 Men's Basketball |
|
November 16, 2007 The Monarchs will need to replace three seniors from last year’s team. Dragan Radmanovic, was the team’s overall leading scorer (11.3 ppg), while Robert Lee averaged 13.3 points per game in USA South conference play after returning from injury. Brandon Williams, a strong presence under the basket has moved to the sidelines in a student assistant coaching role this season after exhausting his eligibility. Despite the losses, Methodist returns two starters from last year’s 11-14 team including junior point guard A.B. Lehmann and junior forward Antwin Shuford. Lehmann played his first year with the program last year and ranked second on the team in scoring with 10.4 points per game. Lehmann already broke into the Methodist record books after hitting eight 3-pointers last season against Rutgers-Newark in January. After a year of experience in the USA South, Lehmann could be an even bigger threat. Shuford is a consistent presence in the paint after scoring 10.3 points per game last year and adding 9.0 rebounds per game. He had eight double-doubles during the course of the season and has the ability to play above the basket. Smith feels confident in Shuford’s ability to do anything. “Antwin can play inside and outside with tremendous athleticism,” he added. Returning with Shuford at forward is junior Travis McBryde. McBryde missed most of last season, but was averaging more than eight points per game through the first six games. “We’ve started calling Travis our ghost rebounder, because we don’t know how he gets in there sometimes,” Smith said. Junior Alex Meadows is another returning forward who has made vast improvements and will look to see more time this season. Seniors Brian Lane and Travis Winstead along with sophomore Tyler Sigman will look to use their experience to step up at the guard position. All three players saw time last season with Winstead earning 10 starts. Smith has found they are all contributing and have all improved in the last year. “If our perimeter players can contribute on a consistent basis, we will be hard to stop,” he said. The most heralded addition this season comes to Methodist after playing at both Division I and II programs. Senior Billy McDade is a 6’9” forward who can play in the paint or drop out to hit the 3-pointer. He is a threat from anywhere on the court and can change the game for the Monarchs. Sophomore guard Eric Thomas will earn some good minutes backing up the point guard. “Eric’s dribble penetration makes him hard to stop,” said Smith. Freshman LeuMichael Smith can make things happen on the court while freshman Marcus Connor will add more size at the post position and has a nice touch. The Monarchs add depth in guards Tyrone Pulley, A.J. Hester, Nate Cowan and Leland Jones. Anderson Bynum is another forward for Methodist. As they adjust to the system, Smith trusts they will be able to help the team this season. Methodist has already played two exhibitions against two big, tough teams, Kazakhstan and Western Carolina. “They were able to expose our weaknesses, but we were right there with them,” said Smith. Based on last year’s performance, the Monarchs were picked fifth in the USA South Conference poll, but Smith is okay with the selection. “It makes it easier to do better,” he said. The team has definitely set its sights on doing better. “Our goal is always to win the conference because it gets us into the NCAA Tournament,” Smith explained. “We want to keep improving. We should be better at the end of the season than we are now.” Smith wants to get off on the right foot this weekend at the Days Inn East Blue Jay Classic at Elizabethtown College. The men open up against Rutgers-Camden on Friday at 6 pm. “We hope to use the road games as a way to toughen up and bond as a team,” Smith said. The Monarchs will play their first home game Nov. 26 at 7 pm against Emory & Henry College. |
