Thought this deserved it's own thread, as no other seemed very appropriate.
I find this somehow not shocking, but still very disappointing:
Marosites twins off the team
You know........they make a news release when they sign these players; it's only 'reasonable', or balanced, or appropriate, to announce their departure. Reason(s) don't necessarily *have* to be given, but it's disingenuous to only promote the 'good' side of things. Seems like I've made that/this argument before...
That is surprising and disappointing.
Sad to see Kayla and Kelci go. I was hoping they would work hard in the off season and bounce back with strong sophomore performances. Looks like Morgan Martin and Micah Norris missing from the roster as well.
Does anyone know what happened?
Don't know what happened. But the performance on the floor just wasn't there. The Bucs had some good games, but underperformed badly in others. They finished the year on a 2-5 skid and lost to a 12-19 Samford team in the first round of the SoCon tourney.
Ezell has had problems with recruiting. Her classes have sometimes looked pretty good on paper. But only Tianna Tarter and, to a lesser extent, Raven Dean, have been successful thus far. Malloree Shurr and Sadasia Tipps scrap and hustle, but they don't score. With the last of Karen Kemp's recruits gone (Shamauria Bridges), it's hard to see how the Bucs will get their points.
Tianna will be a senior this year. So far Ezell has been unable to build a really successful team around her undeniable talents. When Tianna graduates....
I don't think that this athletic department will be satisfied with the kind of mediocre performance we have seen. I've got no inside contacts, but I would be surprised if Ezell is not feeling the heat to turn things around. That may have something to do with the big roster changes.
I don't think Ezell is going to be feeling the heat because she has turned around the environment surrounding women's basketball completely. Until attendance starts returning to normal levels, which in fairness might happen after Tianna graduates, she should be safe.
I like Ezell's mindset of not making excuses, sometimes calling out her players, and most of all improving their skills off the basketball court as students and as young women. I have personally witnessed that turnaround in her players.
My biggest critique of her coaching is her over reliance on Tianna. For entire quarters, there is no cohesive offense.
I thought the twins were able to be quality role players, but it was going to take a couple years and some improvement in their game. I did hope for their success, as it would have helped with attendance and atmosphere.
According to that article, they are still ETSU students.
Enthusiasm and attendance has been really good at the women's games the last couple years. Ezell gets the credit for that. I'm also glad to hear about the improved atmosphere around the team and in the classroom. Again, good job for Ezell.
But the coach also takes the credit, or the blame, for bringing in talent and putting a winning team on the floor. In 2014-2015 Ezell coaching mostly Kemp's players (Destiny Mitchell, Serena Clark, Maria Bond, Shamauria, Chandler Christopher) along with freshman Tianna, went 21-12 and took Chattanooga to overtime in the SoCon Tourney finals. Two years later, things were a lot different, and the level of play and overall talent level seemed to have declined.
Like you, I was rooting for the Marosites' to turn it around. Lots of players have a busted first year (Tommy Hubbard, Rashawn Rembert) go to work and turn out great. Sadly that was not to be in this case.
Like you, I'll be rooting for Ezell and the Bucs this year. But you've got to keep a clear eyed view of how the program is going, on the court as well as in the classroom.
But do we know the reason why the players are gone? Did they leave on their own accord or where they forced out?
(07-26-2017 04:57 PM)bucfan81 Wrote: [ -> ]But do we know the reason why the players are gone? Did they leave on their own accord or where they forced out?
Knowing how Ezell runs her program, I would be surprised if they were forced out. If their commitment wavered, I can see her encouraging them to move on, as any coach should, but I would be really surprised if they were indeed cut from the roster due to lack of performance. And I'll also bet Ezell will never share what actually happened, regardless of whose decision it was.
PURELY speculative, but I wonder if they weren't satisfied with their roles and prospective roles in coming years. While both had D1-level skills, they struggled with the speed of the game. Consequently, I think both would've been relegated to niche roles - not starter ones. Moreover, I'm certain Haynes and Sherer, both athletic and versatile, would've bumped both twins farther down the bench.
Down to Carson-Newman:
Marosites twins go West
Not even on the C-N web site yet.
Although I didn't say so at the time, I thought Bucfaithful's comments were probably pretty close to on-target. That made the most sense. I think this likely confirms that theory.
C-N just lost the other day to a good Wingate team on the road, ending a string of 16 straight wins. They were winning, but gave up an incredible 33 points (almost half Wingate's total) in the fourth quarter. Kayla and Kelci are averaging 4th and 5th, respectively, in both scoring and rebounding for the team.
Update.........
They're in the Elite 8 now, 32-3, and ranked sixth in the country. In this last win, Kayla had 21 boards! (an all-time C-N record) In the game before that, she had 31 pts. and 10 boards.
C-N women in Elite 8
Season-ending update:
Marosites summary second section down
The Division II Conference Commissioners Association made Carson-Newman University’s Kayla Marosites (Elizabethton High) an All-Southeast Region second-team honoree.
A junior guard, Marosites cranked out per-game averages of 14.1 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.1 steals. Moreover, the two-time South Atlantic Conference player of the week accumulated 21 double-doubles, shot 40 percent from 3-point territory, converted 47 treys and knocked down 82 percent of her free throws.
Duplicating her point total (423) from her sophomore campaign, Marosites has amassed 846 points, 702 rebounds and 144 steals during her two-year stay at Carson-Newman. A second-team All-SAC choice in 2017-18, she ascended to the league’s first-team honor roll this time around.
The Lady Eagles enjoyed a 22-8 year.
(Kelci averaged 4 and 3, and hit 94+% of her FTs.)
(04-15-2019 11:23 AM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote: [ -> ]Season-ending update:
Marosites summary second section down
The Division II Conference Commissioners Association made Carson-Newman University’s Kayla Marosites (Elizabethton High) an All-Southeast Region second-team honoree.
A junior guard, Marosites cranked out per-game averages of 14.1 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.1 steals. Moreover, the two-time South Atlantic Conference player of the week accumulated 21 double-doubles, shot 40 percent from 3-point territory, converted 47 treys and knocked down 82 percent of her free throws.
Duplicating her point total (423) from her sophomore campaign, Marosites has amassed 846 points, 702 rebounds and 144 steals during her two-year stay at Carson-Newman. A second-team All-SAC choice in 2017-18, she ascended to the league’s first-team honor roll this time around.
The Lady Eagles enjoyed a 22-8 year.
(Kelci averaged 4 and 3, and hit 94+% of her FTs.)
Yeah and Robert Spears went to Milligan and dominated, big step down and sounds like one sister was a whole lot better, so maybe a package deal ETSU couldn't afford