Philly Gym Rat (The Perry “QM” McMullin Story)

[CoachC]

tough first loss, but you still have to be pretty happy with your performance against that schedule

[PointGuard]

Yes, VERY happy. Loosing to Gonzaga on their court wasn't a surprise, even in a down year for the Zags.

[PointGuard]

Game #9; Dec. 13, 2015: Loyola Marymount Lions (4-3) at CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners (7-1)

My old mentor, Coach Finnegan, brings his Lions into Bakersfield. It’s nice to see him again and I appreciate his agreeing to play us on our court. They employ a 1-3-1 zone. We’ve been practicing against it, so hopefully my guys will be ready to handle it. Like us, Loyola Marymount beat Temple earlier this year, but thus far they have yet to win on the road.

We roll to a 16-2 lead with 14:40 to play in the first half. We continued to hit our shots and led 26-7 with 10 minutes left in the half. We opened a 22 point lead and finished the half ahead 40-21. We dropped in 50% of our shots. The Lions hit 30% of theirs. Jerell Brown had 13 and Isaac Bryson added 12 to lead our scoring.

We expanded our lead to35 points in the 2nd half before playing our bench extensively toward the end of the game.

Final Score: CSU Bakersfield-73, Loyola Marymount-51. CSU Bakersfield season record: 8-1.

Scoring leaders: Bryson-15, Jrl Brown-13, Evans-13, Saunders-8.

Rebound leaders: Saunders-8, Jrl Brown-7.

Assist leaders: Curry-7, Durham-5, Saunders-4.

Player of the Game: SG Jerell Brown-13 pts, 7 reb, 2 assists, 1 steal.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: C Mark Saunders-8 pts, 8 reb, 4 assists.

[I]Other notes: We knocked down 46% of our FG attempts while restricting the Lions shooting to 37%. Turnovers were 15-6 in our favor.

Coach Finnegan gave me a hard time after the game for being mean to my old boss. But he then congratulated me on putting together such a good team, saying he was proud that I was being so successful, and he wished me well for the rest of the season.

[PointGuard]

Game #10; Dec. 16, 2015: Furman Paladins (4-4) at CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners (8-1)

Furman has won 4 of 6 road games this year. They are a guard-oriented team with 4 guards averaging over 10 ppg. Tony Jackson, a walk-on freshman SG, is averaging 11.5 ppg playing just 11.2 mpg. He’s hitting 59% of his FG attempts (including 68% of his 3’s).

We hit only 1 of our first 11 shots and trailed 10-2 with about 14 minutes left in the first half. We never caught up and trailed at the half 32-23. Both teams shot poorly…30% for us (including 0 for 9 from beyond the arc), 33% for Furman. But the telling statistic was that we were called for 14 fouls while Furman was whistled only 5 times. That resulted in them getting 15 more trips to the line and scoring 11 more points than us on free throws. My incessant working of the refs didn’t do any good as they continued to assess fouls on us throughout the entire half. Six of our players had 2 fouls against them. Our top scorers were Jerell Brown and Mitchell Jarmond with 6 points each.

We dropped behind by 15 points with 12 minutes to play as Furman began hitting their shots. We then began to chip away at their lead and cut it to 3 with 4:17 to play. We got with 2 points with 3 minutes to go, but Furman scored 7 points in the next minute and we were unable to make up the difference. Chalk one up in the home loss column.

Final Score: Furman-71, CSU Bakersfield-64. CSU Bakersfield season record: 8-2.

Scoring leaders: Jarmond-19, Jrl Brown-17.

Rebound leaders: Jarmond-7.

Assist leaders: Durham-3, Curry-3.

Player of the Game: Furman’s PG Jason Jones-17 pts, 9 reb, 3 assists, 1 block.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: PF Mitchell Jarmond-19 pts, 7 reb, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 block.

[I]Other notes: While we brought up our shooting percentage to 38%, Furman improved more in the 2nd half, finishing by hitting 43% of their shots. They edged us on the boards 33-30 and on turnovers, 14-13. Our turnovers led to 22 Furman points. The only bright spot was Mitchell Jarmond’s break-out game.

After the game, Mark Saunders and Marcelle Pastner got into a loud argument. I decided it was more out of frustration than anything else and didn’t take any action.

[PointGuard]

Game #11; Dec. 20, 2015: Virginia Cavaliers (5-5) at CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners (8-2)

Virginia is led by SG Dan Chadwick who is scoring 24.0 ppg. Virginia has played a rough schedule (3 of their losses have been to ranked teams), so we are going to have to be on our toes to keep them from running away from us.

Virginia held the lead throughout the 1st half building 7 point leads a few times, but we fought back and took the lead with 4 minutes left in the period. We then carved out our own 7 point lead by repeatedly driving into the key for baskets to finish the half ahead 41-34. We hit 54% to Virginia’s 45%. We also only turned the ball over 3 times while Virginia had 8 turnovers. Marcus Evans scored 11 and Jerell Brown added 10. For Virginia, Dan Chadwick lived up to the hype by scoring 15 first half points.

We came out of the locker room with a mission to put Virginia away and we did it. We quickly built a double digit lead and held it throughout the half, only surrendering it when Virginia hit three 3’s at the end of the game.

Final Score: CSU Bakersfield-76, Virginia-67. CSU Bakersfield season record: 9-2.

Scoring leaders: Jrl Brown-21, Evans-16, Durham-11, Saunders-8.

Rebound leaders: Evans-5.

Assist leaders: Durham-7, Jrl Brown-3, Bryson-3.

Player of the Game: SG Jerell Brown-21 pts, 3 reb, 3 assists, 3 steals.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: SF Marcus Evans-16 pts, 5 reb, 2 assists, 1 steal.

[I]Other notes: We made 50% of our shots (including 46% of our 3’s) plus we forged a 33-29 rebound advantage and a 16-11 turnover advantage. We scored a fantastic 38 points in the paint (1/2 of our total points scored and those came mainly on drives. Dan Chadwick of Virginia finished with 22 points.

[PointGuard]

Game #12; Dec. 23, 2015: Missouri State Bears (5-3) at CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners (9-2)

Missouri State has won 5 of their last 6 games including a big win over #3 ranked Michigan.

We put together an awesome offense AND defense in the first half, jumping out to a 9-0 lead and then expanding our lead to as much as 26 points. We hit 55% of our shots and held the Bears to 32% shooting. We forced 13 turnovers by Missouri State and only turned the ball over 4 times ourselves. We controlled the boards 18-12. At the half we had a 41-18 lead. Marcus Evans and Randy Durham shared high point honors with 10 points each.

We continued to perk in the 2nd half, continually adding to our lead. Our entire bench played extensively.

Final Score: CSU Bakersfield-68, Missouri State-34. CSU Bakersfield season record: 10-2.

Scoring leaders: Jrl Brown-15, Evans-14, Durham-10, Calton-9, Saunders-8.

Rebound leaders: Jarmond-6, Calton-6, Durham-5.

Assist leaders: Durham-4.

Player of the Game: SG Jerell Brown-15 pts, 4 reb, 2 assists, 1 steal.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: PG Randy Durham-10 pts, 5 reb, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks.

[I]Other notes: We finished the game by hitting 49% of our shots while holding Missouri State to 30%. We out-rebounded the Bears 35-28. The Bears made 25 turnovers. We turned the ball over only 12 times. We scored 26 points in the paint, had 10 second chance points, and 24 fast break points. On the other hand Missouri Valley had just 10 points in the paint, 4 second chance points, and only 2 fast break points. Total and complete dominance.

Mark Saunders and Marcelle Pastner got into it again, arguing loudly. I called both in together and told them we have a good season going and I don’t want them jeopardizing it by creating some bad team chemistry. So cut the crap because I don’t want to see them in my office for something like this again.

[PointGuard]

Game #13; Dec. 27, 2015: CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners (10-2) at #14 Boston College (10-1)

Our biggest challenge comes in our final pre-conference game as we take on #14 ranked Boston College on their court. BC’s only loss was early in the season to #3 Louisville.

We held the lead most of the first half. We scored on 51% of our shots but Boston College made 53% of their shots. We held an 18-13 rebounding advantage. Marcus Evans scorched the nets for 19 points. While both teams had the same number of turnovers, I was upset that we had 9 and got in my players faces during the halftime about the need to control of the ball.

We held onto a very small lead early in the second half, but midway through the period Boston College pulled ahead. The game then went back and forth, until we pulled away to take an 8 point lead with 3 minutes to play. The Eagles made a furious effort to cut our lead, but were unable to do so.

Final Score: CSU Bakersfield-88, Boston College-80. CSU Bakersfield season record: 11-2.

Scoring leaders: Evans-31, Jrl Brown-13, Jarmond-9, Curry-8.

Rebound leaders: Saunders-10, Jarmond-5.

Assist leaders: Durham-12, Jarmond-5, Curry-3, Bryson-3.

Player of the Game: SF/SG Marcus Evans-31 pts, 2 reb, 2 steals.

Coach’s Pat on the Back Award: PF Mitchell Jarmond-9 pts, 5 reb, 5 assists, 1 steal.

[I]Other notes: While we were unable to apply our usual stout defense against Boston College, our offense was extremely sharp. We made 53% of our FG attempts (and 43% of our threes). The Eagles hit 51% of their shots (and 55% of their threes). We won by holding advantages on the boards (31-27) and on turnovers (13-9…we made ZERO turnovers in the second half). We also had 24 second chance points to BC’s 5. Randy Durham’s 12 assists were the most by any player I’ve coached. Mark Saunders had 4 blocks for us. This game was a huge win for our program.

We knocked Boston College down 3 spots in the polls, down to #17. Our victory didn’t move us into that august list of teams. That earlier loss to Furman at home was a big black mark against us. But our RPI is now 13th best in the nation.

[PointGuard]

Point Guard:
Randy Durham is scoring a little less that last year, but is rebounding much more strongly and is dishing out more assists. Michael Curry is playing about twice as many minutes as last year and has been a good backup for Durham. Lionel Benjamin still needs to develop but has been an adequate replacement.
Randy Durham: 26.3 mpg, 9.6 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 6.3 apg, 0.6 spg, 0.7 bpg, 2.9 A/TO
Michael Curry: 10.3 mpg, 3.5 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 2.5 apg, 0.2 spg, 0.0 bpg, 1.4 A/TO
Lionel Benjamin: 5.3 mpg, 1.2 ppg, 0.5 rpg, 0.6 apg, 0.1 spg, 0.0 bpg, 0.9 A/TO

Shooting Guard:
Jerell Brown’s scoring has been about equal to last year, but he has dished out a lot more assists and continues to be a defensive stalwart. Marcus Evans has started half our game at SF and played well at that position and also as a back up to Jerell Brown at SG. He’s scoring a little better and controlling the ball much better. His defense, while not stellar, is improved.
Jerell Brown: 30.3 mpg, 17.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 2.4 apg, 2.0 spg, 0.2 bpg, 1.2 A/TO
Marcus Evans: 22.6mpg, 11.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.1 apg, 1.1 spg, 0.0 bpg, 1.3 A/TO

Small Forward:
Isaac Bryson has improved his overall game, scoring better, rebounding more strongly, and playing stronger defense. Ammer Self has not shown sufficient ability to play too much and with Evans and Bryson sharing time at SF, there haven’t been many minutes of on-court time left for Self.
Isaac Bryson: 20.4 mpg, 6.8 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.2 spg, 0.7 bpg, 2.0 A/TO
Ammer Self: 3.6 mpg, 0.3 ppg, 0.5 rpg, 0.5 apg, 0.1 spg, 0.0 bpg, 0.8 A/TO

Power Forward:
Awvee Calton has played well at times but has been inconsistent. Mitchell Jarmond has shown some strength as the season moves along. His ball control is a welcome adjunct of his play. Neither Calton or Jarmond are yet ready to fill the shoes of Ali Lyde who played such a strong PF for us the past 2 years. C.J. Galloway, Terrance WIatre and Mike Dotson have not played much, so it’s hard to evaluate their productivity.
Awvee Calton: 18.8 mpg, 5.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 0.6 apg, 0.8 spg, 0.3 bpg, 1.1 A/TO
Michael Jarmond: 17.8 mpg, 4.6 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 0.9 apg, 0.5 spg, 0.3 bpg, 12.0 A/TO
C.J. Galloway: 2.0 mpg, 0.0 ppg, 0.5 rpg, 0.2 apg, 0.0 spg, 0.0 bpg, 1.0 A/TO
Terrance Wiatre: 3.3 mpg, 0.7 ppg, 0.3 rpg, 0.0 apg, 0.0 spg, 0.0 bpg, 0.0 A/TO
Mike Dotson: 4.2 mpg, 1.3 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 0.3 apg, 0.3 spg, 0.0 bpg, 2.0 A/TO

Center:
Mark Saunders has been a stronger player offensively and on the boards than last year, but still has yet to develop fully. Marcelle Pastner and Josh Brown both have filled in well for Saunders.
Mark Saunders: 21.0 mpg, 4.6 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 0.9 apg, 0.5 spg, 0.6 bpg, 0.6 A/TO
Marcelle Pastner: 10.4 mpg, 4.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 0.5 apg, 0.7 sgp, 0.3 bpg, 2.3 A/TO
Josh Brown: 6.6 mpg, 2.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 0.8 apg, 0.2 spg, 0.2 bpg, 1.8 A/TO

[PointGuard]

We’re scoring 71.5 ppg (52nd best in the nation), and have allowed just 60.0 ppg (33rd best in the nation). Turnovers have been our greatest strength this year. We turned the ball over 11.2 times a game which is 5th best in the nation and have forced our opponents to make 17.3 tpg (so we're 17th best in the country). Not surprisingly steals goes right along with this. We’ve had 8.1 spg (21st best in the nation) and while our opponents have only stolen the ball from us 3.8 times a game (that makes us 3rd best in the country). We also have had 3.3 bpg (30th best in the nation), but have let our opponents get 1.9 blocks against us each game (155th best in the country). Rebounding has also been a strength. We’ve pulled down 35.8 rpg (19th best in the nation). Our opponents have grabbed 31.0 rpg (168th best in the nation).

Our home record is 6-1 and our road record is 5-1. Our overall 11-2 record has yielded us an RPI that is 13thbest in the country, but not moved us into the top 25 in the polls.

[PointGuard]

1. Indiana (14-1)
2. Louisville (11-0)
3. Michigan State (12-1)
4. Kentucky (10-5)
5. Michigan (12-3)
6. North Carolina (10-4)
7. Alabama (12-2)
8. Duke (8-5)
9. Florida (10-3)
10. Kansas (8-5)