Team preview: Lamar

[Guest abovetherim]

COACH AND PROGRAM

With the loss of 7-0, 335-pound center James Davis at the conclusion of his senior season last spring, this year's version of the Lamar Cardinals will certainly see its size averages go down.

But in the ultra-athletic Southland Conference, smaller is not necessarily a bad thing.

In fact, it may put the Cardinals back into contention for a spot in the league elite.

Lamar Cardinals

Last Season 15-17 (.469)

Conference Record 8-8 (t-3rd)

Starters Lost/Returning 1/4

Coach Steve Roccaforte (Lamar '89)

Record At School 15-17 (1 year)

Career Record 15-17 (1 year)

RPI Last 5 years 242-295-167-191-218

''Last year, we wanted to play to our strengths, which was our inside game,'' Lamar coach Steve Roccaforte said. ''I think this year, what we'll do is play to the strength of this team, which should be a lot faster, a lot quicker and a lot more versatile than we were last year.

''I feel like this team can do a few more things than last year's team could.''

The kicker of that entire idea for Roccaforte lies in the fact that one of his more athletic players just also happens to be arguably his best inside presence -- 6-6, 230-pound senior forward Lamar Sanders (12.2 ppg, 9.8 rpg).

A second-team all-conference selection a year ago, Sanders was, to say the least, impressive. His was third on the team in scoring, and 12th in the nation in rebounding. He also shot 59.3 percent from the field, led Lamar in assists with 104 and recorded the first triple-double in school history with 11 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists against Louisiana Tech.

He is the total package.

''He really knows how to play,'' Roccaforte said. ''He's very unselfish, and he knows how the game is supposed to be played. He doesn't care about stats -- he cares about making the extra pass, doing the right thing and trying to help his team win.

''On the boards, he's relentless. He just has a nose for the ball and goes and gets it.

Sanders has a little experienced help coming back too, as three other starters also return. One who hopes to be an all-conference player is 6-2 senior shooting guard Darren Hop-kins (13.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg), Lamar's leading returning scorer at 13.4 points per game.

PLAYERS

An honorable mention all-conference selection, Hopkins led the Cardinals in three-point shooting (.435, 67-of-154) and was third on the team with 89 assists.

''He was one of our more consistent guys all year,'' Roccaforte said.

Two other players who both started at one point will battle for the starting small forward job. Matthew Barrow (7.9 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.9 apg), a 6-4 senior, started 23 games for the Cardinals last season. He was second on the team in assists.

Currye Todd (10.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg) is a 6-4 senior who started 16 games.

''They are both veterans and they are both very good shooters,'' Roccaforte said. ''I would expect for both of them to play quite a bit.''

Even better news for Lamar is that, unlike a year ago when Hopkins and Barrow both played quite a bit of point guard -- out of their natural positions -- they actually have three true point guards on this year's team, and three who should put up quite a battle for the starting point guard job.

The early frontrunner could be Kenny Dawkins, a 5-9 junior who transferred from Arizona Western College. At the junior college level, Dawkins led his conference in free-throw shooting and was a 45 percent shooter from the three-point line.

That experience won't guarantee him the job, however. Also hoping to work their way into the starting lineup at point guard will be 5-11 junior Brandon McThay, a transfer from Kilgore (Texas) College, and 6-1 sophomore Shane Mahoney (0.9 ppg, 0.4 rpg), who picked up valuable experience while playing 28 games for the Cardinals last season.

''They are all true point guards, and that position is like a quarterback,'' Roccaforte said. ''It's nice to have three of those guys on the team, where last year we didn't have any who had any experience at all. That's going to be a big difference. True point guards know how to take care of the ball better, run the offense better and defend the position better.

''In turn, they make everyone else better.''

While Davis departs, the Cardinals aren't exactly lacking for a proven big man to play the center position. In fact, 6-8, 270-pound Lawrence Nwevo (4.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg) had actually taken over the job late last year, during his sophomore season, only to be sidelined by an ankle injury after starting just three contests.

Roccaforte thinks Nwevo's stats will go up.

''He's very big, very strong and he plays very hard,'' Roccaforte said. ''He really fits into what we are doing, and he keeps getting better. His freshman year he averaged 1.1 re-bounds per game, and last year he was at 5.4 [in conference play].''

Nwevo is also athletic and can run for a big man, as are the two players who will provide depth down low for Lamar. Red-shirt freshman Coy Custer checks in at 6-10, 235 pounds, joining 6-7, 240-pound junior Jay Brown, a transfer from Los Angeles City College.

''Those guys are all athletic, they can block shots and they can rebound,'' Roccaforte said.

Another prize transfer for Lamar could be combo guard Justin Nabors, a 6-6 junior who comes in from Northwest Mississippi Community College. He was the Mississippi Junior College Co-Player of the Year, averaging a double-double (16 points and 12 rebounds) his sophomore season.

''Long and athletic,'' Roccaforte said. ''He goes after the ball and plays hard and he's very versatile.''

The status of reserve guard Ashton Hall is uncertain after an offseason car accident. He has not yet been cleared to play, and exactly when he can return is still in question.

If he does return, it gives Lamar even more backcourt depth, something that seemed non-existent at times last year as players often played out of position.

Even with those holes a year ago, the Cardinals closed by winning six of their last nine and eight of their last 12. They beat conference champion Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and perennial league frontrunner Sam Houston State in that stretch, reached the semifinals of the conference tournament and finished the year with a 2-3 record against teams that reached the NCAA Tournament -- losing to Texas A&M, Oral Roberts and Memphis while beating BYU (along with Texas A&M Corpus-Christi).

The big trick now is carrying that late-season momentum into the start of this season.

''We would like to begin this one like we finished last season,'' Roccaforte said. ''It would be nice to start with momentum. But if we can take care of the basketball, get good shots and defend like we did last year, we'll be OK.''

BLUE RIBBON ANALYSIS

BACKCOURT: B-

BENCH/DEPTH: B-

FRONTCOURT: A

INTANGIBLES: B-

When you start your roster with Sanders and Nwevo at the four and five position, you are halfway toward building the kind of team that can rebound and compete in the Southland.

Add to that a drastically improved backcourt as Hopkins and Barrow get to move to their natural positions, and there's no reason to think the Cardinals can't improve from last year.

Will they compete for first in their division and a potential Southland title? Possibly, but like the rest of the teams in their league, a very tough non-conference schedule is a poten-tial roadblock toward entering the games that matter on a roll.

Either way, you can expect a team more capable of pushing the ball up and down the floor. Should be an exciting season of basketball for the citizens of Beaumont.

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/insider/news/story?id=3038913

[KFDM COOP]

Very exciting season!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[UNLV]

These guys were accurate last year. This year I think they underestimate the backcourt. B+ is my opinion.

[Guest coachacola]

Here's my starting lineup to start the season:

Center - Nwevo (with Jay Brown coming off the bench and playing more minutes than Nwevo)

Power Forward - Sanders

Small Forward - Nabors  (Hall is still hurting so Nabors gets the nod, Todd also might start instead)

Shooting Guard - Hopkins

Point Guard - Dawkins

Bench:

Todd - will get a lot of playing time

Barrow - will be much improved

Hall - he's still a little hurt but will probably play a lot come conference time

Brown - could be starting by conference time

McThay - should play a lot too

Mahoney - hopefully he's improved a lot over last year

Custer - need to see him play first

I wouldn't be surprised if Roc plays 3 guards a lot of the time, so who starts the game probably isn't that important.

[AggiesAreWe]

Well, the upgrade at the point guard position obviously will help the improvement of the team. But, I think Custer will have to have some quality minutes to help spell the frontcourt for Lamar. You can only play small for so long. There will be a time in a game where you will need to go inside and Sanders can only do so much, he will need some help. Actually, most of the help will be needed defensively.

[JMay]

I thought James Davis left the team for personal reasons, not b/c of graduation?  Wasn't he a junior last year?