Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Wrapping up McMurry...

  • Brent Benson couldn't be stopped on Tuesday night. The senior guard lit up McMurry and the San Marcos sky with 40 points. He shot 12-of-19 from the field with nine 3-pointers. Benson tied his school record with nine treys and finished three points shy of the Strahan Coliseum record for individual scoring. After the game, Benson said, "My teammates did a great job of finding me and tonight, the shots were luckily falling for me. I felt really good coming into the game."
  • Texas State set a Strahan Coliseum team scoring record by tallying 112 points. When Roshun Jackson dunked home a steal with 51.9 seconds remaining, it broke the old standard set Jan. 30, 1990 against Northwestern State.
  • During halftime, Davalos said he talked to his team about a level of disrespect the Indians were showing them. McMurry ran a 1-4 flat in the first half on offense, which sent four attackers to the baseline, and only one into the paint. The Bobcats didn't change their defensive scheme that much in the second half, but got their hands in the lane. Texas State finished with 12 steals and 35 points off turnovers.
  • The Bobcats scored 23 second-chance points and outrebounded the Indians, 42-22.
  • Texas State scored 63 points in the second half. Four points shy of another Strahan Coliseum record.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Texas State's 2009 men's basketball signing class...

According to Rivals.com, three players have signed Letters of Intent to play at Texas State next season. NCAA rules prohibit coaches from commenting on players until they are enrolled, so right now, highlights and names will do.

  • J.B. Conley - A 6-foot, 6-inch small forward from Temple, TX., had a plethora of options. Among those that recruited him were Texas Christian, Alabama St., Liberty, Oral Roberts, Texas Tech and UC Irvine.
  • Dylan Hale - A 5-foot, 10-inch shooting guard from Minneapolis, MN. Other schools to recruit him were Southern Methodist and Fairfield. He could fit a role of a Brent Benson-like player, but I would expect him to be moved to point guard.
  • Uriel Segura - A 6-foot, 3-inch point guard from Waco, TX. The only other school to recruit him was Wisconsin-Green Bay. Not much is known about him, but the Bobcats will need a new point guard once Corey Jefferson graduates.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Arkansas QB might transfer to Texas State

According to the Arkansas Gazette Democrat, Razorback QB Nathan Dick asked for his transfer from the program. A source close to Dick said he has interest in transferring to Texas State.

If he in fact does transfer, it makes the QB situation a little murky. Bradley George earned his spot with a tremendous second half of the season and Bobcat head coach Brad Wright has talked so much about Tim Hawkins, who was redshirted this season.

Only time will tell.

Here's the story: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Sports/246879/

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Texas State sleeps through loss against New Orleans

If you just looked at the box score for Texas State's game against New Orleans, it wouldn't tell the story of the game. The Bobcats looked uninterested in the game, only two days after nearly pulling an upset of the fifth-ranked Texas Longhorns.

Texas State trailed by one at halftime and hung tough in the second. The Bobcats were somehow able to keep it respectable, although going 9-of-26 in the last 12 minutes.

In several huge stretches in the game, Texas State's seniors were on the bench. The only Bobcat upperclassman to have an impact was Brandon Bush (15 points and eight rebounds). Bush's slashing layup brought Texas State within one point, but wasn't enough.

Following the game, Bobcat head coach Doug Davalos lamented his team's performance. He accepted full responsibility for the loss, but said if his team had any credibility, the seniors would too, as well.

Texas State has lost three-consecutive games and host Prairie View A&M on Sunday.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Two players gone from Texas State men's bball team...

Seven games into the 2008 season and the Texas State men's basketball team is already losing players. Not due to injury, but sources have said they quit due to playing time.

Tre Nichols and Gordon Taylor are no longer Bobcats. Nichols and Taylor are no longer on the roster on the Web site, nor have they dressed in recent games.

Nichols was a heavily-recruited guard out of Killeen. He played in three games for Texas State, averaging 12 minutes and seven points per contest. Nichols was one of the Bobcats' best defenders in his short time, notching five steals.

Taylor, who walked-on in 2007, played in five games this season. He never accumulated much playing time and as a walk-on, it's difficult. He saw six minutes per game this season, averaging 1.8 ppg.

The loss of Nichols and Taylor leaves Texas State with 12 players. It should increase Corey Jefferson and Ryan White's playing time at point guard. Brent Benson should also see an increase in minutes with no one pushing him.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Wrapping up SAGU...

Texas State dominated Southwestern Assemblies of God tonight, 110-69. The Bobcat scored the second-most points in school history and played a complete game. Granted, Texas State played a NAIA school, but there were a bunch of positives, while some negatives to take from the game.

Positives
  • The Bobcats looked remarkably better on defense. Texas State, at one point, held the Lions scoreless for a span of six minutes in the first half. Yes, SAGU isn't the deftest offensive team, but it is still shooting at the basket, as well. The Lions did get a few open looks, but the Bobcats closed out.
  • Texas State moved the ball well, creating open looks. The Bobcats shot 56 percent from the floor in the second half, mainly from points in the paint and alley-oops. Texas State made it look easy at some points.
  • John Bowman and Cameron Johnson are turning into good ballplayers. While Bowman is a freshman, he will play upperclassman minutes and Johnson, a sophomore, is one of the team's best defenders.
  • Every player who touched the court for the Bobcats scored. Depth is important, no matter when in the season a game is.
Negatives
  • Texas State misses way too many free throws. The Bobcats went 15-of-30 tonight and committed too many useless fouls in the second half. Texas State could have easily set the school record for points if they made 65-70 percent of their gift shots. The Bobcats, while they are being aggressive on defense, need to limit the ticky-tack fouls.
  • Ty Gough still suffers from the "little big man" syndrome. Gough doesn't go up strong enough in the post, often times very weak. He's evidently one of the best squatters on the team, so he should be able to get push off the floor. Gough has a good touch around the rim, just isn't going to be feared by many teams.
  • Texas State looked careless with the ball at times. The Bobcats' ball handlers (Ryan White, Corey Jefferson and Tre Nichols) need to know when and when not to pass. Jefferson did well tonight and also hit a 3-pointer.
  • While it did play better defensively, Texas State needs to lock out on man defense. The Bobcats sag a little too much and better teams will take advantage of that.

The reason for Brent Benson's emergence...

Many fans of the Texas State men's basketball team are noticing an emergence of Brent Benson as a true scoring threat on the team. Last season, Benson did average 12 points per game, but in limited action.

Benson, according to head coach Doug Davalos, is learning to be an "adequate defender," thus earning more playing time in his system. The second-year guard has worked a lot on his help-side defense, trying to draw charges and the like.

Davalos mentioned his team is never going to be a "great defensively," but he'll take "good" any day. He said if they can be "great offensively and good defensively," they have a shot at "doing some big things."

The Bobcats return home tonight against Southwest Assemblies of God.