DDSCB 2023: The Greatest

[Wayne23]

2/15: Early lead. Up 19 after 10. 50-31 at the break. 19, 6 for Bron, 11, 2, 3, 4 for Culu.

Big lead early. Up 25 with 10 left.

91-82. They got closer late but it was never in doubt. 25, 9 for Bron, 13, 3, 6, 5 for Culu. +42 down low.

11-13, 6-7 Lamar is here. We won by 26 there.

2/18: Close early. Down 1 after 10. We’re flat. 48-40 at halftime. We woke up a little bit late in the half. 21, 3 for Mark. +16 inside.

Big run to start the half. Up 29 with 10 to go.

105-81. 31, 9 for Mark, 16, 2, 6, 4 for Will, 14, 8 for Bron. 6 players with 10 or more. 70 in the paint.

“Bubba Burk. WNOL, here for the post game show. I’m with Coach Cash. Coach, you guys are just sailing through the season. Ranked #19, NET #23. It must feel good.”

“Definitely. We’ve worked hard and it’s paying off.”

“How far can you go in the post season?”

“It’s too early to think about that, Bubba. We need to focus on one game at a time and work to stay as sharp as we can.”

“Talk about what Wade Mark means to this team.”

“He leads us and the conference in both points and rebounds. That’s pretty impressive. And he’s a good defender. The best thing is that he’s steady. He seems to have a good game just about every night.”

At McNeese ST, 12-13, 10-4, and alone in 2nd place. We won by 18 at home.

2/22: Back and forth early. Up 12 after 10. 64-37 at the half. 16, 6 for Mark, 15 for Tyle, 11, 4 for Bron. Big edge inside.

Up 26 with 10 to play.

111-79. 27, 12, 4, 3 for Bron,26, 8 for Mark, 13, 0, 7 for Fier, 15 for Tyle. 74 in the paint.

3 game lead with 3 to play.

12-14, 8-7 Northwestern ST is here. We won by only 9 there.

[Wayne23]

2/25: We take the lead right away. Up 10 after 10. Then it’s 20. 46-32 at the break. Balanced scoring. Will has 3 fouls. +22 inside.

We get it back to 20 early. Up 31 with 10 left.

98-63 and we clinch the regular season! 22, 4 for Bron, 18, 3, 6, 3 for Culu, 16, 8, 3 blocks for Mark.

Bubba Burk, WNOL, here with Coach Cash. Coach, congratulations on winning the regular season Southland crown.”

“Thanks Bubba. It feels good.”

“You’ve done some experimenting with the Point Guard position. Talk about that.”

“We don’t have a true Point so we tried Ty Will. He was okay but not what we were looking for. Then we shared the spot between Will and Jan Culu which was a little better. Now Culu is playing there
full time.”

“Junior Ed Fier comes in an plays the Point.”

“Yes, he does, and he may well be our starting PG next season. He needs to improve his D but he’s a great passer.”

Our final road game is at Incoherent Word, 6-21, 3-13. We won by 34 at home.

3/1: Up 9 after 10. 43-29 at halftime. 13, 3 for Will, 9, 4 for Bron.

We get the lead to 20. Up 17 with 10 to go.

89-57. 24, 4, 3, 3 for Will, 19, 11 for Bron, 12, 6 for Mark.

We finish the regular season at home with Texas A & M-Comm, 14-14, 12-5.

3/4: Early lead. Up 17 after 10. 54-33 at the half. 11 each for Mark and Bron. 8 each for Ball and Will.

Up 33 with 10 to play.

100-68. 29, 8 for Mark, 16, 16, 3 blocks for Ball, 19, 3 for Bron. 68 in the lane.

We end the regular season at 28-2, 16-2, #13, NET #17. 3 games up on 2nd place McNeese ST.

#1 in PPG, +20.2. #1 in shooting, 52.9%. #2 in assists. +9.6 RBs, +4.2 assists, +4.8 steals, -6.1 turnovers, 10.6.

Wade Mark leads us in points, 22.0, and RBs, 7.8. Bron is 2nd in points with 15.5 and gets 6.0 RBs. Culu gets 13.0, 3.2, and 5.8. We have 4 good players coming back, and some good recruits coming in.

“Billie Sue Baker, WNOU, here with Coach Cash. Coach, great regular season!”

“It was. I couldn’t be prouder of my kids.”

“On to the post season. How well can you do?”

“I think we can do well but the thing about the post season is that from now on one off night and you’re done. We want to win the Southland tournament. One loss stops that from happening. Then in the NCAAs, we’d love to make a little noise and I think we’re good enough to do that. But we’ll see. I’m only talking about one game at a time with the players.”

[Wayne23]

3/5: We play #9 seed Nicholls ST, 11-19, 6-12, in the quarter finals. Beat them by 15 and 12.

3/6: Early lead. Up 21 after 10. Smooth sailin’! 56-32 at halftime. 12, 1, 7 for Culu, 16 for Will, 8, 11 for Mark.

Up 23 with 10 to go.

111-78. 22, 17 for Mark, 23, 2, 10 for Culu, 28, 1, 3 for Will, 12, 6 for Bron.

“Bubba Burk, WNOL. Coach, great way to start the post season.”

“We emphasized how important a good start was. We exploded out of the gate and kept the intensity up throughout the game.”

“Balanced scoring and good ball movement.”

“I could have been happier with our inside play but everything else was really solid.”

#4 seed SE Louisiana, 14-16, 10-8 in the semifinals. We won by 45 at home but only by 9 away.

3/7: We take the lead right away. Up 19 after 10. 55-41 at the half. We led by as many as 22. 17 for Tyle, 10, 4, 3 for Ball, 11, 4 for Mark.

Up 17 after 10.

102-79. 18, 9 for Bron, 17 each for Will and Tyle, 14, 6, 4 for Ball, 10, 8, 6 for Culu.

“Billie Sue Baker, WNOU. Coach, easy win.”

“We were in control all the way.”

“You have so many weapons.”

“We do. I wish we played better D but we score so well, #1 in the country, that it makes up for the D. And yes, we have a lot of guys that can score.”

#2 seed McNeese ST, 17-14, 13-5, in the title game. We beat them by 18 and 32.

3/8: “Just stay focused. Go out and play your game!”

Slow start then we wake up. Up by 6 after 10. They’re staying close late in the half. Then a late run! 47-32 at the break. Balanced scoring. We have the edge inside and only 4 TOs.

Up 17 with 10 left. Subs are in early.

102-76. 18, 1, 5 for Culu, 16, 4 for Tyle, 13, 5 for Bron, 13, 6 for Ball. Very good bench play.

“Bubba Burk, WNOL. Coach you ran through this tournament like it was nothing.”

“We played really well and I’m proud of my guys. I’ve already asked our A. D. to try to find us a more challenging conference for next season. Let’s see what happens.”

“NCAA tournament is next. Thoughts?”

“It would be great to win even one game. This school has never done that.”

“How about getting to the Sweet Sixteen?”

“We’ll take it one game at a time but that would be fantastic!”

“How high a seed are you expecting?”

“Hard to say. We’re ranked #11, NET #13. That would be about a #4. But our weak schedule may mean it won’t be that good. We’ll see.

[Wayne23]

3/12: #3 Midwest! We play #14 Bryant, 20-12. I’m thrilled!

3/16: Close early. Tied after 10. Then we get hot. 52-39 at halftime. 14, 6 for Mark, 12, 2, 3, 3 for Bron.

They catch us. Down 2 with 10 to go. Back and forth late.

93-95. Ty Will missed a three at the buzzer. We wanted a 2 but couldn’t get the shot.

22, 6 for Mark, 17, 5, 3, 4 for Bron, 17, 4, 1, 3 for Will, 12, 9, 5, 4 for Ball, 12, 2, 3 for Fier.

“Bubba Burk, WNOL,here with Coach Cash after the game. Tough one, Coach.”

“We just didn’t play well in the second half. We struggled- we fought all the way but the shots weren’t dropping and we weren’t playing good D at all.”

“I’m guessing you expected to win this one.”

“This is a team we should have beat.”

“It was a great season.”

“It was. It just ended a little too soon.”

[Wayne23]

5/1: #34 recruit class.

We move to the Sunbelt Conference.

We meet our expected to spend amount.

I’ve been relaxing some in the off season. Going to a lot of music venues- not in the quarter, or at least very rarely. The music is much better in other places and the tourists don’t usually know about
them. Some fine young women do know about them though, and that works just fine! No details but I am really enjoying myself!

5/29: 2 unfilled scholarships.

Only one player transfers out but it’s our best player, Wade Mark. He’s leaving to go to a better school to increase his chances of being a high draft pick. Can’t blame him but it hurts!

I offer to 2 guards and a C.

0-3.

6/2: We offer to 2 guards and a C.

0-3 again.

6/5: We offer to 3 guards.

We get 2.

6/9: We’re done.

6/25: Option to go to camps did not come up. Hm… (Oops. I was in Commissioner mode. Went in to change some names and forgot to come back out.)

6/26: 6 scholarships. We want 2 guards, 4 bigs.

7/17: We offer to 2 PGs, an SF, 3 PFs. We’ve scouted all of them and hosted all of them. We’ll visit all of them soon.

9/4: September is an exciting month. It’s when we find out which recruits we got and which we lost.

9/11: We lose a PG. I offer to a C.

9/18: We get 2, lose 2. We get an SF, #151, and a PF, #154.

Going to the Paradise Invitational. Schedule is tougher than last season’s.

9/25: We get one and lose one. We get a C, #236.

10/2: We lose 2 more.

1st day of practice. We’re better than we were last year but a little thin at guard.

10/9: We get a PG, #262. Hoping to land another big and another guard.

10/30: We get an SG, #83. Our best! Still hoping to land a big guy.

[Wayne23]

11/13: Here’s the lineup:
Senior Ed Fier is at the Point. His D isn’t great but the rest of his game is very good.

Senior Mike Baro, a transfer from Delaware ST, is at SG, backing up at PG. He’s a very good defender and has looked really good in practice.

Senior SF Marl Doba is subbing at SG and SF. Soph Rob Sill, a transfer from Jackson ST, is the next guard. Doesn’t play much D. Frosh Ceci Dila is next, and he’s not ready. Finally there’s frosh Mel Lake and he’s not ready either.

Senior Syn Tyle is back at SF. He did a great job last season.

Senior Mike Bron, our super 6th man last season, starts at PF.

Jay Brog is our best freshman and he’ll start in the middle. He’s a glass eater and he can shoot.

1st big man off the bench is frosh Will Cass. He wants to start and he’ll get plenty of minutes. Junior Norm John is next on the depth chart. He’s only fair.

“Bubba Burk, WNOL, here with New orleans head coach Ally Cash. Coach, how do things look for the upcoming season?”

“We’re optimistic, Bubba. We’re a little thin in the backcourt but all in all we think we’re stronger than last season. We have 4 solid guys inside.”

“You’re in the Sun Belt this season, a much stronger conference. Tell our listeners about that.”

“The Southland just wasn’t competitive. You get better playing good teams.”

“You’re picked to win the Sun Belt.”

“I hope they’re right! But it won’t be easy.”

“Good luck, Coach.”

We start at Delaware.

[Wayne23]

11/16: Slow start and we trail early. Down 11 after 10. 53-55 at halftime as we come back late. 16 for Brog, 10 for Baro, 9 for Cass. Good inside play.

We quickly take the lead. Up 1 with 10 to go.

OT! 110-113. We didn’t play much D. 41, 6 for Brog, 15, 9, 2, 3 for Bron, 12, 4, 3, 1, 3 for Baro, 13 for Cass. +42 in the paint. They took 8 more shots from the line, made 10 more, and that was the difference. 2 of my subs fouled out.

We’re headed for the Paradise Invitational. We’re the #5 seed and we play #4 Bowling Green ST, 0-1.

11/18: Early lead. Up only 2 after 10. 45-44 at the half. We’re just not playing D so far this season. 12, 3 for Brog, 9 for Tyle. 3 fouls for Bron. -8 at the line.

Back and forth early. Up 5 with 10 to play.

89-70. Great 2nd half D. 18, 8, 2, 4 for Brog, 11, 2, 10 for Fier, 15, 6 for Cass. Good inside play.

It’s #1 seed Penn ST, 2-0, in the semis.

11/19: They take a quick lead. Tied after 10. 53- 50 after a close first half. Both teams are shooting the lights out, 71.4% for them, 80% for us. Very sloppy game. 15 for Cass, 12 for Brog. 3 fouls for Tyle.

We take the lead early. Up 12 with 10 to play. We make it 20.

109-86. 33, 4 for Cass, 30, 8, 1, 3 for Brog, 14, 4 for Bron. 18 TOs but they had 22. +52 down low.

#7 seed Long Beach ST, 3-0, in the title game.

11/20: Close early. Up 9 after 10. 64-42 at the break. Shooting 61%. 23, 5 for Bron, 11 for Baro, 10 for Cass.

Big lead early. Up 23 with 10 left.

125-93. We were a scoring machine! 35, 8 for Bron, 17, 2, 4 for Baro, 17, 5 for John, 16, 6 for Cass. 76 in the lane.

3-1 after the opening loss. #1 in PPG, #3 in shooting pct., 58.4%.

Home opener with 2-1 Texas-El Paso.

[Wayne23]

11/23: We score the first 10. Up 8 after 10. 73-53 at halftime. 19, 3 for Cass, 11, 1, 7 for Fier, 11, 4 for Brog, 10, 5 for John. +48 inside.

Up 19 with 10 to go.

116-102. 29, 3, 3 for Cass, 20, 9, 0, 3 for brog, 17, 8 for Bron, 13, 4, 9, 4 for Fier, 13, 8 for John, 13, 3, 4 for Tyle.

“Billie Sue Baker, WNOU. Coach, an overtime loss followed by 4 wins. Not bad.”

“That loss still gives me nightmares but we’ve played well since then.”

“You’re a scoring machine, getting 109.8 per game. That’s amazing. How are you doing it?”

“Hard to believe. We have our big guys shooting a LOT of layups, and our outside shooters take threes rather than twos whenever they can. We work to get open. Ed Fier has done a terrific job of finding the open man, 8.8 assists per game. And then we run the offense at the max speed possible, and very free wheelin’.”

Middle Tennessee, 1-1, is here.

11/26: Up only 5 after 10. 36-39 at the half. The shots are not dropping. 13, 3 for Brog, 11 for Cass. 1-12 on threes.

Falling farther behind early. Down 8 with 10 to play. We catch up late.

94-84. 58-45 in the 2nd half. It took us a long time to get going but we got there. 28, 7, 3 for Brog, 19, 6 for Cass, 12, 3, 8 for Fier. Good inside play and only 8 TOs.

I decide to start Will Cass and sit Mike Bron. Cass is scoring more and defending better.

At 0-3 VMI.

11/30: Close early. Tied after 10. Then we go on a run. 50-39 at the break. 16, 8 for Cass, 12 each for Baro and Bron.

Up 19 with 10 left.

103-82. 26, 8, 2, 3 for Cass, 22, 8 for Bron, 22, 7 for Brog, 20, 1, 1, 4 for Baro. Big edge in the paint.

At 1-4 Army.

12/3: Fast start. Up 12 after 10. 58-37 at halftime. 18, 3, 1, 0, 3 for Baro, 11 each for Tyle and Bron.

Up 23 with 10 to go.

109-85. 19, 6 for Tyle, 18, 4, 2, 0, 3 for Baro, 13, 8 for Bron, 12, 9 for Cass, 12, 8 for Brog.

We’re 7-1. NET #22. #1 in the nation in PPG and field goal p[ct., 56.2%.

2 guys, Brog and Cass, average more than 20 a game.

At 1-4 Air Force next.

[Wayne23]

12/7: Back and forth early. Down 1 after 10. Then we take the lead. 52-48 at halftime. Poor D, too many fouls, some of which we actually committed. 12, 1, 6 for Fier, 10, 5 for Brog.

Increasing the lead early. Up 12 with 10 to go.

89-79. Not our best game. 18, 6 for Brog, 20, 3 for Cass, 12, 3, 12 for Fier, 14, 4 for Baro. Good inside play.

6-2 Utah ST is here.

12/10: Fast start. Up 12 after 10. 51-34 at the half. 12 each for Cass and Brog.

Up 19 with 10 to play. We’re sailing late in the game.

96-72. 27, 6 for Brog, 23, 7, 3 blocks for Cass, 17, 6, 3 for Baro, 12, 6 for Bron. We owned the paint.

4 game road trip starts at 4-2 Fairfield.

12/14: Close early. Up 4 after 10. 51-36 at the break. 15, 5 for Cass, 12, 3 for Brog.

Big lead early. Up 27 with 10 left.

92-77. 25, 7 for Brog, 17, 5 for Cass, 12, 9 for Tyle. Great bench play.

At 8-3 Colorado ST.

12/21: Close early. Up 5 after 10. 50-41 at halftime. 25, 6 for Brog, 12, 3 for Cass. Dominant inside.

Solid play early. Up 11 with 10 to go.

82-60. 30, 10 for Brog, 18, 4 for Cass, 11, 7 for Bron. +42 in the paint.

Our last pre-conf game is at 4-4 LSU. That’s the school I hope to end up at, bringing glory to my home state of Louisiana.

12/28: Early lead. Up 4 after 10 as they come back. Then a run! 53-40 at the half. 18, 6 for Bron, 18, 5 for Cass. +30 inside.

Up 7 with 10 to play. It’s a battle late!

89-77. 26, 9 for Cass, 24, 8, 1, 3 for Bron, 12 for Doba. 66 in the paint.

1/1/2024: We end pre-conf play at 12-1, NET #7.

#1 PPG, +17.1, #1 shooting pct., 54.8%. +10.8 RBs, -3.8 TOs, 11.8.

Brog leads in scoring with 22.5, gets 6.9 RBs. Cass gets 20.5, 5.5. Bron gets 15.1, and leads with 7.2 RBs. Fier leads in assists with 8.4.

Heading for Sun Belt play at 4-7 Appalachian ST.

[Wayne23]

1/4: Close early. Up 7 after 10. 46-48 at the break. It was close all the way. 3 fouls for Brog. 20, 5 for Cass.

They take the lead early on. Down 7 with 10 left.

90-94. Frustrating loss. We just couldn’t quite catch up, several times. 36-7 for Cass. The difference was fouls, we were -16 at the line. I took a T when Cass was called for #5, very late in the game.

Finally back home with 5-7 ODU.

1/7: We start fast. Up 8 after 10. 50-30 at halftime. 19, 7 for Bron. +30 in the paint.

Up 21 with 10 to go.

103-78. 26, 10 for Cass, 21, 8 for Bron, 20, 5 for Brog. 78 down low.

At 4-9, 1-1 Marshall.

1/11: Close early. Up 10 after 10. 50-34 at the half. 15, 8 for Bron, 10 each for Baro and Cass.

Up 19 with 10 to play.

98-73. 29, 12 for Bron, who has been terrific coming off the bench. 16, 7 for Brog, 15, 6 for Cass, 13, 8, 7 for Baro. 68 in the lane. +19 RBs.

4-10, 1-2 Texas ST is here.

1/14: Early lead. Up 10 after 10. 60-36 at the break. 20, 5 for Cass, 14, 4 for Brog. +42 in the paint.

Up 24 with 10 left.

107-90. 28, 8 for Cass, 24, 7 for Brog, 16, 7 for Bron, 14 for Tyle.

“Bubba Burk, WNOL. Coach Cash, you guys are on fire.”

“We’re really playing well, yes.”

“What’s with the first game thing though?”

“No idea. We lost the first game of the season and the first game in conference play and no other games. It’s kinda weird, really.”

“Your inside play has dominated almost everyone.”

“We have 4 guys, Brog, Cass, Bron, and Tyle who can really play in the paint, and Marl Doba and Norm John have plyed well when they’re in there.”

“15-2, 3-1, ranked #25, NET #15.”

“So far, so good!”

At 4-11, 1-3 Louisiana-Monroe next.