Caleb Troop

* October 21st

-  I chatted with Ohio hoops coach John Groce Monday night as the ‘Cats are in the midst of week one of team practices.

- This ought to be an interesting 09-10 season, and I get the sense even the coaching staff is curious as to how this young team will progress. For the first time in a long time there are a ton of unknowns with Ohio basketball. In years past, at the very least you knew who the main men on offense (Leon Williams, Bubba Walther, Jerome Tillman, Mike Allen, Justin Orr) were going to be. There isn’t “that guy” this year for Bobcat roundball. Case in point: as we sit here on Oct. 21, you cannot say with complete certainty who will lead the team in scoring this winter. Steven Coleman? Armon Bassett? DeVaughn Washington?

- With so many new faces, you can coach and watch film and game plan all you want, but sometimes it’s just about whether teams playing together for the first time just get it and mesh well. That’s the situation right now for Ohio basketball.

- As for a starting lineup, Groce is not closing any doors right now, and why would he with all the fresh talent arriving at the market? Similar to Ohio football’s offensive line, you know who a few of those faces will be (David White=Steven Coleman, for example) but beyond that, who is your #1 and #2 in the backcourt (aka who are your starting left and right guards)? See the similarity?

- Groce said the defense is ahead of the offense at this point in practices, something I don’t think could be said at any juncture last year. Year one under JG and company was anything but consistent defensively.

- On to a few of the young players being noticed:

- Freshman point guard D.J. Cooper has stood out early on and has shown an ability to make teammates better. He’s the only true scholarship PG on the roster. If you pinned me down right now I’d say Cooper has the best chance of leading Ohio freshman in minutes played this season.

- Marquis Horne has excelled in practice as a rebounder thus far, Groce said. This is not too surprising. We knew the athletic Horne could do that, and his ability to bang the glass stood out in high school film. But he was raw in high school—can he develop into a basketball player at the next level?

- Swing forward freshman Ivo Baltic was recruited as a high-motor guy out of the Kansas City area, and thus far he has lived up to that. Baltic just does not get out-worked, though I’m sure Tungi is right there with him.

- Groce is amazed by freshman forward Reggie Keely’s hands. Keely catches everything that comes his way, and that helps his rebounding as well. As for his often debated height—recruiting websites last year had him listed anywhere from 6-6 to 6-8—Groce said Keely is just over 6-7, which will fit just fine in the MAC.

- Combo guard Jay Kinney has shown an ability in practice to be a real strong finisher with both hands and in a variety of ways—floaters, jump shots, drives—Kinney just knows how to put ball through hole.

- Nothing but high praise for walk-on David McKinley from Groce. McKinley played four years at point guard for a Dublin Scioto program that lost a total of six games over those seasons.

- Bobcat fans have heard throughout the off-season about how the ‘Cats are getting in much better shape—and from what I hear it is noticeable. KVK has trimmed down, and Washington is even more cut, for example. But fans should temper the excitement a bit. Will this help defensively? Oh absolutely. But Washington’s problem has never been attributed to a lack of physical attributes. However many pounds of muscle he added won’t make him all of the sudden stay out of early foul trouble. And Bobcat fans should know better by now when it comes to KVK—you know what you are going to get: minutes and an occasional double-digit output here or there. He is what he is, though it is definitely not a negative to see him in better shape.

- Bottom line: this is a unit that will be static early on as it tries to find an identity—let alone a player rotation. The issue right now surrounds the abundance of new players meshing with the returners for this group. If there was one thing noticeable from Groce last winter from a coaching standpoint non-X’s and O’s it would be that he showed a lot of impatience. This year will really be a test for him as a mentor given the newness across the board. But as it stands in late October, the mindset from the top of this program is right where it should be. Deep down many Bobcat fans know 2010-2011 could be—to steal a line from Terrence McRae—the year of the ‘Cat. But it will be a ton of fun to watch a completely different style of Green and White basketball this season, and we all know the MAC East is anything but set in stone.

Filed under: 2009 Bobcat Blog, October '09 Blog Notes |