Restricted Recruiting

[Wayne23]

Test- Restricted Recruiting
Author’s Note: I’m going to see what happens (Ranking is National Ranking at the time the recruit verbally commits. Nothing I can do about the changes that happen after that.).
1. Ranked 1-10- 1
2. Ranked 11-20- 1
3. Ranked 21-40- 3
4. Ranked 41-60- 3
The restrictions above won’t come into play until I get to a Tier One school, of course; I won’t be able to recruit anywhere near this well until then. Until then here are the restrictions:
1. Ranked 1-25- 1
2. Ranked 26-50- 1
3. Ranked 50-75- 1
4. Ranked 75-99- 3
Let’s see what happens.

5/1/2018: Joe Dribble here. I just had the honor of being named Head Coach at UMass, my alma mater. I graduated from the school 13 years ago, and, not to blow my own horn, except for Dr. J., I think it’s safe to say that I’m the most talented player the school has ever had. I was a Point Guard, and I led UMass to the Sweet Sixteen my Junior year, and the Final Four my senior year. After that I played three seasons with Phoenix in the NBA. I was their starting PG during the third year. In preseason of year 4 I tore up both my ACL and MCL, and that was that.
Phoenix took me on as an assistant that year and I’ve been coaching ever since. I spent the next three years as an assistant here, Then spent six years as Head Coach at Northeastern, taking them to the NCAA tournament for the past five seasons, and to the Sweet Sixteen last season.
I feel like I’m ready to turn around what has been a pretty grim few seasons here in Amherst.
I’m starting by putting my staff together. My #1, Dar Slate, is a good coach, and a better than good recruiter, and I’m keeping him on. I fired the #2 and #3, so I’m looking. I hope to get the rest of the staff together quickly.
As to strategy, we’ll play Princeton and Triangle against the man. On D we’ll go about half man, half 1-2-2, and when we press (not often) it will be 1-2-2.
As to the team itself, I think we can compete in the A10, but we’re not going to impress any of the national powers. We’re strong up front and not bad outside, but we are not at all deep. Three of our top five are seniors so we’ll need to recruit well.
5/5: I have a staff. Joey Brou is my #2. He’s a really good scout. He was unhappy at URI so I was able to convince him to come here. My new #3 is an old friend, Tye Crup. He’s my bench/practice coach, as he was at Northeastern for the past two seasons. I value his judgment and look forward to continuing to work with him.
Let’s go recruiting! I don’t have a lot of money, but hopefully enough.

[PointGuard]

Welcome Back!!!

[Wayne23]

7/5: Some interest from several players.

8/21: No one in the 1-25 category. I am offering to #33- PF, #50-PG, #56-PF, #77-PG, #95-SF, and #101-PG. The numbers will change a few times as we move along and I’m sure I won’t get all of these, but they meet my recruiting restriction criteria.

9/18: Got 3: #30, PF Andy Nich, #49, PG Jan Dods, and #79, PG Kyle Phil. 3 to go.

We’re going to the Tip-Off in Hawaii vs. St. Johns. Not too tough a schedule but a couple of challenges, the biggest being #23 Michigan, there.

9/25: Got 1 of 3: #69, Sy Crom, SF. We still need a big and a guard. Both #76 or higher ranked.

10/2: Lost 2 recruits. We start practice today. Exciting!

11/6: Still hoping to rope in 2 recruits, one big, one guard. Happy with the 4 we have. Season is coming up soon. Still pondering the line up but hope to decide by the end of the day, after our 2nd exhibition game.

11/7: And we have a lineup, for now anyway:

Junior Rich Wood starts at PG. He’s a good ball handler and he should score points. His D is a little weak though. Frosh Ben Wamm starts at SG and backs up at PG. He could be a very good scorer and he’s good with the ball. He’s better than Wood on D, but not great. My back up SG is Senior Matt John, who is a solid defender.

Junior Len Neal starts at SF. He’s a very good all around player and could be one of our best, if not our best player.

Senior Will Bows is a glass eater who can score. He’s just average on D. He’ll start at PF, sub at C.

Senior Jon Colt is at C. He is a big time scorer and an excellent defender. He could rebound better, but if Neal isn’t our best player, Colt is.

Subbing at SF and PF is Soph Al Logg. Logg subs at SF and PF. He is an excellent defender and does everything well. He just might work his way into the starting lineup as the season progresses.

We’re picked 4th in the Atlantic 10 but my goal is to win it, or to finish 2nd at the very least.

Let’s do this!

[Wayne23]

11/15: Great opener, beating Cleveland ST 85-62. Jon Colt had 29 and 10 while holding the other team’s C to 0 and 1. We had only 6 TOs and were +7 on the boards.

11/18: 61-57 over #4 seed St. Johns in the opener of the Tip-Off in Paradise. Close all the way. Colt led us again with 21 and 10 and great D. +17 RBs was the key, and we had only 11 TOs.

Next up is #1 seed Provocation College; they’re 2-0.

11/19: 99-104 in a real slugfest. They went up early then WAY up, by as many as 17. We got it to 8 at the half, and actually took the lead 3 times in the 2nd half. At the end they were just a little better. Their SG had 41; we couldn’t find a way to stop him. And Colt had a tough game, getting in early foul trouble and playing only 19 minutes. Our SF, Len Neal had 43, and PG Rich Wood had 17, but we needed more from Colt. All in all, I think the future looks bright! Michigan next, but it’s at home so we think we have a shot.

11/22: 98-81! Great win! We led all the way, most of the time by 10 or more. Their SG had 34 but no one else did much for them. 24 for Colt, 18 for sub forward Al log, 15 each for Neal (15, 8, 6) and Rich Wood. +13 RBs, only 10 TOs- we’re averaging a terrific 10.3.

12/7: We’re 6-2. It seems that when Jon Colt mgets in early foul trouble we lose. Otherwise we win. RPI is up to #25. Colt leads us with 19.0 PPG. He and Will Bows get 8.3 RBs. Len Neal gets 15.1 PPG. Rich Wood gets 11.0 and is an excellent PG.
1
2/25: 8-2, RPI #21. +6.9 PPG, +7.6 RBS (#10 in the country), +3.8 TOs. Colt leads us in scoring with 18.8, Neal gets 14.8, Wood gets 13.1. Bows gets 8.5 RBs. We’re looking good heading into A10 play.

Revised recruiting restrictions:
Tier 1 school
Year 1 After Year 1
1.Ranked 1-10- 1 1. 1-10- 1
2.Ranked 11-20- 1 2. 11-25- 1
3.Ranked 21-40- 3 3. 26-40- 1
4.Ranked 41-60- 3 4. 41-60- 1

Mid-major
1. Ranked 1-25- 1 1. 1-25- 1
2. Ranked 26-50- 1 2. 26-50- 1
3. Ranked 51-75- 1 3. 51-75- 1
4. Ranked 76-99- 3 4. 76-99- 1

Small school
1. 1-50- 1 1. 1-50- 1
2. 51-99- 1 2. 51-99- 1
3. 100-125- 1 3. 100-150- 1
4. 126-150 1 4. 151-200- 1

[Wayne23]

1/1/2019: 10-2, 2-0. A 2-0 start to A10 play but barely, a 4 point road win and then a 2 point home win.

1/15: 5-1. We’re rolling along! 13-3, 5-1, in a 3 way tie for first, but it’s early. We play seven guys and they’re all effective. Still chasing those 2 recruits.

1/29: 17-3, 9-1, RPI #23. We have to be close to being ranked. In a 2 way tie for first in the A10 with VCU. We play them here in Feb. +6.7 PPG, +7.0 RBs (#9 nationally), +3.4 TOs. Colt, Neal, and Wood are our leading scorers. Bows, Colt, and Neal lead in RBs. Our bench is not deep but it is strong!

2/12: 20-4, 12-2, RPI #26. Tied for 1st with VCU, 2 up on third place. We play VCU this week, here. We won 2 road games this week, and 3 of our last 4 A10 games are at home.

2/15: Beat VCU by 15. We’re alone in 1st in the A10. Colt and SG Ben Wamm had 22 each. +10 RBs, +7 TOs.

2/26: We end the regular season 23-6, 14-4, ranked #23, RPI #28, and alone in 1st in the A10. Great season! We kind of faded late, but VCU faded worse. They tied with Duquesne for 2nd. Duquesne beat us twice in the regular season, by 18 there and 8 here.

Looking forward to the post season!

[Wayne23]

3/5: Didn’t expect anyone to declare for the draft and no one did.

3/7: We will play #8 seed Richmond, 14-14, 9-9, in the first round of the A10 tournament. We beat them by 13 here. We think we’re way better inside, and as good outside.

3/8: 77-53. It was never close. 23, 14 for Jon Colt. +11 RBs, but 16 TOs.

We play #4 seed George Mason, 20-10, 11-7, in the semifinals. We beat them by 1, in our only OT game of the season, there. We think our outside game will make the difference but we need to play well.

3/9: 71-89. OUCH! We were up 9 at the half then we completely fell apart. Some of it was foul trouble but we just seemed to stop moving, especially on D, but on both ends, really. A season high 21 TOs didn’t help. Colt had 26 and 7, but no one else had more than 10. I tried lots of thing in the 2nd half but nothing helped.

Oh well, we’re in the big dance, but with a much worse seed than I had hoped, no doubt.

3/10: Duquesne won the tourney.

3/12: #6 South. We play #11 Nevada, 21-10, 12-6. They’re very good outside, but this is a good spot for us. We just need to play our game.

3/17: As happened in our last game we just fell apart late. They scored the last 8 points. Very frustrating, but the season is over so there’s nothing I can do for now. 21, 4, 3 for frosh Ben Wamm, 16, 7 for Colt, in his last college game. We have some good players coming back and a few great looking recruits already signed.

Hoping to grab 2 more recruits.

4/3: #7 Arizona is the national champ. A10’s Fordham won the CHI.

4/4: Awards: Jon Colt is A10 POY, Def POY, and 1st team, along with Junior Len Neal. Junior Rich Wood made the 2nd team. Lots of people think I should have gotten COY but no luck.

4/9: PG Cy Benn committed. We hope to get a big man.

A few offers but I’m staying here.

4/23: I ask for a budget increase. We got $10,000!

Great season, 24-8, 14-4, A10 regular season champs. Next season we hope to match what we did in the regular season and do better in the post season!

[Wayne23]

5/1: #8 recruiting class! We buy the national and international Basic reports.

6/5: Looking at 2 transfers.

6/12: Got one, a very good looking PF from Xavier.

6/26: Recruiting. Looking at as many as 6 scholarships, but after the exhibition games we might give scholarships to two of our walk-ons who look pretty good. But I want to see them in practice and in exhibition games first. Looking at 20 recruits to start.

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

9/11: Lost a recruit.

9/18: Wow, we got 4, lost 2. We got a C, #52, a PF, #58, an SG, #62, and another C, #79. We’re offering to a PG and hanging on to the other scholarship.

LOTS of road games on the schedule plus the Hoop Shoots tourney vs. Tennessee.

9/25: We got an iffy PG, #140. We’re hanging on to the other scholarship, at least for now.

10/2: First day of practice. We should be very good if my guys develop.

11/6: After our 2 exhibition games we have a lineup:

Frosh Kyle Phil starts at PG. Another frosh, Cy Benn, is at SG. Senior Rich Wood, All Conf. 2nd team last year, has lost his starting job, at least for now. He’ll sub at both guard spots.

Senior Tam Paer will sub at SG.

Junior Mick Wall walked on but he has looked so good that I am starting him at SF, subbing him at PF, and I gave him a scholarship. Junior Al Logg wants his job at SF though, and he’ll be trying to earn it.

Senior Len Neal is back, starting again at PF. Frosh Andy Nick is at C.

So we’re young, but I like this team. We start with 3 at home then go on the road until 12/29.

Still tweaking the recruiting restrictions. Here’s the latest:

Revised recruiting restrictions:

Tier 1 school
Year 1 After Year 1
1.Ranked 1-10- 1 1. 1-10- 1
2.Ranked 11-20- 1 2. 11-25- 1
3.Ranked 21-40- 2 3. 26-40- 1
4.Ranked 41-60- 2 4. 41-60- 1
Mid-major 1st year 2nd+
1. Ranked 1-25- 1 1. 1-25- 1 (in state or GPA match- 1000+)
2. Ranked 26-50- 1 2. 26-50- 1 (in region or GPA match)
3. Ranked 51-75- 1 3. 51-75- 1 (in region or GPA match)
4. Ranked 76-99- 1 4. 76-99- 1
Small school 1st year 2nd+
1. 1-50- 1 1. 1-50- 1 (in region)
2. 51-99- 1 2. 51-99- 1 (in region or GPA match- 1000+)
3. 100-125- 1 3. 100-150- 1
4. 126-150 1 4. 151-200- 1

[Wayne23]

11/20: 2-0 start against 2 decent teams, both at home. Andy Nich, our C, looked great in both games, 24 and 15, then 17 and 10. Al Logg is definitely putting pressure on Mick Wall at SF, and Wood is playing better than Paer subbing at guard. We’ll give it another week before making changes though.

All 5 recruits signed.

11/27: 4-0, but we won at UL Monroe by only 2. Andy Nich is the real thing, 20 and 13.8. Benn, Phil, and Neal are all playing well. Logg will start at SF for Wall, and Wood is getting all of Paer’s minutes at guard, and some of Phil’s.

12/4: We lost to #11 Michigan, there, but by only 12.

12/22: We’re 6-2 headed for the Hoop Shoots tomorrow where we play Tennessee, 6-2, and the #6 seed; we’re #3.

12/23: 93-78. PF Len Neal had 22 and 8, and 5 other guys scored 10 or more. 18 for SF Al Logg. +13 RBs, only 11 TOs.

#2 seed Brigham Young, 5-4 is next. We seem really evenly matched. It will likely come down to who executes better. All 4 top seeds advanced.

12/24: 82-85. 20 lead changes, 8 ties. They had it last and hit a 3 with .4 left. 22, 12 for Nich. The difference was fouls. They went to the line 27 times, we went 15. I thought we got some bad calls against us but not all that many, really.

12/25: We end pre-conf. play at 7-3, RPI #47. I really think we’ll win the A10 if we stay healthy. Nich still leads us with 17.8, 10.6. We play six guys for most of the game and all 6 average 10.4 or more. #7 and #8 are decent players as well. As a team we’re +3.5 PPG, +2.7 RBs, +0.8 TOs. I don’t like our 13.7 TOs per game and hope that it will improve.

[Wayne23]

1/1/2020: 1-1 start to A10 play. GW is tough and we played them there. We’ll get ‘em at our place in January. Plus, we really played our worst game of the season; shot 30%, didn’t play good D.

1/15: The conf. is a bottle neck we’re one of 6 teams tied for 1st at 4-2 (11-5 overall, RPI 58), and 3 more are at 3-3. We’re playing great at home but well on the road. We beat GW here. Duquesne kicked our butts there this week. We play them at our place in the season finale.

1/29: 15-5, 8-2, RPI #37. Tied for 1st with VCU, and only GW is one back. We’re playing better on the road and still playing well at home. Nich leads us with 16.7, 9.3. +4.4 PPG, +1.5 RBs, +2.9 TOs, down to 12.5, which is not bad, but I like it below 12.0.

[Wayne23]

2/5: Lost one we shouldn’t have lost at Rhode Island. We played terrible basketball. The loss puts us 1 back of VCU who are now ranked (#22). We play them next, there. If they beat us there will be virtually no chance that we’ll finish first in the A10, and we could be in danger to sink to 3rd or 4th.

2/6: 68-70. We played really well. They beat us on the boards- 30 RBs to their 39, and at the line where they went 15 more times than we did. One of our starters fouled out, 3 others had 4. One of their players had 4, no one else had more than 2. I couldn’t afford a T,a nd I didn’t get one, although I skirted the edge pretty often. I don’t like to say the refs beat us, because that is an insult to the other team, but…

2/26: We finish strong, 21-8, 14-4, alone in 2nd in the A10, 1 back of VCU, 2 up on 2 teams. Andy Nich ends up with 16.4, 8.8 to lead us in both. +5.2 PPG, +1.2 RBs (not good), +3.8 TOs (We end with a great 12.1 TOs per game).