Test Dynasty: Al Besenya

[Wayne23]

2/5: We beat Kona by 14 there, but it was never close, and VA by only 10 here. We led VA all the way, by as many as 17, but they were persistent.

1 game lead in conf. #1, RPI #2.

2 on the road this week, one against a ranked team (Louisville, #17). 4 of our last 6 on the road, the last two at #2 KS, and then #6 OK.

2/12: 2 wins. 73-70 at Georgetown. We trailed almost on the way but finally woke up late. Dan Brook had 7 threes, including the game winner.

73-59 at #17 Louisville. Good team effort.

4 to go. Two at home and then those last two. We have a 2 game lead in conf.

23-3, 10-2, #1, RPI #1.

Dan Brook is #17 on the Norton list.

2/19: Beat Wake Forest by 27, #12 Michigan ST by 26, both here.

2 up with 2 to play. Don’t tell my players but I’d be thrilled with a split of these last two.

2/26: We didn’t get the split but we got the #1 seed in the Conf. B tournament. Tied with FL ST for 1st, 1 up on Ok, 3 or more on the rest.

Kansas beat us by 11. We didn’t play badly. The difference was that we gave up 14 threes.

Oklahoma beat us by 1 in a heart breaker. They led most of the way. We came back and took a late lead. They hit a 40 footer at the buzzer. I HATE to lose that way. The officiating was horrible. They called everything. But it was too close a game to risk a T.

We end the regular season at 25-5, 12-4, #1, RPI #1. It’s a strange year. Our 5 losses are fewer than anyone else in the Top 25.

+14.2 PPG, +6.1 RBs, +3.0 TOs, +5.0 assists.

4th in the country in points allowed (60.5). Tied for 1st in RBS (I think). 9th in assists. 9th in TOs.

3/5: No one is entering the draft.

[JMD]

Looks like Kansas brought their Stephen Currys to the court...

[Wayne23]

Somethin' like that!

[Wayne23]

3/10: Life is exceedingly strange sometimes. Kansas, 23-8, 9-7, finished 8th in conference, but #2 in the polls. How weird is that. They won the play in game so we play them in the round of 8.

We won by 19 there, lost by 11 here. On paper the two teams are very evenly matched.

72-61. We knew their SG could hurt us, and he did to an extent (21 and 6) but we decided to play our game, go with what we do best. Dan Tomm was unconscious, 29, 4, 5 with 9 threes. 17, 10, 4 for Dan Brook, who had 4 threes. We had a season high 15 of those. Great D, holding them to 28.8% shooting.

2 of the other 3 games ended in upsets. Only FL ST held serve.

It’s #5 seed VA, 17-12, 9-7 next. We won by 10 here. They have a very good PG but we feel we’re stronger everywhere else.

3/11: 74-54. We were in charge all the way. 40 RBs, 9 TOs, good play all around.

As expected it’s #2 seed, #18 ranked FL ST for the title. We did not meet in conference play but we beat them 70-68 in the first game of the season for both teams. That’s so long ago it doesn’t mean much. We do know they are an outside team, but so are we. We think we’re better.

3/12: 91-73 and another title! They never led and we got it to 37 at one point (29 at the half). 30, 4, 4 for Brook, 29, 2, 6 for Suri, 15, 8 for Neal.

#1 overall, in the East region.

We start with 16 seed ST. Mary’s, 18-14.

3/16: 87-69. It was only 7 at the half but we were too deep and too talented. They had plenty of heart though. 26 for Brook. +14 TOs.

Next is #9 seed Tulsa, 20-11. We beat them by 27 in December.

3/18: Another 30 win season! 80-71. Whistle happy three blind mice didn’t let us play our game. Brook, Tomm, and Best were in foul trouble all night. We were deep enough to gut it out. All 5 starters in double figures. Seldom used big man Cy Pore had 9 and 5 in 20 minutes. +9 TOs. A win is a win!

It will be #5 seed, #13 ranked Wisconsin, 23-11 in the Sweet Sixteen. They’re very good outside be we think we are way, WAY better inside.

3/23: 90-68. 27, 3, 6 for Brook, 23, 8 for Suri, 8, 13, 4 for Neal, 19, 5, 3 for sub Fryd Zhar.

#3 seed, #8 ranked NC ST, 27-7, in the Elite Eight. Balanced scoring spread among 7 guys, good with the ball, good on the boards. They’re tough! Still, we think we’re just a little better at just about every position. If we play our game, I think we’ll be fine.

3/25: Wow! Just WOW!!! 66-65. 19 lead changes, 9 ties. They came out of the gate on fire, and before we knew it, it was 19-5. It took 3 time outs but we fixed it. We chipped away and got it to 30-30 at the half on a three at the buzzer by Brook. All of the lead changes happened in the second. We took control late, going up 7 with 41 seconds left, and then we almost gave it away.

They hit a 3 to make it 66-62 with 21 to go. They stole the inbounds pass and hit another 3. 66-65 with 7.4 left. They trapped Dan Tomm and he turned it over but there was almost no time left. They threw up a 35 footer and it rimmed out.

17, 5 for Brook, 15, 8 for Tomm, 7, 13 for Bakk. +8 RBs. The other stats were all very close. The refs let both teams play, as it should be! Hell of a game!

Four #1 seeds at the Final Four in Tampa. We play #4 ranked Texas, 27-7. On the other side it’s #3 Syracuse, 27-9 vs. #6 OK ST, 26-10. All four teams are coming in injury free.

Texas beat us by 5 there in late November. That’s a LONG time ago. They did it with D, holding us to a season low 58 points. They got their points outside, but their Center hurt us. They play 1-2-2, and that’s part of the problem. No one else does. Fortunately, we have a few days to work against it in practice. On paper we’re stronger outside, and they’re stronger inside, but that’s not the way it went last time. As always, we feel like if we play our game we’ll be okay.

Last year when we got to this stage it was all new, and we weren’t all that sure of ourselves. This year? We want it, and we feel like we can get it.

4/1: 82-69! It was 40-40 at the half. We couldn’t stop them and they couldn’t stop us. I felt like we were willing to keep it a shootout but they had some foul issues and we didn’t so we could take some chances on D. We made a couple of adjustments. The only thing I was upset about was rebounding. We simply were not hitting the boards. I raised some hell. RBs were 16-16 at the half. In the second half they got 13 and we got 30, and that was the difference, along with our stepped up D. 5 starters in double figures, led by Dan Brook.

#3 ranked Syracuse, 28-9, won by 20. Their best player, Matt Shelton, sprained a knee late in the game. He gets 25.9 and 8.5, and he’s their best defender. If he plays he won’t play much. You never wish for that but it is what it is.

At the press conference the Syracuse coach said Shelton will try to go. He said he simply doesn’t know if he will be able to play. He sat through practice. That will likely decide it. We think, as do the pundits, that we’re better at PG and SG, they’re better at PF and C (I’m not totally convinced but…), and we have the better bench. Without Shelton I don’t think they can stay with us.

4/3: 78-61 and a national championship! Shelton played 25 minutes but frankly, I don’t think it was a good idea. He was 3-17, and he was a liability on D. After the game Coach Boeheim said that he stood by his decision to play Shelton.

“There’s no way we could beat that team without him.”

Dan Tomm was the MOP. He owned his opposite number getting 22, 9, 3 with exactly 1 TO, while holding the other guy to 0 points. 16, 6, 3 for Bakk, 12, 5, 6 for Brook (against Shelton), 14 for Best, from the bench.

It’s an incredible feeling!

Brook, Suri, and little used subs Sid Klew and Cy Pore are seniors, but we have a terrific class coming in.

4/4: Awards: Dan Brook was MOP for the Final Four. I was national COY.

In conf. B senior Dan Brook, and juniors Nyah Back and Sean Neal made 2nd team. We win the conf. and no one deserves 1st team? I don’t get it. I did get conf. COY.

4/23: We ask for a facilities upgrade again this year. I’d say our chances are better this time.

Approved! B- to B+.

National title, 34-5. Can’t ask for more than that. Well… repeat?

[Wayne23]

5/1: #3 preseason but we are way stronger than last year from what I can see at thios early stage. We buy National gold.

6/5: No one is transferring out.

6/26: I just don’t get it. National freakin’ champions and Greg Star only goes at #45, and Dan Brook doesn’t get drafted at all. Smfh

4 scholarships. Looking at 15 recruits.

8/7: 5 on the Norton list: PF Ted Bail is #5, SF Sean Magd is #6, PG Gene Mars #10, PG Dan Tomm #16, C Sean Neal #35.

8/21: We offer to 2 PGs, an SF and a PF.

9/18: Got 3, lost 1. Got PG Jess Tark, #6, PG Kyle Lee, #20, C Tom Olan, #12. Lee is iffy on the SAT score.

We’re offering the last scholarship to a C.

We’re going to the Coaches Classic again. #17 Arizona in the opening round. Lots of home games this year. Conf. A games are all vs. ranked teams except one.

9/25: Nick Stok, C, #22 commits.

10/2: First day of practice. We are LOADED!

11/6: Here’s the lineup: Senior Dan Tomm and frosh Gene Mars start at guard with junior Fryd Zhar and soph Jay Fox backing up. Junior Sean Magd, a transfer from GA Tech is at SF, with senior Nyah Bakk in reserve. It’s senior Sean Neal and frosh Ted Bail inside with junior Kam Best backing up. Tough lineup!

[Wayne23]

11/13: Can’t believe we’re seeded #10 in the Coaches Classic. I guess we’ll need to show the committee something.

11/20: And we did. We opened with an 8 point win over #17 Arizona, then beat #15 Kansas by 21.

Sean Neal was huge in that one, 17 and 19.

82-73 over #1 Kentucky to win the Classic. 32 for Sean Magd.

All 4 recruits signed.

#1 in the country.

11/30: 7-0 at the end of November. 3 home wins. Sean Magd had 23, 24, and 18. He’s averaging 19.0.

12/11: 10-0, including a win over #9 Illinois there. The other 2 were blowouts here. Our 5 starters and first three subs are giving us solid, steady performances, game after game.

1/1: 14-0 to end pre-conf. play. #1, RPI #1. The only other undefeated team is #3 UConn, 13-0.

+15.5 PPG, +9.0 RBs, averaging a best in the nation 42.4, +5.5 TOs, +5.2 assists.

[Wayne23]

1/2: 15 of 16 games in Conf. A will be against ranked opponents.

1/17: 17-1, 3-1. #6 OK ST beat us 68-80 there in the conf. opener. We won our next 3, 2 on the road against ranked teams.

1/29: 21-1, 7-1, #1, RPI #1. Tied for 1st in conf. with #9 Duke.

The only close one in the last 4 was with No. Carolina, 80-76. We fell behind and stayed there for the whole 1st half, going in down by 8. We made a couple of adjustments and righted the ship.

Great bench work was the difference.

Sean Magd is #6 on the Norton list, Dan Tomm #8, Ted Bail #9, Gene Mars #10.

+15.3 PPG, +7.4 RBs (still #1 in the nation), +5.5 TOs, +4.4 assists.

4 very tough games in the next 2 weeks, 3 on the road.

2/12: We won 3 of the 4. 24-2, 10-2. Duke is 1 game up on us in conf. and we do not play them. But 3 of our last 4 are at home.

We beat #2 UConn by 8 there playing solid ball. 21 each for Magd and Bail. Then we lost by 2 at home to #8 Oklahoma. 59 fouls called, 33 on us. They took 12 more from the line and made 11 of them. The game was too close for me to take a T but I was very upset throughout the game.

We beat both #18 Syracuse, and #11 Miami on the road, by 13 and then 10.

Dan Tomm continues to lead the nation in assists.

2/26: We end up the regular season 27-3, 13-3, alone in 1st in conf. A when Duke fell apart late. #1, RPI #1.

3 blowouts in our last 4. #9 Texas beat us by 3 there.

We end up #1 in the nation in RBs, #3 in TOs, #5 in scoring and in assists.

Dan Tomm led the nation in assists, Ted Bail was #3 in RBs, and Sean Neal #8.

3/5: Ted Bail and Josh Cox declare for the NBA draft. Not a shock.

Sean Magd is #6 and Ted Bail #8 on the Norton list.

On to the post season.

[Wayne23]

3/10 #5 in the nation Kentucky, 22-9, 8-8, finished 8th in conf. They won the play in so we play them. We beat them by 9 in the Coaches Classic. This could be a very tough game.

77-70. Close all the way. We went on a late run to sew it up. 15, 14 for Bail, 20, 6, 4, 4 for Magd.

#2 ranked UConn, 27-5, 11-5, finished 5th in conf. We won there by 8. Their guards are scoring machines. We need to stop them.

3/11: 92-53. Wow! We dominated from start to finish.

2 injuries. 6th man Kam Best hurt his calf and he’s out for at least the first two rounds of the big dance. His backup, Merv Mote, hurt his knee, and he’ll miss tomorrow’s title game. Oklahoma also has injury issues.

#3 ranked, Oklahoma, 25-6, 12-4, is the #3 seed. We beat them by 8 in the Coaches Classic semifinal game, but they won by 2 at our place in Feb. We think we’re better but we need to come to play.

3/12: 68-53, and the conf. title. We grabbed an early lead and expanded it. It was never close. Magd had 17, 5, 6, Bail had 13 RBs.

#1 in the East, #1 overall.

3/16: 74-53 over 17-15 Abilene Christian. It was never close. 20, 14 for Bail.

Next up is #8 seed St. Bonnie’s. We’re stronger at every position.

3/18: 79-64. And again, never close. 27, 5 for Magd, 13, 10 for Bail, 14, 7, 10 for Tomm.

Kam Best will be back at full strength for our Sweet Sixteen game against #4 seed, # 11 ranked, Michigan ST, 22-9. They have a very good PG, and 4 guys average in double figures.

3/23: 64-53. We got out to another early lead and were in complete control all the way. Big games for Magd, Mars, Ball. 55 RBs (+20).

#9 ranked, #2 seed Texas, 24-9, in the Elite Eight. We beat them by 12 at our place. They are strong inside.

3/25: 73-52. This one took a while. It was tied at the half. Then we heated up. 22, 6 for Mars, 14, 10 for Bail, 16, 5 for Magd, 12 for Zhar, 13 RBs for Neal.

#2 seed, #8 ranked Georgetown, 28-6, in the round of four. They do their damage outside. They are very weak inside. Not sure how they did as well as they did this season.

4/1: We crushed Georgetown 75-52. 22, 10 for Bail, 15, 10 for Magd, 7, 10, 4 for Neal. We knew we could win inside, and that’s where we played it. +22 points in the paint.

#7 ranked, #2 seed OK ST, 28-8, for the title. They beat us by 12 at their place. But things have changed.

Again this year we’re playing a team with significant injury issues in the title game. Starting SG John Riggs went down early in the season, so they’ve grown accustomed to that. But in the round of 4 starting PF Jed Phelan pulled a groin muscle. He’s their 2nd leading scorer and rebounder. If he plays he won’t be effective.

4/3: 73-56. We took advantage and played and won it inside. +10 points in the paint, +9 second chance points, +7 blocks. 13 and 12 for Ted Bail, game and tourney MOP.

Back to back titles!

4/4: Awards: Magd and Bail made 2nd team All American, and I got the national COY award again. In conf. Magd made 1st team, Bail made 2nd team and I got the coach award.

(Author’s note: Bumping recruiting up to “Hard.” The upcoming season will probably be the end of this test dynasty. I want to see what effect bumping up the recruiting level has.)

4/23: We ask for a budget increase. Denied.

36-3, our 2nd straight national title. Losing 3 starters, a very good sub, and a promising red shirt, but some very good people coming back, and more coming in.

161-24, .870. Scouting rating is the only one not maxed out but that one improved slowly in DDS:CB 3, too.

[Wayne23]

5/1: Only 11 players on the squad since two guys left for the NBA draft. We look good though, and no one is transferring out.

Preseason #4. I’m not sure we have the talent this year but I’d be happy to be proven wrong.

We’ll look at the transfer pool.

6/5: Nobody we’re interested in. That means 5 scholarships to fill.

6/26: Josh Cox went #10, Ted Bail #14, Dan Tomm #35 (a steal) in the NBA draft.

Looking at 18. Only 4 are PGs. I’d like to grab at least 2 but that may be difficult.

8/7: Sean Magd is #3 on the Norton list, Gene Mars #9, Fryd Zhar #41.

8/21: We offer to 2 PGs, an SF, a PF, and a C.

9/18: Got one. PG Ift Azul, #29.

Lost a big guy.

At the NIT. At BC first. We play all of the ranked teams during conf. Play so only 2 on the pre-conf. schedule.

9/25: Got Jeff Ande, SF, #11. Lost two.

Rapidly running out of money.

10/2: I like our team and I think we’ll do well, but I don’t know if we’re deep enough to go all the way. We’ll give it our best shot!

10/9: Got one. Kip Stew, C, #39. Still chasing two and we’re all but out of money. One has us at #1, the other at #4, but all we can do is call and watch film.

11/6: We have a lineup.

(Author’s note: I am playing out the season rapidly, or most of it. I have what I need from this dynasty, as I will explain in my last entry of the dynasty.)

[Wayne23]

11/27: 6-0. Beat Texas for the NIT title. #2, RPI #8.

12/11: 10-0. #2, RPI #2. OK ST is #1 in both. Gene Mars is #3 and Sean Magd #5 on the Norton list.

12/27: 14-0 at the end of preconf. play. +20.0 PPG, +7.8 RBs, +6.7 TOs (9.0 per game), +5.6 assists.

BUT, conf. play will be a big step up.

1/16: 2-2 in our first 4 conf. games. Lost on the road to the #7 and #1 teams, and beat #6 in OT on the road. I’ll take it!

1/29: 18-4, 4-4. There are no easy games in this conf. #4, RPI #4.

2/12: Things are looking up. We won our last 4. 22-4, 8-4. #2, RPI #3. In a 3 way tie for 3rd in conf., 1 back of 1st place.

The schedule is favorable for the last 4.

2/26: 3-1. We wind up 25-5, #1, RPI #2. #1 seed in conf. (Data, POST)

3/5: #4 and 5 on the Norton list.