WWU/Chuck Randall Links: WATCH LIVE & LIVE STATS
ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia-St. Paul men's basketball team will hit the road for the first time this season, playing at #6 Western Washington on Friday night at 9:30 p.m. (central) and against Alaska-Fairbanks at 5 p.m. on Saturday in the Chuck Randall Classic hosted by defending NCAA Champion Western Washington in Bellingham, Wash. Learn more about the new-look Golden Bears in the season preview.
The Golden Bears enter the 2012-13 season with a fresh, young and exciting men's basketball squad. The team loses three starters that played significant roles on the team last year, but a combination of experienced returners, young returners looking to step into new roles, impact transfers and new recruits the team brings more depth, versatility and size to the table than Concordia has seen in recent years.
In the exhibition season, Concordia showed no hesitation scoring by averaging over 100 points in its three exhibition/scrimmage contests, winning all three of them.
Entering his seventh season as head coach,
Kelly Boe discussed what he saw during the preseason, “The exhibition was an opportunity for us to get a new mix of guys a chance to play together in game situations. We're learning about our team, what we can and can't do and even our returners are fairly inexperienced. I liked a lot of things we were able to do, especially our offensive flow. All in all, guys understand their roles and started to play within them fairly well for only a couple of games.”
Boe describes the team as a work in progress defensively which was hidden fairly well when the team put up over 100 points twice in the exhibition contests. “We're still trying to get guys to trust each other. We weren't a good defensive team last year and this year it's something we want to improve upon and make a focal point for this team. We want to show them it's important, and that we need to improve at it.”
On the flip side, the offense might be dangerous but will also be experiencing significant change, mostly due to a new type of personnel mixture. “We'll be more of a screening offense and rely on moving without the ball will be a key to our success. In the past we've utilized a lot of dribble-drives, which we'll still do a little with certain personnel, but we've changed for the most part and how we score will change with it.”
The Golden Bears have one fourth year senior on the team,
Isaiah Thomas (Fridley, Minn.), the only player returning that started every game last season. Thomas is an offensive threat on the wing with a quick pull-up jumper that extends well beyond the arc with high efficiency. Entering the season, Thomas holds a 39.5% career three-point mark (fifth in program history) and also ranks fourth in most three's made (126) and attempted (319). He is coming off of his breakout year as he averaged 10.3 points and 4.2 rebounds as a second year starter while shooting 42.6% from long range. He averaged 27.4 minutes, showing the ability to play deep into games at the power forward position.
But this year, Thomas should return to a more natural role on the wing as a small forward. Boe notes that the goal is to “find more opportunities for Isaiah to shoot the ball. Having him at the “3” helps to keep us long and athletic but he can also play the “4” in certain lineups. He's a great shooter, but we need to utilize him in other ways, too, more aggressively off screens and get him to the foul line more often.”
Expected to join Thomas on the starting wing is shooting guard
Cole Olstad (Elgin, Minn.), a sophomore ready to make an impact in his second year in the program. As a true freshman, Olstad earned key minutes and started over half the season while adjusting to the college game with 25.7 minutes per game. He averaged 6.7 points and 3.7 rebounds as a rookie.
While Thomas will also slide to the power forward spot at times, Olstad has the versatility to play the small forward spot in certain situations. It's a flexibility that Boe has a luxury of, since the backups at both positions can also slide down a spot like their starter counterparts, and is something that will help not only on a game-to-game basis with matchups against certain opponents, but will allow the coaching staff to take advantage within a game based on circumstance.
“We like Cole's length and he has improved his ability on the defensive end which has made him a better all-around player,” Boe noted. “He's more confident offensively shooting the ball and the way we play offensively also fits his skills better than the way we played last year. We expect Cole to make more plays off of screens and be a more featured part of the offense.”
Another sophomore with a decent amount of starting and game experience will be joining Olstad in the backcourt.
Terez VanPelt (Osseo, Minn.) will be expected to run the point and “has improved his strength which is something we needed him to do in the offseason. We all know he's quick and creates problems for defenses. His jumper is solid and he's just a 'hard guard' that is tough to defend and can do a lot of different things. We're working with him on leadership, seeing reads and getting others involved. He has the ability to take over, but we're focusing on having him not try to do too much.”
As a freshman last year, VanPelt played in all 26 games with 11 starts and averaged 21.0 minutes. He scored 8.1 points and had 45 assists while shooting nearly 40% from three-point range and 81.8% from the foul line.
Starting down low at the power forward and center spots are a pair of transfers: redshirt freshman
Mike Yahnke (Delano, Minn.) and senior
Nick Mabbutt (Milton Keynes, UK). Boe explains that all of the posts on the roster are more of a “4” without a true center, similar to the makeup of most small college basketball programs. The combination allows more flexibility for Boe and the coaching staff as the players are interchangeable in the roles.
Yahnke is a transfer from Texas-Pan American, a Division I program where he spent the year as a redshirt and recovering from injury. “Yahnke has great touch facing-up and a solid mid-range game that looks smooth adding nice touch around the rim when he gets inside. He's a solid defender on the block that plays physically. We're working with him on his rebounding, but he's ahead of most players at this stage as it's still essentially his first year of college basketball. He has a great future ahead of him.”
Mabbutt transferred to Concordia from Division I South Dakota where he competed in eight games for the Coyotes and was an Academic All-Summit League student-athlete. “Nick's been a nice addition, is very coachable and has been a pleasant surprise all-around since joining our program. He's taken on a leadership role which is impressive in the amount of time he's been with us, and is a hard-working kid. On the floor, he gives us a scoring threat around the basket and has a mid-range game. Defensively he works hard and tries to do everything right. He uses his length and picks his spots well, and is a smart player with good timing to block shots and disrupt shots.”
In the post is where the team has seen the most dramatic change. While the team will lose a dynamic threat and former All-NSIC post player in
Brent Barz with a long, athletic 6-foot, 10-inch frame, the squad will feature a solid mix of four players in the post rotation which is expanded further when the small forwards move into the post lineup.
Joining Mabbutt and Yahnke are junior
Taylor Steinbauer (Owatonna, Minn.) and freshman
Shea Mandli (Eagan, Minn.) to give the team four players listed at 6-7 or taller. Steinbauer is a fourth year player in the program including his redshirt season and was a rotational reserve and spot starter a year ago inside, playing all 26 games with seven starts. “Taylor brings us experience playing in the NSIC and in the last two exhibition games provided solid minutes as a defensive presence on the inside block. Offensively he's gaining more and more confidence to his game and we look for that to continue into the season.”
While Steinbauer brings experience, Mandli is getting up to speed on the fly as a true freshman from Eagan High School. “Shea has a motor to him that is unique and right now as a freshman his offensive game is developing and we've already seen improvement no doubt thanks to his motor. He has range that extends out to the arc and can be such a difference rebounding on both ends of the floor.”
Adding depth behind Thomas at the small forward is junior
Cordell Smith (Mequon, Wis.), who also can use his length and athleticism to help at the power forward spot. Smith spent the fall as the starting wide receiver on the football team where he had over 40 catches, over 600 yards and five touchdowns with a pair of 100-yard games and has topped 1,000 career yards on the gridiron in just two years (he redshirted his first year of football).
Smith's size and speed on the football field transfer to the basketball court. Last year he played in 21 games while his role increased throughout the season and he ended the year averaging over 10 minutes per game. “We like his athleticism and strength. Now that he has a couple years under his belt he can really help us on the boards and can do a lot of things offensively when he plays within himself. He plays a little more physically and can get to the foul line often and provides a nice compliment to Isaiah as a different type of player off the bench.”
Backing up at the point guard spot is transfer
DJ Lewis (New Orleans, La.), a sophomore from New Mexico State from the Division I ranks where he played in eight games for the WAC Champions and NCAA Tournament Aggies. “DJ has been a nice addition and is very coachable. He's 'that guy' in practice that no one wants to go up against – he's physical, in-your-face and annoys people – which we like! Offensively he can make plays off the dribble, hit open jumpers and give us good minutes both as Terez's backup but we also like to use them on the floor at the same time.”
Vying for backup minutes at the shooting guard and small forward spots are a combination of senior
Zach Towle (Maplewood, Minn.), junior
Clay Olstad (Elgin, Minn.) and freshman
Demitrius Martin (Minnetonka, Minn.).
Towle brings a hot three-point shooting threat off the bench, capable of lighting up the scoreboard in just a handful of possession to help spark a game. Last year, Towle shot 36.0% from long range off the bench with a high of four three-pointers and 14 points against Southwest Minnesota State. “He's an energy guy,” said Boe. “He can come in, knock down big three-pointers, which can lift a team.”
Clay Olstad brings a different dynamic off the bench as a hustle player that does everything right and executes well defensively. He also has a solid perimeter game and is a career 45.5% three-point shooter in 44 long range attempts. “Clay is sort of the opposite of Zach. He can shoot and score, too, but he brings us defensive stability and makes some dirty hustle plays that makes his minutes different – his top attributes won't appear statistically.”
A true freshman from the powerful Hopkins High School program, Martin “has a lot of talent, can put it on the floor, can shoot it – he floats,” remarked Boe. He continued, “He has a smoothness to his game that we like a lot. We are trying to help him develop his strength and get used to the quickness of the college game.”
While all three players bring something different to the table, “they are all busting hard, they all want minutes and we're watching this competition play out very closely.”
Adding depth in the backcourt are a pair of 'combo guards' in
Nicco Montgomery (St. Paul, Minn.) and
Joshua Stockman (Janesville, Minn.). “Nicco has some scoring ability to him with his quickness and a mid-range game that extends to the arc. In practice he brings a positive attitude that serves him and his teammates well. We love Josh's work ethic and the guys on the team really like him. He has a solid outside shot.”
The team enters the season with a contrasting non-conference schedule that features a pair of non-Division II home games against Clarke University in the season opener and Waldorf College right before winter break. The big non-conference test comes when the team travels over Thanksgiving to the Western Washington University Chuck Randall Classic in Bellingham, Wash. There, Concordia will face the defending NCAA Champions, Western Washington, ranked sixth in the NABC Top-25. They'll follow that up with a tilt against Alaska-Fairbanks from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC).
“In the back of your mind, you think about Western Washington and that trip to Seattle and the things that go along with that experience. Western Washington will be a great test for our young team, and it's a great opportunity to show our kids where we want them to be and the type of games they'll play nightly in the NSIC.”
The Northern Sun has expanded to 16 games and still features a 22-game schedule but a new divisional format that pits Concordia against the other seven teams in the South Division: Winona State, Minnesota State, Southwest Minnesota State, Augustana, Sioux Falls, Upper Iowa and Wayne State. They'll play each of those teams twice, while crossing over against the North Division teams just once each.
“We've had the South Division schedule, or similar, the past two years. We're used to it. We know it. We're going places we've been to consistently over the years. This has been a tough league for a numbers of years, and it keeps getting bigger and keeps getting tougher. But there are no surprises. We know the challenges the league will give us. It's going to be wide open this year and the teams that stay the healthiest throughout, and are the deepest are probably going to be there (at the top) in the end.”
Coach Boe and the staff have adjusted to the growing, changing league. Roster composition around the league has shifted, and Concordia has responded.
Boe emphasized the philosophical shift on this year's roster, “I like the fact that we'll play longer and bigger. We've played small and been forced to do it that way and we've had success that way when the league was different and smaller. But now in this league as it is, I like that we can play bigger and hopefully that will help us in a lot of areas we've been deficient when we've had to play smaller in recent years.”
While Concordia is young, the team is also talented and dynamic and has the right mentality.
Boe commented, “People will look at our team and say, 'It's a young team with a lot of new faces.'” He continued, “But I don't see it that way. I see that we have good players - they just happen to be young. We have the kind of team that will play well for each other and look at winning as the most important thing. With any team you always have guys that are motivated by different things, but I think overall this team is motivated by winning basketball games.”
