PointGuard

Awards AAC Freshman Player of the Year: PG Morris Wolfe AAC 1st Team All-Conference: PF Angelo Craft AAC 2nd Team All-Conference: PG Morris Wolfe AAC 2nd Team All-Conference: C Kelvin Ross National Coach of the Year: Tom Bradbury AAC Coach of the Year: Tom Bradbury

NCAA Tournament #1 Seeds: Memphis, Indiana, Oregon, UCLA UCONN was placed on probation during the season so is ineligible for post-season tournament play. Round 1: Game #33 vs (#16 seed) Houston Baptist Huskies (16-14): C Kelvin Ross sustained a concussion and will sit out this game. Midway through the 1st half we led 21-8. We expanded our lead to 16 before giving up some of our cushion but still led 35-24 at the break. PF Angelo Craft fouled out early in the 2nd half. We cruised to an easy 71-51 win. PG Morris Wolfe and SG Isaac Wright both scored 17 points (Wolfe also dished out 7 assists). C Jules Grant added 12 points. (33-0) Round 2 (Round of 32): Game #34 vs (#9 seed) Vanderbilt Commodores (21-12): C Kelvin Ross says he’s ready to play, but we’re going to rest him another game as a protective measure. The first 4 minutes were ugly with both teams turning the ball over frequently. But we took an early lead and hung onto it, gradually extending it to the halftime difference of 42-26. We played as if in a daze in the 2nd half, turning the ball over way too much. That allowed Vanderbilt to cut into our lead, but we held them off for a 77-68 victory. PF Angelo Craft led our scoring with 14 points. SG Isaac Wright and PG Morris Wolfe were also in double figures with 13 and 12 points, respectively. (34-0) Round 3 (Sweet 16): Game #35 vs #14 (4th seed) Kentucky Wildcats (23-9): C Kelvin Ross is back and will start tonight. Kentucky took it to us early in the 1st half and led 24-14. We slowly cut into their lead and closed to within a single digit at the buzzer, trailing 40-39. We scored the first 5 points of the 2nd half but then Kentucky took a small lead and held it most of the half. With 6-1/2 minutes to play we went on top 62-61. Roy Field made the first, but missed the 2nd of a one-and-one to give us a 77-74 lead with 32 seconds remaining. We stole the ball and drove for a lay-in, then hit a 3 to win 82-74 in a game that was much closer than the final score. PG Morris Wolfe scored 19, SG Roy Field hit for 16, SG Isaac Wright tossed in 15 plus pulled down 7 rebounds, and SF Julian Blevins came off the bench to add 10. (35-0) Round 4 (Elite 8): Game #36 vs #21 (3rd seed) USC Trojans (24-7): Even though we had a lot of players in foul trouble, we held a double digit lead throughout most of the 1st half and went to the locker room up 48-34. We maintained a solid lead the entire 2nd half and won 90-77. C Kelvin Ross scored 15 and C Jules Grant dropped in 13 points plus grabbed 10 boards. SG Roy Field scored 11 points and PG Morris Wolfe added 10 while dishing out 7 assists. (36-0) Round 5 (Final 4): Game #37 vs (12th seed) Virginia Cavaliers (21-11): We jumped out on top but Virginia reeled us back in and we had to come back late in the half to take a narrow 44-42 halftime lead. We spurted out to an 18 point lead at the midway point of the 2nd half. We were not to be denied and won going away 85-63. PF Morris Wolfe led our scoring with 18 points, SG Isaac Wright added 14 points, PF Angelo Craft scored 13 points, and SF John Jones finished with 10 points. (37-0) Round 6 (Championship): Game #38 vs #9 (2nd seed) Notre Dame Fighting Irish (28-9): We need to control Notre Dame’s SG Aaron Williams who averaged 26.0 ppg this season. Notre Dame scored the first 14 points of the game putting us in a big hole. We got within 3 points, then Notre Dame shut us down while hitting from all over the court to give us a 41-21 halftime deficit. We never made a dent in Notre Dame’s armor in the 2nd half and lost 78-57 by hitting just 32% of our shots and being out-played in every aspect of the game. SG Isaac Wright was our only player who had his shooting eye and he scored 20 points. PG Morris Wolfe added 15. So, our third-straight 2nd place finish in the NCAA Tournament. We came up one game short of a perfect season. (37-1)

NIT Results for AAC Teams Round 1: St. Louis-80, Temple-76 (OT) Central Florida-72, Villanova-66 Round 2: St. Louis-86, Central Florida-70

Memphis Tigers Player and Team Statistics Season 6 Memphis Tigers Player Stats: Season 6, Memphis Tigers Team Stats: PPG: Memphis-80.4 (1st in nation); Opponents-63.2 RPG: Memphis-32.2 (12th in nation); Opponents-27.9 APG: Memphis-16.7 (1st in nation); Opponents-12.2 BPG: Memphis-3.6 (3rd in nation); Opponents-1.6 SPG: Memphis-8.9 (66th in nation); Opponents-5.1 FG%-Memphis-48.9% (6th in nation); Opponents-41.4% 3P%-Memphis-38.6% (43rd in nation); Opponents-31.0% FT%-Memphis-73.6% (129th in nation); Opponents-74.9% TOPG-Memphis-11.3 (2nd in nation); Opponents-18.0

American Athletic Association Tournament AAC Tourney—Play In Tulsa—68, Cincinnati—57 SMU—67, South Florida--37 AAC Tourney—Round 1 Central Florida—60, Houston—47 Temple—74, Tulane—59 UCONN—83, Tulsa—70 Game #30 vs SMU Mustangs (8-20, 5-13): SMU scored the first 8 points in the game, but we scored the next 9 points to get our initial lead in the game. But neither team could pull away thereafter in the 1st half. We trailed 31-29 at the break. We came out sluggish again and fell behind by 7 points before waking up. Late in the half we pulled ahead by 6 points but SMU only trailed 55-52 with a minute to play. We kept them from scoring in that last minute, though, and won by the score of 59-52 in what was a tough game the entire 40 minutes. SG Isaac Wright scored 11 points and C Kelvin Ross added 10. (30-0) AAC Tourney—Round 2 UCONN—78, Temple—62 Game #31 vs Central Florida Knights (17-11, 10-8): As in the previous game, the refs put our opponents on the line a lot resulting in a very close first half. We come away with a slim 29-28 lead going into the 2nd half. The 2nd half is a carbon copy of the first with neither team able to get more than a few points ahead. With a minute to play we lead 61-60. Angelo Craft was fouled and sunk both shots with 49 seconds to go giving us a 3 point lead. Both teams were unable to score on their next possessions, but then Central Florida hit a 3 with 19 seconds to go to tie the game. The Knights fouled Jules Grant and hit could hit only the first half of a one-and one to give us a 1 point lead with 8 seconds left. After a time out, Central Florida brought it up court and their PG David Marlow put in on the floor and drove to the basket, pulling up for a contested 8 footer that rimmed out. The final score was 64-63 in our favor. We are going to have to play better in the championship game if we want to have a chance against UCONN. PF Angelo Craft was our high point man with 15 points. C Kelvin Ross scored 10 and grabbed 8 rebounds. (31-0) AAC Tourney—Championship Game #32 vs #4 Connecticut Huskies (27-5, 14-4): Our guys seem tired. Hopefully UCONN’s players are just as worn out. Taking on the Huskies perked our players up and we took control early and built a 47-30 halftime lead. Our lead expanded to 25 after 3-1/2 minutes of play in the 2nd half. From there we just kept the Huskies from making any big runs and won 82-63 to become the AAC Champions. PG Morris Wolfe knocked down 22 points while his running mate SG Isaac Wright popped in 16 points. SF John Jones scored 11 and SG Roy Fields hit for 10. (32-0)

Regular Season Ending Notes Media Poll Top 10: 1. Memphis (29-0, 18-0) 2. UCLA (22-5, 12-4) 3. Oregon (22-5, 14-2) 4. Connecticut (25-5, 14-4) 5. Syracuse (24-6, 14-4) 6. Stanford (23-4, 13-3) 7. Indiana (23-6, 12-4) 8. Brigham Young (24-5, 15-3) 9. Notre Dame (20-9, 12-6) 10. Texas (21-7, 13-5) AAC Final Standings Memphis Players Declaring for the Draft: PG Troy Cox PG Morris Wolfe SG Roy Field Ugh! 3 guards leaving early!

Season 6, Games 24-29 Game #24 vs Tulane Green Wave (7-14, 5-7): Late in the half we pulled away and finished the half with a 45-28 lead. We then destroyed Tulane in the 2nd half opening a 38 point lead before finishing with an 89-62 victory. PG Morris Wolfe dropped in 21 points plus dished out 8 assists. SG Isaac Wright added 13, SF John Jones scored 12, C Kelvin Ross put in 11, and PF Angelo Craft scored 10. (24-0, 13-0, 1st place) Game #25 vs Temple Owls (16-7, 9-4): Neither team could gain an advantage in the first 10 minutes of the 1st half, but then we caught fire and pulled away to lead 47-27 at the half. We continued our dominance in the 2nd half and finished by trimming the Owls 80-56. SG Roy Field and C Kelvin Ross both scored 16 points. (25-0, 14-0, 1st place; Ranked 1st in the polls; RPI: 2) Game #26 @ #3 Connecticut Huskies (23-3, 12-2): OK, this definitely will be our biggest test thus far this year! Our undefeated record is really on the line for this one. Whereas we beat them on our court earlier this year, the Huskies have won all 8 of their games since. They have 3 players averaging in double figures: PG Jabari Younger with 14.3 ppg, SG Bobby Harris at 12.3 ppg, and SF Byron Thompson with 13.2 ppg and all 3 fire away from outside and hit at a high percentage. And they have some strong perimeter subs as well. Early we fell behind 7-3 but then went on a run to go ahead 17-9. Then UCONN scored 7 straight points to pull within a single point. But at that point we clamped down defensively and shot out to a 34-18 lead with 3 minutes to go in the half. By the end of the half we held a 40-26 lead and had held the Huskies shooting to 36% while forcing them into 12 turnovers. When SF John Jones got into foul trouble, Julian Blevins replaced him and led our scoring with 10 points. Our guards carried us early in the 2nd half and we led by 20 at 57-31 with 13 minutes left in the game. Connecticut fought to come back to finish but we effectively countered their every effort to finish with a big-time 79-57 win. SG Isaac Wright had a huge 2nd half to finish with 28 points and 8 rebounds. PG Morris Wolfe also came on strong in the 2nd half to end with 16 points, 5 assists, and 9 rebounds. PF Angelo Craft scored 11 and SF Julian Blevins had 10. (26-0, 15-0, 1st place) Game #27 vs Houston Cougars (11-13, 9-6): We scored the first 9 points of the game and never looked back. At the half we were on top 52-26. We continued our dominance in the 2nd half and smashed the Cougars 87-59. PF Angelo Craft led our scoring with 18 points, PG Morris Wolfe scored 15 plus dished out 7 assists and SG Isaac Wright dropped in 14 points. Houston’s center Elton Ruddock scored 20 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. (27-0, 16-0, 1st place; Ranked #1 in the polls; RPI: 2) Award: SG Isaac Wright, AAC Freshman Player of the Week. Game #28 @ Central Florida Knights (16-9, 10-6): Central Florida has been streaky this year, but when they get onto one of their win streaks they are super tough. The entire first half was extremely close. At the break we led 30-26. We fell behind by 8 points early in the 2nd half. With 4-1/2 minutes the score was tied at 58-58. Central Florida recaptured the lead but with 17 seconds the game was tied at 65-65. We had control of the ball and played it down to 8 seconds and were just about to call a time out to set up a play, but Angelo Craft got fouled. Craft missed both shots, but Julian Grant muscled the rebound, and worked his way around his defender to slam home a dunk with 3 seconds remaining. Our full court press kept the Knights from getting out of the back court and we escaped to live another day by edging Central Florida 67-65. PG Morris Wolfe scored 13 points and PF Angelo Craft added 10. Central Florida’s SF Keiron Lewis led all scorers with 20 points. (28-0, 17-0, 1st place) Injury: SG Roy Field took a finger in the eye and sat out the entire 2nd half, but will be ready for our next game. Game #29 vs Tulsa Golden Hurricanes (4-20, 3-14): We were unable to shake Tulsa for most of the first half, but pulled away in the final 5 minutes to take a 33-23 lead to the locker room. After 5 minutes of play in the 2nd half, we led by 21 points. We steamrolled the Golden Hurricanes 91-56. PG Morris Wolfe scored 16 and handed out 8 assists, while SG’s Isaac Wright and Roy Field both scored 15. SF John Jones scored 11 and C Jules Grant in his final home game scored 10. (29-0, 18-0, 1st place; Ranked 1st in the polls; RPI: 1)

Season 6, Games 18-23 Game #18 @ Houston Cougars (6-9, 4-2): The first 5 minutes were close but we then pulled away and by the midpoint of the 1st half we had built a double-digit lead. The half ended with us leading 37-23. We then coasted to a 73-60 victory. SG Isaac Jones topped our scoring with 16 points, PF Angelo Craft picked up 12 points, and SF John Jones added 10. (18-0, 7-0, 1st place) Game #19 vs Central Florida Knights (12-4, 6-1): Central Florida trails us a just one game in the conference standings. SF Keiron Lewis is their top scorer averaging 14.9 ppg. We jumped out to a 13-2 lead parlayed that into a 48-29 halftime advantage. We don’t let the Knights get any closer and finish with a 89-63 thrashing of Central Florida. SG Roy Field hit for 17 points, SG Isaac Wright knocked in 14, PF Angelo Craft scored 13, C Kelvin Ross tossed in 11, and PG Morris Wolfe added 10. (19-0, 8-0, 1st place; Ranked 1st in the polls; RPI: 2) Award: SG Isaac Wright, AAC Freshman Player of the Week. Game #20 @ Tulsa Golden Hurricanes (2-15, 1-7): We gradually built our lead and by the end of the half were up 45-31. In the 2nd half we expanded our lead to 22 points before letting Tulsa close a bit before we won 86-73. We had 5 players scoring in double digits: SF John Jones led with 16, PG Morris Wolfe had 12, PF Angelo Craft had 11, and C Jules Grant and SG Roy Field both scored 10. (20-0, 9-0, 1st place) Game #21 @ Cincinnati Bearcats (7-11, 4-5): After trailing 5-2, we scored 15 unanswered points. Cincinnati put up a good fight in the first half, but we pulled away at the end to take a 43-35 lead to the locker room. The Bearcats never folded but we were able to keep them from closing and won 88-74. SG Isaac Wright drilled in 24 points. SG Roy Field scored 16. PG Morris Wolfe hit for 10. C Jules Grant hauled down 10 boards. (21-0, 10-0, 1st place; Ranked 1st in the polls; RPI: 2) Award: SG Isaac Wright, AAC Freshman Player of the Week. Game #22 vs SMU Mustangs (3-16, 1-9): We escaped the first half with a 35-27 lead but 4 our top 4 guards each got called for 2 fouls. We came out in the 2nd half and scored the first 11 points to put us up by 19 points. We went on to record an 81-56 victory. SG Georgiy Zolkin was our top scorer with 13 points. SF John Jones and SG Isaac Wright both added 12 points. (22-0, 11-0, 1st place) Game #23 @ South Florida Bulls (11-9, 5-6): We couldn’t shake the Bulls in the first half. When the half ended we held a slim 41-36 lead. The second half was close and with 27 seconds we led 73-72. But we pulled out the win, 77-72. PG Morris Wolfe scored 13 and SG Roy Field hit for 11. (23-0, 12-0, 1st place; Ranked 1st in the polls; RPI: 2) Award: PG Morris Wolfe, AAC Freshman Player of the Week.

Season 6, Games 12-17 Game #12 vs Cincinnati Bearcats (3-6, 0-0): We fell behind 15-7 but then scored the next 16 points. By the end of the half we led 43-33. We expanded our lead throughout the 2nd half and finished with a relatively easy 76-59 win. SG Roy Field scored 17 plus had 3 steals and 3 blocks. PG Morris Wolfe dropped in 12 points and fed out 6 assists. PF Angelo Craft finished with 10 points and 8 rebounds. (12-0, 1-0, 1st place tie) Game #13 @ SMU Mustangs (2-8, 0-1): We took an early lead and held onto it throughout the first half, but SMU pulled to within a single point at the break, 35-34. We held onto a small lead during the 2nd half. With a minute to go in the game, we were up by just 3 points. We pulled out a much too difficult win, 64-59. Offensively we were led by PG Morris Wolfe’s 17 points. SG Isaac Wright added 12. (13-0, 2-0, 1st place tie; Ranked 2nd in the polls; RPI: 2) Award: PG Morris Wolfe, AAC Freshman Player of the Week. Game #14 vs South Florida Bulls (7-4, 1-1): Although we started slowly, when we got going we turned on our afterburners which pushed us to a 49-25 bulge at the half. Our dominance continued in the 2nd half and we crushed the Bulls 86-55. PG Morris Wolfe topped our scoring with 20 points. C Kelvin Ross scored 14 while pulling down 7 boards. SF Julian Blevins added 12. (14-0, 3-0, 1st place) Game #15 @ Tulane Green Wave (4-8, 2-1): We jumped out on top and with 11 minutes to go in the first half, we were on top 20-6. We went to the locker room with a 38-23 lead. Tulane cut our lead to 6 points early in the 2nd half, but then we spurted away and finished with an 82-54 victory. PG Morris Wolfe again took high point honors with 16 points plus he dished out 6 assists. C Jules Grant had a double-double (14 points and 11 rebounds). PF Angelo Craft scored 11 to go along with 7 boards. (15-0, 4-0, 1st place, Ranked 1st in the polls; RPI: 1) Award: PG Morris Wolfe, AAC Freshman Player of the Week. Game #16 @ Temple Owls (10-4, 3-1): This is our first big test in the AAC. Earlier this season Temple beat then #1 Duke so they aren’t afraid to take on the big boys. We held a small lead throughout most of the 1st half and ended the first stanza with a 43-36 advantage. We sported a double digit lead soon after starting the 2nd half and held onto it to win 79-65. Our top scorers were: SG Roy Field-15, C Kelvin Ross-14, SG Isaac Wright-11, PG Morris Wolfe-11, and C Jules Grant-11. (16-0, 5-0, 1st place) Game #17 vs #4 Connecticut Huskies (15-2, 4-1): PG Jabari Younger leads UCONN’s scoring with 15.8 ppg. We scored first and never trailed in the first half, finishing the half with a 44-33 lead. We held the Huskies off in the 2nd half to record a 79-62 victory. PG Morris Wolfe scored 18 points while SF John Jones and PF Angelo Craft both dropped in 12 points. We held Jabari Younger to just 3 points (all free throws). (17-0, 6-0, 1st place, Ranked #2 in the polls (the pollsters love UCLA); RPI: 2) Award: PG Morris Wolfe, AAC Freshman Player of the Week.

End of Pre-Conference Play Scoring: PG Morris Wolfe-12.3 ppg, SG Isaac Wright-11.8 ppg, PF Angelo Craft-11.3 ppg. Rebounding: PF Angelo Craft-5.9 rpg, C Kevin Ross-5.2 ppg Assists: PG Morris Wolfe-5.5 apg Team: 83.5 ppg; Opponents-66.6 ppg Top 5 records in AAC: Memphis 11-0; UCONN 11-1; Temple 7-3; South Florida 6-3; Central Florida 6-3.

Season 6, Games 10 & 11 Game #10 vs DePaul Blue Demons (6-3), Las Vegas Winter Jam Championship: The Blue Demons visited and we whomped them 86-65 early this season, but now it’s on a neutral court. Their center, Troy Rosen, scored 24 and grabbed 12 rebounds in our earlier game. Tonight DePaul burned us early with 4 straight 3’s to take a 12-4 lead. Meanwhile we were shooting like we didn’t give a damned if we won the championship or not. But midway through the half we pulled it together and with 7 minutes to play in the half, we took our first lead at 25-24. We continued to shoot well until the buzzer sounded, but DePaul didn’t back down so we held the slimmest of leads 45-44 going into the 2nd half. We gradually began to pull away in the 2nd half and led 65-55 with 11 minutes to play. But the Blue Devils made a late run that cut our lead to 84-80 with 1:49 remaining. John Jones took a pass in the corner, drove the baseline and pulled up to hit a 15 footer while being fouled. He converted the foul shot to complete the 3 point play and give us a 7 point cushion with 1-1/2 minutes left. DePaul really gave us a battle, but we escaped with a94-84 victory to claim the Championship trophy. PG Troy Cox came off the bench to lead our scoring with 18 points, but PF Angelo Craft tossed in 17, and SG Roy Field added 13 points plus dished out 6 assists. (10-0) Game #11 @ Kansas State Wildcats (5-3): After falling behind 6-0, SG Roy Field came in to spark a comeback that put us ahead 27-13. By the time halftime arrived we were on top 48-25. We breezed to an 87-59 shellacking of the Wildcats. SG Roy Field scored 20 points while handing off 6 assists and grabbing 5 rebounds. PG Morris Wolfe contributed 14 points along with 7 assists and 5 rebounds. SF John Jones scored 12 and PF Angelo Craft added 11. (11-0; Ranked 2nd in the polls; RPI: 2) UCONN continues to look like they are going to be extremely tough competition in the AAC. They’re 11-1 and ranked 4th in the polls with the 6th best RPI in the country. Award: SG Roy Field was named the AAC Freshman Player of the Week.

Steve Piersall, KSMO TV sports anchor (KSMO Nightly News sports report) After the Missouri State Bears returned home yesterday, I caught up with Coach Bret Vandergard as the team came off the plane returning them from a disastrous 2-game road trip that again put their season record under .500. Here’s my interview of Missouri State’s supposed basketball messiah: SP: Hey Coach, are you happy to be back home? BV: (a cold stare) Well yeah, home is always a good place to be. SP: What happened in the past 2 games? In the first game your team played well in the first half and then tanked in the 2nd half and then in the next game, the Bears looked like they were asleep in the first half and much of the second, and only a late run make it look as if the game was close. BV: Look Steve, most sports reporters would know that playing on the road in NCAA Division I basketball is tough. The fact that the guys made both of those games close is a positive, not a negative. Louisville regularly has a top-flight team and Oakland is coming off a great season with their team mostly intact. SP: Yes, but I thought you were supposed to turn this team around? And yet, here we are looking at what is beginning to appear to be yet another mediocre season. BV: That’s your assessment, Steve, not mine. I think this team has made steady progress the past 2 years and this season will be yet another positive step along the road to ultimate success. SP: Hasn’t the move of Brent Gregory from the 2 to the 1 and the resultant benching of Bart McCain been a failure? Gregory’s production is down and McCain’s court generalship is sorely missing. BV: It’s much too early in the season to draw any conclusions, but I think Brent has performed well at the point guard position and he’s a big reason freshman Kareem Masiello is leading our team in scoring. And Bart has been getting a lot of playing time, so his importance to the team has not been diminished in the least. Importantly, those three can spell each other meaning we have a solid backcourt pair on the court throughout the game. Additionally Cleveland Brown is coming into his own as a solid backup at the 2. SP: Well, none of your big men have stepped up to lead the team. It seems you’re playing the 4 and 5 positions by committee and none of the committee is comfortable or productive with that approach. BV: The actual fact of the matter is that we have a group of big men, all of whom can step in and do what’s necessary. As you should know, Steve, playing inside is physically demanding. Being able to spell our big men with the depth we have inside before they get too tired is a real plus. SP: Quinton Asbury has been doing pretty well at the 3 position, but you just don’t have depth there to take over when he’s off the court. BV: Wrong again, Steve. Kenneth Grandison, not only plays well as a power forward but also has the shooting skills to ably fill in at the 3 and Brent Gregory can perform well at any of the perimeter positions. Then there’s walkon Marcus Jones who has been improving week-by-week in practice and will likely get more playing time as the season progresses. Obviously another key cog, but not until next year, will be small forward Quin Bruton who has to sit out this season since he’s a transfer player. SP: So are you saying that this team will finally make it to the Big Dance this season? BV: I’ll leave the predictions up to those like you looking in from outside. We just have to play the games as they come up and do the best we can and then let the chips fall where they may. But…now I have to head out of here with my team. (turns and walks away)” Well, Bears fans, there you have it. Coach Vandergard doesn’t have any idea about how this team will do. And the question remains…will this coach ever be the savior he was thought to be when he arrived in Springfield? You know, it’s not what have you done in the past for someone else, but what have you done for us lately, Coach Vandergard!

Kareem Masiello, freshman shooting guard Game #5, Nov. 28, 2019: Missouri State Bears (2-2) at Oakland Golden Grizzlies (1-3) Well, we now know that Oakland isn’t a place where the Raiders play and Oakland University is located in a place called Rochester Hills and Rochester Hills is sort of a suburb of Detroit. Who says college basketball players don’t get an education? We also know that late November is cold as hell here in Michigan. The Golden Grizzlies had a 24-6 record last season and were ranked #22 in the polls plus made their way into the NCAA Tourney. This will be my 5th start. 2 of my previous 4 starts went well and I scored 26 and 18 in those two game, but then the other two were nightmarish. In one I scored 7 but only played 14 minutes before I fouled out and the other was an abomination in which I was held to 2 points and Coach V only kept me on the court 16 minutes. Obviously, I need to be more consistent, but the coaching staff keeps telling me not to be overly self-critical. They say it takes time to make the jump from high school ball to Division I college hoops. I’m feeling more comfortable with my teammates all the time. I’ve not made many turnovers in the previous games, but damned if I didn’t throw the ball away on our very first possession of this play. But two possessions later I drew my defender into a foul. It took us 5 minutes before we scored as we shot like there was a lid on our basket. After 8 minutes of play we were down 12-4 having turned the ball over 5 times and hitting just 1 of 7 shots from the field. I stayed in the game for the first 11-1/2 minutes and led our scoring with 5 points, but it was an ugly 11-1/2 minutes as we hit just 29% of our shots and let Oakland pull away to a 26-12 lead. With 3 minutes to play in the half, I got back into the game, but we trailed 33-18 by then. We finished the half in a 39-25 hole. In the locker room Coach V got on us about shot selection, not surprising after we dropped in just 22% of our shots. But he was confident that we could come back in the 2nd half. I scored 5 points in the first half, but our leading scorer was Kenneth Grandison with 7 points. In the early going of the 2nd half we began to whittle down Oakland’s lead and at the first media timeout were down 43-33. I played the first 9 minutes of the 2nd half, but when I went to the bench for a breather, we will still had a 52-39 deficit. I got back into the game with 7-1/2 minutes to go and we were behind 57-41. We made a run but we started it too late and came up a little short. If we could have hit better than 28% of our shots, we would have won this game. But give it to Oakland…they led from wire to wire. Final Score: Oakland—65, Missouri State (2-3)—59. Leading players for Missouri State: PF Kenneth Grandison-14 pts, 2 reb, 2 steals; SG Kareem Masiello-9 pts, 7 reb. Player of the Game: Oakland’s C Lamont Allison-18 pts, 9 reb, 2 blocks.

Season 6, Games 7, 8 & 9 Game #7 vs Tennessee Volunteers (5-1): Tennessee has played 5 of their 6 games on the road, but their strength of schedule hasn’t been rigorous. We hit our first 7 FG attempts to take a 17-7 lead just 5 minutes into the game. We cooled off after that and the Vols closed to within 6 at the half, 34-28. We came out in the 2nd half with renewed energy and opened a 19 point lead with 14 minutes to play. We come away with an easy 80-59 win. SG Isaac Wright scored 14 points to go along with 2 assists, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals. C Kelvin Ross also popped in 14 points plus he had an assist, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, and 3 blocks. PG Morris Wolfe hit for 11 points and dished out 6 assists while PF Angelo Craft added 10 points while hauling down 9 boards. (7-0) Game #8 vs Western Carolina Catamounts (4-2), Las Vegas Winter Jam, 1st round: C Kelvin Ross scored our first 5 points, but then picked up his 2nd foul less than 4 minutes into the game. We systematically destroyed the Catamounts in the first half, continually upping our lead and finishing the first stanza with a 43-17 bulge. We forced Western Carolina to commit 18 turnovers (to our 4) in the half. With 12 minutes left in the game our lead was 31. With our subs on the floor, the lead narrowed but there never was any danger and we advanced to the 2nd round with a 65-49 win. 4 of our starters were in double figures: PF Angelo Craft led with 15 points (plus he devoured 10 rebounds), SG Isaac Wright had 13, SF John Jones scored 12, and PG Morris Wolfe added 10. (8-0) Injury: SG Georgiy Zolkin sprained his wrist and will miss the rest of the tournament. Game #9 vs Kent State Golden Flashes (8-2), Las Vegas Winter Jam, 2nd round: C Kelvin Ross again starts quickly scoring 7 points in the first 3 minutes but as in the previous game is assessed his 2nd foul very early, this time just 3 minutes into the game. After just 7 minutes we lead 22-7. We score nearly at will, hitting 69% of our first half shots to take a commanding 54-37 lead at the break. With 12-1/2 minutes to play lead balloons to 30. We finish with a 99-70 romp over Kent State. Leading the way was C Kelvin Ross with 15 points and 9 rebounds. PG Morris Wolfe also scored 15 while handing out 8 assists. SG Isaac Wright scored 11 and C Jules Grant had 10. (9-0; Ranked 2nd in the polls; RPI: 2)

Rob Porter, Sports Writer, Springfield News-Leader Game #4, Nov. 24, 2019: Missouri State Bears (2-1) at Louisville Cardinals (1-1) Bears' Claws Trimmed Last night the Missouri State Bears traveled to Louisville to take on the ACC’s Louisville Cardinals. But the Bears came out on the short end of a 70-66 score. The Bears came out firing and took a 10-2 lead. The Cardinals struck back though and the first half became a tussle. At the end of the half, the Bears held a slim 36-33 lead. SG Kareem Masiello led Missouri State’s first half offense as he knocked down 12 points. As the Cardinals zeroed in on their shooting, Missouri State’s shooting went stone cold midway through the 2nd half to allow Louisville to take a 9 point lead with 6 minutes to play. Missouri State made a gallant effort to comeback but didn’t have enough time to catch the Cardinals. Louisville outshot the Bears 53% to 47%. But the biggest advantage the Cardinals held was that they got to the line 15 more times and scored 10 more points on free throws than Missouri State. After the game Coach Vandergard said, “We played well but just couldn’t stop their two big interior guys.” PF Eddie Terrell scored 17 and C Russell Robinson hit for 15 points for Louisville. Final Score: Louisville—70, Missouri State (2-2)—66. Leading players for Missouri State: SG Kareem Masiello-18 pts, 3 assists, 5 reb, 1 steal,1 block; SF Quinton Asbury-11 pts, 3 reb; PG Brent Gregory-9 pts, 2 assists, 1 reb; C Marquis Hollins-8 pts, 3 assists, 5 reb, 5 steals. Player of the Game: Louisville’s C Russell Robinson-15 pts, 1 assist, 8 reb, 1 steal.

Season 6, Game 6 Game #6 @ #17 Louisville Cardinals (3-2): The Cardinals’ offensive strength resides in their two senior interior men (Damon Clark and Andy Williams) who have had very solid careers and who are both averaging in double figures this season. Playing a talented regional foe on their home court will be our biggest test thus far in the new season. C Kelvin Ross had 2 fouls assessed against him in the first 2 minutes of the game. Jules Grant came in to replace him and picked up 2 fouls in the next 2 minutes. With 9 minutes remaining in the half, five of our interior players each had 2 fouls against them. But we used quickness to force the Cardinals to turn the ball over including 7 steals and turned that into 17 fast break points while hitting 54% of our shots. When the half ended, we were up 43-31. As in our previous games, we built a 20+ point lead only to see our opponents make a final run in the waning minutes. We held on to whip the Cardinals 88-80. We held a 21-11 turnover advantage and we hit 53% of our FG attempts. Offensively we were led by SG Roy Field with 14 points, PG Morris Wolfe with 12 points and 7 assists, SG/PG Isaac Wright with 12 points and 8 assists, and SF/PF Julian Blevins with 10 points. PF Andy Williams scored 20 points with C Damon Clark adding 17 for Louisville. (6-0; Ranked 8th in the polls; RPI: 3) UCONN is 8-1 and is ranked 6th in the polls with the 6th best RPI in the country. Award: SG/PG Isaac Wright was named the AAC’s Freshman Player of the Week.

Buddy and Brenda Portman, Branson entertainers Game #3, Nov. 21, 2019: South Carolina Gamecocks (1-1) at Missouri State Bears (1-1) We missed the season opener but wanted to see the Bears go up against South Carolina. I have family in South Carolina and hope to be able to rub in a loss to the Bears. Due to the holidays, Branson is and will be busy for the for the next 6 weeks, so getting free for a night is an unsual occurrence right now. Brenda has a burr under her saddle about how Meaghan Kriley is harassing Alexei Koramatsov about his gambling. So she doesn’t even acknowledge Meaghan when she shows up for tonight’s game. I still like the gal, but know when it’s best to follow my wife’s lead. But i'm gonna miss kidding Meaghan tonight. I sure hope the Bears can take a big step forward this year. I think they should because their talent level seems higher this year. After both teams sputter in the early-going, Missouri State catches fire to take a 35-20 lead with 6 minutes left to play in the half. That’s due to their hitting over 70% of their three’s and all their FG attempts. We’re all whooping it up big-time. But then their shooting cools allowing South Carolina to pull closer, but the Bears still hold a 44-35 lead at the break. PF Kenneth Grandison came off the bench to lead Missouri State’s scoring with 8 points during his 9 minutes on the court. Not much to say about the 2nd half other than Missouri State steadily adds to their lead throughout the half. Their bench scores 44 points of the team's 76 points. Final Score: Missouri State (2-1)—76, South Carolina—58. Leading players for Missouri State: SF Quinton Asbury-10 pts, 1 assist, 4 reb, 2 steals; PG Bart McCain-10 pts, 3 assists, 3 reb, 1 steal; PF Kenneth Grandison-10 pts, 2 reb; PG/SG Brent Gregory-8 pts, 3 assists, 3 reb, 2 steals; PF Ricky Lee-8 pts, 2 assists, 1 reb, 2 steals. Player of the Game: SF Quinton Asbury-10 pts, 1 assist, 4 reb, 2 steals.

Season 6, Games 4 & 5 Game #4 vs Ohio State Buckeyes (1-2): We caught fire during the middle stages of the first half and pulled away to lead 44-29 at the end of the half. We expanded our lead to 20 points just 3 minutes into the 2nd half. Late in the 2nd half, Ohio State hit a bunch of 3’s to narrow our final winning margin to 84-77. SG/PG Isaac Wright popped in 20 points, fed 4 assists, pulled down 5 rebounds, and had 3 steals and a block. C Kelvin Ross scored 15, SG Roy Field had 12 points, and PG Morris Wolfe scored 11 while dishing out 8 assists. For Ohio State, SG Onochie Yegeni scored 26 points, hitting 8 of 15 threes. (4-0) Game #5 vs #25 Providence Friars (4-2): Kelvin Ross has taken over as our starting center. We scored the first 11 points. We held the Friars to 23% shooting in the first half. We came away with a 41-27 advantage at the half. We opened a 23 point lead in the 2nd half, but let the Friars fire in some buckets in the final minutes as we finished with an 87-77 victory. SF John Jones led our scoring with 15, but PG Morris Wolfe scored 14 with 7 assists, and C Kelvin Ross and SG/PG Isaac Wright both added 13. SG Jim Bush dropped in 19 points plus pulled down 9 rebounds for Providence. (5-0; Ranked 6th, RPI: 11) Award: SG/PG Isaac Wright was named the AAC’s Freshman Player of the Week.

Meaghan Kriley, KSMO TV News Anchor It’s taken quite a while, but I’ve now got evidence that Alexei Koramatsov not only is a big time gambler, but also has deep ties to a major gambling syndicate. I finally decided to lay it all out to Bret. It came out awkwardly and Bret was reluctant to accept what I had to say about his friend. Rather than forcing the issue, I suggested he think it over carefully and we’d talk again. Two days later we again discussed it. This time he was more open to listening, but still didn’t want to believe it. But I brought along some of the evidence I had, so it soon became impossible for him to deny. I expressed that I was just afraid his friendship with Alexei could well lead to allegations that would harm Bret and jeopardize his coaching career. Finally, he thanked me and closed the discussion by saying he would take care of it. The TV station was sending me out of the country to report on a human rights story in the Mideast, so it was a week-and-a-half before I got back together with Bret. He told me he had confronted Alexei who had denied everything. Bret said, “With Alexei denying that he bet and that he was associated with gamblers, it was tough, but I just told him that while I appreciated our friendship, I had to sever ties with him and not allow him into athletic department facilities. He seemed hurt at first, but then flew into a rage, saying, ‘I know who is behind this and I don’t forget’ before storming off.” Bret again thanked me, but I think he’s hurt by my finding out a friend of his was not whom he seemed and embarrassed that he didn’t discover it and that I was unofficially investigating his friend and by necessity him. While he’s not mad, I think our relationship has suffered at least a temporary setback. A week later I got a call from Brenda Portman. She said she understood I had made allegations about their friend Alexei and that she felt I was wrong and what I had done was unjust. According to Brenda, “Like many people, Alexei likes to gamble. There’s no harm in that. But to try to tar him with being involved with illegal gambling and bookies is just wrong and mean-spirited.” I wasn’t going to get into specifics with her, but she then abruptly hung up on me anyway. I guess I'll not be expecting any free tickets to her shows or those of other entertainers in Branson.

Season 6, Game 3 Game #3 vs DePaul Blue Demons (0-1): We held a small lead throughout most of the first half, but were playing soft and thus were unable to shake the Blue Demons. At the half, we held a slim 40-36 edge. The halftime chewing out seemed to work as we scored the first 13 points of the 2nd half. After just 5 minutes of play in the 2nd half, our lead had ballooned to 20. We cruised from there to a solid 86-65 win. Our biggest advantage was our 47-31 domination of the boards. PF Angelo Craft scored 25 and grabbed 11 rebounds. PG Morris Wolfe plunked in 19 points while dishing out 5 assists and hauling down 7 rebounds. SG/PG Isaac Wright added 10. Troy Rosen, DePaul’s center, scored 24 and gobbled up 12 rebounds. (3-0; Ranked 10th in the polls; RPI: 39) Awards: PF Angelo Craft was named the AAC’s Player of the Week and PG Morris Wolfe was the AAC’s Freshman Player of the Week.

Paris George, 3rd Assistant Coach Game #2, Nov. 17, 2019: Missouri State Bears (1-0) at Maryland-Eastern Shore Hawks (1-1) SG Kareem Masiello still isn’t 100% but his hip has improved to allow us to start him, but we’ll limit his time on the court. Thus far this season the Hawks have won their opener at home, then they took a loss on the road. For the 2nd straight game, Kareem Masiello picked up 2 fouls very early in the first half. This time he was quickly joined by PF Ricky Lee on the bench as the refs called things tight against us. We were assessed our 7th foul at the 15:48 mark of the first half. Ultimately it wasn’t fouls, but poor shooting that doomed our first half efforts. We hit just 27% of our FG attempts and were behind 39-27 at the break. C Marquis Hollins led our scoring with 7 points. Behind the stellar play of Brent Gregory and Quinton Asbury, we scored the first 20 points in the 2nd half to take a 47-39 with 14:15 to go. The Hawks came back, partly behind the concerted efforts of the refs. Coach V got called for a technical and the Hawks tied the game at 48-48 at the 11:47 mark. After trailing by 6, we pulled with a single point with 2 minutes left, but the Hawks hit a shot that made it 64-61 with 1:36 remaining. After we called a time out, our designed play failed. We got the ball back with 48 seconds on the clock. We called another time out and this time cleared Kareem Masiello for a 3 that dropped in to tie the game. After the Hawks missed a shot, we played for last shot, but as the clock was expiring, Quinton Asbury was too well guarded. He forced up an awkward 3 that clanked off the rim and we went to OT. We drew first blood in the OT, but the refs repeatedly put the Hawks on the foul line and the game was tied at 68-68 with 2 minutes left. With 1:40 on the clock, Bart McCain found C Marquis Hollins inside who drove to the bucket and threw down a monstrous dunk to put us up by 2 points. The Hawks hit a basket but the refs called the basket off due to too many steps. The Hawks tied it with a minute to go and then were put back on the foul line to go up by 2 with 43 seconds remaining. Brent Gregory hit a shot to tie the game at the 0:32 mark, but then we let the Hawks score inside and an errant pass with 13 seconds led to a final driving layup to ice the game for the Hawks. We lost a heart-breaker in a game we should have won. Final Score: Maryland-Eastern Shore—76, Missouri State (1-1)—72 (OT) Leading players for Missouri State: SF Quinton Asbury-15 pts, 3 reb, 3 steals; PG Brent Gregory-14 pts, 3 assists, 6 reb, 1 steal; C Marquis Hollins-13 pts, 2 assists, 4 reb, 2 steals; PF Kenneth Grandison-8 pts, 3 reb. Player of the Game: MD-Eastern Shore’s SG Craig Eschmeyer-15 pts, 1 assist, 4 reb, 3 steals.

Season 6, Games 1 & 2 Game #1 vs VCU Rams (0-0): We took the lead early and increased it throughout the first half to take a 43-24 even though 3 of our starters were in early foul trouble. Our shooting cooled in the 2nd half, but we crushed the Rams 81-50 by holding their shooting to 33%, dominating the boards 42-24, and holding an 18-9 turnover advantage. SG/PG Isaac Wright led our scoring with 18 points with PG Morris Wolfe knocking down 13 points and SF Julian Blevins adding 11. PF Angelo Craft scored 8 and grabbed 10 rebounds. (1-0) Game #2 vs Charlotte 49ers (0-1): We simply could not get untracked in the first half and our shooting (32%) stunk. Charlotte took advantage of this to sport a 38-33 halftime lead. While our shooting didn’t improve much in the 2nd half, we tightened our defense to take a small lead midway through the 2nd half. But the game was incredibly close. We hit t a 3 just before the buzzer sounded and squeaked by with a 68-63 victory. SF John Jones topped our scoring with 16 points while C Kelvin Ross added 10. (2-0, ranked 6th in the polls with the 74th best RPI). UCONN blitzed their way through the Preseason NIT to win the championship and is ranked 4th in the polls. It looks like they’re going to give us some serious competition, particularly due to their talented perimeter players.

Annika Vandergard, Bret’s sister Game #1, Nov. 14, 2019: Washington State Cougars (0-1) at Missouri State Bears (0-0) Bret worked with Tommy this past summer and Tommy has become a very good young basketball player. I brought him to tonight’s game since it’s not a school night. He’s spent time with Bret at practices so thinks he knows everything about this season’s players and how they are going to take the Cougars apart tonight. There’s a bigger than normal media presence since there appears to still be interest from those in the Northwest in Bret. Neither team could score in the first couple minutes, but we then took a 5-0 lead and held a small lead throughout the first 13 minutes of the first half. Then SG Kareem Masiello, who had picked up 2 fouls early in the half, came back on the court and scored from all over the court while the Bears defense clamped down on the Cougars. The result was a commanding 46-21 halftime lead. Masiello, who hit every shot he took, dropped in 17 points while playing just 9 minutes. His play brought forth a level of excitement heretofore unknown in JQH Arena. Tommy ate too much junk food in the first half and got sick at the half, so I took him home. But the Bears kept the Cougars at arms’ length, dominating all team stats, to win with ease and start the season on a very positive note. Bret said he played two deep subs throughout most all of the 2nd half to see how they would do. Freshman PG Matt West looked good, whereas Junior PF David Earl failed to impress and likely will be relegated to the end of the bench for the foreseeable future. Final Score: Missouri State (1-0)—82, Washington State—59. Leading players for Missouri State: SG Kareem Masiello-26 pts, 4 assists, 4 reb; SF Quinton Asbury-16 pts, 1 assist, 7 reb; PG Matt Lewis-12 pts, 2 assists, 2 reb. Player of the Game: SG Kareem Masiello-26 pts, 4 assists, 4 reb. Injury: After the game, SG Kareem Masiello complained of a sore hip. He’ll nurse it for a few days to ensure it doesn’t inflame and may miss the Bears’ next game.

Season 6 Lineup Starters: PG: Morris Wolfe, 6-0 Freshman SG: Isaac Wright, 6-0 Freshman SF: John Jones, 6-7 Sophomore PF: Angelo Craft, 6-8 Junior C: Jules Grant, 6-11 Senior Primary reserves: SG: Roy Field, 6-4 Freshman (also expect 6-0 Sophomore Georgiy Zolkin to get minutes at SG) C: Kelvin Ross, 6-10 Sophomore SF: Julian Blevins, 6-7 Freshman PG: Troy Cox, 6-0 Sophomore (but Isaac Wright will also be playing PG) PF: Ufuk Oztorun, 6-6 Junior

Mike Martin, 2nd Assistant Coach Coach V decides to see if freshman SG Kareem Masiello can handle the move up to college. With him starting at SG, that means last season’s SG Brent Gregory has moved back to PG, his position in high school. Starters: PG Brent Gregory, 6-5 Sr, averaged 14.3 ppg last season but worked hard on his passing and ball-handling this past summer and he’s a solid defender. SG Kareem Masiello, 6-2 Fr, the #25 ranked recruit was a scoring machine in high school but has some maturing to do. SF Quinton Asbury, 6-5 Sr, averaged 5.0 ppg last season in a supporting role, but was a double-digit scorer in his first 2 seasons at Oregon State. Hopefully he gets his shooting stroke back this season. PF Ricky Lee, 6-6 Jr, averaged 6.7 ppg last season. He’s been a solid, but not flashy player for us but he has extremely high athleticism. C Marquis Hollins, 7-1 So, averaged 5.0 coming off the bench last season. He’s still developing but is expected to become more of a presence as the season progresses. Bench: PG Bart McCain, 6-3 Jr, a starter last season who averaged 9.5 ppg. As a reserve he will still get plenty of minutes. PG Matt Lewis, 6-1 Fr, he came in and showed more skills than expected this early. Has a very good outside shot. SG Cleveland Brown, 6-4 Jr, he averaged 3.6 ppg in a reserve role last season, but became a bigger presence on the court late in the year. SG Rashad Thompson, 6-3 Sr, as a walk-on he’s filled in when necessary during his 3 years here. Last season he got very limited time on the court and averaged 1.3 ppg. SF Marcus Jones, 6-8 Jr, a walk-on this year who has a lot of skills, particularly as a rebounder and shot blocker. SF Quin Bruton, 6-7 Jr, a transfer from Michigan State so will have to sit out this season, but Is likely to take over at the 3 position next season. PF Kenneth Grandison, 6-6 Jr, played extremely well coming off the bench last year, averaging 5.9 ppg and hitting a high percentage of his shots. PF David Earl, 6-6 Jr, he’s developed slowly but steadily during his first 2 years on the team and was used in a very limited role last season averaging 0.7 ppg. C Joey Jones, 6-9 Jr, primary starter last season, averaging 4.7 ppg, a solid rebounder and streaky scorer, but weak defensively. C Donte Hartfield, 6-8 Jr, a part-time starter in his first 2 years on the team, averaging 3.6 ppg last season and is a good shot-blocker.