Men’s Basketball: ‘Eaters aim to dance
Russell Turner believes the question stands no more. Providing an unprecedented answer, however, is the daily intention that fuels his ample competitive nature.
Turner’s UC Irvine men’s basketball team enters the program’s 50th season Friday, hoping to become the first Anteaters’ squad to play in the NCAA Tournament.
After a 23-12 season that included the Big West Conference regular-season title, a semifinal loss in the conference tournament, and first-round elimination in the NIT, UCI lost only one of its top 12 players.
In this, Turner’s fifth season, the ‘Eaters are not only a consensus favorite to win the Big West, but have also generated some buzz as a potential mid-major Cinderella.
“When I got here, the question was whether or not you could [win] at Irvine,” said Turner, who was Big West and Nation Assn. of Basketball Coaches’ District 9 Coach of the Year last season. “I don’t think there is any question it can be done, now. I think the question needs to change. I think we’re stupid if we talk about greater goals than making the NCAA Tournament when we haven’t made it. But I don’t think that’s the only thing we’re thinking about. As a program, we’re trying to be a lot better a year from now than we are now and win as many games as we can. If we stay focused on that, I don’t think that there are limits. I want to go for it.
“I think we have made ourselves into a team that can sustain a high level of expectation and that’s what you have to do. Now, we have to do it [make the NCAA Tournament]. I think we’re as close as maybe we’ve ever been here, but I won’t be satisfied until we do it. And even then, I won’t be satisfied until we establish that we can sustain it.”
The ‘Eaters sustained excellence last season with a foundation of prohibitive defense. They ranked third in the nation in field-goal-percentage defense (.374) and fourth in blocked shots (a school-record 224).
Mamadou Ndiaye, a 7-foot-6 freshman last season, set a conference record with 106 blocked shots and earned Big West Defensive Player of the Year accolades. He also averaged eight points and six rebounds per game and shot nearly 71% from the field.
Will Davis, a 6-8 senior and the Big West Defensive Player of the Year in 2013, is the program’s career leader with 174 blocked shots and is the most consistent scoring option in the post. Davis, named to the preseason all-conference team, averaged 11 points and a team-best 6.4 rebounds as a junior.
Additional returning starters include 6-3 British import Luke Nelson, who led the team in scoring last season (11.8 ppg) and was named Big West Freshman of the Year, as well as 6-1 junior Alex Young, who led the team in assists (4.6 per contest) and averaged 8.9 points per game.
Turner said Ndiaye and Davis have both improved greatly, while Nelson, a second-team all-conference choice, and Young have grown individually and as a unit, having played during the internationally last summer on the same British national team.
Turner believes Ndiaye has NBA potential and will display greater fluidity at the offensive end this season.
“He’s going to be better at catching the ball in the post, reading the defense and making the right play,” Turner said of Ndiaye, who has a wingspan of 8-3 and a standing reach of 10-2. “Last year, he couldn’t really do that. And his free throws should be a lot better. That was a problem for him last year (42.6%).”
Turner believes Davis could wind up as the program’s career rebounding leader and is one of three Anteaters who deserve mention as a candidate for conference player of the year laurels (with Nelson and Ndiaye).
Nelson, who emerged during conference play as the team’s most prolific scoring threat, should continue to assert himself offensively, said Turner, who was pleasantly surprised by Nelson’s defensive ability in his inaugural campaign.
“[Nelson] is naturally a scorer, more than anybody we have, and last year I think it was difficult, as a freshman, to assert himself with that,” Turner said. “I don’t think that’s going to be an obstacle anymore.”
Senior Travis Souza, as well as juniors Dominique Dunning and Aaron Wright, should contend for the fifth starting spot and Dunning, fearlessly aggressive off the dribble, has the ability to average double-figures.
Chris McNealy who was the team MVP last season after averaging 11 ppg and earning first-team all-conference laurels, graduated last spring and was drafted recently by the NBA Development League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Souza is hoping to regain his form as an above-average three-point shooter (he sank 34.7% of his attempts last season after netting 49.1% from threedom as a sophomore), while Wright, who averaged 4.1 ppg last season, is the team’s best backcourt defender.
John Ryan, a 6-10 senior who shares captain duties with Souza, is a proven big man whom, Turner said, would start for any other Big West school. He averaged 4.3 points and 3.8 rebounds as a junior.
Mike Best, a 6-10 junior, Ioannis Dimakopoulos, a 7-2 sophomore, and 6-10 freshman Jonathan Galloway add quality depth up front, while sophomore Jaron Martin and junior Reed McConnell will bolster the backcourt off the bench.
Freshmen Haroldas Saprykinas and Spencer Rivers, the son of Los Angeles Clippers Coach Doc Rivers, will attempt to make their mark, as will 6-8 junior Sean Ray, a transfer form El Camino Community College.
Turner hopes the offense will make its mark more consistently this season.
“We weren’t very good last year in some key areas,” Turner said. “I’m hoping we can continue to be good at sharing the ball and playing unselfishly, and continue to shoot a high percentage and get good shots. But we know we clearly have to be better at passing the ball to the post, and we should be able to take care of the ball better with an added year of experience. And, I think we’ll be a better free-throw shooting team [nearly 71% last season].”
UCI thumped Simon Fraser, 128-92, in Saturday’s exhibition opener, during which seven players scored in double figures and Dunning (16 points and 10 rebounds) and Galloway (14 and 11) had double-doubles.
The ‘Eaters open the season against Chapman University on Friday at 7 p.m.
The marquee nonconference matchups are road dates against Arizona (Nov. 19) and Oregon (Dec. 29).
The conference opener is Jan. 8 at home against Long Beach State.