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Posted: Tuesday October 22, 2002 10:38 PM Updated: Tuesday October 29, 2002 10:41 PM Rutgers Scarlet Knights
The following preview is provided by Blue Ribbon. For the most thorough preview available of the upcoming season, order the 2002-03 Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook, on sale now at 1-800-775-2518. Team Preview | Blue Ribbon Analysis TEAM PREVIEW
Shortly after arriving at Rutgers a year ago, as Gary Waters began to clean up the mess left behind by former coach Kevin Bannon -- including an 11-16 record (3-13 Big East) and allegations that Bannon forced an ex-player to run sprints in the raw as punishment for a poor practice drill -- he assessed where the program would be in his rookie season. "The program is not in great condition," said Waters, who had built an identity as a head coach at Kent State, where he took the Golden Flashes to a pair of NCAA tournaments and an NIT in five seasons. "It’s going to be a growing process. It’s going to take some time to get back to the level where we can compete in the Big East. The tools are here. With time and some strong recruiting, I think we can get back to that level." He was right. It’s just that Rutgers arrived a lot sooner than even Waters expected. After opening the season with disappointing losses to East Carolina and Virginia Commonwealth, the Scarlet Knights rattled off seven straight wins. After another poor stretch to close the season (four straight losses), Rutgers finished 18-13. It was, however, on course for a shot at the school's first NCAA tournament bid since 1991. But the Knights weren't merely competitive in the conference, they upset traditional powers Georgetown, Syracuse and Connecticut when each was ranked in the Top 25 and nearly toppled Virginia when the Cavaliers owned lofty No. 5 ranking. "At the beginning of our season, the kids didn’t believe they could play at the Big East level even though we had almost beat Virginia. That first conference game was at Syracuse and that can be a nightmare for some kids," said Waters, whose club was trounced 87-66 that night. "But then we beat Georgetown and I think that opened the door in their minds that on any given night we can play with anyone and win."
That door is open even wider this season. Rutgers returns four starters and should have a lineup that’s able to apply more defensive pressure and employ a more up-tempo style on offense that became a hallmark of Waters’ teams at mid-major Kent. The big question is will it have enough defense down low and rebounding after the loss of space-eater Rashod Kent? "We want to be a 94-feet team and we didn’t do a whole lot of that last year because we had a lot of half-court players," said Waters, whose club returns 75 percent of its scoring and 60 percent of its rebounding. "Now we’ve added more of what we’re looking for and next year we’ll add more of that, too, after that." Kent is no more, though, and that must please opposing big men. The 6-foot-6, 275-pound forward was a second-team all-conference pick after averaging 10.5 points and 10.2 rebounds—good for third best in the league. How much of a horse was Kent? He made the NFL expansion Houston Texans’ roster as a tight end. "My teams put a lot of emphasis on defense and I say this in all seriousness -- he’s the best post defender I have had contact with," Waters said. "He had great feet and was as physical and good with his hands as you’ll find inside. Now, he did have an issue shooting free throws." Hitting opposing linemen will be a lot easier. Kent converted only 37.1 percent from the stripe. With 6-10 Eugene Dabney (5.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg) gone after transferring to Division II Kentucky Wesleyan, Kareem Wright seems to be Kent’s likely replacement. And Waters knows it’s about time the 6-9, 270-pound junior realized his potential. Wright saw action off the bench in 28 games and averaged 2.2 points and 1.4 rebounds. He blocked all of two shots. The starting backcourt of Mike Sherrod and Jerome Coleman combined for 13 blocks. "He’s made a commitment and that’s all it had to take," Waters said of Wright, who lost 20 pounds and attended Pete Newell’s camp for big men. "One of the reasons I thought it was difficult in the past for him was because he always had two guys ahead of him. He saw himself as a support player and carried himself that way. Now he sees himself as a lead player and he’s worked to get ready for it." The other returning frontcourt players who need to help fill Kent’s void are 6-7 junior Sean Axani, 6-10, 215-pound junior Herve Lamizana and 6-9 sophomore Jason McCoy. The newcomers expected to contribute in the post are wide-body Harry Good, a 6-9, 245-pound transfer from Fresno City College via Northwestern and nephew of Nate "Tiny" Archibald, and 6-7 freshman Cortez Davis, a slasher whom Waters is high on. Davis, a Washington, D.C., product, averaged 21 points and 10 rebounds last year at Laurinburg (N.C.) Institute. "He’s a top-50 player, a jewel. If we can get him going, I think he’ll give us some support. He’s a complete player. He can pass, shoot it and drive it," Waters said. Waters thinks he might have a steal in late signee Adrian Hill, a 6-7, 225-pound forward from Canton McKinley High in Ohio. Hill averaged 17.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 4.0 blocks while earning second-team all-state honors. "Adrian exhibited a great deal of leadership qualities to lead a very young team to a fine season [state tournament semifinals]," Waters said. "He is a terrific shot blocker. I’m thrilled that we have been able to add Adrian." Lamizana, who comes to New Jersey from Abidgen, Ivory Coast, averaged 6.6 points and 3.4 rebounds while knocking down 41 percent from behind the 3-point line (18-for-44). He sat out the 1999-2000 season and didn’t become eligible until the ninth game last year. A high school All-American at prep powerhouse St. Patrick’s High in Elizabethtown, N.J., the smooth Lamizana sparked the home win over Georgetown by recording career highs in points (19), rebounds (7) and blocked shots (7). He led the team with 61 blocks and had the No. 2 average in the Big East (2.75). "This is his coming out year. He hadn’t played for almost two years so he spent the whole year catching up," Waters said. The guards, along with sophomore swingman Ricky Shields, should be strong and a steadying factor for the Scarlet Knights. Coleman was one of the biggest backcourt surprises and best shooters in the conference last year, his rookie season after transferring in from Cecil Community College in Maryland. A 6-2 senior who played high school ball at Brooklyn’s Paul Robeson High with Sherrod, he was an honorable mention all-league pick after averaging a team-high 16.8 points. He led the Big East in 3-point field goals made (3.75 per game) and was capable of catching fire at any time. Coleman (.346 3PT, .713 FT) lit up No. 11 Miami for 30 points, including eight 3-pointers, in a 64-61 win, racked up 27 points in victories over Seton Hall and No. 14 Syracuse and hit for 26 points, including 18 in the second half, in the victory over No. 17 Uconn. His 99 3-pointers and 286 attempts from 3-point range were school records. "We knew he was a great shooter. What I didn’t know that he provided for us was, he didn’t give you a step on defense. He can defend," Waters said. "You mix that in there with scoring, it’s hard to find a guy who can do them both and he did." Waters doesn’t expect a "sophomore jinx" from Coleman or Shields (11.5 ppg, 3.6 rpg, .793 FT), a three-time Big East Rookie of the Week who was very consistent. He scored in double figures 18 times. "A sophomore jinx isn’t really what it is. You know what normally occurs? A kid goes out and surprises everyone, has a great year, then everybody keys in on him. I think Ricky just ran out of gas," Waters said. "Now he has something to prove to himself. I expect him to be someone we can really count on." Expect Sherrod to be even steadier. The 6-2 junior averaged 8.6 points and a team-high 4.0 assists. He went to a shooting camp over the summer, hoping to improve on 19.4 percent average (7-for-36) percentage from beyond the arc. Adding backcourt depth, along with stingy defense, will be 6-3 sophomore guard Juel Wiggan (2.4 ppg, 2.0 rpg). And Rutgers hopes guard Calvin Wooten can have the type of first-year campaigns Coleman and Shields did. Wooten, a 6-1 freshman hails from the same area -- Detroit -- that Waters does. Wooten led the Detroit Public League in scoring at 26.5 points per game and earned first-team all-state honors twice. Not too shabby in a basketball hotbed like the Motor City. "We really like him," Waters said. "He can shoot it and he’s a good passer." Waters said the tools are in place and he is absolutely right. He is building a program and doing it the right way, finding players to fit the style he coaches. "We’re changing a whole culture here," Waters, 51, said. "I think the kids now have accepted it and that’s a huge positive." The inexperienced frontcourt may struggle a bit, but in a league devoid of many dominant centers, the Scarlet Knights picked a pretty good season to be a little thin and green up front. The newcomers will have to contribute if Rutgers is to have quality depth and the returnees who had such surprising solid seasons will have to show they were no fluke. Coleman, in particular, has to maintain his high level of play and if he does he can be good enough at times to carry his club. "Defenses are going to come after him," Waters said. "But the positive thing is we’ve added more shooters." The home court advantage should again help the Scarlet Knights, who went 15-2 at the RAC and lost only to a strong Pittsburgh team and to Yale, a deflating 67-65 setback in the first round of the NIT. That followed up losses at Virginia Tech and Georgetown and to Boston College in the first round of the Big East Tournament. "We had a superior person inside last year [Kent] and the kids caught on to part of the defensive scheme. I say part because we didn’t have a chance to put in all of the other things," Waters said. "It allowed us a breakthrough, but it’s a temporary breakthrough because now we have to re-establish ourselves."
As a known commodity, it won’t be as easy now.
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