The Town Crier

[PointGuard]

Penguins Volunteer Post-Storm
By Steve Porter

Following the devastating tornado that wreaked havoc throughout the city of Pentoria, Ohio in late July, the member of the Youngstown Penguin basketball team banded together to lend their support. The team, along with its coaches, arrived to initially hand out relief supplies, then pitched in to help with damage cleanup.

Chad Delzell, who was the Penguins starting SF the past two seasons, helped organize his team’s efforts. Said Delzell, “We all felt terrible about how the community had been destroyed and so many peoples’ lives wrecked. Our entire team was quick to commit to helping. When we arrived, the degree of devastation was even greater than what we witnessed on the TV news coverage. The tornado cut a wide swath across the entire city.” Coach KD Durst added, “I was really proud of how players led this volunteer effort and all the work they put in to help out wherever they could.”

The team initially stepped in to work with Red Cross’ efforts to distribute food, water, and clothing to people whose homes were destroyed. They then assisted the county’s public works department in removing debris and establishing some sense of order within the city. Linehan Murphy, who transferred last year and will be able to play this coming season, said, “We put in some long hours and I’ve never worked so hard my entire life. We all were dog-tired by the end of each day we were there.”

Charlie Paben, a walk on player for the team, provided an update on the team’s future plans. “We’re going back soon to pitch in to Habitat For Humanity efforts to rebuild homes of people who were uninsured. It’s going to be fulfilling to help them put their lives back in order and get back into their homes,” stated Paben.

Athletic Director Vic Morrissey announced, “YSU alumni and fans have really been impressed by what the team has done and have started a fund to provide materials for the team’s involvement in Habitat For Humanity house rebuilding.” Donations can be sent to the Penguins Colony via the Athletic Department noting they are for Pentoria Relief Efforts.

[PointGuard]

I’ve been going out with my most recent girl friend, Kay Saunders, for nearly 6 months now. Even though I wasn’t into it, she roped me into going to her parents’ house last weekend so I could meet her family. Let me just say, it was a long weekend. I felt like I was under a microscope all the time. Kay seemed happy with how it went, but I’m not so sure. Her brothers kept pushing me to get them free tickets for games, her mom kept trying to get me to eat more, and her dad just wanted me the hell out of his house (and probably his daughter’s life) as quickly as possible.

With my parents living right here in town, Kay has met them several times and they think she’s great and have not so subtly indicated I should ask her to marry me. I’m not ready for that, though. I’m too young to be tied down. Besides most of my friends who married are already divorced and I don’t need to go through that. Also, this cheap newspaper still doesn’t pay me what I’m worth, so I have no money in the bank. That means I live from pay check to pay check and can’t afford to have another person to support, particularly with Kay working for minimum wage in retail.

[PointGuard]

Penguins Land Recruits
By Steve Porter

The Youngstown State Athletic Department announced today that they had received verbal scholarship commitments from two high school seniors to play next season for the Penguins.

LeRoy Delea, a 6-8 power forward from West Frankfort, Illinois will bring his very strong rebounding talents together with inside scoring threat. Last season for his Frankfort Community High School team he averaged 17.2 ppg and 8.2 rpg. Although ranked in the top 100 nationally early this summer, he now is ranked #101.

The second player coming to YSU will be Colin Chambliss, a 6-3 small forward from Girard, Ohio. Chambliss is regarded as a lock-down defensive player. Even though he’s only 6-3, he is a very good rebounder and scores well inside. He has good hands, being both a good ball handler and is a deft at stealing the ball on defense. As a junior on his team last season he averaged 13.4 ppg and 4.5 rpg. He was in the top 25 at the Chicago Prep Revue this summer when he was ranked in the top 100 nationally. His national ranking presently is #226.

First Assistant Coach Steve Simmons said, “We’re really pleased to have these two players coming our way. We think they will be big assets to our team. We’re actively working to lock down the remaining two scholarship openings. We have some good kids on our radar screen, but are also opening our sites to look beyond the region for guys who may have been overlooked.”

[PointGuard]

Practice Begins for YSU Basketball
By Steve Porter

“It was good to get the guys on the court today. We’ve got a full complement of players and all are in good shape physically,” advised A.D. Kenna, the Penguins’ second assistant coach.

The team has twelve returning players who had time on the court in games last season plus SG B.J. Dennis, a freshman who redshirted last season, and PG Linehan Murphy, a transfer sophomore who was ineligible to play has year. Additionally, SG William Swan, an incoming freshman joins the team. Kenna said all three of those players are in the mix for significant playing time.

Kenna added, “Even though we have starters returning at all positions except shooting guard, I think there will be some keen competition for this season’s starting spots.”

Practice will be continuing throughout the rest of October and half of November. The team’s first game will be against Fairfield on November 14.

[PointGuard]

Penguins Season Opening
By Steve Porter

The Youngstown State Penguins have their season opener tomorrow. They travel to Bridgeport, Connecticut to take on the Fairfield Stags. Fairfield finished last season with a 17-12 record and is led by SG Brian Clemmons who averaged 15.4 ppg last season and PG Ferron Prosser who finished the previous season averaging 10.8 ppg.

Coach K.D. Durst said the starting lineup is still in flux at the guard positions. Starting for tomorrow’s game will be (ppg last year in parentheses):

PG-Tim Lostetter, 5-6 junior (9.0 ppg)
SG-Levall Hart, 6-3 junior (2.9 ppg)
SF-Chad Delzell, 6-8 senior (6.7 ppg)
PF-Aaron Tice, 6-6 sophomore (10.6 ppg)
C-Jamal Grady, 6-10 junior (13.9 ppg)

Coach Durst said, “This year’s team is definitely more experienced than ours last year at this point. Jamal Grady is our team leader and continues to develop his skills. He has a solid back up in sophomore Kent Jones (4.5 ppg). Aaron Tice came on strong the end of last season but is ably backed up by senior Rich Braswell (7.1 ppg). Chad Delzell was our top rebounder last season (5.9 rpg) but his backup, senior Rick Martin (4.7 ppg) is a good outside shooter. Levall Hart primarily played at the point last season, but has done well in practice at SG. B.J. Dennis, who was redshirted as a freshman last year, has really developed both on court and in his relationship with the team, and is challenging Levall for starting honors. While Tim Lostetter started for us last season at PG, sophomore Linehan Murphy who had to sit out last season due to transferring from Boston University, is making a serious challenge to work his way into the starting lineup.”

When asked where he thought his team would finish in the Horizon League, Durst deferred answering but said that he thought Green Bay-Wisconsin, UIC, and Detroit all had strong returning lineups. “All three of those teams have 2-3 returning starters who averaged in double figures and probably should be pegged as pre-season favorites. We’ve been working hard to solidify our defense so we can be more competitive,” stated Durst.

[PointGuard]

Penguins’ Opener Forgettable
By Steve Porter

The Penguins fell behind the Fairfield Stags by 13 midway through the first half and then struggled throughout the remainder of the half to try to get back into the game. They narrowed the gap slightly but still trailed 42-35 at the break. C Jamal Grady led YSU’s scoring with 11 points.

Things didn’t improve for YSU in the 2nd half as the Stags steadily expanded their lead, putting the ball game out of reach for the Penguins who were drubbed 82-63.

Youngstown State was led offensively by C Jamal Grady’s 14 points while PG Linehan Murphy came off the bench to score 12, and PF Aaron Tice hit for 10.

Coach KD Durst tersely said, “We worked hard on defense during practice and to see it still be so porous (allowing the Stags to hit 58% of their shots) was disappointing. I guess it’s back to the drawing board for us. Making 19 turnovers, most of those in the 2nd half, kept us from being able to come back. And our outside game was nearly non-existent except for Linehan Murphy late in the game. We have a lot of work to do.”

Reserve C Kent Jones strained a calf muscle and is likely to miss the Penguins’ next game.

[PointGuard]

YSU Makes Big Red See Red
By Steve Porter

Again the Penguins’ defense was like a sieve allowing Cornell to take an early lead in last nights game. But YSU fought back to gain it’s first lead with 12 minutes to play in the half. The lead joggled back and forth the remainder of the half, but Youngstown State took a 46-43 lead to the locker room. Both teams hit over 50% of their shots. C Jamal Grady poured in 16 points to lead the Penguins while PF Rick Braswell added 11.

The Penguins held a small lead throughout most all of the 2nd half and then expanded their led to double figures in the final 5 minutes, winning by a score of 90-79. Both teams hit 53% of their shots but YSU had just 6 turnovers compared to 13 by the Big Red.

C Jamal Grady dropped in 20 points and PF Rick Braswell and SF Rich Martin both scored 16. For Cornell, PF/C Jason Williams topped all scorers with 21 points.

“It took us a while to get untracked, but I’m pleased with how our guys scrapped to come back in the first half and then doggedly held onto a lead in the 2nd half even though Cornell was shooting well,” said Coach K.D. Durst. He went on to add, “With Kent Jones unable to suit up due to a leg injury, we moved Chad Delzell inside a few times to fill some of the minutes Kent would have played and he did well for us. But we got good play at all positions from 10 or 11 of our guys so this was a true team effort. A win on the road is always nice to get.” When asked about his team’s defense, Durst responded, “It’s a work in progress.

[PointGuard]

Home Cookin’ Good for Penguins
By Steve Porter

In last night’s home opener against the 1-1 Richmond Spiders, the Youngstown State Penguins started Linehan Murphy at PG and Rick Martin. Durst said, “Both Linehan and Rick have been shooting well so they deserved a start. In adon to shooting well, Linehan has handled the ball well. While Rick is primarily a SF, he played a little at the 2 position last season, but he will probably also play some at the 3 tonight as we attempt to control the Spiders’ high scoring (21 ppg) SF Jarvis Jefferson.”

Chad Delzell drew two Jarvis Jefferson into two quick fouls. After taking a 9-2 lead, both Delzell and Jamal Grady also were saddled with 2 fouls apiece and went to the Penguins’ bench as Richmond closed the difference to 9-8. YSU moved back into a comfortable lead until fouls mounted up against them. When the half ended, the Penguins led by a scant point at 34-33. C Jamal Grady and SG/SF Rick Martin both had 7 points, but Grady also had been charged with 3 fouls in the half.

With the game tied at 58-58 and 8:17 to play, Jamal Grady fouled out. The Spiders scored the next 5 points. With the game on the line, YSU tightened its defense and pulled ahead 72-68 with just under 2 minutes to play. Following a time out, the Penguins worked the ball to Rick Martin who drove toward the basket and pulled up to shoot a 6 footer that failed to drop, but he was fouled on the shot. Martin calmly knocked down both free throws to put YSU on top by 6. With 56 seconds left and the Penguins on top 74-68, Richmond fouled Linehan Murphy giving YSU a chance to make it a 3 possession game. Murphy missed the front end of the 1-and-1 and the Spiders grabbed the rebound. Richmond called atime out, then brought the ball up quickly and launched a long 3 that swished through the hoop to cut the lead to 3 points. Rick Braswell missed a shot from the middle of the key but was fouled. He sunk both free throws to put YSU ahead 76-71 with 34 seconds to go. Richmond put up another quick 3 but it was off the mark and they were forced to foul Aaron Tice. Tice made them pay by hitting both shots to build the Penguins’ lead to 7 points with 22 seconds remaining. The Spiders missed another quick 3 and Youngstown State came away with a 78-71 victory. The Penguins hit 54% of their FG attempts and improved their record to 2-1 even though C Jamal Grady played just 13 minutes and SF Chad Delzell just 18 minutes due to foul trouble.

SG/SF Rick Martin led the Penguins’ scoring with 16 points, hitting 5 of 7 FG’s (including both of his 3-point attempts) and 4 of 4 from the foul line. And PF Aaron Tice scored 13, grabbed 8 rebounds, and had 3 steals and 2 blocks.

“It’s good to win in front of our home crowd. I can’t deny that I was concerned when Richmond immediately took a 5 point lead right after Grady fouled out. But my guys responded so well and regained the lead. What impressed me most though, was that we only allowed the Spiders to hit 40% of their FG attempts plus forced them to make 19 turnovers. Richmond has a good team. Without that kind of D we wouldn’t have won this game,” said Coach K.D. Durst.

Rick Braswell said, “I’m happy with whatever minutes I get on the court. But I haven’t had many starts so when I get one it feels really good. With Chad getting tagged with fouls tonight, even though I started at the 2, I ended up playing more time at the 3. But we’ve got a lot more depth this season and Coach knows what’s best for us to have a chance each game, so however he wants to use me is fine. I know he’s had to put up with some of my antics in the past, but he’s been consistent and I know even with the challenges I’ve presented that he’s been in my corner.”

[PointGuard]

Penguins Mess With Texas
By Steve Porter

In their foray into Texas, a big question entering the game against Prairie View was whether the Penguins could control the Panthers’ high scoring center, Jasper King, who came into the game averaging 22.7 ppg as well as hauling in 9.0 rpg.

In the first half, the Penguins outshot the Panthers 50% to 36% and controlled the boards to the tune of 22-12. YSU held a small lead through most of the half and expanded it in the final 5 minutes to finish the half ahead by a 41-31 score. C Jamal Grady scored 12 points while grabbing 6 rebounds.

Youngstown State continued to shoot well in the 2nd half and held onto a double digit lead for most of the half. The Penguins finished strong to give Prairie View an 83-68 trouncing. Not only did the Penguins hit 53% of their FG attempts but they dominated on the boards 37-22. The win improved their season record to 3-1.

C Jamal Grady finished with a double-double, scoring 19 and picking off 12 rebounds. PF’s Aaron Tice and Rick Braswell both scored 11 points. The Penguins held the Panthers’ Jasper King to 15 points and 6 rebounds.

Coach KD Durst said, “Our guys played well the entire game. Every time Prairie View tried to cut into our lead, we responded and kept them from making a serious run.”

[PointGuard]

Penguins Sport 4 Game Win Streak
By Steve Porter

Defenses dominated early in last night’s game between Youngstown State and visiting Missouri Valley. After 8 minutes of play the Penguins has hit just 3 of 12 shots while the Bears were 1 for 12 with 4 turnovers and the Penguins led 11-2. At the end of the half, YSU led 35-24 primarily due to their 29-18 command of the boards. C Jamal Grady led the Penguins offensively with 12 points.

In the first portion of the 2nd half, Missouri State cut the lead to 6 points, but Tim Lostetter came in off the bench to ignite the Penguins’ offense. Midway through the half YSU led 57-39. The Penguins went on to crush the Bears 83-61. YSU outshot Missouri State 52% to 34% and out-rebounded them 45-27.

Leading the Penguins’ onslaught was C Jamal Grady who scored 30 while pulling down 9 rebounds. PG Tim Lostetter scored 18 points in 16 minutes of court time. PF’s Rich Braswell and Aaron Tice both added 10 points.

Jamal Grady said, “The guys were working the ball inside very well tonight. We out-muscled them in the paint.”