Men's Basketball Preview - Part 1: Cleveland State

Oct. 30, 2006

Gary Waters knows the challenge that lies ahead of him.

After all, it was only a decade ago when he faced a similar situation when he began his head coaching career at Kent State. The ensuing success that he had with the Golden Flashes, and in a subsequent rebuilding effort at Rutgers, has fully prepared him for the road ahead.

As part of the plan, Waters brought the Viking returners together over the summer and used Hall of Fame coach John Wooden's book on the Pyramid of Success to teach the CSU players about success.

"Success class", as it was tagged, continued on during the preseason with the Vikings ultimately putting together their own pyramid, identifying the traits and characteristics needed to attain success.

Waters knows that the success of the Vikings in 2006-07 is fully on the shoulders of the nine returning players and that how well they take the system to heart and implement the up-tempo, full-court style of play that has become a trademark of Waters-coached teams.

"The foundation of the program was already here when I arrived," Waters told the media during the preseason. "Our returning players -- and especially our four seniors -- have really stepped up and accepted what we are trying to do. They have totally bought into our philosophy.

"I've never had a group of players respond as well as this group has. We have a good core group of players who are hungry for success. That hunger will help us to get better."

The Vikings will feature a good balance of youth and experience this year with the nine returning players -- four of whom were starters last season -- being joined by four newcomers, each of whom will add an extra dimension to the lineup.

"This transition is going to take time because this system is like nothing they've done before," Waters said. "We are changing a style. They talked about running last year but in reality, if the opportunity was there, they would run. We want to really push it at people and it takes time to learn how to do that correctly."

Waters will have a dozen players to build his rotation from with many of the Vikings being capable of playing multiple spots.

Newcomers Energize Veteran Backcourt

The Vikings will feature a deep rotation at the perimeter spots this year with as many as a half dozen players -- four returners and two newcomers -- capable of playing the three positions.

"The positive thing about this year's team is the balance that exists between the returners and the new guys, especially at guard," Waters said. "Our new players are pretty talented and they are pushing the returners every day and both groups are getting better."

Senior Carlos English is the leading candidate to start at point guard this year while senior Victor Morris and sophomore Bahaadar Russell are also candidates for the spot.

English, who started 24 of CSU's 28 games last year, is one of the quickest players on the team. The most-experienced of the point guards, he led the team in both steals (48) and assists (130), ranking second and fourth, respectively, in the Horizon League.

Morris has been a fixture in the Viking lineup in each of the last three seasons, leading all returners in games (81) and minutes played (2,047). He will most likely see action at both of the guard positions.

Russell is the wild card at the point after being slowed during his freshman year by a leg injury that ultimately kept him from a place in the playing rotation. Now healthy, his play-making skills have benefited from the change in system and he could see more playing time this season.

A pair of newcomers -- freshman Joe Davis and junior Breyohn Watson -- are the leading candidates to challenge both Morris and Raheem Moss for playing time at the off-guard position.

Davis, a first team all-state choice last year after averaging 28.1 points a game at Warrensville High, possesses the natural scoring ability that the Vikings lacked from the perimeter last year. He was the first player signed by CSU last spring, an indication that Waters was serious about building the Vikings around Cleveland-area talent. He is also capable of playing point guard though Waters may elect to focus his time at one position to make his transition to college basketball easier.

Watson, a junior who played last season at Mott Community College, was a surprising find during the summer for CSU. Added to the roster late in the summer, he has impressed the coaching staff with his athleticism and work ethic and could also see playing time on the wing.

Junior Greg Vlosich, who sat out all of last season following surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, will provide depth at both guard spots once his knee returns to full strength.

Vikings Feature Depth On The Wing

The biggest question that Waters has to answer as CSU enters the season is how to split up the playing time on the wing, where senior Raheem Moss will be challenged by newcomers Tristan Crawford and Breyohn Watson for playing time. giving Waters three scorers to call upon at the position.

Moss, a second team preseason all-league choice a year ago, has averaged in double figures in scoring in each of his two seasons at CSU. He ranks eighth all-time in three-point percentage (.389) and ninth with 119 career three-pointers.

"Moving Raheem to the wing will allow him to take advantage of his size and shooting ability without creating a speed problem for him on defense when he has to defend against a quicker guard," Waters said.

Crawford, the Pennsylvania Class AAA Player of the Year as a senior after averaging 23.0 points a game, sat out the 2005-06 season to concentrate on his academics. The year away from basketball slowed his transition to the college level but once he adapts, he will have an impact on the lineup.

Lack Of Big Man Won't Slow Inside Play

The Vikings have a dilemma inside this year as the roster features four players 6-7 or taller but none big enough to be considered a true center, so Waters will need to improvise a bit to turn the shortage into a positive.

"I don't have any big guys," Waters told the media early in the fall. " I really have a bunch of forwards who are pretty mobile. They run as well as the guards and when you have forwards who run like that, then that is pretty good. I have to find a way to incorporate that into what we do."

Fortunately for Waters, he knew early in the summer that the Vikings would lack a big man so he planned ahead, scouting several programs that were successful playing without a center.

"I spent two days visiting the Phoenix Suns to see what they did when Amare Stoudemare was out of the lineup last year and they were forced to play with a similar makeup (three guards, two forwards)."

The forward rotation will consist of senior Patrick Tatham, juniors Luke Murphy and Kevin Francis and sophomores J'Nathan Bullock and Renard Fields.

One thing that became certain during preseason was that Bullock is going to see the lion's share of minutes on the court this year, most likely at the power forward spot.

A preseason All-Horizon League second team choice this year, Bullock became only the fifth freshman in Viking history to lead the team in scoring (11.3 ppg). His strength and quickness allow him to excel at driving to the basket.

"J'Nathan played out of position last year," Waters said. "He is 6-5 but he played two feet from the basket where it was hard for him to score against the 6-8 and 6-9 guys. He needs to be able to get away from the basket so that he can use that athleticism. We're going to allow him to spread out a bit and see what he can do."

Tatham, a three-year regular who leads all active players with 57 career starts, was first on the team and ninth in the Horizon League last year averaging 6.0 rebounds a game. His strength and quick hands have allowed him to excel as a defender, a skill that is very important in the Waters system.

At 6-9, 220 pounds, Murphy combines the size and shot blocking ability of a post player with the ball-handling and shooting skills of a guard to become a very difficult player to defend. He made six of his nine three-point attempts last year, a figure that should lead to more opportunities this season.

Fields, who is the player with the most experience playing with his back to the basket, played well in limited action as a freshman. He averaged 6.5 minutes a game off the bench, shooting .600 from the field with seven blocked shots.

Francis, the lone newcomer among the post players, may have the biggest impact among the Viking newcomers this year. A member of the Canadian Junior National team in each the last two years, he has impressed the coaching staff with his maturity and production during the preseason.

Scout Team To Provide A Punch. . . Next Year

One area that will help the Vikings get better as a unit is in practice where the CSU regulars will face on a daily basis three of the best players on the team when they square off against the scout team.

In an attempt to build for the future -- most specifically when the current group of four seniors leave after this season -- Waters has added three transfers to the squad from Division I schools who will have to sit out this season to meet NCAA transfer guidelines.

When eligible next season, the trio of guard Cedric Jackson (St. John's) and forwards Chris Moore (UC-Santa Barbara) and George Tandy (Eastern Illinois) will each play a significant role in the rotation.

"At this level, transfers are good for this program," Waters said. "You may not get the top player in recruiting right away, but they might come back to you. That's what we've done here and when these three players are eligible, they will impact the lineup. They'll use this year as an chance to learn about our program so that next year, they will be able to contribute right away."

Schedule Creates Challenges

A change in the NCAA rules has impacted the Viking schedule in two ways this year. The Nov. 11 game against George Mason is the earliest season opener in the 75-year history of the program.

In addition, CSU will play at least 31 games this year, a figure surpassed only three times in school history (CSU played 33 games in both 1985-86 and 1986-87 and 32 contests in 2000-01).

"The schedule is a tough one, but it is going to tell us a lot," Waters said. "I wanted to put a bunch of challenges in there along with some games where we might achieve some success.

"By the time we play our 10th game, we will know where we are as a team."

The front third of the schedule is loaded as the Vikings will play five of their first 10 contests against teams that advanced to the post-season.

The season opener couldn't be much tougher as 2006 Final Four participant George Mason comes to Cleveland to tip off the year. CSU also begins the year with games against 2006 NCAA teams Ohio State (Dec. 9), which begins the year ranked fourth in the CNN/USA Today poll, and Kent State (Nov. 29) while squaring off with NIT teams Miami, Fla. (Nov. 19) and Butler (Dec. 2). Add to the mix a Dec. 5 game at Kansas State and CSU has few breathers in the first four weeks of the year.

"Our non-conference schedule is built so that it will get us ready for the conference schedule," Waters said. "By playing the best teams possible early in the year, we will be ready when league play gets going."

The Dec. 2 game at Butler is the earliest league opener in school history and it will begin a challenging 16-game slate with the Vikings being tabbed to finish ninth in the preseason poll.

"I don't believe that where we have been picked is reflective of where we are as a program," Waters said. "It is based upon where we have been.

"The Horizon League will be a challenge this year. I think that Loyola, with three all-league players back, is the team to beat. But after them, spots 2-9 will be a battle because there isn't much that separates the other eight teams."

Story provided by the Cleveland State Sports Information Office.