UNI gets recruit

[tornado]

Regarding Stephen Jones...

If that quote came from BSUFans.com then it can hardly be considered any more reliable than what's posted on any message board. Sure it might be true but you have to take it with a grain of salt.
Of course nobody can ever be sure how many offers a kid really has, and I am convinced that it gets inflated all the time.

When Jones was still in high school, his own AAU web site posted this:
"Stephen Jones.... has received over 12 questionaires from DI coaches."

So now we are actully getting more honest.

[PTTB]

Yeah, I'm not stating that he actually got those offers (honestly, probably a little unlikely...but anywho). I'm just saying that we shouldn't be stating or insinuating that the kid is bluffing on the number of offers he has received when he wasn't the one quoted giving those offer types out there. The WCF Courier has sometimes posted info off of PantherNation (much like the PJStar does when similar discussed info has come from bradleyfans and pjstar forums).

I don't think we expect a superstar out of this kid at UNI. We have our point guard of the future in Kwadzo. Whatever Stephen gives in the next 2 years is just gravy, IMO. This upcoming team should be good enough without him. There is few better big man combos in Stout and Coleman. If they can lower their MPG's, (which they should with trusted bigmen behind them) they should be more durable as the season progresses. The guards are where the questions are, but hopefully McKowen gets better and more confident, with Travis Brown continuing to improve. I'm not worried with Ben Jacobson as coach...there won't be a drop off, IMO. Next year won't probably be as good as expected as last year, but I think the team will progressively get better towards the end of the season, instead of fading like this year.

[user1]

PTTB- I felt that John Little out of high school was at best going to be a very minimal role player or would end up at a D-II, but your staff got the most out of him. So I would give credit where credit is due in that UNI has a history and a solid track record of developing guards to get the most out of their potential.

I guess I am a bit puzzled about the following though...so fill me in..

--why didn't the staff see more of a future for Mason Stewart, as he really had a fine summer AAU season after his junior year, and had a very good senior year in HS.
Was there something about him that they didn't like?

--Why if they were going to utilize Travis Brown at all did they only play him very, very sparingly until forced to during Crawford's absence?
Several games he didn't play at all, a few more he only played a minute or two, and overall he avg. only 8 min per game.
Even in some relative blowouts like the 91-72 win over Drake & the early season 20+ pt blowouts (over Hawaii-Pacific & FAMU) he played very little while the starters were logging 30 min.?

--what was your perception as to why Ben Jacobson's numbers were not only off this past season but way off from earlier years?
He had hit 45% on 3-pointers as a junior but this past year only 31.3% in MVC games!!

[user1]

Here is an article on Mason Stewart transferring to Southeastern Illinois College, where Takais Brown just finished his juco career.

http://www.dailyregister.com/articles/2006/04/18/sports/sports3.txt

[PTTB]

--why didn't the staff see more of a future for Mason Stewart, as he really had a fine summer AAU season after his junior year, and had a very good senior year in HS.
Was there something about him that they didn't like?

--Why if they were going to utilize Travis Brown at all did they only play him very, very sparingly until forced to during Crawford's absence?
Several games he didn't play at all, a few more he only played a minute or two, and overall he avg. only 8 min per game.
Even in some relative blowouts like the 91-72 win over Drake & the early season 20+ pt blowouts (over Hawaii-Pacific & FAMU) he played very little while the starters were logging 30 min.?

--what was your perception as to why Ben Jacobson's numbers were not only off this past season but way off from earlier years?
He had hit 45% on 3-pointers as a junior but this past year only 31.3% in MVC games!!

Lots of good questions...I don't have all the answers.

With Mason, I don't know. My guess is they saw some things in him (or lack thereof) and weren't as thrilled to have him. Honestly, I don't know. It could have just been a mutual thing, or maybe Mason just wasn't happy.

Mac didn't play Travis much. We saw from Mac what he has shown in the past. If he doesn't trust the players, he's not going to play them. It's not that Travis wasn't a good player, but rather that it was taking him time (like alot of freshmen in Mac's system) to get going. Same goes for Atila. Huge athleticism and showed great signs of life, but in the end, there wasn't enough playing experience and he would be pulled after a mistake or just a couple times down the floor. Mac felt that he could run with his thoroughbreds the whole way. He got 23 wins out of them, but the lack of depth really hurt UNI in the end. Ben Jacobson, I feel, will probably do a better job of spreading the playing time wealth. He'll have to do it anyway with a youthful bench.

As for Benny's numbers...good question. He put up great numbers all summer in the Prime Time League and with the NIT All-Stars overseas. Benny was still getting into the gym everyday working on his shot...they just didn't fall this year for some reason. Could be overuse, could be increased intensity on the defensive end...I just don't know. It was that way for everyone on the team though. Crawford's injury really hurt this team, I feel. From the beginning with his foot, and then in January with his foot again, he just couldn't get it going, and that put alot of pressure and emphasis on the rest of the guards. Instead of three guards that could hit the shots all the time, that number decreased...and then Brooksie went in a funk...and then it all snowballed. We saw what a refreshed UNI team looked like when they beat MSU in the Tourney. Same with the NCAA Tourney...they just could hit shots. I hope this all helps.

[PTTB]

It's just been announced that UNI signed Carlton Reed. 2004 Mr. Basketball in the state of Iowa. Transferred from Iowa, and is from Waterloo. UNI now has one scholarship remaining.

[Bravesguy]

Another off-guard?
Wow, can they play 5 guards at once?

[user1]

The official UNI press release

http://unipanthers.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/042106aaa.html

[Cards&BravesFan86]

Regarding the Stephen Jones signing for UNI: Jones' H.S. team (Bethalto Civic Memorial) is in the same conference as my alma mater. I had a chance to see him over Winter Break at a shootout back home, and I wasn't overly impressed by him. Solid ballhandler, good decision-maker and floor leader, but nothing really stood out IMO. Then again, the team he played in that game featured three D1 recruits, including Thaddeus Young (one of the top seniors in the nation; I think he's committed to Ga. Tech) so maybe my opinion was a little skewed. I don't think Jones will be an all-conference player or anything, but I'm sure he'll fit in well with UNI's system with what he brings to the table.

[PTTB]

Thanks for the first hand observation. I don't expect Panther fans to think he is the next star at UNI. Probably very much like John Little...4 solid years of steady basketball (maybe even hit a hot streak in his senior year when we need one). Blue collar guys (a self described blue collar guy) fit well into UNI's system.