2007-08 Basketball Prospects

[Guest abovetherim]

After three straight years of advancing to the semifinals of the Southland

Conference Tournament, Lamar is poised for a run at the SLC Tournament title

and a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Steve Roccaforte guided the Cardinals to a 15-17 overall record and an 8-

8 mark in SLC play in his first year at the helm. He returns a solid nucleus of

six letterwinners, including four starters, that has optimism running high in

Cardinal country.

Lamar was the No. 7-seed at last year’s SLC Tournament, which was

played at the Campbell Center in Houston. The Cardinals upset No. 2-seed

Sam Houston State, 99-98, when Darren Hopkins hit a driving layup with :02.6

seconds remaining in the game. Lamar’s season ended with a 78-65 loss to No.

3-seed Northwestern State in the semifinals.

The six returning players accounted for 66 percent of the scoring and 59

percent of the rebounding from last year’s squad.

The Cardinals return four senior starters in Matthew Barrow, Darren

Hopkins, Lamar Sanders and Currye Todd. Hopkins is the team’s leading

returning scorer at 13.4 points per game. He shot 43.5 percent (67-of-154)

from three-point range to lead the team.

Sanders averaged 12.2 ppg and led the team and the SLC in rebounding

at 9.8 rpg. He shot a team-leading 59.3 percent from the field and led the team

with 104 assists (3.3 apg). He recorded the first triple-double in school history

with 11 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists against Louisiana Tech.

Todd averaged 10.6 ppg and led the team with 29 steals.Barrow averaged

7.9 ppg. He shot 37.9 percent (50-of-132) from 3-point range and 73.7

percent (56-of-76) from the free throw line. He was second the team with 93

assists.

Lamar ranked 12th in the NCAA in assists per game (17.3), 31st in 3-

point field goals per game (8.3) and 52nd in 3-point percentage (.379).

Individually, Sanders ranked 12th in the NCAA in rebounding at 9.8 rpg.

BACKCOURT

The Cardinals return four players, including three starters, to the backcourt

from last year’s squad in seniors Darren Hopkins (Baltimore, Md./Panola

JC), Currye Todd (Byhalia, Miss./Northwest Mississippi CC), Matthew

Barrow (Baton Rouge, La./Southern Lab HS) and sophomore Shane Mahoney

(Redondo Beach, Calif./Stoneridge Prep).

Hopkins (6-2, 180) is the team’s leading returning scorer at 13.4 ppg. He

led the team in three-point percentage at .435 (67-of-154), tied for second in

steals (27) and was third in assists (89).

Todd (6-4, 190) averaged 10.6 ppg and 2.9 rpg. He shot 34.5 percent (57-

of-165) from 3-point range and led the team with 29 steals.

Barrow (6-4, 185) averaged 7.9 ppg and 2.8 rpg. He was second on the

team with 93 assists and tied for second with 27 steals. He shot 37.9 percent

from 3-point range (50-of-132) and 73.7 percent (56-of-76) from the free throw

line.

Mahoney played in 28 games as a true freshman last season.He dished

out 27 assists and had seven steals.

The recruiting haul landed a top-flight point guard in Kenny Dawkins

(Holly Springs, Miss./Arizona Western College), who was an NJCAA second team

All-American. Brandon McThay (Deerfield Beach, Fla./Kilgore JC) was

also added to add depth to the backcourt.

Dawkins (5-9, 155) averaged 17 ppg, four rpg, 4.5 apg and 2.9 spg last

season as a sophomore. He shot 50.9 percent from the field, 41.5 percent from

3-point range and 85.8 percent from the free throw line.

McThay (5-11, 170) is returning to Lamar where he played his freshman

season in 2005-06. He averaged 8.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 3.9 apg last season as a

sophomore at Kilgore JC. He shot 73.9 percent from the free throw line.

FRONTCOURT

Lamar returns just two letterwinners to the frontcourt and will count on

the four additions the recruiting haul landed to provide interior defense,

rebounding and some scoring punch.

Senior Lamar Sanders (Hickory Flat, Miss./Northwest Mississippi CC)

and junior Lawrence Nwevo (Lagos, Nigeria/Towson Catholic HS) are the

lone returnees.

Sanders (6-6, 230) averaged 12.2 ppg and 9.8 rpg, which led the team and

the SLC, last season. He shot 59.3 percent from the field and led the team with

104 assists (3.3 apg). He recorded the first triple-double in school history with

11 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists against Louisiana Tech. He earned second-team all-SLC honors last season and was named SLC newcomer of the

year.

Nwevo (6-8, 260) averaged 4.9 ppg and 3.9 rpg last season. He shot 47.3

percent from the field.

The Cardinals will also gain the services of Coy Custer (League City,

Texas/Clear Creek HS), who was redshirted last season as a freshman. At 6-

foot-10 and 260 pounds, Custer gives the Cardinals plenty of size.

Lamar bolstered the frontcourt with the addition of four players from the

junior college ranks. The newcomers are juniors Jay Brown (Griffin, GA/L.A.

City College), junior Justin Nabors (Holly Springs, Miss./Northwest

Mississippi CC) and junior Tristan Worrell (Houston, Texas/Angelina

College), and sophomore Ashton Hall (Kountze, Texas/Angelina College).

Brown (6-7, 230) averaged 17.4 ppg, 11.1 rpg and 2.4 apg last season as a

sophomore. He shot 54.4 percent from the field and blocked 35 shots. He was a

first-team all-state selection and named Co-MVP of the South Coast

Conference.

Nabors (6-6, 215) averaged 16.1 ppg and 11.2 rpg, and shot 58 percent

from the field and 76 percent from the free throw line last season as a sophomore. He was named Region XXIII Co-Player of the Year and was an NJCAA

honorable mention All-American selection.

Worrell (6-7, 250) averaged 10.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg and 1.7 apg last season as a

sophomore. He shot 65.4 percent from the field.

Hall (6-6, 210) averaged 14.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.2

steals per game. He shot 49.2 percent from the field, 40 percent from threepoint

range and 74.9 percent from the free throw line. He will have three years

of eligibility for the Cardinals. Hall helped Kountze HS win back-to-back state

titles in 2005 and 2006.

SCHEDULE

Lamar opens the 2007-08 season, which will be its 56th as a four-year

institution, No. 13 when LeTourneau visits the Montagne Center. The

Cardinals also host Wyoming (Nov. 19) and Oral Roberts (Nov. 24) in the

opening month of the season.

The Cardinals have road games at Mississippi (Nov. 16) and at New

Orleans (Nov. 28). Lamar remains on the road for a Dec. 1 game at Northern

Illinois.

Lamar returns home to host St. Gregory’s (Dec. 4) and Louisiana College

(Dec. 8). After a road trip to Brigham Young (Dec. 12), the Cardinals return

home to host Rice (Dec. 22) and Lyon College (Dec. 29).

The Cardinals travel to Texas Tech for a New Year’s Day game and close

out the non-conference schedule at home against Utah Valley State (Jan. 8).

The 12-team Southland Conference format remains unchanged for the

2007-08 season.

Lamar is competing in the East Division and will play the

other five schools in the East twice, home and away.

Lamar will play each West Division team once, with Texas-San Antonio,

Texas-Arlington and Sam Houston State visiting the Montagne Center and the

Cardinals traveling to Stephen F. Austin, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and

Texas State.

The SLC Tournament will be March 13-16 at the Merrill Center in Katy,

Texas. The tournament championship game is set for March 16 at 12 p.m. and

will be televised on ESPN-2. The tournament champion receives the league’s

automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

[KFDM COOP]

And you see why things look positive for this team!!!! 8)

[DP#1FAN]

Lamar looks LOADED for the run this year! Best of luck to the Cardinals.

[KFDM COOP]

Good thing is the next few years look good as well.

[Guest Nederland Bulldogs]

No kidding!

[Guest LCM Volleyball]

Good luck Cards this year!