CSNbbs

Alright...

To the best of my ability, I present to you a little bit of my opinion and take on each and every member of the men's basketball squad. First..it's just my opinion so take it for what it is. Maybe a conversation starter (continuer?) so it is what it is. Also, I'm breaking this up into a few posts because sometimes the long one's get cut off and it annoys me because I don't notice until like a week later. So...here's the departures and Steven Tipton:

PG - Kaleb Thornton - 6’0” - 30 games (17 starts) - 8.8 ppg/2.8 rpg/5.3 apg - 41.8% FG (36.6% 3PT - 37 of 101) and 65.2% FT (43 of 66). Thornton came to the Huskies as a JUCO transfer from Iowa Western CC under Mark Montgomery. Thornton had his moments, both good and bad and, in my humble opinion, shined most when he took the role of facilitator as opposed to primary scorer. And that role of scorer is where he either found himself or was put upon last season and seemed to develop some bad habits. But this year, especially after the injuries to Zion Russell and then Keshawn Williams, Thornton got back to his strengths of being a distributor developing a great relationship with Harven Ibarguen (I’m not 100% certain Ibarguen would have developed like he did without Thornton). By the end of the season, Thornton became irreplaceable in the starting lineup and for the Huskies to be successful next season, Coach Burno will have to figure out how to replace his contributions and leadership on the floor. And that is not going to be an easy task.

SG - Darweshi Hunter - 6’5” - 30 games (8 starts) - 9 ppg/3 rpg - 46.5% FG (42.1% 3PT - 51 of 121) and 79.5% FT (35 of 44). Hunter came to the Huskies via Central State and Weber State. Hunter really showed a lot of improvement this year settling into a bench/6th man role until late in the season when injuries forced him into the starting lineup and it was probably being that main bench piece which helped him out a lot. Hunter never really was starting material and started a lot at the beginning of the 2021-22 season as a way to have some sort of veteran presence in a lineup that was seeking stability and an identity. This year, with the additions of Coit and Nutter, he was able to slide back into that support role and boy oh boy did he flourish in it. I think most of us saw Hunter as a nice, relatively reliable piece of the roster who could shoot a little and play adequate, if not above adequate, defense. But then all of a sudden he started knocking down 3 pointers and it didn’t seem like a one off. Hunter became a pretty reliable 3 point threat and was a player other teams had to be concerned with. It's kind of unfortunate Hunter is at the end of his career as he really became an integral part of the roster and one that Coach Burno will be challenged to replace.

G/F - Anthony Crump - 6’8” - 32 games (31 starts) - 7.7 ppg/5.1 rpg/1.3 apg - 61.2% FG (25% 3PT - 1 of 4….I honestly thought he shot substantially more 3PTers than this…) and 48.7% FT (74 of 152). Oh…the enigma that is Anthony Crump. Somehow a player I never want to see again combined with a player I want to be on the floor for 40 minutes a game for the rest of my life. If I had half of the confidence of Mr. Crump I’d probably have already made a serious run at the Presidency of these here United States….but I digress… Crump came to the Huskies via Middle Tennessee under Mark Montgomery and almost immediately became a mainstay in the lineup. A guy with such tantalizing size and ability, a never give up motor and a remarkable ability to block out his own shortcomings is someone who is either going to enrage a fanbase or endear him to it and Anthony accomplished both, oftentimes in the same half of a basketball game. Anthony…we’re going to miss ya. That is, if you actually leave the program and I’ve been very forthright in saying I don’t think he’s leaving. I think he has another year of covid eligibility and I’d be surprised if he didn’t cash it in on one more go at it. And if not…I could see him becoming a grad assistant. Clearly, the guy loves NIU and Coach Burno. He was also the heart and sole of this team the last couple of seasons and, truth be told, he’s actually going to be a tough piece to replace. You simply cannot ignore his size and athletic ability if you are the opposing coach. Sure…put him on the line. That does indeed work a lot. But he alters things for guards and he can create some really lopsided mismatches. Anyway, I’ll believe it when I see next year’s roster and Anthony’s name isn’t on it. Until then, I’m operating at about 70% belief that he’s still going to be on the team.

Drew Wiemers - Someone else can summarize this one.

Steven Tipton - N/A

G - Keshawn Williams - Junior - 6’3” - Williams came to the Huskies as a transfer from Tulsa and pretty quickly established himself as a special talent. A local product from Bloom Township HS in Chicago Heights, Williams seemed to find a rhythm at NIU that he couldn’t establish at Tulsa. This past year, before his season ending knee injury, Williams played 15 games (all starts) averaging 17.9 ppg/4.7 rpg/2.4 apg shooting 47.2% FG (35.3% 3PT - 24 of 68) and 80% FT (44 of 55). There’s not a lot to say about Williams that isn’t already known around here so I’ll address the elephant in the room. Many think Williams will transfer next season but I’m not so sure he will and all of this is completely based on observation and assumption so, obviously take it all any way you’d like. With that said, Williams is not an attention seeker. He’s quiet and, from everything I’ve heard, is a bit of a homebody. He goes to practice and does his thing and that’s that. Coach Burno has talked publicly about wanting and encouraging Williams to be more vocal in practice and to push his teammates but, from the way it sounded, that’s just not Keshawn. So…here’s my take. Williams spent a year at Tulsa and immediately came home with almost no recruitment from other programs (that I can find). At NIU, it was night and day for him compared to Tulsa in regards to his performance. And, its not like he didn’t get chances at Tulsa. He played 19 games and was averaging 10.1 minutes a game as a freshman and played pretty poorly. Unless he’s getting some sort of influential message from someone close to him to take his talents elsewhere, I’d be surprised to see him leave Burno. To the best of my understanding, Williams has two years of eligibility remaining and, considering his injury, I could see him sticking at NIU for a year and, depending on the way he plays, moving on as a grad transfer for that last year.

PG - Zion Russell - Sophomore (potential medical redshirt) - 6’0” - Russel was part of Coach Burno’s first recruiting class and kind of came out of nowhere for many Huskie fans as, I believe, most of us had our sights set on Noah Kon as the PG recruit to watch but Russell really took advantage of his opportunities and is probably the main reason Kon transferred at the end of the year. As for this year, it was quite the disappointment for Russell as he suffered a season ending hand/wrist injury. For the season, Russell played 9 games (0 starts) averaging 12.3 minutes and 3.2 ppg/1.4 rpg/0.7 apg shooting 39.3% FG (33.3% 3PT - 3 of 9) and 57.1% FT (4 of 7). Considering he’s healthy to start the season, Russell is probably the most logical player to step into Kaleb Thornton’s starting role but those are big shoes to fill and he’ll be coming off of a lost season so this may also be an area where Coach Burno will look to the transfer portal for a replacement. Anyway, Russell is a guy that doesn’t lack confidence nor seems to be easity intimidated by circumstances. He showed that last year as a true freshman when he would get into games. He is strong for his stature, quick and can run the floor. He’s a good distributor of the ball but would need to improve in that area to fully take over the point for the team. There’s actually a lot of Thornton in Russell. He’s a decent shooter but should never be a primary option. He’ll be best when he’s distributing and taking advantage of occasional openings in the defense to keep the opposition honest.

G - David Coit - Sophomore - 5’11 - Coit was a big get for Coach Burno this year coming to the Huskies as a JUCO transfer from Atlantic Cape CC where he scored the lights out averaging a tick over 30 points per game. This year for the Huskies, Coit played 29 games (26 starts) averaging 34.4 minutes and 15.5 ppg/2.8 rpg/2.8 apg shooting 42.9% FT (37.7% 3PT - 81 of 215) and 86.7% FT (52 of 60). To me…Coit is the bigger threat to transfer than Williams. He has 2 years of eligibility and probably opened a lot of eyes this year with how he played in his first year at the D-1 level. If he stays, NIU has a potent scoring duo in Coit and Williams and one that could lead the Huskies a long way next year. Coit is also a workhouse playing almost every minute of every single game until a hamstring injury knocked him out of a few games near the end of the season that clearly affected his last couple of games. I’m not sure what else to write about Coit. He basically delivered on what was advertised and is an exciting guy to have on the roster. I just hope he sticks around.

G/F - Zarique Nutter - Sophomore - 6’6” - Nutter was another important recruit for Coach Burno this year coming in as a JUCO transfer from Clarendon College (he was dismissed from the team at Saint Peter’s his first freshman season due to some kind of legal issue he got into alongside the team’s star player…who barely got punished in the matter). This year, Nutter played 31 games (all starts) averaging 29.5 minutes and 12.5 ppg/4.8 rpg/1 apg shooting 42.6% FG (25.9 3PT - 21 of 81) and 62% FT (75 of 121). Overall, I expected Nutter to be slightly better than he played this year even though he played quite well. He had a bit of a streaky season where there would be games where he was absolutely dominant on both ends of the court and then there were games where he’d almost disappear. He struck me as a guy at the beginning of the season who couldn’t be intimidated by an opponent until he seemed to get in his own head and started making odd mistakes and turnovers. But the dude is strong, athletic and runs well and with two more seasons under Coach Burno, I could see him being a more traditional looking swing piece and floor leader like Crump. That last sentence is weird but I’m not changing it. Nutter doesn’t force the same kind of mismatches even though he’s only 2 inches shorter (2 important inches) but he’s a better shooter and better defender so there’s that.

F/C - Harvin Ibarguen - Junior - 6’9” - Ibarguen was a very late add to the roster and was also a JUCO transfer from Seward County CC. So late, that I think most of us assumed he was a walk-on….and I’m still not sure if he is or isn’t. Either way, this year Ibarguen played in 31 games (21 starts) averaging 20.7 minutes and 5.8 ppg/4.4 rpg shooting 74.5% FG and 65.4% FT (17 of 26). Everything about Ibarguen got better as the season progressed this year. He went from a guy who I (and probably others) figured was practice fodder to being an integral member of the starting 5 and one that most fans are excited about next year. Ibarguen is an athletic big man (slightly undersized at 6’9”) but has a motor that doesn’t stop and will get open. If you are paying attention, he’s open and ready. Which is why I think his emergence was fueled by the remergence of Kaleb Thornton. I’ve said it for years, if you are remotely open, be ready because Thornton will get you the ball. Most bigs we’ve had either didn’t get open enough, weren’t athletic enough or didn’t pay attention enough, but Ibarguen checked all of those boxes for Thornton and the two of them hooked up a ton as the season progressed. Honestly, it doesn’t seem that hard, move...get open…finish. But apparently it is. The one area where Ibarguen struggles is on defense, especially against bigger opponents. Where he can get away from dominant bigs on the offensive side, he has trouble containing them on the defensive side. Which is understandable. This is why he’s got to have a big to pair with who can control things better. Actually, he could pair great as the PF to a more traditional C because of his athleticism and ability to run the floor.

C/F - Oluwasegun Durosinmi - Sophomore - 6’9” - Durosinmi was acquired this year as a transfer from St. Bonaventure where he didn’t get to see the floor in his first season. This year, as a Huskie, Durosinmi played in 29 games (7 starts) averaging 10.8 minutes and 2.2 ppg/2.9 rpg shooting 35.8% FG and 61.9% FT (26 of 42). As Harvin Ibarguen’s arrow pointed up more and more as the season progressed, we saw Durosinmi’s arrow point downward for a bit before leveling off. Clearly, the post was a void where we had no experience outside of Anthony Crump and potential having a big come in from the A-10, who had…at the very least…practiced for a year in a good program, the idea was that he’d come in and be serviceable. Unfortunately, it seems like Duro is nothing more than a big body that can absorb fouls and a handful of minutes to spell the other, better bigs on the roster. Also unfortunately, there weren’t many better bigs on the roster this year. So, this position will still be an area of focus for Burno this offseason. Duro isn’t terrible, but he’s not good either. I will say that he has the highest FT shot on the team. Not the highest free throw PERCENTAGE…but the highest arc. When he shoots a FT, it comes straight down at the basket. Seems excessive and unnecessary but it’s better than whatever Anthony Crump used to throw at the basket. One positive is is that from what I saw last year, either Burno or someone on his staff is good at working with post players (imo, both Okanu and Makuoi got better as the season progressed to the point of being marginal D-1 talent when neither of them had any real business being on the roster), so over the next two years, we could see some improvement come Duro’s way.

PG - Taku Youngblood - Freshman - 6’1” - Youngblood was a HS recruit this year and one that had a lot of question marks as there wasn’t a ton of info out there about him when he signed. Since then, I have discovered a YouTube page that I think is dedicated to him. It’s by someone named Bil (which I think is an acronym for Ball Is Life…anyway) and you can check it out for yourself here (https://www.youtube.com/@bil2067). So, I’ve watched a lot of those videos now and, you know what? This isn’t the same guy I watched this year. In HS, Youngblood was a lot more assertive which makes me think he may develop into someone quite useful if he can strengthen up a tad. I also didn’t realize he could jump like he can. He’s more athletic than I realized (it was through that page that I found out he competed in the Slam Dunk competition during the pre-season event at the Convo this year. As for his year, Youngblood played 22 games (0 starts) averaging 3.3 minutes and 1 ppg shooting 41.2% FG (28.6% 3PT - 4 of 14) and 100% FT (4 of 4). Obviously, his numbers are an extreme case of a small sample so they don’t really tell us a bunch. He’s probably a pretty good FT shooter and is probably a better 3PT shooter than he did this year. His videos show a more well rounded PG type who can go to the basket. Now, I know what you’re thinking, this kid is ripe to transfer for playing time…maybe JUCO or lower level D 2 or 3, right? Yeah…probably right. He didn’t get much attention coming out of HS but he did get a real late offer in February of 2022 from Colorado State, which I think is interesting. Anyway, he’s one to keep an eye on right now as he could be one of those transfer jumpers. If not, I may be a bit more optimistic about him than I was say…3 days ago. Burno played his position and I’m sure he knows how to coach up a guy like Youngblood. If he just stays.

G - Armandas Plintauskas - Freshman - 6’4” - To me, Plintauskas is a fun player to watch. He does odd things but has a bulldog mentality that is just entertaining. So, what are his strengths? I’m not entirely sure but I think having a guy like him on your team makes the team better. But that’s just an opinion. Anyway, this year for the Huskies, Plintauskas played 28 games (1 start) averaging 8.8 minutes and 1.9 ppg/1 rpg shooting 32.7% FG (26.5% 3PT - 9 of 34) and 61.5% FT (8 of 13). Much like Youngblood, Plintauskas didn’t play enough to fully come to any conclusion based on his stats. His game is hustle and chaos. In my opinion, his season highlight came in the Gonzaga game where he turned the ball over at half court and then ran back and blocked a dunk attempt by Ben Gregg who is 6’10”. The turnover was bad…really bad, but him being mad enough about it to run back and go after that dunk…and block it clean…said a lot about the kid’s heart. I’m a fan.

F - Xavier Amos - Freshman - 6’8” - Amos was a guy who came in this year with a lot of excitement. Not only being a fairly highly touted recruit but also because he was a local kid who came from one of the basketball powerhouses in the city. A harbinger of things to come down the road for Coach Burno and his recruiting efforts? Maybe. Either way, Amos had a very disappointing season. For one, he was either hurt or sick a lot and when he was “healthy”...he was pedestrian. He showed a lack of intensity that a lot of fans were hoping to see. Some of that should be taken with a grain of salt but when you see guys like Plintauskas and Russell come in as freshmen and play with confidence through their mistakes and growing pains…you can’t help but wonder if Amos will develop into a starter. This year, Amos played in 7 games (1 start) averaging 14.7 minutes and 3.3 ppg/3.1 rpg shooting 32.1% FG (16.7% 3PT - 2 of 12) and 75% FT (3 of 4). Can he shoot? Probably. From 3PT? Who knows. FT? Possibly. He simply didn’t play enough and, like I said earlier, when he did he was underwhelming but those rebound numbers are higher than I thought they’d be. I also didn’t realize he was getting as many minutes as he was so clearly Burno was giving him chances. The silver lining is he probably qualifies for a red shirt. The other color lining is…many think he’s ripe for a transfer and maybe he is. I think many never thought he’d stick around anyway and this may be a good time to move. But, he’s got literally no leverage and would probably have to go to a JUCO to get playing time that would equal what he’ll get at NIU next year. So, I’m not as confident he’ll transfer. But we’ll have to keep an eye on him, that is for sure because we never really know what God’s plan is.

C/F - Yanic Konan Niederhäuser - Freshman - 6’10” - I’m going to come right out and say I have a strong bias here and am probably going to be more optimistic about Konan than some others. But I really like his potential. He’s big and quite athletic. He got abused by some of the more veteran bigs in the MAC and, imo, got the short end of some foul calls when we was getting shoved around and trying to hold his ground. Either way, those are good lessons and hopefully he was paying attention. This year, Konan played 20 games (2 starts) averaging 7.6 minutes and 2.2 ppg/1.5 rpg shooting 42.9% FG (18.8% 3PT - 3 of 16) and 80% FT (4 of 5). I watched about all of the video of Konan coming in to this year as could be found so his 16 3PT attempts didn’t surprise me. He can knock those down and will be more accurate in the years to come. He’s not going to be a sharp shooter by any stretch of the imagination but he should create some issues much like Marin Maric would do from time to time.

F - Seck Zongo - Incoming Freshman - 6’7” - The Patrick School (Home Town: New York) - There’s not a lot of video out there about Zongo but what I have seen makes him look like a guy who fills in the gaps and cleans things up. He’s got good size and is built well. He’s athletic but not premier at any one attribute. He strikes me as a guy who just plays hard. As for his school, The Patrick School is a school that gets a lot of national attention so anyone on the roster (let alone the starters and regulars) come with already having some attention on them from a young age. IMO, this is a good kid for the MAC and he seems like he could step in and hold his own physically with any opponent in the conference. He’ll rebound and play defense and find his way to 6 to 8 points just on 2nd chance points. Zongo signed on early too, turning down a number of offers from Fordham, Saint Joseph’s, Robert Morris, Manhattan, North Carolina A&T, Long Beach State, IUPUI. That’s not a list of powerhouses but there’s some intriguing schools that really make you scratch your chin wondering what it is that Burno sells. But, I’m not complaining. If Zongo is what I think he is, he’s the type of guy every team needs.

I’ll wear it if I’m wrong but I don’t think any impact pieces transfer out of NIU this year. Burno is building something.

I’m guessing that at least one of the players that were honored on senior night will come back next year.

Big Red---thanks for the analysis and hard work. The one thing that struck me as I was reading was your note that Youngblood is probably a better three point shooter than he showed this year.

I was at a game late in the season and watched the pre game drills, layup line, etc. Every time, and I mean EVERY Youngblood was going threw he had a different dunk....windmill, throw the ball 40 feet in the air and slam the bounce, etc. Others would get the ball and pull up with a mid range or take a three pointer....and I actually thought to myself "why don't you practice something that you might do in a game."

I'm telling you if NIU has a dunk contest my money is on Taku!!! But as a point/shooting guard---we need something a little different.

Thanks again for the write up---good reading!

(03-13-2023 06:53 AM)Milwaukee Pilot Wrote: [ -> ]Big Red---thanks for the analysis and hard work. The one thing that struck me as I was reading was your note that Youngblood is probably a better three point shooter than he showed this year.

I was at a game late in the season and watched the pre game drills, layup line, etc. Every time, and I mean EVERY Youngblood was going threw he had a different dunk....windmill, throw the ball 40 feet in the air and slam the bounce, etc. Others would get the ball and pull up with a mid range or take a three pointer....and I actually thought to myself "why don't you practice something that you might do in a game."

I'm telling you if NIU has a dunk contest my money is on Taku!!! But as a point/shooting guard---we need something a little different.

Thanks again for the write up---good reading!

That's an interesting observation.

On one hand, I'd say warm-ups aren't practice. That's what practice is for and he was probably there earlier in the day shooting. But it does make you wonder about game prep and/or what the difference is between him and the others.

I also wonder if you can't draw a conclusion about his mindset and how he feels about his chances of getting into a game (ie, if he doesn't think he will...then why prepare in pre-game for it?).

I don't know...that's a lot of assumptions based on nothing on my part, but your observation does raise some questions. Granted, you only saw him once (per your comment) so I don't know if that was a regular thing or just a one off.

Doesn't everyone participate in pre-game whether they think they'll play or not (obviously unless injured)? Also, they might not let him "play" like that in practice. Or it might be his way of psyching himself. Who knows.

Anyway, BR, nice work.

Was there a post-game video?

(03-13-2023 07:29 AM)Big Red Wrote: [ -> ]

(03-13-2023 06:53 AM)Milwaukee Pilot Wrote: [ -> ]Big Red---thanks for the analysis and hard work. The one thing that struck me as I was reading was your note that Youngblood is probably a better three point shooter than he showed this year.

I was at a game late in the season and watched the pre game drills, layup line, etc. Every time, and I mean EVERY Youngblood was going threw he had a different dunk....windmill, throw the ball 40 feet in the air and slam the bounce, etc. Others would get the ball and pull up with a mid range or take a three pointer....and I actually thought to myself "why don't you practice something that you might do in a game."

I'm telling you if NIU has a dunk contest my money is on Taku!!! But as a point/shooting guard---we need something a little different.

Thanks again for the write up---good reading!

That's an interesting observation.

On one hand, I'd say warm-ups aren't practice. That's what practice is for and he was probably there earlier in the day shooting. But it does make you wonder about game prep and/or what the difference is between him and the others.

I also wonder if you can't draw a conclusion about his mindset and how he feels about his chances of getting into a game (ie, if he doesn't think he will...then why prepare in pre-game for it?).

I don't know...that's a lot of assumptions based on nothing on my part, but your observation does raise some questions. Granted, you only saw him once (per your comment) so I don't know if that was a regular thing or just a one off.

(03-13-2023 09:52 AM)pvk75 Wrote: [ -> ]Doesn't everyone participate in pre-game whether they think they'll play or not (obviously unless injured)? Also, they might not let him "play" like that in practice. Or it might be his way of psyching himself. Who knows.

Anyway, BR, nice work.

Was there a post-game video?

I looked yesterday for something on YouTube but nothing men's basketball-wise is there since the last regular season game.

Kaleb Thornton is the first Huskie to enter the portal.

(03-16-2023 06:00 PM)Big Red Wrote: [ -> ]Kaleb Thornton is the first Huskie to enter the portal.

That is not good. Looking pretty much like another total rebuild.

I guess he’ll end up at another MAC school

They did recognize him on senior night. I figured he had exhausted his eligibility though...

(03-16-2023 06:37 PM)HuskieDave Wrote: [ -> ]

(03-16-2023 06:00 PM)Big Red Wrote: [ -> ]Kaleb Thornton is the first Huskie to enter the portal.

That is not good. Looking pretty much like another total rebuild.

You know he graduating, right?

He's fulfilled his obligation and IMO, he's free to do as he pleases at this point.

(03-16-2023 07:55 PM)Big Red Wrote: [ -> ]

(03-16-2023 06:37 PM)HuskieDave Wrote: [ -> ]

(03-16-2023 06:00 PM)Big Red Wrote: [ -> ]Kaleb Thornton is the first Huskie to enter the portal.

That is not good. Looking pretty much like another total rebuild.

You know he graduating, right?

He's fulfilled his obligation and IMO, he's free to do as he pleases at this point.

Yes. I assume he is a graduate transfer. I agree, but, he will still need to be replaced AND had the option to stay. I was in no way being critical of him or his decision.

Thornton has heard from 15 schools, including four MAC schools.

https://twitter.com/theportalreport/stat...qsyn5erw5A

That's an unexciting list of schools...

(03-17-2023 01:57 PM)epasnoopy Wrote: [ -> ]That's an unexciting list of schools...

Last year (I think), I suspected he'd transfer to Ball State and follow Tyler Cochran then they fired their coach and TC transferred to Toledo. The Rockets aren't on that list and I'm not sure about their roster/scholarships etc, but it still wouldn't surprise me for him to end up there.

Btw, regarding scholarships...the guys with the covid bonus don't count against a scholarship cap, right?

Covid year should not count against the 13 scholarships. I will not be surprised if Huskies lose some other guys to other MAC schools. Next year’s likely MAC NCAA tournament team Kent St, Akron, Ohio or Toledo not NIU. I wish Burno luck this is a big lift!