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LOCATION: Chicago, IL
CONFERENCE: Mid-Continent
LAST SEASON: 3-24 (.111)
CONFERENCE RECORD: 3-11 (t-7th)
STARTERS LOST/RETURNING: 3/2
NICKNAME: Cougars
COLORS: Green & White
HOMECOURT: Dickens Center (2,500)
COACH: Maurice "Bo" Ellis (Marquette '77)
record at school 3-24 (1 year)
career record 3-24 (1 year)
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ASSISTANTS: James Farr (Creighton '89)
Donnie Kirksey (Roosevelt '85)
Mike Rice (Fordham '91)
TEAM WINS: (last 5 years) 6-2-4-2-3
RPI (last 5 years) 253-298-279-303-296
1998-99 FINISH: Lost in conference quarterfinals.
ESPN.com Clubhouse
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In what may be the single most glaring understatement ever uttered in the English language, Chicago State coach Bo Ellis referred to last season as "a learning experience." Indeed. If Ellis is correct, then he received the basketball equivalent of about 12 doctorates, 19 master's degrees, a handful of bachelor's degrees and even an associate's degree. We'll even throw in a certificate from Chicago's finest beauty academy for good measure. It was that ugly for the Cougars. Three victories in Ellis' first season at CSU by a total of five points; this after consecutive seasons of two, four and two victories. The former longtime Marquette assistant must have felt as if he had been sentenced to hard time for terrible sins committed in a previous life. If last year was indeed a learning experience, perhaps the biggest lesson Ellis gleaned was the one about finding solid role players to complement your superstar. It's a lesson Chicago State has failed to learn for the last two seasons. In 5-4 senior guard Jermaine "Squirt" Hicks, the Cougars have one of the unlikeliest heroes in Division I. His numbers last year 14.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 85 assists, 33 steals, 51 three-pointers would be impressive for someone a foot taller. Coming from Hicks, they're downright awesome.
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Blue Ribbon Analysis |
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BACKCOURT C+ BENCH/DEPTH D
FRONTCOURT D INTANGIBLES D
Chicago State insiders ask observers to look past last year's terrible record and note that, despite the 24 losses, the Cougars played better than they did the season before. That did not, however, stop second-year coach Bo Ellis from wisely making wholesale roster changes and jettisoning lots of unnecessary baggage. And despite whispers that CSU should forego Division I play for a less punishing level, the school's administration has been supportive. The Cougars' recruiting efforts thus far have reflected a desire to mine the hoops-rich lode of the Chicago, Indiana and Michigan regions, and the many newcomers who will populate the team's bench this year display a nice blend of much-needed skills. Squirt Hicks once again should contend for Mid-Continent Player-of-the-Year honors. Ellis must hope, though, that Terrence West is able to settle down and command the point, that Marques Buford and Pierre Shuttlesworth have conquered their injury woes and that the big men he has recruited can mount some kind any kind of inside game. And with Hicks, Buford, Shuttlesworth and import Tim Bryant graduating after this season, the rebuilding will continue for quite a while. The Cougars are going to lose a lot of games again this year, but some sparks of progress are starting to dart through all the gloom. What this program needs now is lots and lots of time to grow. |
But, for the second straight year, Hicks had virtually no help from his teammates. He shot a mediocre .369 from the floor and was CSU's only double-figure scorer. On a night when Hicks dropped 40 on Fresno State, the Cougars still lost by 23 points. Perhaps another lesson that Ellis has learned is the value of starting over with a clean slate. Only four players including two starters return from last year's squad. Ordinarily, 11 newcomers would spell a load of trouble, but in this case they can only help. This team cannot go any lower, so why not buy in bulk and try to make something out of all the disparate pieces? In sleepwalking through that wretched last season, the Cougars shot .346 while allowing opponents to hit for an astounding .486. They were outrebounded by almost eight boards a game and registered nearly 200 fewer assists than their opponents. They were at minus-20.4 points per game in scoring differential. This kind of terror makes The Blair Witch Project sound like Mary Poppins. But Chicago State's newcomers are a pretty athletic lot, and have a bit of size, so perhaps the worst is over. "After finishing my first year I've had a good chance to size up the other conference teams," Ellis said. "With the right kids (this) year, we not only can compete well within the conference, but have a chance for the top conference trophy and even make it to the NCAA championship in the future. This can happen with the necessary resources being made available to the program." This season everything starts with the superb Hicks, a second-team All-Mid-Continent Conference selection last year. Despite having to adapt to a new coach, he once again provided CSU with its only scoring punch while also leading the team in steals and finishing second in assists. Joining Hicks in the backcourt is the Cougars' other returning starter, 6-0 sophomore Terrence West (7.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg), who put together a decent freshman season. West's 86 assists were tops on the team, and he was its third leading scorer. However, he shot just .311 from the floor and turned the ball over 74 times, giving him a couple of major tasks to work on during the off-season. After reversing an oral commitment to play at Utah State, West went on and started 17 games for Ellis and appeared in 26 overall. Injury-plagued Marques Buford (5.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg), a 6-3 senior guard, will look to turn around his luck and contribute from the backcourt. Two years ago, a bum knee kept him on the shelf for the entire season. Last year, with Ellis hoping for a big lift from him, Buford cracked a rib while hustling for a loose ball in the Cougars' exhibition opener. He then gutted through the first third of the season before complementing Hicks' 40-point effort with 16 points and 12 rebounds against Fresno State. After the game, Buford collapsed in dehydrated exhaustion and was never quite right the rest of the season. Buford played in only 21 games and his effectiveness was limited. He's healthy entering this season, and will attempt to close out his career by finally overcoming his various aches and pains and playing to his potential. The remainder of the guard corps comprises newcomers. The most promising, perhaps, is 6-4 senior transfer Tim Bryant (Northern Illinois/Chicago, Ill.), who actually has Division I experience. At Northern Illinois, Bryant averaged 4.5 points and contributed 20 assists and 17 steals. Before that, Bryant spent a year at Central (Ohio) State, where he averaged 12.7 points and had 33 steals and 49 assists. He can take the ball to the hole and jam it home, and while he will offer just a single season to the Cougars, his locker-room impact, honed by his time in NIU, should be positive. The Cougars are also high on 6-3 freshman Kin Yanders (McArthur HS/Decatur, Ill.), a leaper who will play the shooting-guard spot. His 38-inch vertical jump helped him earn two-time All-Big 12 and All-Macon County honors. A standout junior college player, 6-4 junior Jason Wesenberg (Lewis & Clark CC/Bonduwell, Wis.) averaged 17.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists as a sophomore. He shoots and defends well and is capable of creating something off the dribble. Erick Cooley (Anderson Highland HS/Indianapolis, Ind.), a 5-10 sophomore, will see his first collegiate action after sitting out last season under Prop 16. Cooley possesses excellent quickness and a good outside touch. Six-foot-one junior Nasir Shabaz (Kennedy King CC/Chicago) is a junior-college transfer who will compete for time in the backcourt. Ellis' extensive frontcourt recruiting will allow 6-7 sophomore Andre Wiggins (3.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg) to return to his more natural role at the perimeter positions. Wiggins was badly overmatched in the paint last year and shot just .284 from the floor. He gave his all in 27 games and showed flashes of busting out. Looking to shake off a back injury that disabled him for the entire year is 6-6 senior forward Pierre Shuttlesworth (8.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg two seasons ago), who has previously shown himself to be a reliable frontcourt presence and tough defender. If he is back to form, it will help Ellis to ease the newcomers into the lineup. The most impressive newcomer looks to be the very large Dewayne Johns (Iowa State/Kokomo, Ind.), a 7-1, 285-pound junior who enrolled at Chicago State last spring and will be eligible once the fall semester ends. Johns has played at the College of Eastern Utah, where he averaged 16.0 points, 7.9 rebounds and 35 blocked shots, and Iowa State, where former head man and current Chicago Bulls coach Tim Floyd was impressed by his soft hands, good shot and mobility. Floyd termed Johns the Cougars' tallest player ever, a "future first-round pick." Other big men include 6-8 freshmen Clark Bone (Wirt HS/Gary, Ind.) and Randy Nelson (Bathhurst Heights Secondary School/Toronto, Ontario), and 6-8 junior Tony Jones (Mesa CC/Mesa, Ariz.). Bone averaged 16.0 points and got 10.0 rebounds as a senior and projects as a defensive and rebounding specialist. Nelson, who averaged 14.0 points and 10.0 rebounds, also hits the boards hard and plays physical defense down low. The athletic Jones played in the Junior College All-Star Game after a season in which he averaged 12.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots. Look for 6-7 freshman forward Corley Lee (McArthur HS/Decatur, Ill.) to get a shot right away. Lee exhibited polish and skill in averaging 16.0 points and 9.0 rebounds as a senior, when he was chosen to the all-conference first team. The solid Corey Brown (Kennedy King CC/Chicago), a 6-6 junior, may also see some time after notching 10.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game as a sophomore. Six-foot-seven freshman forward Eric Crockrell (Paul Robeson High School/Chicago) rounds out the frontcourt.
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