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Dale Connover Career Records
SEASON SCHOOL RECORD SEASON RESULT
2022-23 Georgia 12-20 (4-14) Last Place SEC
2023-24 Georgia 22-10 (11-7) 3rd Place SEC / NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2024-25 Georgia 33-6 (14-4) 1st Place (tie) SEC / SEC Tourney Champ / NCAA Ntl Semis
2025-26 Georgia 33-6 (13-5) 2nd Place SEC / SEC Tourney Champ / NCAA Ntl Semis
2026-27 Georgia 28-8 (15-3) 2nd Place SEC / NCAA Elite Eight
2027-28 Georgia 26-8 (15-3) 2nd Place SEC / NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2028-29 Georgia 24-17 (9-9) 7th Place SEC / NCAA Ntl Runner-Up
2029-30 Georgia 26-8 (13-5) 2nd Place SEC / NCAA 1st Round
Georgia Total: 204-85 (94-50)
2030-31 Michigan State 33-7 (15-5) 1st Place Big Ten / Big Ten Tourney Champ / NCAA Ntl Champion
Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Sat Feb 25, 2023 4:56 pm
Sorry for the six-week hiatus! Getting this one started again. Here's a quick refresher to catch you up on Coach Connover's first nine years ... in year ten of the dynasty we're currently 11-1 and about to start the Big Ten season, as we follow up our national championship run from last year!
Last edited by jksander on Sat Feb 25, 2023 7:58 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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jksander - Elite Member
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Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Sat Feb 25, 2023 7:56 pm
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
12/30 #2 @ Northwestern L 52-72 11-2 (0-1) C. Armstead (11 pts 9 reb) M. Kelley (8 pts 5 reb 1 ast 1 stl 1 blk)
1/2 #3 Nebraska W 77-52 12-2 (1-1) M. Kelley (15 pts 14 reb 2 ast) H. Brezavsek (14 pts 7 reb 3 ast 2 stl)
1/6 #3 @ Wisconsin L 69-77 12-3 (1-2) B. Samnick (17 pts 6 reb 1 stl) H. Brezavsek (10 pts 7 reb 1 ast 1 stl)
1/11 #6 Indiana W 66-43 13-3 (2-2) M. Kelley (12 pts 8 reb 4 ast) C. Armstead (9 pts 10 reb 2 ast)
1/16 #5 Illinois W 76-55 14-3 (3-2) M. Kelley (19 pts 11 reb 2 ast 2 stl) C. Armstead (15 pts 6 reb 2 ast)
1/18 #5 @ Penn State W 74-61 15-3 (4-2) C. Armstead (15 pts 10 reb 3 ast 1 blk) M. Kelley (13 pts 10 reb 2 ast)
1/20 #5 Northwestern W 74-67 16-3 (5-2) B. Samnick (17 pts 6 reb 3 ast) C. Patton (12 pts 3 reb 2 ast 1 stl)
1/25 #5 Rutgers W 82-80 17-3 (6-2) H. Brezavsek (20 pts 3 reb 1 ast) J. Brown (15 pts 5 reb 7 ast 2 stl)
1/27 #5 @ Purdue W 84-69 18-3 (7-2) M. Kelley (20 pts 8 reb 2 ast) H. Brezavsek (17 pts 3 reb 3 ast 5 stl)
With just over a month to go in the season we’re back inside the top 5 and back in the lead in the Big Ten, even if it’s only by half a game over Michigan and Purdue. After our humbling start (with that blowout loss at Northwestern and a heartbreaker against Wisconsin on the road) we are finally getting things on track with a current six-game win streak. We and #25 Maryland (13-7, 4-5) are the only ranked Big Ten teams at this point, and we still have both games to play against them. So there’s no room to start coasting. Morlaye Kelley and Cameron Armstead are both still in the Norton Race for now, but neither is expected to make the final cut for All America status. I’m really hoping Armstead and Brezavsek come back for their sophomore seasons so they can be leaders on this team as we bring in what could be an all-time class for the Spartans. But first we’ve got to defend our Big Ten and National Titles!
Our home win streak is currently at 12 games, having not lost in the Breslin Center since last February against Michigan. Alas, we don’t get to avenge that with a home win this year, but we face them on the road on February 17.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
1/30 #4 Iowa W 84-53 19-3 (8-2) M. Kelley (14 pts 4 reb 3 ast) B. Samnick (14 pts 6 reb 2 ast 1 stl)
2/1 #4 @ #25 Maryland L 72-91 19-4 (8-3) M. Kelley (21 pts 9 reb 2 ast) H. Brezavsek (17 pts 9 reb 4 blk)
2/6 #4 Minnesota W 72-55 20-4 (9-3) J. Brown (17 pts 2 reb 8 ast) M. Kelley (11 pts 7 reb 3 ast 4 stl)
2/8 #4 @ Ohio State L 38-60 20-5 (9-4) C. Armstead (4 pts 12 reb 5 blk) B. Samnick (9 pts 1 reb 1 ast)
2/10 #4 Wisconsin W 64-51 21-5 (10-4) J. Brown (21 pts 5 reb 5 ast) M. Kelley (12 pts 8 reb 2 ast)
2/15 #4 Purdue W 70-62 22-5 (11-4) M. Kelley (14 pts 14 reb 3 ast 4 stl) J. Brown (21 pts 5 reb 3 ast)
2/17 #4 @ Michigan L 73-90 22-6 (11-5) C. Armstead (16 pts 8 reb 2 ast 2 blk) B. Samnick (13 pts 7 reb 2 ast)
2/20 #4 @ Iowa L 68-77 22-7 (11-6) M. Kelley (16 pts 12 reb 4 ast) C. Armstead (12 pts 3 reb 2 ast 1 stl)
2/22 #4 @ Nebraska L 71-73 22-8 (11-7) J. Brown (12 pts 3 ast) M. Kelley (6 pts 10 reb 2 ast)
3/1 #6 #19 Maryland W 56-42 23-8 (12-7) J. Brown (15 pts 5 ast) M. Kelley (9 pts 9 reb 3 ast 1 stl)
3/3 #6 @ Rutgers L 43-68 23-9 (12-8) H. Brezavsek (10 pts 8 reb 2 ast 3 blk) M. Kelley (6 pts 14 reb 1 stl)
We continue to struggle on the road, and add blowout losses at Maryland and Ohio State to that we faced at Northwestern, making me quite concerned about our potential NCAA Tournament deep-run potential. Hopefully the Ohio State loss will be our nadir for the year, because leting them hold our starters to 17 f---ing points is outright embarassing. But we were in first place up until our last five game stretch which featured four road games and our rematch with Maryland on our court. We opened it with the brutal loss to our in-state rivals, then lost at Iowa to fall into second, just outside a three-way tie for third and only a game and a half out of a two-way tie for sixth, with three games left. We went into the Maryland game tied with them in the standings at fifth place, but even beating them to keep our home winning streak alive at 17 games didn’t salve getting slaughtered on the road at Rutgers, a team that would need to still win the Big Ten Title outright to even be post-season eligible. A 2-6 road record in the Big Ten is abysmal for a team of our talent, as is going 4-6 in our last ten and 1-4 in our last five games. The AP seems to still love us, but if we don’t perform in the Big Ten tournament it’s hard to say we won’t be on upset watch no matter what seed we get in March Madness.
Hugo Brezavsek has decided to go one-and-done, leaving for the NBA after a freshman season which saw him post 8.8 ppg 1.6 apg 5.3 rpg 1.7 spg and 1.4 bpg over his 32 starts. I’m disappointed, but we have five-star seven-footer Winston McKeever coming in next spring, so I think we’ll be fine. With three top-ten players incoming, I’m betting our fourth and final scholarship on Jules Hooper, a 6’5” guard from Detroit, who I feel has the potential to be a diamond in the rough and a player we can develop as a long-term potential starter among all the potential one-and-dones. He’s a Michigan State legacy who has shown a ton of interest, and we’ve been in his top three all year. So I am confident we can get him.
Big Ten Tournament
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Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/8 (13) Rutgers L 60-79 23-10 C. Armstead (10 pts 9 reb 2 ast) H. Brezavsek (11 pts 3 reb 3 blk)
Rutgers beat Illinois by 15 in the first round, then absolutely stomped us, earning a shot at (4) Maryland. They dispatched the Terps with ease by a 75-65 margin, setting up a Big Ten Semifinal battle against (1) Michigan, pitting the 18-15 Scarlet Knights against an overachieving but unranked 19-11 Wolverines squad for a shot at the title game. But that was where their run ended, losing against Michigan 54-81, ending their postseason chances with their abysmal NET rating. Michigan went on to blast past (3) Indiana 75-60 to secure their tournament title. And now we wait for the seedings show.
Big Ten teams in the NCAA Tournament:
Columbus: (9) Michigan
Dallas: (6) Maryland
Spokane: (4) Michigan State
This was one of the Big Ten’s worst showings ever for the main tournament. Indiana and Ohio State are relegated to the NIT, Purdue and Wisconsin made the third-level CBI Tournament, and Nebraska and Minnesota will play in the bottom-rung CBT Tournament. So nine Big Ten teams are “in the postseason,” but only three are really dancing.
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jksander - Elite Member
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Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Sun Feb 26, 2023 2:16 am
NCAA Tournament
By the Thursday noon start time for NCAA Tournament games, EVERY SINGLE BIG TEN TEAM had been eliminated from postseason competition outside the main tournament. All six of the games on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday ended in losses. So that left the spotlight on us, Maryland and Michigan to try and bring some postseason glory to the conference. Michigan played in a late afternoon Thursday game, beating (8) Oklahoma in an overtime stunner 74-72 to get things started nicely! Then on Friday Maryland kept things going with a 12-point win over (11) Weber State 88-76, and we won comfortably against Dartmouth to advance ourselves. Michigan then faced down (1) North Carolina in the marquee game on Saturday evening, and though the Wolverines kept it close, they were no match for the Tar Heels’ defense, losing this one 65-69. We opened the Sunday slate of games, proving to be woefully inadequate against the Longhorns, dropping our game by double digits, 66-81, missing out on the Sweet Sixteen and underperforming on this season by a huge margin. Only Maryland would advance, upsetting the (3) Jackrabbits of South Dakota State 78-71 to earn their third Sweet Sixteen trip of the last decade (and first since 2026!)
On Friday the 24th of March, Maryland took on (2) Temple and the Owls’ intimidating 33-4 record, and though Maryland led 39-34 at the half, they couldn’t withhold the offensive onslaught in the second half, going to overtime tied 83-83. And in the overtime period they were outscored by Temple 11-2, losing a heartbreaker 85-94.
(2) Kansas State won the NIT by beating (1) UCLA 77-71. (3) Bradley upset (1) Pepperdine 90-80 in a real shootout to win the CBI Tournament. And (2) Iowa State manhandled (1) Iona 78-49 to win the CBT Tournament.
In the Final Four, (1) Arizona won a tight defensive battle against (4) Ole Miss 66-61, while (4) Alabama obliterated (3) Arkansas 72-54 in a Final Four featuring three SEC teams. In the Pac 12 vs SEC National Championship game, Arizona proved to be unbeatable yet again, blowing the Razorbacks away 61-43. The Wildcats finished 35-6 on the season, winning their third National Title in four years, their FIFTH in the last DECADE under Tim Davis, who is now 327-53 and, at 58 years old, shows no signs of slowing down before giving John Wooden a run for his money!
Team Leaders
Scoring: Morlaye Kelley (12.8 ppg) Cameron Armstead (11.5 ppg) Jeremy Brown (10.9 ppg) Brian Samnick (10.1 ppg)
Rebounding: Morlaye Kelley (8.7 rpg) Cameron Armstead (7.2 rpg) Brian Samnick (5.4 rpg) Hugo Brezavsek (5.2 rpg)
Assists: Jeremy Brown (5.3 apg) Morlaye Kelley (2.4 apg) Brian Samnick (1.8 apg) Tyrone Douglas (1.7 apg)
Steals: Hugo Brezavsek (1.6 spg) Morlaye Kelley (1.3 spg) Colin Patton (0.8 spg)
Blocks: Hugo Brezavsek (1.4 bpg) Cameron Armstead (1.4 bpg) Colin Patton (1.0 bpg)
Graduating Players
Tyrone Douglas (4.0 GPA) 3.1 ppg 0.7 rpg 1.1 apg 0.2 spg (87 games, 2 starts)
Tre Boyd (3.6 GPA) 7.1 ppg 2.0 rpg 1.6 apg 1.2 spg 0.3 bpg (103 games, 61 starts)
Morlaye Kelley (3.5 GPA) 9.0 ppg 5.4 rpg 1.8 apg 1.2 spg 0.6 bpg (132 games, 102 starts)
Leaving Early
Hugo Brezavsek (2.6 GPA) 8.8 ppg 5.2 rpg 1.5 apg 1.6 spg 1.4 bpg (32 starts)
Awards
2nd Team All Big Ten: Morlaye Kelley
2nd Team All Big Ten: Cameron Armstead
Maryland’s Kevin Althoff won Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Player of the Year, while his coach William Riddick won Big Ten Coach of the Year.
Commmitted Recruits -- Final List
7’0” C Winston McKeever (HS Senior, Bell FL) 3.0 GPA (#2 Ntl, #1 Reg) 25.5 ppg 17.6 rpg 3.9 apg 2.2 spg 4.8 bpg
6’7” PF Joey Boythe (HS Senior, Baird TX) 3.1 GPA (#5 Ntl, #2 Reg) 26.7 ppg 10.1 rpg 1.9 apg 2.3 spg 4.3 bpg
6’7” PF Ross Smith (HS Senior, Washington MD) 3.2 GPA (#10 Ntl, #2 Reg) 24.2 ppg 9.7 rpg 1.6 apg 3.3 spg 2.8 bpg
6’5” PG Jules Hooper (HS Senior, Detroit MI) 3.2 GPA (#187 Ntl, #36 Reg) 14.4 ppg 5.1 apg 5.1 rpg 2.9 spg 2.5 bpg
We signed three five-star recruits and won 20+ games, but our prestige dropped from 97% to 90% due to not winning a conference title or competing for a national championship. So while the board is willing to give me time, they’re not happy that we backslid -- and clearly they want our teams to look more like Arizona’s finish than we did as the season slowly collapsed on us.
Our third assistant, Alexander Ohnstad, accepted the head coaching position at NC Central and has vacated his position. He was making $47,500 for three more seasons, and had a 54% Development rating, so we had to go looking for a coach who could pick up where he’d left off. We wound up making an improvement in the area, nabbing Derrick Townes, age 53, from Stephen F. Austin -- he’s spent the last ten seasons as their second assistant, and we signed him at $57,250 per year for four years to bring his 68% development rating into our staff. With my AHC having just two years on his contract and our 2nd Assistant with three years, I was able to assure him there will be room for him to move up in my staff, and he’ll have the chance to help develop NBA talent rather than fighting to get a low-major into a tertiary tournament any given year.
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Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/17 (13) Dartmouth W 85-75 24-10 M. Kelley (19 pts 10 reb 2 ast 1 blk) J. Brown (11 pts 3 reb 9 ast 1 blk)
3/19 (5) Texas L 66-81 24-11 M. Kelley (16 pts 3 reb 3 ast) H. Brezavsek (10 pts 6 reb 4 stl)
By the Thursday noon start time for NCAA Tournament games, EVERY SINGLE BIG TEN TEAM had been eliminated from postseason competition outside the main tournament. All six of the games on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday ended in losses. So that left the spotlight on us, Maryland and Michigan to try and bring some postseason glory to the conference. Michigan played in a late afternoon Thursday game, beating (8) Oklahoma in an overtime stunner 74-72 to get things started nicely! Then on Friday Maryland kept things going with a 12-point win over (11) Weber State 88-76, and we won comfortably against Dartmouth to advance ourselves. Michigan then faced down (1) North Carolina in the marquee game on Saturday evening, and though the Wolverines kept it close, they were no match for the Tar Heels’ defense, losing this one 65-69. We opened the Sunday slate of games, proving to be woefully inadequate against the Longhorns, dropping our game by double digits, 66-81, missing out on the Sweet Sixteen and underperforming on this season by a huge margin. Only Maryland would advance, upsetting the (3) Jackrabbits of South Dakota State 78-71 to earn their third Sweet Sixteen trip of the last decade (and first since 2026!)
On Friday the 24th of March, Maryland took on (2) Temple and the Owls’ intimidating 33-4 record, and though Maryland led 39-34 at the half, they couldn’t withhold the offensive onslaught in the second half, going to overtime tied 83-83. And in the overtime period they were outscored by Temple 11-2, losing a heartbreaker 85-94.
(2) Kansas State won the NIT by beating (1) UCLA 77-71. (3) Bradley upset (1) Pepperdine 90-80 in a real shootout to win the CBI Tournament. And (2) Iowa State manhandled (1) Iona 78-49 to win the CBT Tournament.
In the Final Four, (1) Arizona won a tight defensive battle against (4) Ole Miss 66-61, while (4) Alabama obliterated (3) Arkansas 72-54 in a Final Four featuring three SEC teams. In the Pac 12 vs SEC National Championship game, Arizona proved to be unbeatable yet again, blowing the Razorbacks away 61-43. The Wildcats finished 35-6 on the season, winning their third National Title in four years, their FIFTH in the last DECADE under Tim Davis, who is now 327-53 and, at 58 years old, shows no signs of slowing down before giving John Wooden a run for his money!
Team Leaders
Scoring: Morlaye Kelley (12.8 ppg) Cameron Armstead (11.5 ppg) Jeremy Brown (10.9 ppg) Brian Samnick (10.1 ppg)
Rebounding: Morlaye Kelley (8.7 rpg) Cameron Armstead (7.2 rpg) Brian Samnick (5.4 rpg) Hugo Brezavsek (5.2 rpg)
Assists: Jeremy Brown (5.3 apg) Morlaye Kelley (2.4 apg) Brian Samnick (1.8 apg) Tyrone Douglas (1.7 apg)
Steals: Hugo Brezavsek (1.6 spg) Morlaye Kelley (1.3 spg) Colin Patton (0.8 spg)
Blocks: Hugo Brezavsek (1.4 bpg) Cameron Armstead (1.4 bpg) Colin Patton (1.0 bpg)
Graduating Players
Tyrone Douglas (4.0 GPA) 3.1 ppg 0.7 rpg 1.1 apg 0.2 spg (87 games, 2 starts)
Tre Boyd (3.6 GPA) 7.1 ppg 2.0 rpg 1.6 apg 1.2 spg 0.3 bpg (103 games, 61 starts)
Morlaye Kelley (3.5 GPA) 9.0 ppg 5.4 rpg 1.8 apg 1.2 spg 0.6 bpg (132 games, 102 starts)
Leaving Early
Hugo Brezavsek (2.6 GPA) 8.8 ppg 5.2 rpg 1.5 apg 1.6 spg 1.4 bpg (32 starts)
Awards
2nd Team All Big Ten: Morlaye Kelley
2nd Team All Big Ten: Cameron Armstead
Maryland’s Kevin Althoff won Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Player of the Year, while his coach William Riddick won Big Ten Coach of the Year.
Commmitted Recruits -- Final List
7’0” C Winston McKeever (HS Senior, Bell FL) 3.0 GPA (#2 Ntl, #1 Reg) 25.5 ppg 17.6 rpg 3.9 apg 2.2 spg 4.8 bpg
6’7” PF Joey Boythe (HS Senior, Baird TX) 3.1 GPA (#5 Ntl, #2 Reg) 26.7 ppg 10.1 rpg 1.9 apg 2.3 spg 4.3 bpg
6’7” PF Ross Smith (HS Senior, Washington MD) 3.2 GPA (#10 Ntl, #2 Reg) 24.2 ppg 9.7 rpg 1.6 apg 3.3 spg 2.8 bpg
6’5” PG Jules Hooper (HS Senior, Detroit MI) 3.2 GPA (#187 Ntl, #36 Reg) 14.4 ppg 5.1 apg 5.1 rpg 2.9 spg 2.5 bpg
We signed three five-star recruits and won 20+ games, but our prestige dropped from 97% to 90% due to not winning a conference title or competing for a national championship. So while the board is willing to give me time, they’re not happy that we backslid -- and clearly they want our teams to look more like Arizona’s finish than we did as the season slowly collapsed on us.
Our third assistant, Alexander Ohnstad, accepted the head coaching position at NC Central and has vacated his position. He was making $47,500 for three more seasons, and had a 54% Development rating, so we had to go looking for a coach who could pick up where he’d left off. We wound up making an improvement in the area, nabbing Derrick Townes, age 53, from Stephen F. Austin -- he’s spent the last ten seasons as their second assistant, and we signed him at $57,250 per year for four years to bring his 68% development rating into our staff. With my AHC having just two years on his contract and our 2nd Assistant with three years, I was able to assure him there will be room for him to move up in my staff, and he’ll have the chance to help develop NBA talent rather than fighting to get a low-major into a tertiary tournament any given year.
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jksander - Elite Member
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Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Mon Feb 27, 2023 1:37 am
SEASON ELEVEN
2032-33
2032-33
Coach Information
Name: Dale Connover
Age / Record: 46 (264-103, .719)
National Titles: 1 (2031)
Contract: $1,415,000 / 2 years
Reputation: 96%
National Title Appearances: 2 (2029, 2031)
Final Fours: 4 (2025-2026, 2029, 2031)
Elite Eights: 5 (2025-2027, 2029, 2031)
Sweet Sixteens: 6 (2024-2027, 2029, 2031)
Big Ten Titles: 1 (2031)
Big Ten Tourney Titles: 1 (2031)
SEC Titles: 1 (2025)
SEC Tourney Titles: 2 (2025, 2026)
National Coach of the Year: 0
Big Ten Coach of the Year: 1 (2031)
SEC Coach of the Year: 2 (2025-2026)
Offense: 81%
Defense: 64%
Recruiting: 94%
Scouting: 84% (+2)
Development: 95%
School Information
School: Michigan State Spartans
Location: East Lansing MI
Conference: Big Ten
Arena: Jack Breslin Student Events Center (14,797 Cap)
Budget: $529,200 ($333,250 Assistants / $195,950 Recruiting)
Facilities: A+
Academics: B (SAT Min: 940)
School Prestige: 90% (-7)
Conf. Prestige: 79% (-4)
Top 5 Recruit Classes
1. Kansas
2. Duke
3. Michigan State
4. Kentucky
5. VA Commonwealth
VA Commonwealth is the surprise of the recruiting season for sure. The Rams have been a solid team for years, with head coach Brian Hamilton averaging 25.7 wins per season over the last decade, but they’ve only made it past the NCAA Tourney second round twice (Sweet Sixteens in 2026 and 2031). With their team preseason ranked 8th in the nation, it’s clear there will be a lot more eyes on the Rams this season -- and surely a rise in pressure as well.
Top 5 Big Ten Recruit Classes
3. Michigan State
6. Purdue
28. Wisconsin
35. Michigan
37. Ohio State
Scouting Reports
Midwest Premium ($30,000)
National Premium ($80,000)
Summer Travel
Indy Elite Camp ($4,100)
Chicago Prep Revue ($3,700)
NBA Draft
16. Hugo Brezavsek
17. Morlaye Kelley
None of our players are transfering out, which means we have a strong remaining youth core from last year’s 24-win team, plus the additions of another top three class which should make us the favorite to win the Big Ten this season and return to the second weekend of the NCAA Tourney and beyond. We’re preseason ranked #2 in the nation (behind Kansas and ahead of Arizona) and we have three scholarships available to fill at the moment. I’ve asked our AD to help me put together a tough non-conference road schedule to combat the struggles we had upon entering Big Ten competition. I don’t want to be caught by surprise, even if it means losing some tough Quad 1 games early.
Norton Nominees
Winston McKeever - Preseason Player of the Year
Cameron Armstead
McKeever has made it pretty clear he intends to use our program as a jumping-off point for the NBA, but he intends to put up Norton Award numbers, and I’m excited to see what he can accomplish as part of our deep roster this season.
Recruits
6’4” SG Chad Wheat (HS Senior, Harlingen TX) 2.9 GPA (#6 Ntl, #2 Reg) 22.1 ppg 6.2 rpg 3.6 apg 5.9 spg 0.9 bpg
6’11” C Morris Phillips (HS Senior, Mt. Vernon IL) 2.9 GPA (#16 Ntl, #2 Reg) 20.7 ppg 15.2 rpg 2.8 apg 3.6 spg 2.9 bpg
6’5” PG Jesse Fox (HS Senior, Sells AZ) 3.2 GPA (#64 Ntl, #13 Reg) 18.1 ppg 3.9 rpg 3.8 apg 1.6 spg 0.4 bpg
Another top notch class, with guards we definitely need as well as a top quality center to replace Winston McKeever when he bails for the NBA. And if, amazingly, he stays for a second year, we’ll be able to shuffle Phillips in to provide balance among our big men. It’s all about easing the transition and finding players who can play multiple roles for when players exit early.
Schedule
11/14 - (n) Evansville - Preseason NIT
11/23 - @ #8 VA Commonwealth
11/26 - #18 Florida
11/30 - #17 Tennessee
12/3 - @ #3 Arizona
12/7 - @ #10 West Virginia
12/10 - Butler
12/14 - @ #6 Duke
12/21 - #24 Georgia
Our 17-game Breslin Center win streak will face serious competition during the pre-Conference season, with just four true home games, all against the best of the best. Get your season tickets now, folks! You won’t want to miss out on the fun!
Team Roster
PG - Jeremy Brown (5’10” 156 lbs So) Glenwood City WI (Glenwood City HS) 3.1 GPA (3.5/4.0) 10.9 ppg 2.2 rpg 5.3 apg 0.4 spg 0.3 bpg
SG - Brian Samnick (6’3” 175 lbs Sr) Cincinnati OH (Indian Hill HS) 2.7 GPA (3.0/4.5) 10.1 ppg 5.4 rpg 1.8 apg 0.3 spg
SF - Joey Boythe (6’7” 223 lbs Fr) Baird TX (Baird HS) 3.1 GPA (4.0/5.0)
PF - Cameron Armstead (6’6” 216 lbs So) Bristow OK (Bristow HS) 3.4 GPA (4.5/5.0) 11.5 ppg 7.2 rpg 1.2 apg 0.5 spg 1.4 bpg
C - Winston McKeever (7’0” 259 lbs Fr) Bell FL (Bell HS) 3.0 GPA (5.0/5.0)
6 - Colin Patton (6’6” 222 lbs Sr) Sauk Centre MN (Sauk Centre HS) 3.6 GPA (4.0/5.0) 5.3 ppg 3.5 rpg 1.0 apg 0.8 spg 1.0 bpg
7 - Ross Smith (6’7” 228 lbs Fr) Washington MD (Eastern HS) 3.2 GPA (2.0/5.0)
8 - Justin Person (6’4” 218 lbs Sr) Buchanan MI (Buchanan HS) 2.5 GPA (3.0/4.0) 2.2 ppg 1.0 rpg 1.7 apg 0.1 spg
9 - Darryl Adams (6’5” 184 lbs So RS) Engadine MI (Engadine HS) 3.3 GPA (2.5/4.0) 2.2 ppg 1.6 rpg 0.5 apg 0.5 spg 0.1 bpg
10 - Dan Molinari (6’8” 259 lbs Fr RS) LaCrosse WI (Central HS) 3.8 GPA (1.0/2.5)
11 - Nick Collum (6’5” 229 lbs So RS) Downs IL (Tri-Valley HS) 3.6 GPA (1.5/4.0) 2.1 ppg 1.4 rpg 0.6 apg 0.5 spg 0.3 bpg
12 - Tom Canal (6’7” 192 lbs Fr RS) Oshkosh WI (Lourdes HS) 3.3 GPA (1.0/4.0)
RS - Jules Hooper (6’5” 198 lbs Fr) Detroit MI (Murray-Wright HS) 3.2 GPA (1.0/4.0)
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jksander - Elite Member
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Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Mon Feb 27, 2023 1:42 am
The Season
VA Commonwealth’s freshman forward Ronnie Robin is legitimately good and is going to surprise a lot of people this year. He put up 21 points and 14 rebounds as the Rams fought back in the second half to hold us off on their court. They don’t play you very deep into their roster, but their starting lineup is a formidible beast. Keep an eye out, y’all.
After ten games it is clear Winston McKeever is a human highlight reel! We’re 3-1 in games of four points or closer, and he’s been the dervish on defense that has ensured that stat! Through those first ten games, he’s averaging 19.4 points 15.5 rebounds and 3.4 blocks per game, easily the best player in the country.
Midway through the conference season we’re 9-0 in Big Ten play, two full games up on Michigan (13-5, 7-2) in the standings, and riding a 16-game winning streak since losing by four at VA Commonwealth. The Big Ten is dragging us down somewhat, as only four teams (us, Michigan, Ohio State and Rutgers) have winning records at this point, and only seven Big Ten teams are in the top 100 of the NET. We, of course, are #1 in the NET, though we keep rising and falling as voters trade between us and Kansas (#3 NET, 20-1, 7-1 Big 12) as to who they think is the best of the best. We’ll have to wait until March to get our shot at them. Until then we can only win the games on our schedule.
We finished the conference season with a 16-4 record and first place by two games over Michigan, with Rutgers (19-10, 13-7) in third and Indiana (17-12, 12-8) earning the fourth double-bye for the conference tourney. Our home win streak is now at 30 consecutive games! Winston McKeever remains the Norton / National Player of the Year frontrunner, and is assured to be a 1st Team All American. The NBA Draft, meanwhile, is going to hit us hard. In addition to McKeever, who we knew was leaving, we’re also losing Joey Boythe and Ross Smith, virtually our entire freshman class. I am seriously considering hitting the transfer market for the first time rather than signing additional recruits who will be below my overall standards. We’ll see.
Big Ten Tournament
What a disappointing exit from the tournament. (3) Rutgers wound up beating (4) Indiana in the title game 62-57 to secure the automatic bid for the NCAA Tournament. The rest of us now await our seedings.
Big Ten Teams in the NCAA Tournament:
Columbus: (7) Michigan
Orlando: (1) Michigan State
Orlando: (7) Rutgers
Orlando: (9) Indiana
The committee clearly does not like the Big Ten. We only got four teams in, and they shoved three of us in one bracket. Maryland, Ohio State, Minnesota and Nebraska are headed for the NIT. Northwestern got invited to the bottom-tier CIT Tournament, which is shocking since they finished 15-15 and will be facing Portland (16-15) in the first round. Finishing 15-15 is not postseason-worthy.
NCAA Tournament
Nebraska had a good start to the NIT, beating Fairleigh Dickinson in a shellacking on Tueday, winning 96-65, and then advancing on Thursday afternoon over Little Rock by a 76-72 margin. But no other Big Ten players survived to the second week of postseason action outside the NCAA Tournament. Michigan became the first Big Ten team to bow out in Thursday March Madness action, losing a tough defensive battle to (10) Alabama 58-63. On Friday afternoon we were the first to go in front of the cameras, handling our business nicely over the deer-in-headlights Mustangs 78-47, while Rutgers outlasted (10) Ole Miss 65-54 and Indiana won the 8/9 matchup by besting (9) Georgia 72-60 ensuring them a trip to play us on Sunday. We beat them on their court by 21 in February, but March can be crazy so you can trust we were preparing hard for the game, with the Sweet Sixteen on the line and all.
On Sunday we kept up our solid crushing defense by holding IU to just 49 points in a 23-point drubbing, going back to the Sweet Sixteem while Rutgers tried valliantly and failed against VA Commonwealth, losing their matchup 68-81. That leaves us and Nebraska as the last two Big Ten teams standing in the postseason. And Nebraska kept winning as well, beating Weber State in a tough one on the 21st, advancing 88-82 to the NIT Final Four in New York City.
In the Sweet Sixteen we faced (12) Northern Iowa and dispatched them without much extended effort beyond a typical 32 point 20 rebound performance from McKeever. But we mat up again with VA Commonwealth in the Elite Eight and were again stymied by their relentless pressure and fell by 19 points in a truly disappointing performance considering the amount of talent we’re losing after this season. It seemed like this was the year we’d be able to cut the nets down again, but alas, not happening.
Nebraska played Florida State in the NIT Semifinals on the 28th, building a five point halftime lead and never looking back, winning 79-71. They would face Boise State in the title game, winning 66-51. So at least somoene in the Big Ten got to cut down a net somewhere. South Florida won the CBI Tournament by beating Louisville at the buzzer, 79-78. Portland won the CBT Tournament by beating Elon 78-74. They made the CBI Tournament Finals two years ago, and head coach Larry Woods, who is 174-180 in eleven seasons with the Pilots, remains one of the best coaches to win a bunch of postseason games without ever getting out of the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Yet the Pilots have won 20+ games five years in a row now, so I think he’ll keep coaching out there for as long as they’ll let him. Will be interesting to see if they can get over the hump and into the NCAA Tournament.
In the Final Four, all eyes were anticipating a grudge match in the title game between Arizona and Kansas, and nothing (6) South Dakota State or (2) VA Commonwealth could do on the court made that less of a reality. Arizona won their Semifinal 79-58 over SD State, and Kansas bested VA Commonwealth 85-66. But Kansas got the last laught in a game they were expected to lose by dougle digits, when the Jayhawks stunned Arizona and prevented a repeat via a 77-66 statement victory. We beat them in the Finals two years ago, but head coach Mike Whitehead finally was able to get his second title with the Jayhawks, his first since winning it all in 2023.
Team Leaders
Scoring: Winston McKeever (17.1 ppg) Joey Boythe (12.5 ppg) Cameron Armstead (10.7 ppg) Jeremy Brown (10.4 ppg)
Rebounding: Winston McKeever (13.4 rpg) Cameron Armstead (6.6 rpg) Brian Samnick (5.3 rpg) Joey Boythe (3.9 rpg)
Assists: Jeremy Brown (7.1 apg) Winston McKeever (2.2 apg) Brian Samnick (2.0 apg)
Steals: Winston McKeever (2.1 spg) Joey Boythe (1.2 spg) Jeremy Brown (0.7 bpg)
Blocks: Winston McKeever (2.9 bpg) Cameron Armstead (1.5 bpg)
Graduating Players
Brian Samnick (2.9 GPA) 10.0 ppg 5.3 rpg 1.9 apg 0.2 spg (64 starts)
Justin Person (2.6 GPA) 2.8 ppg 1.0 rpg 1.8 apg (66 games)
Colin Patton (3.6 GPA) 3.5 ppg 2.2 rpg 0.6 apg 0.5 spg 0.5 bpg (134 games)
Leaving Early
Winston McKeever (3.0 GPA) 17.1 ppg 13.4 rpg 2.2 apg 2.1 spg 2.9 bpg (33 starts)
Joey Boythe (3.5 GPA) 12.5 ppg 3.9 rpg 1.9 apg 1.2 spg 0.6 bpg (33 starts)
Ross Smith (3.2 GPA) 3.5 ppg 2.4 rpg 1.0 apg 0.6 spg 0.3 bpg (33 games)
Awards
Norton Award: Winston McKeever
National Player of the Year: Winston McKeever
National Defensive Player of the Year: Winston McKeever
National Freshman of the Year: Winston McKeever
1st Team All American: Winston McKeever
Big Ten Player of the Year: Winston McKeever
Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year: Winston McKeever
Big Ten Freshman of the Year: Winston McKeever
Kansas’ Mike Whitehead won National Coach of the Year.
Nebraska’s Ales Forbes won Big Ten Coach of the Year for leading his team to the NIT Title.
Commmitted Recruits -- Final List
6’4” SG Chad Wheat (HS Senior, Harlingen TX) 2.9 GPA (#6 Ntl, #2 Reg) 22.1 ppg 6.2 rpg 3.6 apg 5.9 spg 0.9 bpg
6’11” C Morris Phillips (HS Senior, Mt. Vernon IL) 2.9 GPA (#16 Ntl, #2 Reg) 20.7 ppg 15.2 rpg 2.8 apg 3.6 spg 2.9 bpg
6’5” PG Jesse Fox (HS Senior, Sells AZ) 3.2 GPA (#64 Ntl, #13 Reg) 18.1 ppg 3.9 rpg 3.8 apg 1.6 spg 0.4 bpg
6’7” PF Todd Carney (HS Senior, Kendallville IN) 2.8 GPA (#261 Ntl, #40 Reg) 15.1 ppg 7.6 rpg 3.2 apg 1.8 spg 2.6 bpg
6’3” SG Hewitt Gaither (HS Senior, Farwell MI) 2.6 GPA (#350 Ntl, #56 Reg) 17.9 ppg 4.0 rpg 3.2 apg 1.3 spg 1.6 bpg
I offered my Associate Head Coach, Jon Fox, a new four year contract with a raise to $207,000 / year to go along with my new six year deal worth $1,485,000 per year. The board has agreed to increase our recruiting and staff budget to $555,660 from $529,200 per year, knowing that we’re now recruiting with the big boys. If we want to compete against the Kansases and Arizonas of the world we’re going to have to get better at turning over vast swaths of our team on a yearly basis.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
11/14 #2 (n) Evansville W 65-53 1-0 C. Armstead (16 pts 6 reb 3 blk) W. McKeever (8 pts 16 reb 4 stl 5 blk)
11/16 #2 (n) Dayton W 83-67 2-0 W. McKeever (30 pts 14 reb 3 ast 3 blk) J. Boythe (13 pts 7 reb 1 ast)
11/18 #2 (n) UCSB W 72-59 3-0 W. McKeever (17 pts 14 reb 6 blk) J. Boythe (22 pts 7 reb 3 ast 1 stl)
11/20 #1 (n) #10 San Diego St. W 91-76 4-0 W. McKeever (25 pts 15 reb 4 ast 5 blk) B. Samnick (19 pts 7 reb)
11/23 #1 @ VA Commonwealth L 83-87 4-1 W. McKeever (34 pts 19 reb 5 stl 3 blk) J. Boythe (10 pts 3 reb 1 ast)
VA Commonwealth’s freshman forward Ronnie Robin is legitimately good and is going to surprise a lot of people this year. He put up 21 points and 14 rebounds as the Rams fought back in the second half to hold us off on their court. They don’t play you very deep into their roster, but their starting lineup is a formidible beast. Keep an eye out, y’all.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
11/26 #1 Florida W 74-44 5-1 B. Samnick (14 pts 9 reb 2 ast) J. Boythe (12 pts 3 reb 3 ast 1 stl)
11/30 #1 Tennessee W 81-70 6-1 W. McKeever (15 pts 14 reb 2 ast 2 blk) C. Armstead (22 pts 6 reb 2 blk)
12/3 #1 @ #4 Arizona W 82-78 7-1 J. Brown (28 pts 9 ast 1 stl) W. McKeever (9 pts 15 reb 2 stl)
12/7 #1 @ #23 West Virginia W 88-85 8-1 W. McKeever (24 pts 14 reb 3 blk) C. Armstead (24 pts 9 reb 2 ast 2 blk)
12/10 #1 #8 Butler W 72-69 9-1 W. McKeever (25 pts 25 reb 3 blk) J. Boythe (14 pts 3 reb 2 ast 1 blk)
After ten games it is clear Winston McKeever is a human highlight reel! We’re 3-1 in games of four points or closer, and he’s been the dervish on defense that has ensured that stat! Through those first ten games, he’s averaging 19.4 points 15.5 rebounds and 3.4 blocks per game, easily the best player in the country.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
12/14 #1 @ Duke W 74-36 10-1 W. McKeever (15 pts 15 reb 3 ast 2 blk) C. Armstead (10 pts 7 reb 2 ast)
12/21 #1 #17 Georgia W 86-65 11-1 W. McKeever (21 pts 16 reb 6 stl 2 blk) J. Brown (10 pts 10 ast)
12/26 #1 Northwestern W 77-49 12-1 (1-0) J. Person (18 pts 1 reb) W. McKeever (13 pts 8 reb 3 stl 8 blk)
12/28 #1 @ Purdue W 75-62 13-1 (2-0) W. McKeever (19 pts 10 reb 3 ast 3 stl) J. Boythe (22 pts 6 reb 2 ast)
1/2 #2 @ Penn State W 87-77 14-1 (3-0) J. Brown (26 pts 6 ast) C. Armstead (17 pts 10 reb 4 blk)
1/4 #2 Iowa W 90-61 15-1 (4-0) W. McKeever (24 pts 13 reb 4 stl 5 blk) C. Patton (16 pts 6 reb 2 blk)
1/6 #2 @ Nebraska W 79-74 16-1 (5-0) W. McKeever (19 pts 21 reb 3 stl 3 blk) J. Brown (10 pts 10 ast)
1/13 #1 @ Minnesota W 88-78 17-1 (6-0) W. McKeever (26 pts 15 reb 3 blk) C. Armstead (17 pts 6 reb 5 ast)
1/16 #1 Penn State W 80-56 18-1 (7-0) W. McKeever (12 pts 16 reb 6 ast 4 stl) B. Samnick (20 pts 7 reb 1 stl)
1/20 #1 Purdue W 70-51 19-1 (8-0) J. Boythe (19 pts 7 reb 3 ast) W. McKeever (10 pts 15 reb 3 ast 3 blk)
1/25 #1 @ Illinois W 78-69 20-1 (9-0) W. McKeever (24 pts 17 reb 3 stl 4 blk) J. Brown (11 pts 2 reb 9 ast)
Midway through the conference season we’re 9-0 in Big Ten play, two full games up on Michigan (13-5, 7-2) in the standings, and riding a 16-game winning streak since losing by four at VA Commonwealth. The Big Ten is dragging us down somewhat, as only four teams (us, Michigan, Ohio State and Rutgers) have winning records at this point, and only seven Big Ten teams are in the top 100 of the NET. We, of course, are #1 in the NET, though we keep rising and falling as voters trade between us and Kansas (#3 NET, 20-1, 7-1 Big 12) as to who they think is the best of the best. We’ll have to wait until March to get our shot at them. Until then we can only win the games on our schedule.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
1/30 #2 Ohio State W 61-39 21-1 (10-0) B. Samnick (22 pts 5 reb 2 ast) J. Brown (15 pts 3 reb 7 ast 1 stl)
2/3 #2 @ Rutgers L 73-98 21-2 (10-1) W. McKeever (19 pts 10 reb 3 blk) J. Boythe (14 pts 2 reb 1 blk)
2/6 #2 @ Northwestern L 60-69 21-3 (10-2) W. McKeever (19 pts 12 reb 4 stl 3 blk) C. Armstead (10 pts 2 reb 1 stl)
2/10 #2 Nebraska W 85-71 22-3 (11-2) W. McKeever (31 pts 13 reb 2 ast 4 blk) J. Boythe (12 pts 4 reb 4 ast)
2/13 #2 Maryland W 100-67 23-3 (12-2) W. McKeever (23 pts 10 reb 2 stl 3 blk) J. Brown (20 pts 4 reb 8 ast)
2/17 #2 Rutgers W 72-46 24-3 (13-2) W. McKeever (17 pts 13 reb 6 ast 4 stl) B. Samnick (10 pts 4 reb 2 ast)
2/20 #2 @ Wisconsin L 48-58 24-4 (13-3) J. Brown (12 pts 3 reb 6 ast 2 stl) J. Boythe (12 pts 1 stl)
2/24 #2 Minnesota W 83-76 25-4 (14-3) B. Samnick (22 pts 4 reb 3 ast) C. Armstead (14 pts 6 reb 1 stl 2 blk)
2/27 #2 @ Indiana W 77-56 26-4 (15-3) W. McKeever (27 pts 18 reb 3 stl 4 blk) C. Armstead (19 pts 9 reb 1 blk)
3/1 #2 Michigan W 94-72 27-4 (16-3) W. McKeever (18 pts 10 reb) C. Armstead (25 pts 4 reb 6 ast)
3/3 #2 @ Ohio State L 44-61 27-5 (16-4) B. Samnick (17 pts 8 reb 1 ast) J. Boythe (16 pts 9 reb 1 blk)
We finished the conference season with a 16-4 record and first place by two games over Michigan, with Rutgers (19-10, 13-7) in third and Indiana (17-12, 12-8) earning the fourth double-bye for the conference tourney. Our home win streak is now at 30 consecutive games! Winston McKeever remains the Norton / National Player of the Year frontrunner, and is assured to be a 1st Team All American. The NBA Draft, meanwhile, is going to hit us hard. In addition to McKeever, who we knew was leaving, we’re also losing Joey Boythe and Ross Smith, virtually our entire freshman class. I am seriously considering hitting the transfer market for the first time rather than signing additional recruits who will be below my overall standards. We’ll see.
Big Ten Tournament
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Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/9 (8) Ohio State L 41-53 27-6 J. Brown (15 pts 4 reb 5 ast) J. Boythe (11 pts 3 reb 2 ast 1 stl 1 blk)
What a disappointing exit from the tournament. (3) Rutgers wound up beating (4) Indiana in the title game 62-57 to secure the automatic bid for the NCAA Tournament. The rest of us now await our seedings.
Big Ten Teams in the NCAA Tournament:
Columbus: (7) Michigan
Orlando: (1) Michigan State
Orlando: (7) Rutgers
Orlando: (9) Indiana
The committee clearly does not like the Big Ten. We only got four teams in, and they shoved three of us in one bracket. Maryland, Ohio State, Minnesota and Nebraska are headed for the NIT. Northwestern got invited to the bottom-tier CIT Tournament, which is shocking since they finished 15-15 and will be facing Portland (16-15) in the first round. Finishing 15-15 is not postseason-worthy.
NCAA Tournament
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Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/17 (16) Cal Poly W 78-47 28-6 W. McKeever (21 pts 9 reb 4 blk) C. Armstead (17 pts 1 reb 1 ast 2 stl)
3/19 (8) Indiana W 72-49 29-6 W. McKeever (20 pts 15 reb 3 ast 4 stl 5 blk) C. Armstead (17 pts 8 reb 1 blk)
3/24 (12) Northern Iowa W 92-67 30-6 W. McKeever (32 pts 20 reb 3 stl 2 blk) J. Boythe (15 pts 3 reb 2 ast 3 stl)
3/26 (2) VA Commonwealth L 61-80 30-7 W. McKeever (23 pts 12 reb 3 ast 3 stl 2 blk) B. Samnick (11 pts 6 reb 1 ast)
Nebraska had a good start to the NIT, beating Fairleigh Dickinson in a shellacking on Tueday, winning 96-65, and then advancing on Thursday afternoon over Little Rock by a 76-72 margin. But no other Big Ten players survived to the second week of postseason action outside the NCAA Tournament. Michigan became the first Big Ten team to bow out in Thursday March Madness action, losing a tough defensive battle to (10) Alabama 58-63. On Friday afternoon we were the first to go in front of the cameras, handling our business nicely over the deer-in-headlights Mustangs 78-47, while Rutgers outlasted (10) Ole Miss 65-54 and Indiana won the 8/9 matchup by besting (9) Georgia 72-60 ensuring them a trip to play us on Sunday. We beat them on their court by 21 in February, but March can be crazy so you can trust we were preparing hard for the game, with the Sweet Sixteen on the line and all.
On Sunday we kept up our solid crushing defense by holding IU to just 49 points in a 23-point drubbing, going back to the Sweet Sixteem while Rutgers tried valliantly and failed against VA Commonwealth, losing their matchup 68-81. That leaves us and Nebraska as the last two Big Ten teams standing in the postseason. And Nebraska kept winning as well, beating Weber State in a tough one on the 21st, advancing 88-82 to the NIT Final Four in New York City.
In the Sweet Sixteen we faced (12) Northern Iowa and dispatched them without much extended effort beyond a typical 32 point 20 rebound performance from McKeever. But we mat up again with VA Commonwealth in the Elite Eight and were again stymied by their relentless pressure and fell by 19 points in a truly disappointing performance considering the amount of talent we’re losing after this season. It seemed like this was the year we’d be able to cut the nets down again, but alas, not happening.
Nebraska played Florida State in the NIT Semifinals on the 28th, building a five point halftime lead and never looking back, winning 79-71. They would face Boise State in the title game, winning 66-51. So at least somoene in the Big Ten got to cut down a net somewhere. South Florida won the CBI Tournament by beating Louisville at the buzzer, 79-78. Portland won the CBT Tournament by beating Elon 78-74. They made the CBI Tournament Finals two years ago, and head coach Larry Woods, who is 174-180 in eleven seasons with the Pilots, remains one of the best coaches to win a bunch of postseason games without ever getting out of the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Yet the Pilots have won 20+ games five years in a row now, so I think he’ll keep coaching out there for as long as they’ll let him. Will be interesting to see if they can get over the hump and into the NCAA Tournament.
In the Final Four, all eyes were anticipating a grudge match in the title game between Arizona and Kansas, and nothing (6) South Dakota State or (2) VA Commonwealth could do on the court made that less of a reality. Arizona won their Semifinal 79-58 over SD State, and Kansas bested VA Commonwealth 85-66. But Kansas got the last laught in a game they were expected to lose by dougle digits, when the Jayhawks stunned Arizona and prevented a repeat via a 77-66 statement victory. We beat them in the Finals two years ago, but head coach Mike Whitehead finally was able to get his second title with the Jayhawks, his first since winning it all in 2023.
Team Leaders
Scoring: Winston McKeever (17.1 ppg) Joey Boythe (12.5 ppg) Cameron Armstead (10.7 ppg) Jeremy Brown (10.4 ppg)
Rebounding: Winston McKeever (13.4 rpg) Cameron Armstead (6.6 rpg) Brian Samnick (5.3 rpg) Joey Boythe (3.9 rpg)
Assists: Jeremy Brown (7.1 apg) Winston McKeever (2.2 apg) Brian Samnick (2.0 apg)
Steals: Winston McKeever (2.1 spg) Joey Boythe (1.2 spg) Jeremy Brown (0.7 bpg)
Blocks: Winston McKeever (2.9 bpg) Cameron Armstead (1.5 bpg)
Graduating Players
Brian Samnick (2.9 GPA) 10.0 ppg 5.3 rpg 1.9 apg 0.2 spg (64 starts)
Justin Person (2.6 GPA) 2.8 ppg 1.0 rpg 1.8 apg (66 games)
Colin Patton (3.6 GPA) 3.5 ppg 2.2 rpg 0.6 apg 0.5 spg 0.5 bpg (134 games)
Leaving Early
Winston McKeever (3.0 GPA) 17.1 ppg 13.4 rpg 2.2 apg 2.1 spg 2.9 bpg (33 starts)
Joey Boythe (3.5 GPA) 12.5 ppg 3.9 rpg 1.9 apg 1.2 spg 0.6 bpg (33 starts)
Ross Smith (3.2 GPA) 3.5 ppg 2.4 rpg 1.0 apg 0.6 spg 0.3 bpg (33 games)
Awards
Norton Award: Winston McKeever
National Player of the Year: Winston McKeever
National Defensive Player of the Year: Winston McKeever
National Freshman of the Year: Winston McKeever
1st Team All American: Winston McKeever
Big Ten Player of the Year: Winston McKeever
Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year: Winston McKeever
Big Ten Freshman of the Year: Winston McKeever
Kansas’ Mike Whitehead won National Coach of the Year.
Nebraska’s Ales Forbes won Big Ten Coach of the Year for leading his team to the NIT Title.
Commmitted Recruits -- Final List
6’4” SG Chad Wheat (HS Senior, Harlingen TX) 2.9 GPA (#6 Ntl, #2 Reg) 22.1 ppg 6.2 rpg 3.6 apg 5.9 spg 0.9 bpg
6’11” C Morris Phillips (HS Senior, Mt. Vernon IL) 2.9 GPA (#16 Ntl, #2 Reg) 20.7 ppg 15.2 rpg 2.8 apg 3.6 spg 2.9 bpg
6’5” PG Jesse Fox (HS Senior, Sells AZ) 3.2 GPA (#64 Ntl, #13 Reg) 18.1 ppg 3.9 rpg 3.8 apg 1.6 spg 0.4 bpg
6’7” PF Todd Carney (HS Senior, Kendallville IN) 2.8 GPA (#261 Ntl, #40 Reg) 15.1 ppg 7.6 rpg 3.2 apg 1.8 spg 2.6 bpg
6’3” SG Hewitt Gaither (HS Senior, Farwell MI) 2.6 GPA (#350 Ntl, #56 Reg) 17.9 ppg 4.0 rpg 3.2 apg 1.3 spg 1.6 bpg
I offered my Associate Head Coach, Jon Fox, a new four year contract with a raise to $207,000 / year to go along with my new six year deal worth $1,485,000 per year. The board has agreed to increase our recruiting and staff budget to $555,660 from $529,200 per year, knowing that we’re now recruiting with the big boys. If we want to compete against the Kansases and Arizonas of the world we’re going to have to get better at turning over vast swaths of our team on a yearly basis.
-
jksander - Elite Member
- Posts: 6445
- Joined: Sat Apr 29, 2006 1:21 am
- Location: Indianapolis, IN
Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Tue Feb 28, 2023 3:11 am
SEASON TWELVE
2033-34
2033-34
Coach Information
Name: Dale Connover
Age / Record: 47 (294-110, .728)
National Titles: 1 (2031)
Contract: $1,485,000 / 6 years
Reputation: 96%
National Title Appearances: 2 (2029, 2031)
Final Fours: 4 (2025-2026, 2029, 2031)
Elite Eights: 6 (2025-2027, 2029, 2031, 2033)
Sweet Sixteens: 7 (2024-2027, 2029, 2031, 2033)
Big Ten Titles: 2 (2031, 2033)
Big Ten Tourney Titles: 1 (2031)
SEC Titles: 1 (2025)
SEC Tourney Titles: 2 (2025, 2026)
National Coach of the Year: 0
Big Ten Coach of the Year: 1 (2031)
SEC Coach of the Year: 2 (2025-2026)
Offense: 81%
Defense: 64%
Recruiting: 94%
Scouting: 86% (+2)
Development: 95%
School Information
School: Michigan State Spartans
Location: East Lansing MI
Conference: Big Ten
Arena: Jack Breslin Student Events Center (14,797 Cap)
Budget: $555,660 ($339,280 Assistants / $216,380 Recruiting)
Facilities: A+
Academics: B (SAT Min: 940)
School Prestige: 92% (+2)
Conf. Prestige: 80% (+1)
Top 5 Recruit Classes
1. West Virginia
2. Arizona
3. Texas
4. Florida
5. Michigan State
Top 5 Big Ten Recruit Classes
5. Michigan State
8. Michigan
16. Indiana
20. Ohio State
36. Rutgers
Scouting Reports
Midwest Premium ($30,000)
National Premium ($80,000)
International Basic ($15,000)
None of our players chose to transfer. We have one open scholarship remaining from last season’s recruiting, and we’ve decided we needed depth at small forward, so I’ve offered a scholarship to Courtney Perry, a sophomore transfer from NJIT. He is a three star recruit who averaged 14.1 points 5.3 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game last year. He’s really excited to finally get to prove that he can play on a real national contender, and he knew we’d have minutes available. He wants to play, he works hard and he’s extremely athletic, which makes up for the fact that he’ll be a bit raw heading into the Big Ten meat grinder. But with him and Nick Collum being our only small forwards, he’ll definitely be our starter. Trial by fire, son, trial by fire!
Hewitt Gaither will be redshirting this season, as will Todd Carney. They both want to be able to compete for minutes, and this year they’re just too raw. But both have the potential to become four star players if they work hard and develop their skills. I’m really pleased with them as late season recruiting finds.
Summer Travel
Indy Elite Camp ($4,100)
Chicago Prep Revue ($3,700)
NBA Draft
2. Winston McKeever
5. Joey Boythe
10. Ross Smith
32. Colin Patton
I’m really pleased with Colin Patton being a high end second-round draftee. He was a role player on our team for four years and worked his ass off, and if he can make some money for an NBA team in the same kind of role, I hope he lasts for years.
Recruits
We’re in a tough spot this year for recruiting, with no open scholarships. Since I am sure there’s some risk that Cameron Armstead could leave at the end of his junior season, and our freshman pair in Chad Wheat and Morris Phillips, as five-star players, have to be considered flight risks. But without an open scholarship we really can’t go after any big names. We’re going to keep our ear to the ground for solid in-region, national and international players who are high three / low four star potential, and groom them through the season. That will give us some players we can go to in March if we need to fill a sudden opening. I may be willing to bring on a JuCo or two in that kind of situation as well.
Norton Watch
Cameron Armstead is again nominated for the Norton Award, and this year he is a 2nd Team Pre-Season All American. He currently has a 4.0 GPA, and though he’s on track to potentially graduate early, it’s hard to get a read on whether he’ll want to leave early for the NBA. He’s never been particularly concerned about playing time, though he’s always been a starter and one of the best players on the team. He knows if he comes back he’ll be the key leader on our team no matter what.
Schedule
11/14 - (n) Western Kentucky - Preseason NIT
11/21 - @ Xavier
11/24 - #9 VA Commonwealth
11/28 - @ UCLA
12/1 - #7 Louisville
12/5 - @ #10 North Carolina
12/8 - @ Butler
12/12 - #3 Arizona
12/19 - #22 Seton Hall
We are preseason ranked #11 in the nation. Ohio State (#19) is the only other Big Ten team ranked in the preseason.
Roster
PG - Jeremy Brown (5’10” 156 lbs Jr) Glenwood City WI (Glenwood City HS) 3.5 GPA (4.0/4.0) 10.4 ppg 1.8 rpg 7.1 apg 0.7 spg 0.5 bpg
SG - Chad Wheat (6’4” 195 lbs Fr) Harlingen TX (Harlingen HS) 2.9 GPA (3.0/5.0)
SF - Courtney Perry (6’8” 212 lbs So) Franklinville NJ (Delsea HS) 3.3 GPA (3.0/3.0)
PF - Cameron Armstead (6’6” 216 lbs Jr) Bristow OK (Bristow HS) 4.0 GPA (5.0/5.0) 10.7 ppg 6.6 rpg 1.2 apg 0.5 spg 1.5 bpg
C - Morris Phillips (6’11” 252 lbs Fr) Mt. Vernon IL (Mt. Vernon HS) 2.9 GPA (2.0/5.0)
6 - Darryl Adams (6’5” 184 lbs Jr RS) Engadine MI (Engadine HS) 3.6 GPA (3.0/4.0) 1.7 ppg 1.5 rpg 0.7 apg 0.1 spg
7 - Jesse Fox (6’5” 215 lbs Fr) Sells AZ (Baboquivari HS) 3.2 GPA (2.0/3.5)
8 - Jules Hooper (6’5” 198 lbs Fr RS) Detroit MI (Murray-Wright HS) 3.3 GPA (1.5/3.5)
9 - Nick Collum (6’5” 229 lbs Jr RS) Downs IL (Tri-Valley HS) 3.8 GPA (2.0/4.0) insignificant minutes
10 - Dan Molinari (6’8” 259 lbs So RS) La Crosse WI (Central HS) 4.0 GPA (1.0/3.5) 0.8 ppg 0.6 rpg 0.2 apg 0.1 bpg
11 - Tom Canal (6’7” 192 lbs So RS) Oshkosh WI (Lourdes HS) 3.5 GPA (2.0/4.0) did not play
12 - Hewitt Gaither (6’3” 178 lbs Fr) Farwell MI (Farwell Area HS) 2.6 GPA (1.0/3.0)
13 - Todd Carney (6’7” 235 lbs Fr) Kendallville IN (East Noble HS) 2.8 GPA (1.0/4.0)
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jksander - Elite Member
- Posts: 6445
- Joined: Sat Apr 29, 2006 1:21 am
- Location: Indianapolis, IN
Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Wed Mar 01, 2023 3:26 pm
The Season
Tonight was my 300th win as a head coach, and I’m just seven wins away from my 100th as a coach at Michigan State! It’s hard to believe I have only been in this game for 12 years, considering all the wonderful people I’ve crossed paths with already.
Our home win streak ended against Louisville, and we were truly brought down to earth with the brutal loss at North Carolina, where no one on our team got into double figures scoring. But losing to 3-4 Arizona on our own court really made it clear -- this is going to be a tough year with a young team trying to find wins where we can. And it’s gonna take work, a lot of it, to take a 7-5 start and turn it into a solid Big Ten season. I can already hear the other teams in the conference chomping at the bit ready to challenge us.
Cameron Armstead is, midway through the season, in the top five of the Norton race. But our team is falling apart, with rivalries between players for time on the court, and an overall frustration level that we are barely off the edge of .500, with the very real potential that if we don’t straighten the ship, we may not make the postseason at all. Tom Canal is on a two week disciplinary suspension, and if he doesn’t straighten his attitude out Nick Collum may join him. This is simply turning into a season nightmares are made of, and there are still elevel Big Ten games left to play. The silver lining is our NET ranking -- we’re still 49th in that metric, and we’re in 9th place in the Big Ten. If we can just get back above .500 we’ll still have a shot at being on the bubble.
Nick Collum got into another altercation after practice with Jules Hooper and he’d been warned. I’ve now got hin on a two week suspension as well. Just as I think we’re getting the ship righted, this s--- keeps happening. There won’t be any more warnings. I will cut players from this team if I need to.
I won my 100th game as the Michigan State coach when we hosted Maryland on the 6th. And we would go on to win five straight before falling to Purdue on our court, though by that point we were at least off the bubble for the time being. Everyone came off suspension and I hoped for once we were back in a rhythm, ready to play as a team and forget the petty bulls---. We won on the road against Nebraska and Wisconsin, and could have taken a share of third place in the Big Ten with a win at Ohio State, but we stumbled down the stretch and couldn’t pull it out. We wound up finishing tied with Rutgers for fifth place, and since they had the tiebreaker we’ll go into the Big Ten Tournament with a sixth seed. Purdue, Nebraska, Minnesota and Ohio State won the double byes.
On March 4th Cameron Armstead was named a top ten finalist for the Norton Award, and he’s expected to finish second behind Duke’s Charlie Kelley, though earning 1st Team All America status in the process. He and Chad Wheat have declared for the draft, and Nick Collum told me this week he is quitting the team and plans to transfer. Based on his attitude all year, I say good riddance. I hope he finds somewhere to shine in his senior year.
We’re way behind in the recruiting race, but I have my eyes on a pair of four star players and a three-star potential recruit from overseas who, if they work out and agree to play here, should help us at least fare well in the middle of the Big Ten pack. And next year we’ll have graduating seniors and the ability to go hard after the top recuits again.
Big Ten Tournament
We should still be safely in the tournament at this point based on our #30 NET ranking. The WSSN bracketologists have us right now on the edge of an 8 or 9-seed, so we’ll see what actually happens. (10) Illinois upset Minnesota, earning a shot at (1) Purdue in the championship game of the Big Ten Tourney, but they were blown out by twenty points ensuring they’ll likely be NIT bound instead of stealing an extra NCAA bid.
Big Ten teams in the NCAA Tournament:
Boston: (2) Purdue
Boston: (9) Michigan State
Indianapolis: (7) Nebraska
Indianapolis: (10) Rutgers
Tampa: (8) Minnesota
Boise: (9) Ohio State
The Committee must have been drunk, forcing Rutgers and Nebraska to face each other in the first round, when Rutgers could have easily been placed on the 9-seed line at the opposite end of the bracket.
Maryland got sent to the NIT, while Indiana was relegated to the CIT Tournament. The only two postseason-eligible teams in the Big Ten who were snubbed were Penn State (17-15, 8-12, 96 NET) and Illinois (18-16, 8-12, 109 NET) and I don’t think anyone’s crying about them being left at home.
NCAA Tournament
This is only my second time ever finishing outside a 20-win season, but I’m going to look at the silver lining and say at least we have Morris Phillips coming back next year. The rest of the team is going to be raw, with him and senior guard Jeremy Brown as the leaders of what looks to be a really raw young team. If I can’t find a way to outflank expectations, I worry I’ll find myself on the hot seat if the season sputters like this one.
Purdue advanced with a 77-53 win over (15) Murray State, while Nebraska outlasted Rutgers in the “Big Ten Screwjob” game, winning 87-80. Fresno State blew out (8) Minnesota 98-68, and Ohio State couldn’t figure out (8) Tennessee, losing 66-81. That led to a pair of 7/2 matchups in the Saturday games, with neither one going the way the Big Ten team hoped. (2) Purdue was stumped by USC 78-63, while (7) Nebraska collapsed against (2) Memphis losing 87-73. So there you go, no Big Ten representation in the Sweet Sixteen this year.
Maryland advanced to the NIT Final Four by beating Temple 62-46. In the NIT Semifinals they faced Florida A&M (20-14) and won an offensive shootout, 101-86, proving they’re able to win playing fast or slow. They faced off against Weber State (23-11) in the title game, winning easily 77-66 to take home the NIT title -- oddly, the second Big Ten team in a row to do so.
In the Final Four we saw four new faces take the floor. (1) Texas lost a stunner in the Semifinals to (3) VA Commonwealth, 80-68, while (7) DePaul fell to (5) Villanova 85-68. That set up a rare 3/5 matchup in the title game, as (3) VA Commonwealth won out in a tightly contested battle, 86-84.
Team Leaders
Scoring: Cameron Armstead (19.1 ppg) Chad Wheat (13.4 ppg) Jeremy Brown (12.5 ppg) Morris Phillips (7.6 ppg)
Rebounding: Cameron Armstead (10.1 rpg) Morris Phillips (6.4 rpg) Chad Wheat (3.9 rpg) Jeremy Brown (3.8 rpg)
Assists: Jeremy Brown (6.2 apg) Chad Wheat (2.5 apg) Morris Phillips (1.7 apg) Darryl Adams (1.7 apg)
Steals: Morris Phillips (2.2 spg) Darryl Adams (1.0 spg) Tom Canal (1.0 spg)
Blocks: Cameron Armstead (2.2 bpg) Morris Phillips (0.8 bpg)
Graduating Players
None.
Leaving Early
Cameron Armstead (4.0 GPA) 13.8 ppg 8.0 rpg 1.3 apg 0.5 spg 1.7 bpg (100 starts)
Chad Wheat (3.1 GPA) 13.4 ppg 3.9 rpg 2.5 apg 0.4 spg 0.1 bpg (34 starts)
Awards
1st Team All American: Cameron Armstead
Big Ten Player of the Year: Cameron Armstead
1st Team All Big Ten: Jeremy Brown
1st Team All Big Ten: Cameron Armstead
Texas’ Donny Swoger won National Coach of the Year.
Purdue’s Antwan Armstrong won Big Ten Coach of the Year.
[u]Commmitted Recruits -- Final List
6’8” SF George Carey (HS Senior, Thatcher AZ) 3.1 GPA (#107 Ntl, #19 Reg) 17.2 ppg 3.5 rpg 2.6 apg 2.5 spg 1.8 apg
6’3” SG Ray Nielsen (JuCo Sophomore, Waycross GA) 2.4 GPA (#129 Ntl, #24 Reg) 15.3 ppg 6.5 rpg 2.6 apg 1.6 spg
6’8” PF Saipele Berkowitz (Intl Senior, Israel) 2.6 GPA (#213 Ntl, #16 Reg) 15.5 ppg 5.9 rpg 3.9 apg 1.7 spg 3.3 bpg
I failed every one of my job goals according to the board, and they’re not happy. I got the players I wanted out of the kids who weren’t early signings, but that means three role players who the administration feel were desperation grabs, good enough for maybe the middle of the pack in Big Ten recruiting. WSSN is predicting we’ll finish with a top 75 class nationally, just outside the top five in the Big Ten. We’ll see what actually happens.
Indiana, Wisconsin and Penn State are all looking for new coaches, so there should be some interesting happenings in the conference next season. We’ve extended the contract of 2nd Assistant / Lead Scout Ed Williams, for four years at $77,250 -- a slight increase as the 67-year old says he’d like to retire here. He’s among the top scouting coaches in the nation, so I was inclined to accept.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
11/14 #11 (n) Western Kentucky W 69-60 1-0 C. Armstead (18 pts 18 reb 3 ast) C. Perry (16 pts 7 reb 1 ast 1 blk)
11/16 #11 (n) San Diego State W 86-64 2-0 C. Armstead (35 pts 12 reb 4 blk) M. Phillips (11 pts 8 reb 4 ast 6 stl)
11/18 #11 (n) New Mexico State W 80-74 3-0 C. Armstead (17 pts 11 reb 1 ast 1 blk) J. Brown (23 pts 7 reb 10 ast)
11/20 #5 (n) #4 Kansas L 76-83 3-1 C. Armstead (17 pts 6 reb 4 blk) D. Molinari (12 pts 3 reb 2 blk)
11/21 #5 @ Xavier W 81-80 (OT) 4-1 C. Armstead (14 pts 10 reb 2 ast 2 blk) C. Wheat (17 pts 8 reb 3 ast)
11/24 #5 VA Commonwealth W 79-77 5-1 C. Armstead (22 pts 11 reb 2 blk) J. Brown (14 pts 4 reb 11 ast 1 blk)
11/28 #5 @ #12 UCLA W 78-68 6-1 C. Wheat (27 pts 3 reb) C. Armstead (18 pts 6 reb 1 ast)
Tonight was my 300th win as a head coach, and I’m just seven wins away from my 100th as a coach at Michigan State! It’s hard to believe I have only been in this game for 12 years, considering all the wonderful people I’ve crossed paths with already.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
12/1 #5 #2 Louisville L 81-85 6-2 C. Armstead (18 pts 12 reb 3 ast 3 blk) J. Brown (19 pts 3 reb 6 ast)
12/5 #7 @ #3 North Carolina L 52-74 6-3 D. Adams (9 pts 2 ast) M. Phillips (8 pts 6 reb 2 stl)
12/8 #7 @ Butler W 76-60 7-3 C. Armstead (23 pts 9 reb 1 ast 3 blk) M. Phillips (10 pts 6 reb 3 ast)
12/12 #7 Arizona L 73-84 7-4 C. Armstead (15 pts 11 reb 1 ast 1 blk) M. Phillips (12 pts 12 reb)
12/19 #14 #24 Seton Hall L 71-82 7-5 C. Armstead (29 pts 6 reb 2 ast 2 stl) C. Wheat (13 pts 4 reb 1 ast)
Our home win streak ended against Louisville, and we were truly brought down to earth with the brutal loss at North Carolina, where no one on our team got into double figures scoring. But losing to 3-4 Arizona on our own court really made it clear -- this is going to be a tough year with a young team trying to find wins where we can. And it’s gonna take work, a lot of it, to take a 7-5 start and turn it into a solid Big Ten season. I can already hear the other teams in the conference chomping at the bit ready to challenge us.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
12/30 #19 @ Rutgers L 82-103 7-6 (0-1) C. Armstead (21 pts 13 reb 3 ast) C. Wheat (12 pts 6 reb 2 ast)
1/2 #24 Ohio State L 60-63 7-7 (0-2) M. Phillips (11 pts 11 reb 2 ast 1 blk) J. Fox (12 pts 2 ast)
1/6 #24 @ Michigan L 82-100 7-8 (0-3) C. Armstead (27 pts 10 reb 3 ast 1 stl) J. Brown (14 pts 4 reb 8 ast)
1/11 Iowa W 77-56 8-8 (1-3) C. Wheat (18 pts 3 reb 3 ast) J. Brown (12 pts 5 reb 12 ast 2 stl)
1/16 Minnesota L 62-72 8-9 (1-4) C. Armstead (28 pts 5 reb 3 ast) J. Brown (10 pts 6 reb 7 ast 1 stl)
1/18 @ Northwestern L 66-70 8-10 (1-5) C. Armstead (15 pts 11 reb 2 ast) C. Wheat (17 pts 6 reb 4 ast 2 stl)
1/20 #21 Rutgers W 96-90 9-10 (2-5) C. Armstead (29 pts 15 reb 2 blk) M. Phillips (10 pts 8 reb 2 ast 3 stl)
1/25 Indiana W 76-61 10-10 (3-5) C. Wheat (19 pts 2 reb 1 ast) C. Armstead (13 pts 13 reb)
1/27 @ Purdue L 62-82 10-11 (3-6) C. Armstead (18 pts 14 reb 4 blk) M. Phillips (6 pts 7 reb 1 ast 1 stl)
Cameron Armstead is, midway through the season, in the top five of the Norton race. But our team is falling apart, with rivalries between players for time on the court, and an overall frustration level that we are barely off the edge of .500, with the very real potential that if we don’t straighten the ship, we may not make the postseason at all. Tom Canal is on a two week disciplinary suspension, and if he doesn’t straighten his attitude out Nick Collum may join him. This is simply turning into a season nightmares are made of, and there are still elevel Big Ten games left to play. The silver lining is our NET ranking -- we’re still 49th in that metric, and we’re in 9th place in the Big Ten. If we can just get back above .500 we’ll still have a shot at being on the bubble.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
1/30 Wisconsin W 66-54 11-11 (4-6) C. Armstead (8 pts 11 reb 2 ast 4 blk) N. Collum (11 pts 4 reb 3 ast)
2/1 @ Penn State W 71-59 12-11 (5-6) C. Armstead (12 pts 18 reb 4 blk) J. Brown (26 pts 4 reb 3 ast 1 stl)
Nick Collum got into another altercation after practice with Jules Hooper and he’d been warned. I’ve now got hin on a two week suspension as well. Just as I think we’re getting the ship righted, this s--- keeps happening. There won’t be any more warnings. I will cut players from this team if I need to.
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Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
2/6 Maryland W 94-78 13-11 (6-6) C. Armstead (38 pts 12 reb 3 ast 3 stl) D. Adams (13 pts 4 reb 1 ast)
2/8 @ Illinois W 94-74 14-11 (7-6) C. Armstead (32 pts 9 reb 1 blk) J. Brown (29 pts 4 reb 6 ast 1 stl)
2/10 Michigan W 74-61 15-11 (8-6) C. Armstead (22 pts 11 reb 3 blk) J. Brown (25 pts 5 reb 8 ast)
2/15 #21 Purdue L 68-86 15-12 (8-7) C. Wheat (20 pts 4 reb 9 ast) C. Armstead (11 pts 3 reb 2 ast 1 blk)
2/17 @ Nebraska W 92-89 16-12 (9-7) C. Armstead (32 pts 10 reb 1 blk) C. Wheat (23 pts 5 reb 6 ast 1 stl)
2/20 @ Wisconsin W 61-58 17-12 (10-7) C. Wheat (23 pts 6 reb) C. Armstead (10 pts 14 reb 4 blk)
2/22 @ Ohio State L 60-65 17-13 (10-8) C. Armstead (12 pts 10 reb 3 blk) J. Brown (16 pts 1 reb 2 ast)
3/1 Penn State W 70-42 18-13 (11-8) C. Armstead (15 pts 13 reb 3 blk) J. Brown (14 pts 6 reb 6 ast 1 stl)
3/3 @ Indiana L 65-86 18-14 (11-9) C. Armstead (24 pts 2 reb 2 blk) C. Wheat (16 pts 4 reb 2 ast)
I won my 100th game as the Michigan State coach when we hosted Maryland on the 6th. And we would go on to win five straight before falling to Purdue on our court, though by that point we were at least off the bubble for the time being. Everyone came off suspension and I hoped for once we were back in a rhythm, ready to play as a team and forget the petty bulls---. We won on the road against Nebraska and Wisconsin, and could have taken a share of third place in the Big Ten with a win at Ohio State, but we stumbled down the stretch and couldn’t pull it out. We wound up finishing tied with Rutgers for fifth place, and since they had the tiebreaker we’ll go into the Big Ten Tournament with a sixth seed. Purdue, Nebraska, Minnesota and Ohio State won the double byes.
On March 4th Cameron Armstead was named a top ten finalist for the Norton Award, and he’s expected to finish second behind Duke’s Charlie Kelley, though earning 1st Team All America status in the process. He and Chad Wheat have declared for the draft, and Nick Collum told me this week he is quitting the team and plans to transfer. Based on his attitude all year, I say good riddance. I hope he finds somewhere to shine in his senior year.
We’re way behind in the recruiting race, but I have my eyes on a pair of four star players and a three-star potential recruit from overseas who, if they work out and agree to play here, should help us at least fare well in the middle of the Big Ten pack. And next year we’ll have graduating seniors and the ability to go hard after the top recuits again.
Big Ten Tournament
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Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/8 (11) Penn State W 78-71 19-14 C. Armstead (11 pts 13 reb 2 ast 3 blk) J. Brown (19 pts 4 reb 3 ast)
3/9 (3) Minnesota L 76-84 19-15 C. Wheat (23 pts 5 reb 4 ast) C. Armstead (16 pts 6 reb 1 stl 1 blk)
We should still be safely in the tournament at this point based on our #30 NET ranking. The WSSN bracketologists have us right now on the edge of an 8 or 9-seed, so we’ll see what actually happens. (10) Illinois upset Minnesota, earning a shot at (1) Purdue in the championship game of the Big Ten Tourney, but they were blown out by twenty points ensuring they’ll likely be NIT bound instead of stealing an extra NCAA bid.
Big Ten teams in the NCAA Tournament:
Boston: (2) Purdue
Boston: (9) Michigan State
Indianapolis: (7) Nebraska
Indianapolis: (10) Rutgers
Tampa: (8) Minnesota
Boise: (9) Ohio State
The Committee must have been drunk, forcing Rutgers and Nebraska to face each other in the first round, when Rutgers could have easily been placed on the 9-seed line at the opposite end of the bracket.
Maryland got sent to the NIT, while Indiana was relegated to the CIT Tournament. The only two postseason-eligible teams in the Big Ten who were snubbed were Penn State (17-15, 8-12, 96 NET) and Illinois (18-16, 8-12, 109 NET) and I don’t think anyone’s crying about them being left at home.
NCAA Tournament
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Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/17 (8) Colorado L 69-74 19-16 M. Phillips (24 pts 7 reb 2 ast) C. Wheat (15 pts 4 reb 1 ast)
This is only my second time ever finishing outside a 20-win season, but I’m going to look at the silver lining and say at least we have Morris Phillips coming back next year. The rest of the team is going to be raw, with him and senior guard Jeremy Brown as the leaders of what looks to be a really raw young team. If I can’t find a way to outflank expectations, I worry I’ll find myself on the hot seat if the season sputters like this one.
Purdue advanced with a 77-53 win over (15) Murray State, while Nebraska outlasted Rutgers in the “Big Ten Screwjob” game, winning 87-80. Fresno State blew out (8) Minnesota 98-68, and Ohio State couldn’t figure out (8) Tennessee, losing 66-81. That led to a pair of 7/2 matchups in the Saturday games, with neither one going the way the Big Ten team hoped. (2) Purdue was stumped by USC 78-63, while (7) Nebraska collapsed against (2) Memphis losing 87-73. So there you go, no Big Ten representation in the Sweet Sixteen this year.
Maryland advanced to the NIT Final Four by beating Temple 62-46. In the NIT Semifinals they faced Florida A&M (20-14) and won an offensive shootout, 101-86, proving they’re able to win playing fast or slow. They faced off against Weber State (23-11) in the title game, winning easily 77-66 to take home the NIT title -- oddly, the second Big Ten team in a row to do so.
In the Final Four we saw four new faces take the floor. (1) Texas lost a stunner in the Semifinals to (3) VA Commonwealth, 80-68, while (7) DePaul fell to (5) Villanova 85-68. That set up a rare 3/5 matchup in the title game, as (3) VA Commonwealth won out in a tightly contested battle, 86-84.
Team Leaders
Scoring: Cameron Armstead (19.1 ppg) Chad Wheat (13.4 ppg) Jeremy Brown (12.5 ppg) Morris Phillips (7.6 ppg)
Rebounding: Cameron Armstead (10.1 rpg) Morris Phillips (6.4 rpg) Chad Wheat (3.9 rpg) Jeremy Brown (3.8 rpg)
Assists: Jeremy Brown (6.2 apg) Chad Wheat (2.5 apg) Morris Phillips (1.7 apg) Darryl Adams (1.7 apg)
Steals: Morris Phillips (2.2 spg) Darryl Adams (1.0 spg) Tom Canal (1.0 spg)
Blocks: Cameron Armstead (2.2 bpg) Morris Phillips (0.8 bpg)
Graduating Players
None.
Leaving Early
Cameron Armstead (4.0 GPA) 13.8 ppg 8.0 rpg 1.3 apg 0.5 spg 1.7 bpg (100 starts)
Chad Wheat (3.1 GPA) 13.4 ppg 3.9 rpg 2.5 apg 0.4 spg 0.1 bpg (34 starts)
Awards
1st Team All American: Cameron Armstead
Big Ten Player of the Year: Cameron Armstead
1st Team All Big Ten: Jeremy Brown
1st Team All Big Ten: Cameron Armstead
Texas’ Donny Swoger won National Coach of the Year.
Purdue’s Antwan Armstrong won Big Ten Coach of the Year.
[u]Commmitted Recruits -- Final List
6’8” SF George Carey (HS Senior, Thatcher AZ) 3.1 GPA (#107 Ntl, #19 Reg) 17.2 ppg 3.5 rpg 2.6 apg 2.5 spg 1.8 apg
6’3” SG Ray Nielsen (JuCo Sophomore, Waycross GA) 2.4 GPA (#129 Ntl, #24 Reg) 15.3 ppg 6.5 rpg 2.6 apg 1.6 spg
6’8” PF Saipele Berkowitz (Intl Senior, Israel) 2.6 GPA (#213 Ntl, #16 Reg) 15.5 ppg 5.9 rpg 3.9 apg 1.7 spg 3.3 bpg
I failed every one of my job goals according to the board, and they’re not happy. I got the players I wanted out of the kids who weren’t early signings, but that means three role players who the administration feel were desperation grabs, good enough for maybe the middle of the pack in Big Ten recruiting. WSSN is predicting we’ll finish with a top 75 class nationally, just outside the top five in the Big Ten. We’ll see what actually happens.
Indiana, Wisconsin and Penn State are all looking for new coaches, so there should be some interesting happenings in the conference next season. We’ve extended the contract of 2nd Assistant / Lead Scout Ed Williams, for four years at $77,250 -- a slight increase as the 67-year old says he’d like to retire here. He’s among the top scouting coaches in the nation, so I was inclined to accept.
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jksander - Elite Member
- Posts: 6445
- Joined: Sat Apr 29, 2006 1:21 am
- Location: Indianapolis, IN
Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Sat Mar 04, 2023 6:26 pm
SEASON THIRTEEN
2034-35
2034-35
Coach Information
Name: Dale Connover
Age / Record: 48 (313-126, .713)
National Titles: 1 (2031)
Contract: $1,485,000 / 5 years
Reputation: 96%
National Title Appearances: 2 (2029, 2031)
Final Fours: 4 (2025-2026, 2029, 2031)
Elite Eights: 6 (2025-2027, 2029, 2031, 2033)
Sweet Sixteens: 7 (2024-2027, 2029, 2031, 2033)
Big Ten Titles: 2 (2031, 2033)
Big Ten Tourney Titles: 1 (2031)
SEC Titles: 1 (2025)
SEC Tourney Titles: 2 (2025, 2026)
National Coach of the Year: 0
Big Ten Coach of the Year: 1 (2031)
SEC Coach of the Year: 2 (2025-2026)
Offense: 81%
Defense: 64%
Recruiting: 94%
Scouting: 88% (+2)
Development: 95%
School Information
School: Michigan State Spartans
Location: East Lansing MI
Conference: Big Ten
Arena: Jack Breslin Student Events Center (14,797 Cap)
Budget: $555,660 ($341,530 Assistants / $214,130 Recruiting)
Facilities: A
Academics: B (SAT Min: 940)
School Prestige: 83% (-9)
Conf. Prestige: 80%
Our facilities are starting to decline compared to others in the country, with Nebraska now having the best facilities in the Big Ten. That’s something I’m going to have to rectify in the coming seasons.
Top 5 Recruit Classes
1. Virginia
2. Arizona
3. West Virginia
4. Gonzaga
5. Creighton
Top 5 Big Ten Recruit Classes
14. Maryland
17. Ohio State
23. Indiana
29. Illinois
61. Nebraska
Our recruiting class is ranked 153rd nationally, but I still think the potential of our recruits is being vastly underrated.
Scouting Reports
Midwest Premium ($30,000)
National Premium ($80,000)
International Basic ($15,000)
Summer Travel
[/b]Indy Elite Camp ($4,100)
Chicago Prep Revue ($3,700)
Tom Canal and Dan Molinari decided to transfer out. I plan to keep the available open scholarships and give us more options in the recruiting phase, rather than go for any transfers at this time. I am also sticking by my “no walkons” policy -- we’re going to have 11 players on our roster this year, which should mean more options for playing time if players want to work for it in practice. I’d rather use our resources on scholarship players rather than filling our roster with extra bodies who will just take up space on the bench.
NBA Draft
7. Chad Wheat
31. Cameron Armstead
Norton Nominees
Saipele Berkowitz
I just KNEW he was underrated by the WSSN scouts! I’ve seen this kid play, and he’s one of the best defenders I’ve seen. Of course now he’ll have to perform under a spotlight. It’ll be interesting to see how he adjusts to playing here in the heat of the season.
Recruits
6’4” SF Rico Costanueve (HS Senior, Addison IL) 3.2 GPA (#2 Ntl, #1 Reg) 30.2 ppg 7.6 rpg 2.6 apg 6.1 spg 3.1 bpg
6’8” C Cole Midnight (HS Senior, Truckee NV) 3.5 GPA (#9 Ntl, #4 Reg) 23.4 ppg 15.3 rpg 2.7 apg 2.3 spg 6.3 bpg
6’1” SG Joseph Gehlhausen (HS Senior, Tell City IN) 2.8 GPA (#17 Ntl, #4 Reg) 22.1 ppg 6.4 rpg 2.9 apg 3.6 spg 0.8 bpg
We still have an open scholarship to fill later in the season. But already this is THE recruiting class of the season, with only West Virginia, Kansas and Villanova being even close to us according to WSSN.
Schedule
11/13 - (n) Valparaiso - Coaches Classic
11/23 - Arizona State
11/26 - @ Georgia
11/30 - Colorado
12/3 - Boise State
12/7 - @ Butler
12/10 - @ Kansas State
12/14 - Pittsburgh
12/21 - #1 Texas
We are ranked #24 in the preseason polls. Purdue (#19) is the only other Big Ten school ranked in the preseason.
Roster
PG - Jeremy Brown (5’10” 156 lbs Sr) Glenwood City WI (Glenwood City HS) 3.6 GPA (4.0/4.0) 12.5 ppg 3.8 rpg 6.2 apg 0.6 spg 0.4 bpg
SG - Jesse Fox (6’5” 215 lbs So) Sells AZ (Baboquivari HS) 3.5 GPA (2.0/3.5) 2.8 ppg 0.8 rpg 1.3 apg 0.3 spg
SF - Darryl Adams (6’5” 184 lbs Sr RS) Engadine MI (Engadine HS) 3.7 GPA (3.5/4.0) 4.5 ppg 3.1 rpg 1.7 apg 1.0 spg 0.2 bpg
PF - Saipele Berkowitz (6’8” 234 lbs Fr) Israel (International HS) 2.6 GPA (4.5/5.0)
C - Morris Phillips (6’11” 252 lbs So) Mt. Vernon IL (Mt. Vernon HS) 3.1 GPA (3.5/5.0) 7.6 ppg 6.4 rpg 1.7 apg 2.2 spg 0.8 bpg
6 - Jules Hooper (6’5” 195 lbs So RS) Detroit MI (Murray-Wright HS) 3.6 GPA (2.0/4.0) 1.4 ppg 0.6 rpg 0.3 apg 0.1 spg
7 - Courtney Perry (6’8” 212 lbs Jr) Franklinville NJ (Delsea HS) 3.4 GPA (3.0/3.0) 5.3 ppg 2.4 rpg 1.2 apg 0.6 spg 0.4 bpg
8 - Ray Nielsen (6’3” 179 lbs Jr) Waycross GA (Ware County HS) 2.4 GPA (2.0/4.0)
9 - George Carey (6’8” 228 lbs Fr) Thatcher AZ (Thatcher HS) 3.1 GPA (2.0/4.0)
10 - Todd Carney (6’7” 235 lbs Fr RS) Kendallville IN (East Noble HS) 2.8 GPA (1.0/3.0)
11 - Hewitt Gaither (6’3” 178 lbs Fr RS) Farwell MI (Farwell Area HS) 3.4 GPA (1.0/3.0)
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jksander - Elite Member
- Posts: 6445
- Joined: Sat Apr 29, 2006 1:21 am
- Location: Indianapolis, IN
Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Sat Mar 04, 2023 6:34 pm
- Code: Select all
Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
11/13 #24 (n) Valparaiso W 63-48 1-0 S. Berkowitz (10 pts 18 reb 6 ast) M. Phillips (17 pts 9 reb 3 ast)
11/15 #24 (n) Memphis L 75-83 1-1 S. Berkowitz (20 pts 11 reb 7 ast 2 blk) J. Brown (18 pts 6 reb 3 ast)
11/23 Arizona State W 82-58 2-1 S. Berkowitz (12 pts 13 reb 6 ast) J. Brown (21 pts 3 reb 4 ast)
11/26 @ Georgia W 71-53 3-1 M. Phillips (31 pts 5 reb 3 stl) S. Berkowitz (13 pts 12 reb 5 blk)
11/30 #23 Colorado W 72-53 4-1 S. Berkowitz (16 pts 11 reb 7 ast) M. Phillips (12 pts 16 reb 2 blk)
12/3 #23 Boise State W 71-55 5-1 S. Berkowitz (16 pts 19 reb 6 ast 6 blk) J. Fox (17 pts 6 reb 5 ast)
12/7 #15 @ Butler L 55-76 5-2 M. Phillips (13 pts 5 reb 3 ast) J. Hooper (8 pts 2 reb 2 ast)
12/10 #15 @ #23 Kansas State W 65-57 6-2 S. Berkowitz (12 pts 17 reb 4 ast 3 blk) J. Fox (23 pts 2 ast 3 stl)
12/14 #14 #15 Pittsburgh W 80-64 7-2 S. Berkowitz (24 pts 24 reb 6 ast 5 blk) J. Brown (12 pts 2 reb 1 ast)
12/21 #14 #2 Texas W 73-62 8-2 S. Berkowitz (15 pts 20 reb 6 ast) D. Adams (14 pts 5 reb 4 ast 5 stl)
We only made it to the second round of the Coaches Classic thanks to Memphis, and we lost a tough game at Butler when Saipele Berkowitz nearly fouled out and had to spend most of the game on the bench. But Berkowitz has been a revelation, proving to be one of the best defenders in Michigan State history while also managing to put up baskets when needed. He’s averaging a ridiculous 14.3 points 14.8 rebounds 5.4 assists and 3.2 blocks per game, and when he has a good night the whole team does. Whether that will be enough to push us back deep into the NCAA Tournament remains to be seen, but expectations are certainly high for our Big Ten run, especially after we shut #2 Texas down flat in the final home game of the pre-conference slate. We’re not a deep team, but we are talented. We’ll see if that’s enough to hang another banner here in the Breslin Center.
- Code: Select all
Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
12/26 #13 Maryland W 81-72 9-2 (1-0) S. Berkowitz (25 pts 13 reb 9 ast) M. Phillips (8 pts 10 reb 4 ast)
12/30 #13 @ Rutgers L 68-70 9-3 (1-1) J. Fox (21 pts 2 reb 3 ast) S. Berkowitz (8 pts 19 reb 8 ast 3 blk)
1/2 #13 Northwestern W 68-64 10-3 (2-1) J. Fox (13 pts 3 reb 5 ast) J. Brown (12 pts 4 reb 3 ast 1 stl 1 blk)
1/6 #13 Nebraska W 94-67 11-3 (3-1) S. Berkowitz (22 pts 11 reb 8 ast) M. Phillips (15 pts 7 reb 2 ast)
1/11 #12 @ Illinois W 58-43 12-3 (4-1) S. Berkowitz (19 pts 14 reb 6 ast 5 blk) J. Brown (10 pts 5 reb 4 ast)
1/13 #12 Penn State W 78-51 13-3 (5-1) S. Berkowitz (21 pts 21 reb 8 ast 10 blk) M. Phillips (18 pts 10 reb)
I’m not sure if there’s ever been a better triple-double than this one by Berkowitz, who got his third double with BLOCKED SHOTS, while only being two assists away form a QUAD DOUBLE! It was, quite frankly, unbelievable to watch even seeing it with my own eyes from the bench. It was the only triple double so far this season nationally, and to this point Berkowitz (or “Sly Sai” as fans call him for his ability to defend in any situation) has 2nd place nationally with 13 double doubles, while holding at 24th in the nation for assists, 2nd in rebounds (by 0.2 boards per game) and leads the nation in blocks by nearly half a block per game. He is also the top player in the nation in overall efficiency (30.6) over Ross Phillips (28.8 -- 26.2 ppg 1.0 apg 14.9 rpg 0.8 spg 2.2 bpg) from Arizona, who at this point ie likely his top competitor in the Norton race.
- Code: Select all
Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
1/18 #10 @ Maryland W 94-74 14-3 (6-1) M. Phillips (23 pts 3 reb 5 stl) S. Berkowitz (14 pts 11 reb 9 ast)
1/23 #10 Michigan W 93-66 15-3 (7-1) J. Brown (26 pts 5 ast 1 stl 1 blk) S. Berkowitz (12 pts 11 reb 8 ast)
1/27 #10 @ Nebraska L 66-82 15-4 (7-2) M. Phillips (19 pts 12 reb 2 stl) J. Fox (14 pts 3 reb 2 ast 1 stl)
2/1 #11 Minnesota W 76-57 16-4 (8-2) S. Berkowitz (22 pts 15 reb 5 blk) M. Phillips (14 pts 8 reb 3 ast)
2/6 #13 #25 Rutgers W 89-78 17-4 (9-2) S. Berkowitz (16 pts 16 reb 9 ast) M. Phillips (17 pts 13 reb 2 ast)
2/8 #13 @ Iowa W 76-56 18-4 (10-2) S. Berkowitz (16 pts 15 reb 11 ast) T. Carney (11 pts 7 reb 2 ast 2 stl)
2/10 #13 @ Wisconsin L 57-91 18-5 (10-3) D. Adams (10 pts 3 reb 1 ast) G. Carey (9 pts 3 reb 1 ast)
We followed up a brilliant road win against Iowa (with “Sly Sai” adding another triple double!) with one of the worst games I’ve seen from a MSU starting five since I got here when we went to Wisconsin. We’re a half a game behind Rutgers for the Big Ten title but we’ve got four of our last seven games on the road, so this isn’t going to be easy by any stretch.
- Code: Select all
Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
2/15 #13 Indiana W 78-49 19-5 (11-3) J. Brown (19 pts 5 reb 2 ast) S. Berkowitz (10 pts 9 reb 4 ast 2 blk)
2/17 #13 @ Penn State L 73-79 (OT) 19-6 (11-4) S. Berkowitz (11 pts 22 reb 9 ast) J. Brown (20 pts 5 reb 5 ast)
2/20 #13 @ Northwestern W 78-60 20-6 (12-4) J. Brown (23 pts 2 reb 2 ast) G. Carey (15 pts 1 ast 3 stl)
2/24 #13 Illinois W 75-35 21-6 (13-4) S. Berkowitz (12 pts 19 reb 6 ast) M. Phillips (19 pts 9 reb 3 ast)
2/27 #12 @ Minnesota L 72-84 21-7 (13-5) M. Phillips (18 pts 16 reb 7 ast) D. Adams (16 pts 4 reb 2 ast)
3/1 #12 @ Ohio State L 40-50 21-8 (13-6) S. Berkowitz (9 pts 15 reb 4 blk) J. Fox (8 pts 2 reb 1 ast)
3/3 #12 Purdue L 72-85 21-9 (13-7) J. Hooper (16 pts 2 reb 1 ast) G. Carey (11 pts 3 reb 2 ast)
We went 3-4 down the stretch but still held tough in second place, three games back of Rutgers and knotted with Purdue. Due to some odd tie-breaking ruiles we wound up getting the #2 seed for the tourney, with a potential to rematch against the Boilermakers in the Semifinals on a neutral floor. Saipele Berkowitz is definintely going to finish as a 1st Team All American, though he’s currently in third among Norton ballots. But, stunningly, he has announced he plans to stay in school for at least another season, guaranteeing he’ll be a frontrunner again. It’s Morris Phillips who has decided to go pro following this, his sophomore season.
Big Ten Tournament
- Code: Select all
Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/9 (10) Indiana W 63-57 22-9 D. Adams (14 pts 2 reb 5 ast 4 stl) J. Fox (19 pts 2 reb 5 ast 5 stl)
3/10 (3) Purdue L 68-75 22-10 M. Phillips (14 pts 9 reb 3 ast) S. Berkowitz (12 pts 4 reb 1 ast 1 stl)
Purdue went on to upset top-seeded Rutgers in the Big Ten Tourney championship, winning 78-60 to take the conference’s auto-bid. They would have been a lock anyway. We, along with Rutgers, Nebraska, Maryland and Michigan, should also be safely in, but Minnesota (18-13, 76 NET) and Indiana (17-14, 99 NET) are looking more likely to make secondary tournaments if anything. Northwestern is the only other team postseason eligible, at 15-15, but I think their 126th place NET rating will be prohibitive. They’d needed to win at least a game in the Big Ten tourney to even be on the bubble’s bubble.
We signed a fourth recruit this week, with one more scholarship available:
6’5” SG Benjamin Jordan-Ellis (HS Senior, Red Lake Falls MN) #178 Ntl, #28 Reg (3.2 GPA) 12.9 ppg 5.2 rpg 3.9 apg 2.1 spg 2.1 bpg
This bumped our overall recruiting class rating to 95.7 overall, putting us 12.6 points ahead of Kansas, who WSSN say are our only true competitors in this recruiting race.
Big Ten Teams in the NCAA Tournament:
Dayton: (12) Maryland (playing into the New Orleans bracket)
Milwaukee: (4) Purdue
Milwaukee: (5) Michigan State
New Orleans: (11) Nebraska
New Orleans: (7) Rutgers
Rutgers finished first in the Big Ten ahead of us and Purdue, but we drew significantly better seeds (although we may have to face each other in the second round, while Rutgers wouldn’t risk facing Nebraska until the Sweet Sixteen. Michigan and Minnesota were relegated to the NIT, while 15-15 Northwestern stunnned the basketball world by getting an invite to the CIT Tournament, while Indiana (17-14, 98 NET) was left out of the postseason entirely.
NCAA Tournament
- Code: Select all
Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/16 (12) DePaul W 63-51 23-10 M. Phillips (15 pts 12 reb 3 stl) S. Berkowitz (10 pts 11 reb 4 ast 3 blk)
3/18 (4) Purdue W 65-55 24-10 J. Brown (22 pts 2 ast 1 stl) M. Phillips (12 pts 6 reb 3 ast 2 stl)
3/23 (1) West Virginia L 63-73 24-11 J. Brown (14 pts 4 reb 1 ast 1 stl) S. Berkowitz (13 reb 7 ast 4 blk)
On Thursday afternoon we won our game in convincing defensive fashion, while Purdue took on (13) Grand Canyon and won by a relatively tight margin, 75-67, setting up our third shot to take them out (after two tough losses. On Friday the other three Big Ten temas faced off -- Maryland won a stunner over (5) Kansas State 70-69, but Nebraska lost to (6) Dayton 55-69 and Rutgers fell to (10) Brown 75-86, certainly justifying their low seedings in the eyes of the committee and most basketball fans. We then faced down the Boilermakers and this time our defenses held! Despite Berkowitz getting into foul trouble and being effectively neutralized, we held tough and staved them off down the stretch winning 65-55 and advancing to the Sweet Sixteen, the eighth of my career! Maryland faced off against (13) UC Irvine for their shot at advancing, but the Anteaters ran them over 60-79, dashing their hopes. We are now the last remaining Big Ten team in the postseason.
Up against West Virginia we stumbled, as Berkowitz was held scoreless -- though he did put up a strong defensive performance, and both Brown and Phillips (12 pts 6 reb 2 stl) scored in double figures. It just wasn’t enough to overcome our 30-36 halftime deficit. The Mountanieers are tough as nails on defense and they would wind up beating us handily in the end, 73-63. Their coach, Mike Wright, is in his seventh year with the Mountaineers after six years coaching at Pittsburgh (where he won the NIT in 2027). Since coaching the Mountaineers to the Final Four in 2029, he’s had them in the Elite Eight again now three times -- 2032, and then last year and this year. But he’s never gotten to cut the nets down. I think the way they’ve been playing this year they have as good a shot as anyone.
West Virginia won our bracket by beating (7) Texas A&M 80-55, a real beatdown. That earned them a shot at (2) Louisville which beat (5) Missouri 73-61 in the Greensboro Regional. On the other end of the Final Four bracket, (3) Connecticut obliterated (13) UC Irvine 92-60 to earn their shot against (8) Oklahoma, the Sooners having upset their way to the Final Four by knocking off (1) Villanova 64-56, (5) Duke 79-72 and (3) Syracuse 81-71 in the Boise Regional.
In the National Semifinals, (2) Louisville upset the Mountaineers 68-76, while Connecticut absolutely stomped the Sooners to win 72-52. Louisville then blew the Huskies off the court in the National Championship, winning 77-51, giving head coach B.J. Cole his first National Title ever, after taking the Cardinals to the Finals in 2030 and the Elite Eight in 2031. His teams have made the Sweet Sixteen six times, and he’s got 333 career wins (6th place) behind me by only four games over the last 13 year stretch.
Arizona’s Tim Davis had an off year with just 28 wins, but he broke the 400-win barrier by eight games before losing to Connecticut in the Sweet Sixteen.
We, meanwhile, signed our final recruit of the season:
6’8” SF George Duquesne (HS Senior, Mendota IL) #128 Ntl, #21 Reg (3.1 GPA) 17.0 ppg 3.2 rpg 3.6 apg 1.8 spg 1.9 bpg
Team Leaders
Scoring: Saipele Berkowitz (12.9 ppg) Morris Phillips (12.9 ppg) Jeremy Brown (11.7 ppg) Jesse Fox (9.8 ppg)
Rebounding: Saipele Berkowitz (13.2 rpg) Morris Phillips (8.7 rpg) Darryl Adams (4.4 rpg)
Assists: Saipele Berkowitz (5.9 apg) Jeremy Brown (4.1 apg) Jesse Fox (2.3 apg)
Steals: Morris Phillips (2.1 spg) Darryl Adams (1.9 spg) Jesse Fox (0.7 spg)
Blocks: Saipele Berkowitz (3.4 bpg) Morris Phillips (1.2 bpg)
Graduating Players
Jeremy Brown (3.7 GPA) 11.3 ppg 2.8 rpg 5.7 apg 0.5 spg 0.3 bpg (132 games, 131 starts)
Darryl Adams (3.7 GPA) 3.8 ppg 2.6 rpg 1.3 apg 0.9 spg 0.1 bpg (132 games, 37 starts)
Leaving Early
Morris Phillips (3.2 GPA) 10.2 ppg 7.5 rpg 1.9 apg 2.2 spg 1.0 bpg (66 starts)
Awards
National Defensive Player of the Year: Saipele Berkowitz
1st Team All American: Saipele Berkowitz
Big Ten Player of the Year: Saipele Berkowitz
Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year: Saipele Berkowitz
Big Ten Freshman of the Year: Saipele Berkowitz
1st Team All Big Ten: Saipele Berkowitz
1st Team All Big Ten: Morris Phillips
Louisville’s B.J. Cole won National Coach of the Year.
Rutgers’ Aaron Childs won Big Ten Coach of the Year.
Commmitted Recruits -- Final List
6’4” SF Rico Costanueve (HS Senior, Addison IL) 3.2 GPA (#2 Ntl, #1 Reg) 30.2 ppg 7.6 rpg 2.6 apg 6.1 spg 3.1 bpg
6’8” C Cole Midnight (HS Senior, Truckee NV) 3.5 GPA (#9 Ntl, #4 Reg) 23.4 ppg 15.3 rpg 2.7 apg 2.3 spg 6.3 bpg
6’1” SG Joseph Gehlhausen (HS Senior, Tell City IN) 2.8 GPA (#17 Ntl, #4 Reg) 22.1 ppg 6.4 rpg 2.9 apg 3.6 spg 0.8 bpg
6’8” SF George Duquesne (HS Senior, Mendota IL) #128 Ntl, #21 Reg (3.1 GPA) 17.0 ppg 3.2 rpg 3.6 apg 1.8 spg 1.9 bpg
6’5” SG Benjamin Jordan-Ellis (HS Senior, Red Lake Falls MN) #178 Ntl, #28 Reg (3.2 GPA) 12.9 ppg 5.2 rpg 3.9 apg 2.1 spg 2.1 bpg
Ed Williams, our second assistant who has been in charge of scouting, chose to retire at the completion of the seaosn. I have promoted Derrick Townes from third assistant to second assistant, giving him a slight raise to $60,112 for the season (the last on his contract). He’s wanting to be an AHC, however, so I do not expect him to re-sign with us next year.
I’ve made a big hiring for our third assistant job, a coach I expect to mentor on his way to becoming one of the greats in the business. Justin Smith was a manager for us at Michigan State when I got here in 2030, and he did that job for four years until graduating last year with a degree in sports medicine. He was my graduate assistant last year, assisting with scouting as well as team training and practices, and I think he’ll make a sterling addition to my staff. At 24 years old he’s a blank slate ready to soak up knowledge, and he’s already got a keen mind for player development and scouting. I’m going to keep him as our main scout this season, but expect to promote him to second assistant next year if Townes chooses to leave, at which point he could handle development or scouting. He’s agreed to a $34,500 / year contract for the next six seasons.
-
jksander - Elite Member
- Posts: 6445
- Joined: Sat Apr 29, 2006 1:21 am
- Location: Indianapolis, IN
Re: Ballin' With The Bulldogs: The Dale Connover Story
by jksander » Sat Mar 04, 2023 6:45 pm
SEASON FOURTEEN
2035-36
2035-36
Coach Information
Name: Dale Connover
Age / Record: 49 (337-137, .711)
National Titles: 1 (2031)
Contract: $1,485,000 / 4 years
Reputation: 96%
National Title Appearances: 2 (2029, 2031)
Final Fours: 4 (2025-2026, 2029, 2031)
Elite Eights: 6 (2025-2027, 2029, 2031, 2033)
Sweet Sixteens: 8 (2024-2027, 2029, 2031, 2033, 2035)
Big Ten Titles: 2 (2031, 2033)
Big Ten Tourney Titles: 1 (2031)
SEC Titles: 1 (2025)
SEC Tourney Titles: 2 (2025, 2026)
National Coach of the Year: 0
Big Ten Coach of the Year: 1 (2031)
SEC Coach of the Year: 2 (2025-2026)
Offense: 81%
Defense: 64%
Recruiting: 94%
Scouting: 90% (+2)
Development: 95%
School Information
School: Michigan State Spartans
Location: East Lansing MI
Conference: Big Ten
Arena: Jack Breslin Student Events Center (14,797 Cap)
Budget: $555,660 ($301,642 Assistants / $254,018 Recruiting)
Facilities: A
Academics: B (SAT Min: 940)
School Prestige: 87% (+4)
Conf. Prestige: 79% (-1)
Top 5 Recruit Classes
1. Michigan State
2. Kansas
3. West Virginia
4. Duke
5. Villanova
Top 5 Big Ten Recruit Classes
1. Michigan State
16. Minnesota
18. Indiana
20. Nebraska
21. Ohio State
Purdue (#23) was inches away from a top five class in the Big Ten as well. Our class is so strong we are the consensus #1 team in the nation in the AP and Coaches Polls, so the spotlight’s going to be on us all year, anything less than a Final Four and a shot at the title is going to be considered a failure.
Scouting Reports
International Gold ($100,000)
National Gold ($80,000)
We’re beyond regional recruiting at this point, so for now while our lower staff costs allow it, I’m going with the big guns of the recruiting reports world, which will still leave us $65,000+ after summer travel with which to fill two scholarships with blue chip players as well as keeping enough guys on our radar to handle any players who leave early.
Summer Travel
Indy Elite Camp ($4,100)
Chicago Prep Revue ($3,700)
Players Transfering
James Hooper and Todd Carney knew they weren’t going to get to start, so they’ve elected to transfer, giving us FOUR scholarships available during the early months of recruiting.
We chose to at least dip our toes into the waters of the transfer portal, and we wound up hitting paydirt with a couple guys who will be good for depth through the season:
- 6’0” PG John Masic (3.7 GPA, Junior, University of Virginia) spent the last two years playing off the bench only in garbage time, and barely made a statistical contribution. He knows coming in he’ll be the backup point guard to Jesse Fox, but he should get to at least play -- he wants to be part of a contender, so even playing a backup role until he graduates is a win. Right now he’s a borderline two star player, but he has potential to improve dramatically.
- 6’7” SF Frank Keep (2.8 GPA, Sophomore, Chicago State) was a starter his freshman year, but he wants to play for a contender. He wants more minutes than he’ll get this year, so I’m redshirting him -- the three-star prospect has potential to be a key piece in our puzzle next season, and I want to make sure he’s ready before we throw him to the Big Ten wolves.
Overall I think we’ve got the best team I’ve ever put together lined up to play. And though we’re also going to be one of the youngest (ith three starting freshmen who all could be one-and-done, led by Saipele Berkowitz who should be right back in the Norton race again himself) I think we’ve got what it takes to dominate this season and beyond.
NBA Draft
8. Morris Phillips
Norton Nominees
Saipele Berkowitz - 1st Team Preseason All American
Joseph Gehlhausen
Recruits
6’8” SG Calvin Katterhenry (HS Senior, Clarksville TN) 3.2 GPA (#3 Ntl, #1 Reg) 32.4 ppg 5.0 rpg 4.0 apg 3.2 spg 1.3 bpg
6’5” SF Alan Troesche (HS Senior, Tell City IN) 3.1 GPA (#6 Ntl, #1 Reg) 22.5 ppg 7.2 rpg 2.7 apg 4.4 spg 1.3 bpg
Another solid class for sure! We should have a top Big Ten class and a top five overall, though Michigan also signed two blue chippers this year already, so they’re going to give us a run for our money. No one else in the conference is even coming close to recruiting at our level. I’m particularly pleased by us snaking Alan Troesche away from Indiana -- he was a high school teammate of current Freshman (and Norton candidate) Joseph Gehlhausen at Tell City High School, and I think that teammate connection was the ultimate dealmaker.
Schedule
11/14 - (n) Kent State - Preseason NIT
11/22 - #3 Villanova
11/25 - #19 Memphis
11/29 - @ #13 Louisville
12/2 - Indiana State
12/6 - Xavier
12/9 - @ #2 Duke
12/13 - @ #6 Virginia
12/20 - #24 Butler
We are preseason ranked #1 in the country in both polls. Maryland is ranked 15th nationally, and Ohio State is ranked 21st.
Roster
PG - Jesse Fox (6’5” 215 lbs Jr) Sells AZ (Baboquivari HS) 4.0 GPA (3.5/4.0) 9.8 ppg 2.4 rpg 2.3 apg 0.7 spg 0.3 bpg
SG - Joseph Gehlhausen (6’1” 206 lbs Fr) Tell City IN (Tell City HS) 2.8 GPA (5.0/5.0)
SF - Rico Costanueve (6’4” 215 lbs Fr) Addison IL (Driscoll Catholic HS) 3.2 GPA (5.0/5.0)
PF - Saipele Berkowitz (6’8” 234 lbs So) Israel (International HS) 2.9 GPA (5.0/5.0) 12.9 ppg 13.2 rpg 5.9 apg 0.6 spg 3.4 bpg
C - Cole Midnight (6’8” 246 lbs Fr) Truckee WV (Truckee HS) 3.5 GPA (5.0/5.0)
6 - Ray Nielsen (6’3” 179 lbs Sr) Waycross GA (Ware County HS) 3.4 GPA (3.5/4.0) 2.8 ppg 0.8 rpg 0.5 apg 0.1 spg
7 - George Carey (6’8” 228 lbs So) Thatcher AZ (Thatcher HS) 3.6 GPA (2.0/4.0) 6.0 ppg 2.2 rpg 1.0 apg 0.7 spg 0.3 bpg
8 - Courtney Perry (6’8” 212 lbs Sr) Franklinville NJ (Delsea HS) 3.4 GPA (3.5/3.5) 1.8 ppg 0.9 rpg 0.4 apg 0.3 spg 0.1 bpg
9 - John Masic (6’0” 181 lbs Jr) Kingwood WV (Preston HS) 3.7 GPA (1.5/4.0) transfer from Virginia
10 - Benjamin Jordan-Ellis (6’5” 211 lbs Fr) Red Lake Falls MN (Red Lake Falls HS) 3.2 GPA (1.5/4.0)
11 - Hewitt Gaither (6’3” 178 lbs So RS) Farwell MI (Farwell Area HS) 3.5 GPA (1.5/4.0) 1.1 ppg 0.3 rpg 0.1 apg
RS - George Duquesne (6’8” 223 lbs Fr) Mendota IL (Mendota HS) 3.1 GPA (1.0/3.0)
RS - Frank Keep (6’7” 227 lbs So) Markesan WI (Markesan HS) 2.8 GPA (3.0/3.0) transfer from Chicago State
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jksander - Elite Member
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