot could be a swing position (Abel Tillman though only 6'7ish) is probably your best spot. Here is the thing about Kevin Stineman. Stineman is that kid in warmups and at the Y that your like "Oh DAMN, look at that baller" but when he gets in a real game he tries too hard. I think Kevin cares, he actually can play ball, and on top of that isn't stupid off the court. But again hate to say it but how many 5'10 white guards do you see on ESPN? Zilch. He is too small and doesnt shoot well enough to consisently hang. Now if we were still division 2 i think Kevin would be a stud. So, here goes it Starting lineup: G Cornelius Chatt G Corey Wickware F Mark Yelovich F Abel Tillman C Nik Bundalo 6th Man Leshaun Murphy 7th Man Gerald Jones 8th Michael Messer 9th Dob 1oth Zeke Schneider 11th Kevin Stineman Is Mitchell still going to try and make it? Anywyas I am missing boarden and some people but we shall se where this heads. I wouldnt be surprised to see some redshirt(s) this year because it might be a smart idea.
We did get a strong recruiting class unfortunately heavy in the juco players (however these guys are legit DI players unlike ones we got in the past). You know when Lennox was hired he was hired because of his strong recruiting contacts in Chicago however I have not seen one major recruit out of Chicago. Since Allen you are the inside man what up with that? We need to start getting rid of some these guys off the roster to free up for the future as well because when we go DI full blown it would be cool to have a bunch of transfers (homegrown talent guys) mixed in with a bunch of local stars that would be fun.....I posted earlier and really left out my credentials which may have left me vulnerable....I am actually an SIUE grad from 2005 and have followed the Cougars like a groupie however I also follow the recruiting trails and websites (I actually join other colleges fan sites to gain insights LOL!) I think there is one special player (I hope he proves so and keeps his act together) and that is Gerald Jones. I think that kid can be a pure stud at the Division I level however I really think that a redshirt year may help him out and let me tell you why...In high school he played almost a hybrid forward position where he was one of the main rebounders and low post defenders....He does have speed but I think some time learning the college game may help him out....I will however wait to make my full opinioin.....I think Michael Messer would benefit from a redshirt year as well just because I think as a defender he gets lost as well running a flex he was slow to get open (almost like letting the game come too much to him which is ok in high school but won't fly in college) plus he has been list anywhere in between 6'2 and 6'5 that is a huge disparity.....I think he could grow some more and learn the game.....I am a big advocate for redshirt years especially the situation the Cougs are in .......Its not like we need to be winning 20 games because we have no change at championships or anything we need future developments.....Ok i will keep you updated I am going to try to get some more info for the future also Allan if you hear of the schedule releases or player transfers or any dirt please please please email me at andrewbequette@gmail.com
First off....I would like to start off by saying...the people on here really have no idea what they are talking about. As for COUGARCRAZY.....well I dont even know what to say to you other then that you are clueless and clearly have far too much time on your hands. Stineman, Zeke, will tear it up when given the chance. They are underclassmen and are soon to take over. To rip apart and attack a team that just turned D1 is rediculous and ignorant...........and to ANONYMOUS..you really are not too intelligent for saying that stineman should not be a starter going into his JR. year. I assure you that he will be doing work this coming season. Stineman can shoot the ball lights out and works harder then anyone I know...to compare him to Stephen Jones is the most pathetic thing I have ever heard. Then you have Zeke, hes only been on the team for a year and you guys really have that much crap to talk....are you kidding me?? Hes 6'9 and can dunk the shit out of the ball. He went into freshman year at 200 pounds and now is going into his sophomore year at 225. So I am not quite sure as to where you all are getting your facts from, but in all due respect get a clue.
Post a Comment