College of Idaho Men's Basketball Preview
QUICK SYNOPSIS: After back-to-back Cascade Conference titles and a trip to the NAIA Division II national quarterfinals, the College of Idaho must replace four starters and seven seniors from that amazing run. With 10 returners and an outstanding recruiting class, the Yotes look to be in position to contend for a CCC title once again in 2015-16.
ABOUT THE COACH: Scott Garson enters his third season as head coach of the Coyotes, recording a 58-12 overall record and a perfect 34-0 mark at home. His teams won the 2014 and 2015 Cascade Conference regular-season and postseason championships and qualified for NAIA Division II Tournaments in each of Garson's two seasons at C of I. He has an 8-2 postseason record, including a trip to the quarterfinals of the 2015 NAIA Division II National Championships. Garson was the recipient of the 2015 Red Auerbach National Coach of the Year Ward, while in 2014; he was named CCC Coach of the Year. In his two seasons as C of I, he has coached three All-Americans and seven All-CCC selections. Prior to coming to taking the reigns as C of I's head coach, Garson was an assistant at UCLA under Ben Howland, the current Mississippi State head coach. Garson served under Howland from 2004-13, working his first two seasons as the Bruins video coordinator before being elevated to assistant coach. Garson was responsible for the development of perimeter players – including current NBA stars, Russell Westbrook, Arron Afflalo, Darren Collison, Jrue Holiday, Shabazz Muhammad, Kyle Anderson and Jordan Adams. Garson also was responsible for the recruitment of Zach LaVine, the 13th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft and 2015 NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion. During Garson's tenure at UCLA, the Bruins amassed a record of 222-90, including Pac-10 titles in 2006, 2007 and 2008, a Pac-12 title in 2013, as well as Pac-10 Tournament titles in 2006 and 2008. The Bruins qualified for six NCAA National Tournaments and made trips to the Final Four in 2006, 2007 and 2008 – reaching the national championship game in 2006. Garson was instrumental in the recruiting efforts for the Bruins, who claimed ESPN's No. 1 recruiting class in both 2008 and 2012. A total of 15 players recruited or coached by Garson have been selected in the NBA Draft. Garson spent five seasons at the University of Utah under hall-of-fame coach and mentor, Rick Majerus. Garson served as a graduate assistant, video coordinator and, in his final year, as an assistant coach for Majerus. The Utes won three Mountain West Conference titles and advanced to the NCAA National Tournament four times during Garson's time there. During the 1998-99 season, Garson served as the video coordinator and administrative assistant at Pepperdine University under current University of Washington head coach, Lorenzo Romar, for one season. Garson played one season of college basketball and baseball at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo., before transferring to UC-Santa Barbara, where he earned a bachelor of arts in law and society. While at Utah, he received a master of science in exercise and sports science, with an emphasis in sport psychology. A Southern California native, Garson's parents still reside in Calabasas, Calif., and his younger brother, Chad, a former left-handed pitcher at the University of Michigan, resides in Los Angeles, Calif.
LAST SEASON / PLAYERS LOST: The 2014-15 campaign was a magical ride for the Yotes, compiling their second 30-win season in program history, including a record-setting 11-0 start with road victory over Vanguard, ranked No. 1 in the NAIA Division I national poll. C of I recorded a 14-4 conference record, including a season sweep of national tournament bound Concordia, to win the regular-season league title, and then dispatched of Oregon Tech, Eastern Oregon, and Southern Oregon in the league tournament to cut down the nets. At Nationals, the Yotes withstood a last-second shot attempt to win their opener against Dakota State, while playing one of their best games of the season to roll to a 99-80 victory over Cardinal Stritch. C of I dropped a tough 88-80 decision to eventual national runner-up Dakota Wesleyan in the national quarterfinals – a game that was a one possession contest in the final two minutes. The Yotes, who finished 2015 ranked No. 6 in the NAIA Division II, will have to replace four starters – first-team All-America point-guard Josh Wilson (10.7 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 3.9 apg, 71 steals), second-team All-America guard Demetrius Perkins (14.8 ppg, 5.2 rpg), big men Marko Kovacevic (11.5 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 38 blocks) and Joe Vaz (8.6 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 47 blocks), plus top guards Sydney Donaldson (9.0 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 48 steals) and Jordan O'Byrne (10.2 ppg, .453 3FG%). "It's hard to replace those guys and we can't replace those guys right away, as not only were they good players, but they were experienced players and veterans who had been through battles on the floor," Garson said. "Those seniors had been to the postseason and played in big games at home, on the road and in the national tournament. You can't teach experience, you have to just get it. We've got a much younger group this year, a much more inexperienced group, but I believe it is a group that can improve as the season goes on for sure and I believe we have enough talent in the room that we can have success."
PRESEASON POLL: The Yotes were picked to win their third-straight CCC title, earning seven first-place votes in the CCC Preseason Coaches' Poll, released on Oct. 14. C of I received 110 voter points, ahead of Northwest Christian (101), Warner Pacific (89), Oregon Tech (87) and Southern Oregon (69). The NAIA Division II Preseason Top-25 will be released on Oct. 27.
POSITION BY POSITION – GUARDS: With the Yotes losing their top four guards to graduation, it will be a new look crew to attack the basket this season. Point-guard
Emanuel Morgan is the lone regular member of the Yotes rotation back and looks to run C of I's up-tempo offense. The fan-favorite averaged three points, three assists and two rebounds per game, leading the CCC in assist-to-turnover ratio. Fellow returners in juniors
Curtis Brever and
Michael Goward, along with sophomore
Trevor Thomas, look for expanded minutes after serving as role-players a year ago. Junior transfers
Dominique Jordan and
Jalyn Turner look to be immediate impact players. Jordan earning Northwest Athletic Conference North Region Player of the Year honors at Bellevue CC, averaging 16 points a game and making 74 3-pointers, while Turner earned All-Region VIII honors at Dakota-Bottineau CC, averaging 16 points a game in leading his team to the NJCAA Division II national tournament. The versatile
Aitor Zubizarreta will be an asset at both ends of the floor, as the Division I transfer from the University of Portland was the Pilots top defensive substitute last season and has a good outside shot. Junior transfer
Chris Vines and freshman
Gibson Berryhill are solid shooters, Vines coming from Santa Barbara City CC, with Berryhill setting 3-point records at Timberline High. "Manny is going to be very important for us – his assist-to-turnover ratio led the league," Garson said. "We bring in a number of players in our recruiting class that are guards, starting with Aitor Zubizarreta – a good player, left-handed, that can shoot it, can play some point and play the wing. Dominique Jordan comes from a quality program at Bellevue CC and can play both guard positions, while Jalyn Turner, out of Chicago, will play at a perimeter position. Our returners, who didn't get many minutes a year ago, will have opportunities this season and need to be ready to go."
POSITION BY POSITION – FORWARDS: A year ago, the Yotes were huge on the front line, with six players standing 6-foot-7 or taller. This season, most of the size is gone, replaced by athleticism around the basket. Preseason All-CCC pick
Joey Nebeker is poised for a breakout season after averaging 10 points and five rebounds per game as a sophomore. The former Gatorade Player of the Year and Boise State transfer provides a match-up problem for opponents with his ability to play inside and out. "Joey is going to have a great year and I have no problem saying he is our best player," Garson said. "He is showing tremendous leadership, he is shooting the ball extremely well from the perimeter; he's driving the ball well and making good decisions. I think the experience he got last season will be invaluable in helping him lead our team in a number of areas, especially on the defensive side of things." Senior wing
Marck Coffin played meaningful minutes in the postseason last year and will be counted on for rebounds, as will fellow senior
Andrew Bruce, who has a quality outside jumper. The Yotes will look for production from a pair of 6-foot-7 posts – senior
Ryan Davis and sophomore
Dominic Hulsey – both who are expected to see an increased roll this year, as will redshirt freshman
Spiros Tarlas. C of I caught a tough break before the season, as power forward
Aziz Leeks, a former player at Weber State and Snow College, was injured and will use the season as a redshirt year. "Marck Coffin will play at the wing and at the 4 position as he is a really good rebounder and athlete," Garson said. "With the injury to Aziz Leeks, guys like Dominic Hulsey and Ryan Davis are going to have to step up and play important minutes for us to give us some depth in the front court."
PRESEASON OPPONENTS: C of I will play an extremely difficult preseason schedule, including six national tournament teams – including six games at home. The Yotes will play two exhibition games – including a season-opening game against Canadian national tournament participant Langara College, and a December tilt at the University of Utah, picked third in the Pac-12 and coming off a 26-9 season. The official opener is on Halloween against the University of Victoria, a team that qualified for the Canadian Interuniversity Sport championships in 2015. C of I returns home for the Taco Bell Shoot-Out, hosting an outstanding Montana Western team coming off an NAIA Division I tournament berth and returning Frontier Conference Player of the Year Dexter Williams. Also in the Shoot-Out is Northwest Indian College, led by outstanding shooter Kacy Green. The Yotes will continue the United Heritage Insurance Mayors' Cup series against Northwest Nazarene – playing Nov. 10 in Nampa and Nov. 24 in Caldwell – with the Crusaders returning just one starter, but featuring a new head coach in Scott Flemming. C of I will close their road portion of the non-conference schedule with a match-up at Westminster, now a member of NCAA Division II – picked 15th of 16 teams in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and returning top player Quincy Bair. Just before Thanksgiving, the Yotes will host the Domino's Classic, quite possibly the top small college tournament field in the West. Along with the Yotes and Eastern Oregon, Division II power Metro State makes the trek to Caldwell, coming off a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title and picked to win the RMAC title in 2016, along with a much improved NAIA Division I Montana Tech team. The preseason slate ends with a home date against in-state rival, Lewis-Clark State, the Frontier Conference preseason favorite. "We play some really good teams in the preseason, starting with Montana Western in our home opener, and obviously, Division II power Metro State coming to Caldwell will be a treat for our fans," Garson said. "You look at the schedule, we go down to Salt Lake and play Westminster again this year, we play L-C State at home – the good news is, we have a lot of home games, as the home court has been a really good place for us and we are going to need our crowd to be as lively and active as ever."
CASCADE CONFERENCE OPPONENTS: The CCC proved again how good the league is in 2014-15, with all four national tournament teams advancing to the second-round and both Southern Oregon and the Yotes reaching the quarterfinals. Southern lost a pair of All-Americans to graduation, but return top forward Jordan West and two other starters, with fellow tourney team, Warner Pacific, returning All-CCC guard Earl Jones, but having to replace four starters. Both Northwest Christian and Corban will be experienced – NCU boasting preseason CCC Player of the Year Austin Kuemper and Javonte Byrd, with Corban returning four starters, including All-CCC forward Cyrus Ward. Experience returns at Eastern Oregon and Oregon Tech – as EOU has Bryan McGriff and OIT has Lavar Moore – who each averaged 22 points a game, with Tech playing for head coach Dan Miles, who will retire after 45 seasons at the conclusion of the year. Northwest returns three starters, including shooter Dak Shagren, with Evergreen returning two starters – but bringing in a talented recruiting class. The two CCC newcomers – Walla Walla and Multnomah – are the unknowns, as WWU returns top forward Luke Spady and MU adding 14 new players. "This is as good of a conference as there is at the NAIA Division II level," Garson said. "I expect Oregon Tech to be right there in the mix to win the conference this year in Coach Miles final season. Northwest Christian has their best players coming back and Southern Oregon, even though they lost their top two players, they return nine of their top 11from a national quarterfinal team, so they have a lot of experience. Warner Pacific is always tough to match up with and Eastern Oregon will be very, very talented. Everyone will be coming after us since we won the conference the past two years and we'll get everyone's best shot each and every night, so we'll have to be ready for every opponent."
2014-15 CUMULATIVE STATS: http://yoteathletics.com/custompages/stats/mbasketball/2014-15/teamcume.htm.
2015-16 ROSTER: http://yoteathletics.com/roster.aspx?path=mbball
FOR MORE INFORMATION: For more information on the C of I men's basketball program, head to the official homepage of the Yotes,
http://yoteathletics.com/index.aspx?path=mbball&tab=0.
FOLLOW ON TWITTER: Follow the Coyote men's basketball team on Twitter at
@YotesHoops.