2008-2009 Recap - MBB

We're baaaaaaack. After going 19-14 this season (9-9 in conference). In Coach Matt Brady's first year, he got more wins than Dean Keener did in his first three combined (6, 5, 7). He also got the same number of conference wins as his first three combined (3, 2, 4). Granted, the year before Dean started, JMU went 7-21 (3-15); and, the year before Brady started, (Dean's final year) JMU went 13-17 (but still only won 5 conference games). Brady also brought us our first CAA tournament win since March 7, 2003--not to mention he did this in outstanding fashion, winning 70-48 against William & Mary. Now for a full run-down of the year (stat's rank on the team is in parentheses):

The Coach
Coach Matt Brady
I love this guy. It is obvious that he lives and breathes basketball. He has an incredible amount of basketball IQ, and is the best in-game coach JMU has ever seen. Add to that the ability to land amazing recruits (see further down and an upcoming article on next year) and he has the makings of an amazing coach. But that's just the start...the guy knows how to teach. When he came in, he said he was going to focus on defense...and he did...
2007-2008: Opponent FG% - 48.2%; Opponent 3pt% - 36.9%
2008-2009: Opponent FG% - 42.4%; Opponent 3pt% - 30.8%
We also seemed to (directly or indirectly) improve on free throws, going from 72.1% to 75.4%, but seeing as he has been called the "shot doctor," I would say it was a direct influence. He is a very level-headed guy, even seeming to use technical fouls strategically and not purely out of emotion.

The Upperclassmen
Seniors and leaders of the team.
Juwann James
How could I start with anyone but Juwann? He has been the heart and soul of this team. Juwann, who had been the quiet garbage player (or Junk Yard Dog, as the CAAZone posters affectionately call him) on the team, was left to become the leader of this team. And take that position he did. Through the year, whether it be during practice or games, Juwann would let someone know if they were slacking or playing well. He also stepped up and played his position with force. And what worse could happen to a player like that than not being able to play. Juwann went out with a heart condition that put him out for 11 full games and parts of 2 others. This knocked him out of contention for being first team All-CAA, but he still managed to get second team.
Points - 329 (3) | PPG - 15 (1) | FG% - 57.7 (1) | APG - 0.9 | RPG - 5.1 (1)
SPG - 1 (2) | Blocks - 17 (2)

Kyle Swanston
Kyle, the other crucial senior, seemed to be the key to how the game went. He was our biggest sharpshooter and was also, unfortunately, very streaky. He hit a huge slump in the middle of the season that took him a long time to dig himself out of. When he was off, our team was off. Of our 14 losses, 9 came when he didn't score his average (he didn't play in one of the other losses). This is because when Kyle was scoring, it opened up the court and took pressure off of Julius Wells. When the pressure and coverage was off of Julius, he hit more shots. While less of a leader, he was definitely a key to this team and nothing hurt more than having to see him sit out for his senior game (the only game he missed all year).
Points - 373 (2) | PPG - 11.7 (2) | 3pt% - 41.3% (2) | 3pt made/gm - 2.7 (1)
FT% - 81.6% (7) | Rebounds - 113 (4) | Blocked shots - 9 (3)

Pierre Curtis
Pierre is the answer to who is taking charge of this team after Juwann graduates. He has been a solid player all year long, taking over point guard responsibilities when Devon Moore got injured. Pierre also showed during the CAA tournament that he can take over in high-pressure situations to get the job done, scoring a total of 35 points in JMU's two tournament games (went 13-18 from the floor, 3-4 from 3, and 6-6 FT). He is a leader and I have full confidence with him as a senior next year. He is also the only starter to play every game, and one of only two players on the team to play every game.
Points - 298 (4) | FG% - 50.9% (2) | FT made - 105 (1) | FT% - 82% (6) | 3pt% - 39.5% (3)
APG - 2.7 (1) | SPG - 1.3 (1) | Minutes/game - 31.1 (2) | Offensive rebounds/game - 1.4 (2)

The Freshmen
This group of freshmen are the highest scoring freshman class in school history. Not bad for Coach Brady's first recruiting class.
Devon Moore
An outstanding athlete with a great attitude--you will rarely find this guy not smiling, on or off the court. He has outstanding court vision and has the ability to make the players around him better because of this attribute. He can set players up, and has progressed quite a bit this year in cutting down on careless turnovers. Devon definitely has a bright future at JMU and was selected CAA Rookie of the Week once, was voted #2 in Rookie of the year voting in the CAA, and made the CAA All-Rookie team. He is also a great defender and has shown the ability to stick with some of the top guards in the conference. He also missed 4 and a half games because of the flu and a badly bruised wrist.
Points - 295 (5) | PPG - 10.2 (4) | FG% - 49.5% (4) | 3pt% - 29.7% (6) | FT% - 83.3% (4)
RPG - 3.7 (5) | Minutes/game - 32.6 (1) | SPG - 0.8 (4)

Julius Wells
Julius is a very versatile player that has a ton of potential. In high school, he played down low and never got the opportunity to playing in the positions he has this year. Given that, he has played amazingly, putting up game after game of very solid numbers. At times, he has shown some immaturity in attitude and shot selection, but with more experience I really think he could easily be one of the best players in the CAA. He has been our top scorer, but also our highest fouler and has the highest number of turnovers outside of our two top point guards. It's the numbers he puts up, however, in the score column that have astounded the conference, leading him to four Rookie of the Week awards, first team All-CAA honors and the CAA Rookie of the Year award. He is one of only two JMU players to play in every game this season.
Points - 379 (1) | PPG - 11.5 (3) | FG% - 38.6% (9) | 3pt% - 36.9% (4) | FT% - 68.2 (9)
APG - 1.2 (5) | Rebounds - 181 (1) | RPG - 5.5 (1) | SPG - 0.7 (5) | Minutes/game - 29.2 (4)

Andrey Semenov
Semenov is the crowd favorite from Russia. Who wouldn't love a guy that raises his hands for the Dukes on free throws with the rest of the crowd? He is another versatile player that can play many roles for this team. If he adds a little bulk over the off-season he could be a big time player next year. The one knock most people have against him is how much he ends up on the floor. If he adds some more muscle and learns to push through the fouls and continue with the play, he'll be another amazing player for JMU. He is already the best free-throw shooter out of the main rotation of players. Unfortunately, he got knocked on the head a few too many times at Georgia State and had concussion-like symptoms (though it was never diagnosed). Since missing three games, he still hasn't really recovered, and seems hazy and weak when playing. Hopefully it isn't anything serious and he'll be okay with a little rest and conditioning.
Points - 239 (6) | PPG - 8.2 (6) | FG% - 45.1% (5) | FT% - 86.5% (3) | APG - 1.3 (4)
Rebounds - 120 (3) | RPG - 4.1 (4) | Blocks - 20 (1) | Minutes/game - 24.6 (5)

The Role Players
The group that didn't always play the most minutes, but were valuable subs. Coach Brady loves these guys because it gives him the ability to strategically use each player's talents in key situations.
Dazz Thornton
Dazz isn't really as much of a role player as the rest on the list, but he fits best in this category. He has always seemed to possess enough skill to make some noise, but never had the aggressiveness to use it. He scored in the double-digits in only 7 games this year and grabbed a little over 3 boards a game. Dazz just didn't seem to have the conditioning to stay in for long enough to get in rhythm. He definitely was a huge help in some games though, especially the home win over George Mason and the first half of the 2OT loss at Hofstra before he had to leave the game. The addition of Denzel Bowles to the practice roster definitely helped push Dazz closer to his potential though, as five of those seven double-digit games came in basically the last third of the season. Dazz greatly improved his rebounding from last year, but his FG% and free throw shooting dropped down. If he can improve his shooting and get better at handling the ball he will be a valuable player off the bench next year.
Points - 197 (7) | PPG - 6.0 (8) | FG% - 50.3 (3) | FT% - 66.1% (10)
Offensive rebounds/game - 1.1 (T3) | Blocks - 5 (T4)

Ben Louis
Ben is the athlete from "down under." While probably not the most skilled player on the team, he is one of the better athletes, and knows how to channel his inner kangaroo to get some rebounds that a guy of his size has no business getting. His strengths are his ability to get rebounds and steals, make aggressive passes, and to provide a general energy on defense. He is also third on the lineup of point guards and is in the rotation with Pierre and Devon to give them breathers.
Points - 95 (8) | FG% - 40% (7) | FT% - 69.7 (8) | APG - 1.8 (3) | RPG - 2.1 (7)
SPG - 0.9 (3) | Blocks - 5 (T4)

Heiden Ratner
"The Rat" is probably one of the hardest workers on the team. He is constantly in the gym and does whatever he can to help the team. He is one of the best one-on-one defenders on the team and can stick on just about any player in our conference. He is definitely a role player that Brady will send in on defense to give the rest of the team a boost and provide some extra energy. The freshmen this year have cut down on Heiden's minutes (he plays half what he did last year), but even during the minutes he plays he doesn't seem to be as effective (as far as the stat sheet is concerned) as last year. All of his shooting stats have dropped pretty significantly. He is another player that definitely has a solid place on next year's team if he can get his shot back under control.
Points - 60 (9) | FG% - 35.2% (10) | 3pt% - 29.4% (7) | FT% - 52.2% (12)

Matt Parker
Matt is a solid outside shooter, but doesn't have the build or aggressiveness to take advantage of his height. He also has a habit of getting intentional fouls when the other team gets a breakaway on him. Overall, Matt is a pretty good player, he just needs to work on the defensive side of his game to stay in longer next year.
Points - 31 (11) | 3pt% - 42.1% (1) | FT% - 83.3% (4)

The Under 15 Games Club
The walk-ons and season-ending injury list
Scott "Scooter" Renkin
Though he didn't play too much and wasn't the best shooter, Scooter played hard whenever he got in and was a pretty good player. He also never missed a free throw (though he only attempted four) and grabbed a career high three rebounds in 11 minutes in JMU's win against Gardner Webb.
Points - 10 (12) | FG% - 30% (11) | FT% - 100% (1)

Ryan Knight
Ryan only got a chance to play 14 minutes in 10 games this year, and got three rebounds and had one assist.

Abdulai Jalloh
Jalloh was a preseason All-CAA pick, and was apparently shooting lights-out in preseason practices; unfortunately, he injured his shoulder at the beginning of the season messing up his shot. Jalloh played through the pain for six games of the season, but had to stop after that meaning that we were never able to see if Coach Brady was able to reel in his shot selection.
PPG - 7.3 (7) | FT% - 90.9% (2)

Cumulative Season Stats