Any predictions for the MAC Freshmen of the year? Here's my guesses:
Noah Robotham, G, Akron Zips
Lamonte Bearden, G, Buffalo
Garrett Mayleben, F, Bowling Green
DaRohn Scott, F, Central Michigan
Those top 4 look good. For the 5th, I'm going to take a chance and go with Ball State's G, Francis Kiapway
It's hard to pass on Ohio's redshirt freshmen Khari Harley and Jaaron Simmons, especially with all the talent they lost.
EMU fans really like Tim Bond, 6' 6" PG from Baltimore.
I can't say I've followed the pre-season progress of other MAC school's freshmen too well, but from recruiting I seem to recall Miami having an interesting newcomer (McCormick?). I definitely recall being impressed by some of BSUs recruits as well.
Lamonte Bearden is likely going to start for Buffalo and he looks great already. Buffalo also has a SG Mory Diane who won't start but is looking to get plenty of minutes. He's a great 3-point shooter. I don't see the other 2 Buffalo freshmen getting enough playing time to be considered.
(11-11-2014 04:12 PM)emu steve Wrote: [ -> ]EMU fans really like Tim Bond, 6' 6" PG from Baltimore.
His biggest 'problem' is that Mike Talley is a senior starter at PG and is solid.
Don't be surprised if Ball State's Jeremie Tyler is in the running. He is the real deal.
I'll take a stab.
CMU- Dahron Scott, forward and former WMU target basically inherits the entire front court in Mt. Pleasant. I think his rebounds will be there, but not the scoring. I also expect a lot of fouls. Ultimately he's an upgrade in the post at CMU, just needs time to develop.
WMU - Drake Lamont, center who is in the running to replace Whittington as the starting center for the Broncos. I also think he is going to battle foul trouble as most freshman big men do. He might be splitting minutes with at least one other player, so I'm not sure he will ultimately have the sexy stats required. Thomas Wilder is in line to take over PG duties from Austin Richie after this year. Frankly, he has the talent to start right now. If David Brown wasn't granted his 6th year, I would expect Richie to move to SG and Wilder start from day 1. He will be playing behind a senior and 3 year starter though...so I'm not sure he's going to accumulate the sexy stats either.
Toledo - Stuckey Mosley is gonna be Juice's backup this season. Toledo is crowded in the back court though. I think he will be really good though. Kurt Hall has a solid resume and ability to play the SF position. Again, I just don't know how many minutes will be available for him with all the talent at Toledo.
EMU - Tim Bond will likely see minutes in EMU's backcourt. But really he's going to be behind Talley, Lee and Price. He's gonna get an opportunity, but like others mentioned above, his stats likely won't be there (EMU's pace of play doesn't compare nice to the PPG and RPG that voters like to see)
Ball St - One of the Ball St freshman, or two or three, is gonna have to play a lot and will likely produce. Kind of like Turner for them last year. Two most likely IMO are Jeremie Tyler and Rishaun Richardson. Both went to the same high school (that was loaded btw). Tyler is a guard and Richardson a 6'8" forward. My money is on Tyler being the impact player right away.
Akron - Antino Jackson and Noah Robatham look to form a nice duo in Akron's backcourt for years to come. I think both will get plenty of playing time and opportunities. Dambrot is not afraid to play talented frosh. Both will be solid contributors IMO.
Kent St - Raasean Davis is a PF that is a big body. Checks in around 6'7" give or take an inch either way depending on who you talk to...and hit the scales at 270 at one point. I have zero knowledge of how he is adjusting to the college game. Anyone have some info?
BGSU - Rasheed Worrell is a 6'7" power forward that plays above the rim. Very active and I like the way he plays. I know he's behind Parker and Holmes, but this kid is gonna play and be good for BGSU. I hope I'm right, but somewhat wrong when he plays WMU, now that I've pumped him up. LOL
Buffalo - There is a trio of frosh at Buffalo that could find themselves on an all MAC freshman team. Probably not all of them at once, but one or two for sure. Hurley has recruited some talent. Starting with Mory Diane at the SG or wing spot. He's a really good shooter. Raheem Johnson is a forward that will help replace the loss of McCrea. And I'll finish with their stud PG recruit Lamontre Bearden. Signed with Buffalo as a 4 star recruit and turned down Oregon St and Saint Louis. He gets the keys to the car from day 1 and I think he's going to perform pretty darn well.
Ohio - Ryan Taylor and Mike Laster are going to be thrown into reserve rolls it looks like for Ohio. Both are guards/wings. Unfortunately for Ohio, they have a couple transfers that need to get cleared and one or two others that need to sit out a year. Puts them a little short handed when you look at the team as a whole. But if Kaminsky gets cleared, these two frosh won't be needed as much IMO. Solid players, I just don't know if either would be classified as impact players right away.
Miami - Zach McCormick is the only frosh on scholarship that will make any type of impact. We will likely see him coming in as the 6th or 7th man. He should be a solid shooting guard in the MAC.
NIU - not to be negative, but I don't see a frosh on their roster that is going to get playing time this year. Might be the only team in the MAC to make such claim. Although Kent St could ultimately only have 1 (for different reasons than NIU).
*I didn't take the time to name ALL the incoming freshman on each team. Too time consuming. I just made note of the ones I think will be key contributors this year. If I left anyone out, feel free to chime in.
*I think some of the best talent will be coming off the bench for some of the better teams in the MAC this year. Kind of like Jonathan Williams at Toledo last year playing behind Pierson.
I'd go with the following for an ALL-MAC frosh team. Frosh of the Year in bold.
Noah Robatham - Akron guard
Lamontre Bearden - Buffalo guard
Jeremie Tyler - Ball St guard
Rasheed Worrell - BGSU forward
Drake Lamont - WMU Center
I wouldn't be shocked to see Raheem Johnson replace Lamont or Worrell.
I think Kent State's Raasean Davis would play on some other teams in the MAC - he's got the strength and size for it - but I don't think he'll get much court time in Kent. He'll be behind Khaliq Spicer and Jimmy Hall, then Chris Ortiz and Marquiez Lawrence (and maybe Blake Vedder) will be off the bench next. There's also two junior college guys coming in at forward, Marvin Jones and Gary Akbar. Even though I think he can play MAC level now, I wouldn't be surprised to see him redshirt
Robotham has some issues on the defensive side of things, but he'll be put in a position to make an immediate impact as the starting PG. He's got the confidence to lead the offense; you can tell just by watching how he carries himself on the court. Whether he can do it for 30+ minutes a game is an open question.
Akron has an incredibly young backcourt this season.
For Ohio their two true freshmen, Mike Laster and Ryan Taylor, will get a lot of playing time and have shown a lot of potential in the preseason. bBoth played significant minutes in the exhibition game. Won't say that they are definite candidates for FOY but there is potential and optimism at this point.
As for Ohio's two red shirt freshmen Houston transfer Jaaron Simmons will not play this year because of transfer rules but Khari Harley will play after sitting out last season. Harley was just cleared to practice last week after missing most of the offseason with a back injury so he will not be up to speed for a while. This coaching staff and the previous one are high on Harley but I am skeptical. He's very thin and was a late addition last year, joining the team last August and had no other D1 offers. I'm not convinced he will be a major contributor.
Add Ball State's Sean Sellers to the list. In his first game tonight he led all scorers with 26 points at No. 25 Utah. He was 8 of 13 with 4 of 6 3s and 6 of 6 free throws. Cards lost 90-72 but trailed by only 6 late. Team hit 10 of 22 3s. Freshmen and sophomores scored 55 of Ball State's 72 points.
(11-15-2014 01:19 AM)LongtimeFan Wrote: [ -> ]Add Ball State's Sean Sellers to the list. In his first game tonight he led all scorers with 26 points at No. 25 Utah. He was 8 of 13 with 4 of 6 3s and 6 of 6 free throws. Cards lost 90-72 but trailed by only 6 late. Team hit 10 of 22 3s. Freshmen and sophomores scored 55 of Ball State's 72 points.
Agreed. The young man had one heck of a game last night. Totally missed him on my list.
(11-11-2014 08:10 PM)EA3 Wrote: [ -> ]Ball St - One of the Ball St freshman, or two or three, is gonna have to play a lot and will likely produce. Kind of like Turner for them last year. Two most likely IMO are Jeremie Tyler and Rishaun Richardson. Both went to the same high school (that was loaded btw). Tyler is a guard and Richardson a 6'8" forward. My money is on Tyler being the impact player right away.
In all likelihood, Richardson will be redshirting this year.
freshmen Ryan Taylor score 21pts and Mike Laster had 7pts in their Bobcat debut today, both will be key contributors this year.
(11-15-2014 04:05 PM)perimeterpost Wrote: [ -> ]freshmen Ryan Taylor score 21pts and Mike Laster had 7pts in their Bobcat debut today, both will be key contributors this year.
I love them both already!
As for WMU, I'd place my $$ on Thomas Wilder as a candidate, although sharing minutes behind our upperclassmen may make it impossible for him to have the impact he is capable of having. While LaMont is more developed than Whittington was as a frosh, he won't have a big impact, IMO. The MAC FOY will come from another team, not WMU.
He's not a freshman, but Jimmy Hall is definitely going to be the newcomer of the year in the MAC
BG's Worrel may redshirt this year. He was the only guy on a 16 man roster that did not play against Drake. He seems talented but a little raw. Mayleben (R-Fr) will back up Holmes and he logged 20+ minutes but did not dent the stat line other than a banked in 3. I don't think he called 'off glass'. Worrel and preferred walk-on Matt Fox(6-4 SG) are the only true freshman BG has.
3 JC transfers will be integral to BG's success this year.....Two PGs in Javon Austin & Pepe Joseph along with 6-5 Delvin Dickerson.
(11-11-2014 08:10 PM)EA3 Wrote: [ -> ]I'll take a stab.
CMU- Dahron Scott, forward and former WMU target basically inherits the entire front court in Mt. Pleasant. I think his rebounds will be there, but not the scoring. I also expect a lot of fouls. Ultimately he's an upgrade in the post at CMU, just needs time to develop.
WMU - Drake Lamont, center who is in the running to replace Whittington as the starting center for the Broncos. I also think he is going to battle foul trouble as most freshman big men do. He might be splitting minutes with at least one other player, so I'm not sure he will ultimately have the sexy stats required. Thomas Wilder is in line to take over PG duties from Austin Richie after this year. Frankly, he has the talent to start right now. If David Brown wasn't granted his 6th year, I would expect Richie to move to SG and Wilder start from day 1. He will be playing behind a senior and 3 year starter though...so I'm not sure he's going to accumulate the sexy stats either.
Toledo - Stuckey Mosley is gonna be Juice's backup this season. Toledo is crowded in the back court though. I think he will be really good though. Kurt Hall has a solid resume and ability to play the SF position. Again, I just don't know how many minutes will be available for him with all the talent at Toledo.
EMU - Tim Bond will likely see minutes in EMU's backcourt. But really he's going to be behind Talley, Lee and Price. He's gonna get an opportunity, but like others mentioned above, his stats likely won't be there (EMU's pace of play doesn't compare nice to the PPG and RPG that voters like to see)
Ball St - One of the Ball St freshman, or two or three, is gonna have to play a lot and will likely produce. Kind of like Turner for them last year. Two most likely IMO are Jeremie Tyler and Rishaun Richardson. Both went to the same high school (that was loaded btw). Tyler is a guard and Richardson a 6'8" forward. My money is on Tyler being the impact player right away.
Akron - Antino Jackson and Noah Robatham look to form a nice duo in Akron's backcourt for years to come. I think both will get plenty of playing time and opportunities. Dambrot is not afraid to play talented frosh. Both will be solid contributors IMO.
Kent St - Raasean Davis is a PF that is a big body. Checks in around 6'7" give or take an inch either way depending on who you talk to...and hit the scales at 270 at one point. I have zero knowledge of how he is adjusting to the college game. Anyone have some info?
BGSU - Rasheed Worrell is a 6'7" power forward that plays above the rim. Very active and I like the way he plays. I know he's behind Parker and Holmes, but this kid is gonna play and be good for BGSU. I hope I'm right, but somewhat wrong when he plays WMU, now that I've pumped him up. LOL
Buffalo - There is a trio of frosh at Buffalo that could find themselves on an all MAC freshman team. Probably not all of them at once, but one or two for sure. Hurley has recruited some talent. Starting with Mory Diane at the SG or wing spot. He's a really good shooter. Raheem Johnson is a forward that will help replace the loss of McCrea. And I'll finish with their stud PG recruit Lamontre Bearden. Signed with Buffalo as a 4 star recruit and turned down Oregon St and Saint Louis. He gets the keys to the car from day 1 and I think he's going to perform pretty darn well.
Ohio - Ryan Taylor and Mike Laster are going to be thrown into reserve rolls it looks like for Ohio. Both are guards/wings. Unfortunately for Ohio, they have a couple transfers that need to get cleared and one or two others that need to sit out a year. Puts them a little short handed when you look at the team as a whole. But if Kaminsky gets cleared, these two frosh won't be needed as much IMO. Solid players, I just don't know if either would be classified as impact players right away.
Miami - Zach McCormick is the only frosh on scholarship that will make any type of impact. We will likely see him coming in as the 6th or 7th man. He should be a solid shooting guard in the MAC.
NIU - not to be negative, but I don't see a frosh on their roster that is going to get playing time this year. Might be the only team in the MAC to make such claim. Although Kent St could ultimately only have 1 (for different reasons than NIU).
*I didn't take the time to name ALL the incoming freshman on each team. Too time consuming. I just made note of the ones I think will be key contributors this year. If I left anyone out, feel free to chime in.
*I think some of the best talent will be coming off the bench for some of the better teams in the MAC this year. Kind of like Jonathan Williams at Toledo last year playing behind Pierson.
I'd go with the following for an ALL-MAC frosh team. Frosh of the Year in bold.
Noah Robatham - Akron guard
Lamontre Bearden - Buffalo guard
Jeremie Tyler - Ball St guard
Rasheed Worrell - BGSU forward
Drake Lamont - WMU Center
I wouldn't be shocked to see Raheem Johnson replace Lamont or Worrell.
Quick update:
Luke Meyer at CMU is off to a very good start and the top rook there.
Timmy Bond is out 4+ weeks with a fractured baby finger. PT is going to be an issue. Mike Talley looked really good vs. Oakland Monday night and fellow rook Ethan Alvano had a very nice game Friday.
I suspect when Bond is healthy there will be a lot of 'interchangable' parts with Talley, Bond, Alvano and Lee and Price (transfer SG/SF) in the back court. All five can play.
P.S. EMU fans think we will score much more then previous seasons.
After last night, Id say Stuckey Mosley could contend, but probably wont win it