Path to the Hall of Fame (v2)

[randy]

1. SG Cain Ward
   
   • GPA: 3.3
   • Jr transfer (from Iowa)
   • 93 GP (62 GS), 26.1 mpg, 17.0 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.0 apg, 1.5 spg, 45% FG, 80% FT, 36% 3PT
   • 10 tournament games, 18.1 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.5 apg, 42% FG, 92% FT, 41% 3PT
   • Awards
     
     • All-American 1st Team (2002, 2003)
     • MEAC Player of the Year (2002, 2003)
     • MEAC Defensive Player of the Year (2002, 2003)
     • MEAC All-Conference 1st Team (2002, 2003)
     • Player of the Week: 17
     • Player of the Game: 35
   
   
2. SG Lewis Lepore
   
   • GPA: 3.2
   • 4-yr Senior
   • 100 GP (13 GS), 17.6 mpg, 7.9 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 1.8 apg, 45% FG, 78% FT, 43% 3PT
   • 11 tournament games, 8.5 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 2.2 apg, 47% FG, 43% 3PT
   • Awards
     
     • Player of the Week: 3
     • Player of the Game: 5
   
   
3. SF Anthony Jefferson
   
   • GPA: 4.0
   • 4-yr Senior
   • 117 GP (27 GS), 16.6 mpg, 4.4 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 47% FG, 76% FT, 45% 3PT
   • 11 tournament games, 1.9 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 62% FG
   • Awards
     
     • Player of the Week: 2
     • Player of the Game: 4
   
   
4. C William Murphy
   
   • GPA: 4.0
   • 5-yr Senior
   • 118 GP (30 GS), 12.3 mpg, 2.9 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 66% FG, 53% FT, 1 double double
   • 10 tournament games, 2.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 73% FG
   
   

[randy]

Starters

• 1: Sr PG Michael Price, 6-1, 3.0/4.0
• 2: So(R) PG Eddie Collins, 6-4, 3.0/4.0
• 3: Sr SF Brad Collins, 6-7, 3.5/4.0
• 4: Sr C Brandon Braun, 6-8, 5.0/5.0 (*)
• 5: Sr C Terrell Collins, 6-10, 4.0/4.0

Bench

• 4/5: Sr PF David Andrews, 6-8, 3.5/3.5
• 1/2: Sr PG Brandon Costa, 6-2, 2.0/4.0
• 3/4: Fr(R) PF Brad Hand, 6-7, 2.5/4.0
• 3/4: Jr(R) SF Gary Whiting, 6-8, 2.0/3.0
• 2: Fr SG Joel Linney, 6-2, 1.0/1.0

Walk-ons

• 1/2: Sr SG Ceedric Carter, 6-1, 1.5/1.5
• 3: Jr SF Jonathan Simmons, 6-7, 2.0/2.0

Transfers (ineligible to play this season)

• 3/4: So PF Cliff Darby, 6-6, 4.0/4.5
• 2: So SG Thomas Angeli, 6-2, 4.0/5.0
• 5: Jr C Micah Stacey, 7-1, 3.5/4.0

(*) Norton candidate

[randy]

Wright St, Won 94-59

• FG: 58-40%; REB: +12; TO: -7
• POG: C Brandon Braun 28 pts, 8 rebs

Alabama A&M, Won 78-59

• FG: 52-36%; REB: +14; TO: Even
• POG: C Brandon Braun 33 pts, 10 rebs

@Lamar, Won 68-63

• FG: 43-43%; REB: +1; TO: Even
• POG: C Brandon Braun 21 pts, 11 rebs

@Marquette, Won 74-73

• FG: 54-50%; REB: +11; TO: +4
• POG: C Brandon Braun 34 pts, 13 rebs

@Savannah St, Won 71-65

• FG: 54-44%; REB: +9; TO: +5
• POG: C Brandon Braun 25 pts, 9 rebs

@Western Michigan, Won 103-67

• FG: 58-50%; REB: +10; TO: -8
• POG: PG Michael Price 25 pts, 3 asts

NC Wilmington, Won 76-49

• FG: 41-40%; REB: +8; TO: -12
• POG: C Brandon Braun 24 pts, 8 rebs

@Murray St, Won 78-59

• FG: 58-40%; REB: +6; TO: +3
• POG: C Brandon Braun 27 pts, 8 rebs

@Bowling Green, Won 86-66

• FG: 54-43%; REB: +7; TO: +1
• POG: C Brandon Braun 31 pts, 12 rebs

@Colgate, Won 74-47

• FG: 52-31%; REB: +9; TO: -1
• POG: C Terrell Collins 16 pts, 12 rebs

UMBC, Won 85-47

• FG: 51-39%; REB: +26; TO: -2
• POG: C Brandon Braun 22 pts, 12 rebs

[randy]

Coppin St, Won 78-37

• FG: 41-29%; REB: +14; TO: -13
• POG: C Brandon Braun 21 pts, 7 rebs

@Florida A&M, Won 79-52

• FG: 42-36%; REB: +21; TO: -5
• POG: C Brandon Braun 31 pts, 20 rebs

Bethune-Cookman, Won 80-53

• FG: 51-39%; REB: -2; TO: -10
• POG: C Brandon Braun 24 pts, 10 rebs

Howard, Won 79-60

• FG: 48-39%; REB: -4; TO: -6
• POG: C Brandon Braun 29 pts, 13 rebs

@Lipscomb, Won 77-62

• FG: 50-41%; REB: +10; TO: -2
• POG: C Brandon Braun 26 pts, 11 rebs

Belmont, Won 89-61

• FG: 58-45%; REB: +10; TO: -4
• POG: C Brandon Braun 37 pts, 7 rebs

Quinnipiac, Won 67-48

• FG: 39-44%; REB: +10; TO: -15
• POG: C Brandon Braun 12 pts, 13 rebs

@Norfolk St, Lost 53-67

• FG: 35-40%; REB: +8; TO: +12

MEAC Conference Standings

1. Norfolk St, 7-1
2. #13 Delaware St, 7-1
3. Howard, 6-2
4. Belmont, 5-3
5. MD Eastern Shore, 5-3
6. Bethune-Cookman, 4-4
7. Florida A&M, 3-5
8. Coppin St, 3-5
9. North Carolina A&T, 3-5
10. Lipscomb, 2-6
11. Quinnipiac, 2-6
12. Morgan St, 1-7

[randy]

@North Carolina A&T, Won 63-56

• FG: 41-45%; REB: +7; TO: +1
• POG: C Brandon Braun 21 pts, 12 rebs

Morgan St, Won 99-68

• FG: 62-41%; REB: +10; TO: -10
• POG: C Brandon Braun 42 pts, 11 rebs

@MD Eastern Shore, Won 80-67

• FG: 46-46%; REB: +5; TO: -3
• POG: C Brandon Braun 19 pts, 10 rebs

@Coppin St, Won 86-66

• FG: 54-44%; REB: +14; TO: -4
• POG: C Brandon Braun 32 pts, 14 rebs

Florida A&M, Won 89-55

• FG: 55-42%; REB: +14; TO: -4
• POG: C Brandon Braun 29 pts, 11 rebs

@Bethune-Cookman, Won 89-63

• FG: 56-40%; REB: +15; TO: -2
• POG: C Brandon Braun 25 pts, 16 rebs

@Howard, Won 91-67

• FG: 59-46%; REB: +23; TO: +5
• POG: C Brandon Braun 25 pts, 14 rebs

Lipscomb, Won 79-48

• FG: 52-43%; REB: +12; TO: -9
• POG: C Brandon Braun 51 pts, 14 rebs

MEAC Conference Final Standings

1. #7 Delaware St, 15-1
2. Norfolk St, 13-3
3. Belmont, 11-5
4. Howard, 11-5
5. Bethune-Cookman, 9-7
6. MD Eastern Shore, 8-8
7. Coppin St, 7-9
8. Florida A&M, 6-10
9. Morgan St, 5-11
10. North Carolina A&T, 4-12
11. Quinnipiac, 4-12
12. Lipscomb, 3-13

[randy]

Quarter Finals
(8) Florida A&M, Won 76-54

• FG: 44-28%; REB: -15; TO: -13
• POG: C Brandon Braun 36 pts, 8 rebs

Semi-Finals
(4) Howard, Won 81-64

• FG: 51-44%; REB: +6; TO: +1
• POG: C Brandon Braun 22 pts, 10 rebs

Championship
(3) Belmont, Won 77-54

• FG: 48-39%; REB: +9; TO: -4
• POG: C Brandon Braun 33 pts, 4 rebs

[randy]

Rank (Media/Coaches): #5/#7; RPI: #2

We're in the South Regionals (Nashville)

1st round matchup:
(4) #5 Delaware St vs (13) Xavier

Teams in the South Regionals

• (1) #3 Georgia - 2 National Titles, 8 Final Fours
• (2) #15 Iowa - 2 National Titles, 4 Final Fours
• (3) #13 North Carolina - 4 Final Fours
• (4) #5 Delaware St - 1 Final Four
• (5) #24 Indiana - 6 National Titles, 13 Final Fours
• (6) #21 Central Michigan
• (7) #25 Memphis - 1 National Title, 3 Final Fours
• (8) Minnesota - 4 Final Fours
• (9) Miami (FL)
• (10) Kansas St - 1 National Title, 8 Final Fours
• (11) Houston - 2 National Titles, 6 Final Fours
• (12) Play-In
• (13) Xavier
• (14) Idaho
• (15) Arkansas-Pine Buff
• (16) Louisiana-Lafayette

Other Ranked Teams

East

• (1) #1 Georgia Tech
• (2) #7 Seton Hall
• (3) #12 Kansas
• (4) #9 New Mexico
• (5) #22 Wake Forest
• (6) #11 UNLV
• (7) #17 Iona

Midwest

• (1) #2 Louisville
• (2) #6 UCLA
• (3) #10 Gonzaga
• (4) #20 Arkansas
• (5) #14 Oregon
• (8) #23 Boston

West

• (1) #4 Duke
• (2) #8 Butler
• (3) #16 Kentucky
• (4) #18 Oklahoma
• (5) #19 Toledo

On Probation

• None

MEAC teams appearing on post-season tournaments

NCAA

• South: (13) Xavier vs (4) #5 Delaware St

NIT

• East: (8) St Louis vs (1) Howard
• East: (7) Texas-El Paso vs (2) Norfolk St
• West: (7) Central Connecticut St vs (2) Belmont

[randy]

Mar 17, 2004: (13) Xavier (19-12, 10-6) vs (4) #5 Delaware St (29-1, 15-1)

Scouting Report

1. Primary defense: M2M
2. Offense focus: Balanced (slow)
3. Key players:
   
   • So PG Kurt Nooner (9.3 ppg, 3.1 apg)
   • So(R) PF Josh Stevens (9.2 ppg, 4.3 rpg)
4. Strengths:
   
   • Defense: 58.9 opp pg (#14), 41.4% opp FG (#47), 30.8% opp 3PT (#9)
   • Ball Handling: 12.7 topg (#33)
5. Weaknesses:
   
   • Offense: 63.4 ppg (#283), 42.5% FG (#278), 34.3% 3PT (#191)
   • Rebounding: 31.0 rpg (#165)
6. How they got here:
   
   • Finished 4th Atlantic 10; Won Conference Tournament

Strategies

1. They have a deep bench; we just need to make sure our starters can stay out of foul trouble

Start of 1st half

XAV in the penalty early. Up 15-10, 11:34. We need to box out better as XAV already has 6 off rebounds. Up 21-16, 6:24. We capitalized on several XAV turn overs to open up a good gap. Halftime, Up 43-31.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• FG shooting: XAV 38%, DELST 59%
• Turnovers: XAV 8, DELST 4
• C Brandon Braun already with 17 pts, 7-10 FT

Start of 2nd half

XAV started out well in the 2nd half, reducing our lead to 7. But C Brandon Braun continues to be unstoppable down low, and PG Brandon Costa providing outside sniping, allowed us to keep control of the game. Up 59-46, 12:41. We're doing a better job on the boards in the 2nd half. XAV keeping themselves within striking distance with their 3pt shooting. Up 75-61, 5:24. XAV not making stops to start a rally; I pulled my key players out with 3 minutes remaining, with a 16 pts lead.


Final Score: Xavier - 73, Delaware St - 86


Box Scores
[INDENT]Braun 28, 13, 3 (*)
Costa 17, 1, 3, 2 stls, 5-8 3PT
T Collins 10, 4, 0
Andrews 8, 4, 2
E Collins 7, 1, 2, fouled out
Hand 6, 6, 2
B Collins 6, 2, 3
Price 4, 0, 3
Linney 0, 0, 1
Whiting 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 52-47%
REB: +2
TO: -10
Pts in paint: +32 (46-14)
2nd chance: +4
Fast break: +9
[/INDENT]
Notes

• XAV shot well from the outside, 11-23 3PT; but the 21 fast break pts (on 17 turn overs) they gave up is difficult to overcome
• PG Eddie Collins was in foul trouble most of the game, but PG Brandon Costa has stepped up big time. Reserve big men PF David Andrews and PF Brad Hand also did well off the bench.

[randy]

Mar 19, 2004: (5) #24 Indiana (20-9, 12-6) vs (4) #5 Delaware St (30-1, 15-1)

Scouting Report

1. Primary defense: M2M
2. Offense focus: Outside
3. Key players:
   
   • Fr SF Edmund Preston (15.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg, #14 class rank)
   • So SG Jordan Williams (12.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg, #24 class rank)
   • So PF Antoine Anderson (10.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 55% FG)
4. Strengths:
   
   • Ball Handling: 12.9 topg (#44)
5. Weaknesses:
   
   • Shooting: 42.4% FG (#284), 33.2% 3PT (#244)
   • Rebounding: 31.6 rpg (#129)
   • Perimeter defense: 38.1% opp 3PT (#331)
6. How they got here:
   
   • Finished 4th Big 10; Lost Conference Tournament Quarter Finals
   • (Round 64) Def Jacksonville, 80-70 (IND 52% FG)

Strategies

1. Test their outside shooting

Start of 1st half

We're winning the rebounding battle, but our 7 turn overs got us down early. Down 6-10, 12:24. Both teams have shot miserably, below 30% FG. Down 12-16, 6:37. We gt back and took the lead on a couple of instances, but IND's outside shooting has picked up a notch. Halftime, Down 29-34.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• FG shooting: IND 40%, DELST 30%
• Turnovers: IND 6, DELST 10
• Rebounds: IND 14, DELST 25
• We'll use m2m exclusive in the 2nd half

Start of 2nd half

We suddenly have difficulty making stops, and we have not made any developments in cutting our deficit. Down 35-41, 14:27. We also got into early foul trouble, and IND's last 4 pts came from the line. Down 42-50, 11:57.

After the timeout, we scored a basket. We get a steal on IND's back court to get an easy 2. We get another steal, and another layup in transition. We're down by just 2. Down 48-50, 11:09. We kept it close, and had 2 missed chances to either tie of take the lead. Down 51-54, 7:30.

A jumper by PG Michael Price finally pulled us even with IND. But IND hit their 7th 3pt shot of the game. IND made a stop, and they scored on their end again. Down 55-60, 5:07.

We need to score here. We go to C Brandon Braun (24 pts) and he scores inside. Down 3. But IND's SG Jordan Williams (15 pts) scores on a jumper, in front of a double team. Down 57-62, 4:38.

IND called for a foul. They are also in the penalty. 1-and-1 for PG Brandon Costa. Costa nails both. Down 3. IND missed, but they get the off rebound. Another miss by IND, but they get another chance with an off rebound. They drive and we got called for a foul. 2 FTs. That was not a good sequence for us. They hit both FTs. Down 59-64, 4:00.

We turn the ball over. A turn over also for IND. Foul called on IND. 1-and-1 for PG E Collins; he hits both. Down 3. We had a break down in defense as we allowed IND's PG to drive for an uncontested layup. Timeout. Down 61-66, 2:43.

Another foul on IND. 1-and-1 for SF Brad Collins; he missed the froent end. IND rebounds. IND forced a bad shot, but they have wisely used most of their shot clock. We quickly set up a play and C Terrell Collins scores inside. Down 63-66, 1:26.

We got called for a foul. I was livid with the call, but it will stand. Double bonus, 2 FTs for IND. They split. Timeout. Down 63-67, 1:03.

PG Eddie Collins missed. IND gets the rebound. We don't need to foul yet. IND missed. We get the rebound and timeout. Down 63-67, 0:43.

We look for 3s and increase the pace. We miss a 3. Half a minute remaining. We need to foul. I call my last timeout, and we're down by 5. We need to hurry up.

PG Eddie Collins connects on a 3! We're not yet done. Down 66-68, 0:21. I was yelling to foul immediately. We did foul. 2 FTs for IND. IND hits both. Down 66-70, 0:18. We missed our next attempt from 3, and our season ended.


Final Score: Indiana - 73, Delaware St - 66


Box Scores
[INDENT]Braun 24, 13, 2, 2 stls
Price 11, 2, 5
E Collins 9, 5, 3
T Collins 6, 8, 0
Andrews 4, 7, 0
B Collins 4, 3, 1
Costa 4, 0, 1, fouled out
Hand 4, 0, 0
Whiting 0, 0, 1
Linney 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 40-42%
REB: +9
TO: +3
Pts in paint: +20
2nd chance: +4
Fast break: +10
[/INDENT]
Notes

• Our outside shots were absent today, 2-12 3PT. Other than that, I think we played well enough to be able to win this game, but the breaks didn't go our way

[randy]

#3 Georgia wins the South Regionals

In the Final 4, #6 UCLA def #1 Georgia Tech, while #3 Georgia def #4 Duke

#6 UCLA def #3 Georgia in the championship. UCLA wins their 1st ever national title!