Tuesday, November 04, 2008

11 Days of A-Sun Basketball hits Jacksonville, Fla., for the first time to preview the 2008 runner-up Jacksonville Dolphins. The Dolphins saw their win total increase again, improving to 18 from 15 in 2006-07 and feature an experience trio in Ben SmIth, Marcus Allen and Lehmon Colbert.

Those three represent the only set of three players returning that each averaged at least 13.0 points last season. Only one other team, ETSU, features even two returning players (Courtney Pigram and Kevin Tiggs) that averaged 13.0 points per game last year.

Last year, Smith, a member of 2008-09 preseason All-Atlantic Sun team, joined Campbell’s Jonathan Rodriguez as the only two players in the conference to rank in the top three in five of 13 major statistical categories.

Coach Cliff Warren on the Dolphins

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Roster

Schedule

2007-08 Statistics

SEASON PREVIEW - (Courtesy Jacksonville Media Relations)

Excitement, Enthusiasm, Expectations.

Excitement, Enthusiasm, Expectations. Those three words encapsulate the feelings around the JU men’s basketball program as they enter the 2008-09 campaign with lofty ambitions after a disappointing end to last season.

For the first time since 1989, the Dolphins were just 40 minutes away from a return to the NCAA Tournament. The season came to a conclusion with a bittersweet loss in the finals, but left the young team hungry to finish the job.

“We’ve talked about being that close and what we need to do to get back into that position,” said JU head coach Cliff Warren, who is entering his fourth season at the helm of the program. “We’ve reminded our players of the score of that game and they have worked extremely hard in the offseason to get ready for this year.”

The job of erasing last year’s memory in the championship game will be handled by a team that returns intact. The Dolphins bring back all five starters and a total of nine players from last season’s squad.

“We’ve got a bunch of guys who know what I expect,” Warren said. “I’ve got nine guys who know the level of commitment it takes and what they need to do to be competitive in this league. “They’ve been through the good and the bad. They’ve been through practices, home games, road games, tournament games – they’ve seen a lot and they know how to handle it.”

That’s a long way from Warren’s first season that saw the Dolphins finish the year with just eight players en route to one win. After back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in almost a decade, the team is poised for a breakthrough this season.

“We’ve come a long way from winning only one game,” Warren said. “But we still have a long way to go as we haven’t claimed a championship.”

Championship teams have go-to guys that are leaders on and off the court. Warren has three of those in senior forward Marcus Allen, junior forward Lehmon Colbert and junior guard Ben Smith. Smith was named first-team all-conference last season after leading the Dolphins in points, assists and steals. Colbert was second on the team in rebounding and third in scoring while Allen enters his final collegiate season just two points shy of the prestigious 1,000-point club.

“Those three young men have played a lot of basketball for this team in the past few seasons,” Warren said. “But their expectations are the same as mine – to get better every day and be successful in everything we do, on and off the floor.”

Warren’s turnaround has not gone unnoticed. The national media is picking up on the resurrection of the program through the recruiting efforts that have landed at least one player on the A-Sun all-freshman team each of the past three seasons.

That has also fueled the return of fans to Downtown Jacksonville and the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena – where the Dolphins have posted an impressive 18-5 record all time.

“Overall, things are getting better in all aspects of the program, which is all you can ask for as a coach,” Warren said. “The talent of our players is better, our resources are better and our support has gotten better.”

POINT GUARD

Entering last season, Ben Smith was looking to establish himself as a leader for the Dolphins after a stellar finish to his freshman season. There was no sophomore jinx for Smith as he went on to lead JU in scoring, assists, 3-point shooting and steals to earn first team all-conference recognition. His hard-nosed play sent him to the free throw line 224 times, hitting 190 – the third highest single-season total in program history.

On top of that, he turned in clutch performances throughout the season. He hit the game-winning shot at Mercer, a key 3-pointer late in regulation that led to a triple overtime win over Stetson, a big 3-pointer for JU’s first basket in overtime against UNF and a team-high 27 points in the A-Sun semifinals against Gardner-Webb.

“Ben is one of our leaders, on and off the court,” Warren said. “He had a very good season and won some games single handedly. We’ll be looking for him to be a leader again this year with his words and actions.”

Backing up Smith at the point guard spot will be freshman Chris Edwards from Albany, Ga. Edwards enjoyed a stellar career at Westover High School and will see time at both guard positions.

“Chris is a combo guard who can play both the point and shooting guard positions,” Warren said. “He is very quick, long and athletic. He is a good mid-range shooter and is aggressive, which has really impressed me.”

SHOOTING GUARD

After graduating from JU this past spring, it looked as though Evan Jefferson was not going to take advantage of his final year of eligibility.

As a walk-on, he was expecting to pursue his career and the job market. Instead of diving into the real world, he dedicated himself to working out and returning for his senior season.

One of just two players left from Warren’s inaugural squad, Jefferson’s hard work and effort was rewarded with a scholarship for his final season.

“Evan had another year of eligibility and told me that he was only coming back with the premise to win a championship,” Warren said. “He has dedicated himself towards improving his game and doing whatever it takes to achieve that goal.”

A starter from the middle of December last year, Jefferson provided an outside shooting threat that teams had to respect. He enters his final season with 96 3-pointers, just three shy of cracking JU’s career top 10 list.

“He is one of our most experienced players and knows what we’re doing on offense and defense,” Warren said. “He worked extremely hard this summer on becoming a consistent 3-point shooter.”

Pushing Jefferson for a spot in the starting lineup will be sophomore Travis Cohn and freshman Tevin Galvin. Cohn improved throughout his freshman campaign, putting together a highlight reel that included a dazzling fastbreak dunk to seal the overtime win over Mercer and a 3-pointer in transition that setup the comeback win at Savannah State.

A long and athletic player, Cohn has the potential to score from long range or drive to the basket.

“Travis improved his strength and confidence this summer,” Warren said. “He’s improved his shooting touch and should see more playing time this season, at either the guard position.”

Galvin joins the Dolphins after lighting up scoreboards for Flagler Palm Coast High School. The long-range bomber hit more than 40 percent of his shots from behind the arc as a senior and has averaged in double digits the last two seasons.

“Tevin is a big, strong guard who can play a number of positions,” Warren said. “He’s got a great feel for the game and has a high basketball IQ. Even though he is just a freshman, he has the game of a veteran already.”

SMALL FORWARD

Another player that improved as the season progressed last year was Ayron Hardy, who became the fourth Dolphin in the past three season to earn a spot on the A-Sun all-freshman team.

With a wide wingspan combined with his athletic ability, Hardy became a defensive presence for the Dolphins – leading JU in blocks, finishing second in steals and third in rebounds.

His scoring ability developed as well, finishing the year ranked fourth on the team with 7.5 points per game. His biggest shot of the season was the gamewinning jumper at the buzzer at Savannah State.

“Ayron improved his strength and his outside shooting touch,” Warren said. “He is the anchor of our defense because he gets the most deflections, steals and blocks.”

Providing Hardy some rest will be fellow sophomore Aric Brooks. Brooks also made strides throughout his first collegiate season, finishing as the leading scorer in the A-Sun Championship game against Belmont.

“Aric has worked extremely hard on all phases of his game – ball handling, shooting and rebounding,” Warren said. “He should be a lot more productive this season and play more minutes this season.”

POWER FORWARD

A two-year starter, Lehmon Colbert returns for his junior year after what he considered a subpar performance last season.

The numbers don’t seem to back up his claim as he averaged 13.1 points and 6.3 rebounds and finished second on the team with 81 assists – all of which were improvements on his freshman season that earned him all-freshman team honors.

“If you ask Lehmon, he’s disappointed with the year he had,” Warren said. “Because of that, he was motivated to work harder on his defense, shooting and ball handling.”

Adding depth and versatility to the front court is senior Brian Gilbert. A native of Jacksonville, Gilbert walked on to the team last season and earned a scholarship for his final season. His long-range shooting was called upon throughout the season and will be a major asset for the Dolphins again this season.

“He worked extremely hard in the spring and summer to be a consistent 3-point shooter,” Warren said. “He needs to be a go-to shooter for us off the bench. He’s gotten in better shape and understands that this is his last go-round.”

CENTER

Patrolling the paint for his fourth and final season will be Marcus Allen.

After becoming a star during his freshman season amid a one-win season, Allen has developed into one of the top post players in the A-Sun and enters his final season just two points shy of becoming the 24th player in JU history to record 1,000 career points.

While putting his name in the record books in scoring will be nice, Allen also has a chance at putting his name on the all-time rebounds list as well after leading the Dolphins in rebounding the past two seasons.

“As a senior, Marcus is one of our leaders,” Warren said. “He has to be a leader on and off the court because he will set the tone for our guys by his example.”

Backing him up his sophomore Szymon Lukasiak and freshman Will Alston.

Standing at 6-foot-10, Lukasiak’s physical presence on the floor is noticeable when he comes off the bench. He showed signs of promise throughout the season and has made strides in the offseason to become a more consistent performer.

“Szymon has done a much better job in getting into better physical condition, which should help him this year,” Warren said. “He was plagued by injuries and early foul trouble and should help contribute right away as he brings as a physical presence that we desperately need in the post.”

Alston also brings a physical presence from Laurel, Md., standing 6-foot-7 with an ability to muscle his way around the post.

“Will is another guy who brings a physical presence for us,” Warren said. “He is such a workhorse with a lot of potential to help this team.”

SCHEDULE

Tough and hard.

Those two words best sum up the Dolphins schedule this season, which includes more home games than road games for the first time in the Warren era – starting with the season opener against Florida State.

“We’re excited about having more home games this year after spending all of last December on the road,” Warren said. “We’ve been competitive at home and received great support from fans, students and the community, which is a direct relation to how well we play.”

The Seminoles highlight a non-conference slate that sees NCAA Tournament participant American making the trip to Jacksonville, along with Bethune-Cookman, Troy and Savannah State. The road schedule out of conference sees JU going across the country, facing teams from the ACC, Big East, Big 12 and Big 10. JU will travel to face NCAA Tournament teams in Baylor and Georgetown, as well as the defending NIT champions, Ohio State.

Warren will also get a trip back to his roots as he takes the Dolphins back to Georgia Tech to face his mentor Paul Hewitt. After the non-conference schedule is done, the Dolphins will have a grueling 20-game stretch against the A-Sun, playing the other 10 teams in a home-and-home series with the goal of winning the regular season title and a bye to the semifinals.

“It’s going to be challenging to play everyone in the league twice,” Warren said. “There are a lot of good teams and coaches in this league, with some tough places to win at on the road. It’s going to be good for the league, the players and the fans because everyone will get to see everyone on their home court this season.”

OUTLOOK

For the first time in his tenure at JU, Warren is going to put a team on the floor that has depth at all five positions and 12 players that complement each other, bringing a different set of skills to the floor. Along with that versatility is experience, with nine players seeing major minutes last season.

“From a teaching standpoint, having that many guys back is a benefit as I don’t have to repeat myself as much,” Warren said. “This year we’ll be able to introduce some new things since we have an understanding of what we did last year."

“We also have a lot of guys who can play different positions, so I can experiment with different lineups, offenses and defenses without us losing too much if we make a substitution.”

The program has come a long way in three seasons – from one win to one win from the NCAA Tournament. But Warren’s job isn’t finished – not by a long shot. His goal is to win a championship and a spot in the Big Dance.

“We will work every towards our goal, which is to win a championship,” Warren said. “Everything we do every day is towards that goal and hopefully we’ll progress every day until we win a championship.”

11 Days of A-Sun Basketball Schedule
Oct. 29 - Belmont
Oct. 30 - Campbell
Oct. 31 - ETSU
Nov.  3 - FGCU
Nov.  4 - Jacksonville
Nov.  5 - Kennesaw State
Nov.  6 - Lipscomb
Nov.  7 - Mercer
Nov. 10 - UNF
Nov. 11 - USC Upstate
Nov. 12 - Stetson