Matt Grahoben Coaching Career

[grahoben]

Season in Review:

Overall, this was a very successful first season as head coach. We won the Atlantic Sun regular season title, and I won conference coach of the year. While we lose three seniors from our rotation, we return our 3 leading scorers, and hopefully some of our recruits will pan out. We just finished our class with guard Colin Lindsey, and big man Dana Dix.

While we won the conference, our team was certainly not without weaknesses. Turning the ball over was a consistent problem for us, which was the main reason why Donte Hightower was benched for the second half of the season. Ball control improved with Erik Henry starting at point guard, but this must improve further next season. In terms of strengths, our three point and free throw shooting was great, which allowed us to have some high scoring wins.

The only head coaching offers I received were from Drexel and Western Illinois, so at this moment I have no interest in leaving Stetson. Obviously, I hope that our conference improves, but for now I think I can win here before possibly moving up.

[grahoben]

Lloyd Harris has been redshirted and will not play during the 2018-19 season

Depth Chart:
PG: Henry, Medley, Lindsey
SG: Mason, Stapleton, Lindsey
SF: Adams, Craig, Chapman
PF: Chapman, Grays, White
C: Bradford, Dix, White

Projected Starting Lineup:

PG: Erik Henry
SG: Marque Mason
SF: Terrence Adams
PF: Ward Chapman
C: Shawn Bradford

Non conference Schedule:
November
15 SIU-Edwardsville
18 @ Albany
22 @ Boston
25 @ North Alabama
29 @ Cal Poly

December
2 @ Florida State
6 @ Northwestern State
9 Morgan State
13 @ #23 Purdue
16 Long Island
20 Louisiana Tech
23 Illinois State
27 @ Cal State Bakersfield

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November 15, 2018

SIU-Edwardsville (0-1) 59
Stetson (1-0) 80

While Stetson's offense was impressive, it defense was amazing in its first game against SIU-Edwardsville. The Hatters collected an incredible 22 steals, which led to 18 fast break points. Overall, this game was a great start to the season, as all 12 players got in the game and contributed.

Notable Performances:
Ward Chapman 8-11 FG, 18 Points, 5 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 8 Steals
Terrence Adams 4-8 FG, 15 Points, 3 Rebounds, 1 Assist
Shawn Bradford 5-7 FG, 15 Points, 2 Rebounds, 1 Assist
Marque Mason 2-4 FG, 6 Points, 1 Rebound, 7 Assists, 4 Steals

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November 18, 2018

Stetson (1-1) 71
Albany (1-1) 74

As great at Stetson's defense was in its first game against SIU-Edwardsville, it was rather poor against the Albany Great Danes. The home team shot 59% from the field, and although Stetson led by 6 at halftime, they couldn't hold on for the lead.

Notable Performances:
Erik Henry 4-8 FG, 10 Points, 1 Rebound, 3 Assists
Chad Medley 4-11 FG, 13 Points, 1 Rebound, 1 Assist

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November 22, 2018

Stetson (1-2) 79
Boston (1-2) 83

The Hatters played another decent game, but fell just short in their 4 point loss to the Boston Terriers. The Hatters had 4 players score in double figures, but a bad defensive showing was too much to overcome, as the Terriers shot 53% from the field. John Grays suffered a minor knee injury, and will likely sit out the next game.

Notable Performances:
Ward Chapman 8-9 FG, 19 Points 5 Rebounds, 1 Assist
Shawn Braford 5-6 FG, 16 Points, 1 Rebound, 2 Assists
Terrence Adams 5-9 FG, 13 Points, 8 Rebounds, 1 Assist
Marque Mason 4-8 FG, 12 Points, 2 Rebounds, 2 Assists

[grahoben]

November 25, 2018

Stetson (2-2) 72
North Alabama (1-3) 60

Stetson evened up its record with its first road win of the year, a 12 point victory over the North Alabama Lions. Three point shooting was an issue for the Hatters, as they only converted 2 of 12 opportunities, but they made up for it by shooting 29-32 from the foul line.

Notable Performances:
Terrence Adams 5-9 FG, 17 Points, 5 Rebounds, 2 Assists
Shawn Bradford 6-15 FG, 16 Points, 5 Rebounds
Rodney Craig 3-5 FG, 8 Points, 4 Rebounds, 2 Assists

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November 29, 2018

Stetson (3-2) 71
Cal-Poly (1-4) 57

Stetson's game plan against Cal-Poly was easy to see from the beginning of the game: Get the ball to Shawn Bradford. The junior big man had 16 points in the first half, and added 8 more in the second on his way to a 24 point performance. The return of John Grays was also big for the Hatters, as the forward got 24 minutes of playing time and scored 6 points.

Notable Performances:
Shawn Bradford 11-15 FG, 24 Points, 4 Rebounds, 1 Assist
Erik Henry 2-8 FG, 11 Points, 3 Rebounds, 5 Assists
John Grays 3-4 FG, 6 Points, 4 Rebounds, 3 Assists

[grahoben]

December 2, 2018

Stetson (3-3) 60
#11 Florida State (6-2) 84

Stetson's 24 point loss against the ranked Florida State Seminoles looks bad if you only see the score, but the game was much closer than it appeared. The Hatters led most of the first half, and headed into the locker room trailing by just 1 point. A Terrence Adams three with 9 minutes to go tied the score at 54, but at that point Stetson ran out of gas, as the Seminoles cruised to a win on their home court.

Notable Performances:
Erik Henry 5-8 FG, 15 Points, 1 Rebound, 4 Assists
Terrence Adams 3-7 FG, 9 Points, 6 Rebounds
Ward Chapman 2-4 FG, 6 Points, 10 Rebounds, 1 Assist