PointGuard

Season 2, Games 25 thru 28 Game #25, Central Florida: We blistered the nets in this game. By the end of the first half we were ahead 58-40. We finished our offensive onslaught by hitting 62% of our FG attempts, 60% of our 3 pointers, and 90% of our FT’s. We buried the Knights 98-71. Dalron Jones dropped in 25 points, Antonio Greer added 15, Rob Ferguson scored 12, and Johnnie Campbell and Valder Greene both scored 11. (23-2, 12-2, 1st place, Ranked #4, RPI: 4) Norton Award: Dalron Jones and Joey Brown were both named semifinalists for the Norton Award. Game #26 @ SMU: We came out flat and stayed flat. We trailed 34-19 at the half and while we cut into their lead in the 2nd half, we could never really get it together. The result was an embarrassing 55-46 loss. We hit just 31% of our shots, but surprisingly the Mustangs only hit 30% of theirs. But they controlled the boards and again we were beat at the free throw line where we got to the line 16 fewer times and scored 11 fewer points than SMU. Our only player to score in double figures was Joey Brown with 13 points. (23-3, 12-3, 1st place) Game #27, Temple: Temple out-played us in the first half and sported a 40-36 halftime lead. But in the 2nd half we combined a potent offense with a solid defense and ran away from Temple for an 87-64 shellacking. We outshot the Owls 51% to 39%. Dalron Jones put on a 30 point offensive show and also dished out 7 assists and pulled down 6 rebounds. Valder Greene came off the bench for his best game of the season with 19 points (hitting 100% of his shots including 5 from 3 point land). Rob Ferguson scored 14 and Joey Brown added 12. (24-3, 13-3, 1st place, Ranked #4, RPI: 4) Game #28 @ South Florida: In this game we played solidly throughout both halves. While not impressive offensively and while allowing the Bulls to hit too high a percentage of their shots, we recorded a fantastic 18-5 turnover advantage. The result was that we led 34-28 at the half and expanded that lead in the 2nd half to as much as 20 points while finishing with an80-68 win. Joey Brown had a big game scoring 19 and pulling down 12 boards. Dalron Jones also popped in 19 points along with recording 6 assists. Antonio Greer scored 17 and Rob Ferguson had 14 points and 8 rebounds. (25-3, 14-3, 1st place)

Cedric Hastings, owner of the Missourian Diner I got one of the boosters to introduce me to Bret Vandergard after the game against Drake. The next day I invited him to join me for lunch at our diner. While we were eating lunch, Alexei Koramatsov came into the diner. Alexei is a “business” acquaintance and one I like to keep happy. So I invited him to join us at our table. Even before lunch was finished a small emergency cropped up in the kitchen, so I had to excuse myself. Alexei is a smooth talker with a good sense of humor, and I’m sure was happy to have a chance to talk with the new coach by himself. Although I had to attend to the employee problem, I stuck my head out every so often and noticed that the two guys seemed to be getting along well together and were enjoying each other’s company. Alexei is what I would have to call an “entrepreneur”, and one with whom I’ve had some dealings from time to time. About 2 pm, Bret found me and said he had to get going. Later, Alexei thanked me for inviting him over to the table, saying he hoped to get to know Bret better.

Season 2, Games 21-24: Game #21 @ Tulane: We gradually pulled away in the first half to take a 32-23 halftime lead. We then opened a 21 point lead in the 2nd half and held on for a 69-53 win. Dalron Jones hit for 20 points, Johnnie Campbell scored 15, and Joey Brown added 12 points while pulling down 9 boards. Rob Ferguson hauled in 10 rebounds. (19-2, 8-2, 1st place, Ranked #5, RPI: 6) The loss to Tulsa earlier in the week took a big hit on our fortunes with the poll voters and with the RPI computer. Norton Award: Dalron Jones, Joey Brown, and Rob Ferguson all were named quarterfinalists for the Norton Award. Game #22, Houston: Our play in the first half was awesome. We ran away to a 42-22 halftime advantage. We went into cruise control in the 2nd half, but won 68-47. Joey Brown had a big game with 19 points and 9 rebounds. Rob Ferguson wasn’t far behind with 17 points and 9 boards. Dalron Jones added 14 and Antonio Greer scored 11. (20-2, 9-2, 1st place) Injury: Antonio Greer left the game late with a strained thigh and likely will miss one or two games. SAT results: Ruben Rohwer’s SAT score was 890...just enough to be above our 880 minimum. Phew! The news for 3 recruits we liked who were ranked #12, 18 and 26 wasn’t as good. None of the 3 were even close to scoring an 880. Ugh! That’s a big disappointment to our recruiting fortunes. The loss of these 3 studs alters our recruiting strategy since there are no longer extremely strong high school seniors left to recruit meaning we may go after a JC player. Game #23, Connecticut: We again put together a big first half and finished the half with a 42-22 lead that was identical to our previous game. Although we eased up in the 2nd half, there never was any doubt and we won 78-66 to avenge our earlier loss to the Huskies. Valder Greene started at PG and played adequately but continued his penchant for getting into foul trouble and eventually fouled out. Dalron Jones lead our scoring with 20 points and had 8 rebounds, Joey Brown put 18 points on the board plus grabbed 13 rebounds, Rob Ferguson also recorded a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Howie Tyler came off the bench to score 12 points. (21-2, 10-2, 1st place, Ranked #4, RPI: 4) Award: Joey Brown was chosen as the American Athletic Conference’s Player of the Week and Freshman Player of the Week. Game #24 @ Cincinnati: I told the guys it was time to come up big against a good team on the road. The first half was a dog-fight with Cincinnati coming away with a 40-35 lead at the break. I jumped all over the players during the half about playing defense. They responded by shutting down the Bearcats in the 2nd half. We retook the lead and gradually opened an 11 point lead. Cincinnati hit some late shots but we won 70-63 by allowing the Bearcats to score just 23 points in the 2nd half. While we couldn’t control SG Rodney Walton who finished with 24 points, no other Cincinnati players scored in double figures. Dalron Jones popped in 20 points, Rob Ferguson had 16 points, and Antonio Greer came back of the injured list to add 11 points. Joey Brown was surprisingly held scoreless but pulled down 12 rebounds. Valder Green scored 9 points in 10 minutes of play but also picked up 5 fouls during the short time. (22-2, 11-2, 1st place)

Cedric Hastings, owner of the Missourian Diner Game #16, Jan. 17, 2018: Drake Bulldogs (11-4, 4-2) at Missouri State Bears (5-10, 2-4) I’ve owned the Missourian Diner for 12 years but it’s an institution in Springfield. It opened in 1946 and I bought it from the original owners. Not only do we get a lot of students coming to our restaurant, but we also get many of the college’s administrative, educational and sports staff. I heard that SG Brent Gregory was injured but they just announced he will start. It’s possible his court time will be limited though, if he hasn’t fully recovered from the injury to his thigh. This team needs his presence on the court so hopefully he isn’t hampered by the injury. Drake has been the strongest team thus far in the Missouri Valley Conference but has stumbled a bit on the road. The Bulldog’s SF Kevin Jackson and PF Karel Parker have combined for 21.8 ppg and 9.8 rpg. The Bears turn the ball over on their first 2 possessions. Fortunately Drake only scores off one of these. By the first TV time out though, the Bears have 5 turnovers and trail 8-6. If the Bears weren’t controlling the boards as they’ve done thus far, they’d be much further behind. It looks like the Bears have decided to double team Kevin Jackson. That’s probably wise since he has hit a high percentage of his shots this season. The two teams slugged it out throughout the first half with neither team able to gain a distinct advantage. Missouri State gained a slight advantage in the late going and took a 37-33 lead to the locker room. Joey Jones led the Bears scoring with 8 points. The Bears applied a tough man-to-man defense and took a 49-37 lead with 13:44 remaining. From there on the Bears kept the Bulldogs at bay and late in the half added to their lead to score a big win over a good team. Missouri State out-rebounded Drake 34-19 and out-shot the Bulldogs 56% to 48%. The Bears held the Bulldogs’ top scorers, Jackson and Porter, to a combined 12 points. Final Score: Missouri State (6-10, 3-4, 6th place tie)—78, Drake—60. Leading players for Missouri State: SG Brent Gregory-15 pts, 1 assist, 3 reb; C Joey Jones-14 pts, 3 assists, 11 reb, 3 steals; PF Ricky Lee-11 pts, 1 assist, 5 reb, 3 steals; PF Jimmy Woni-10 pts, 3 reb, 1 steal; SF Aaron Wells-8 pts, 7 reb, 1 steal. Player of the Game: C Joey Jones-14 pts, 3 assists, 11 reb, 3 steals.

Season 2, Games 17 thru 20 Game #17, SMU: SMU came in with a 9-6 record, but we destroyed them. We shot extremely well in the first half which drove us to a 48-34 halftime lead. Then we clamped down defensively, allowing the Mustangs to score just 16 points in the 2nd half and won handily 79-50. Antonio Greer scored 17 and dished out 6 assists. Joey Brown also scored 17 plus he had 7 rebounds. Dalron Jones picked up 11 points, and Howie Tyler came off the bench to score 14. (16-1, 5-1, 1st place, Ranked #2, RPI: 3) Game #18 @ Temple: The first half is a battle. We outshoot Temple but they out-rebound us and get to the free throw line more. We escape with a 42-38 lead at the break. We come back on the floor in the 2nd half and rapidly expand our lead to as much as 22 points as our shooting remains extremely hot. We finish by hitting 65% of our shots. We won decisively, 88-72. Rob Ferguson dropped in 22 points, Dalron Jones tossed in 18, Joey Brown and Antonio Greer both added 12, and Adrian Banes scored 10 points off the bench while playing just 14 minutes. (17-1, 6-1, 1st place) Game #19, South Florida: The guys came in expecting an easy game. But this turned out to be no walk in the park. The teams slugged it out the entire game. We held a slim 41-37 lead at the half. The game remained tight in the 2nd half. We were generally out-played but South Florida’s 19 turnovers let us squeak by for a 66-63 victory. South Florida’s PG Jon Montgomery burned us for 26 points plus had 7 assists. Dalron Jones regained his shooting form and scored 20 to lead our scoring. Antonio Greer continued to score well, dropping in 17 points. Joey Brown hit for 15 points plus pulled down 7 rebounds. (18-1, 7-1, 1st place, Ranked #3, RPI: 3) Game #20 @ Tulsa: The lead in the first half see-sawed back and forth. We ended up on the short end of a 34-30 halftime score. Again the refs took us out of this game in the 2nd half and Tulsa continually went to the line to pull steadily away. We took a 78-62 beating. The Golden Hurricanes went to the line 27 more times than us and outscored us by 18 points on free throws. That was more than enough to beat us. Tulsa’s C Derick Paige poured in 26 points. Dalron Jones knocked down 20 points. Rob Ferguson added 18 points while pulling down 8 rebounds. (18-2, 7-2, 1st place tie) Recruiting: We were on pins and needles throughout this week awaiting the SAT scores for recruit Ruben Rohwer. His 2.1 GPA didn’t bode well for him to get a qualifying score, but we figured out a way to make sure he got some SAT tutoring before the test. We also were closely watching to see how three highly rated high school recruits performed. Two of them also had 2.1 GPA’s and one has a 2.0 GPA, so the SAT was a big hurdle for both. If they get high enough SAT scores, we'll go after them like a cat goes after catnip.

Tyson Rodero, play-by-play announcer for KSMO radio Game #15, Jan. 13, 2018: Missouri State Bears (5-9, 2-3) at Bradley Braves (7-7, 2-3) Welcome to Peoria, Illinois Bears’ fans. Tonight Missouri State takes on the Bradley Braves. Both teams are tied for 5th place in the Missouri Valley Conference with 2 and 3 records. In pre-conference play, Bradly had wins over Ohio State, New Mexico and Texas Tech as well as a loss to #20 Connecticut. But thus far they’ve been inconsistent in conference play. Bradley is led by center Kareem Buse who is averaging 12.5 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. He’s supported by shooting guard Adam Ross who has chipped in 10.3 ppg and pulled down 4.4 rpg. ****** The Bears control the tip. Simmons slings it over to Wells on the left side of the key. His jumper rims out but Gregory is right they to put it back up and in to draw first blood. ****** The Bears are playing some solid defense early in the game, but aren’t capitalizing much on it on the other end of the court. With 16:11 to play they lead 5-0 and have gotten to the foul line 8 times, but only knocked down 3 of those free throws. ****** Ricky Lee powers inside and puts up a 6 footer that drops to give the Bears a 31-21 lead with 90 seconds to go in the first half. ****** That’s the end of the first half. Missouri State has never relinquished the lead and finishes the half up 31-25. The Bears have done it primarily by controlling the boards 17-11 and outshooting the Braves 57% to 42%. Brent Gregory and Joey Jones are the top scorers for the Bears with 6 points apiece. ****** The tide’s turned here in the 2nd half as the Braves have come out shooting and take their first lead of the game at 36-35 with 16:30 to play. The big home crowd is whooping it up.. ****** The wheels haven’t quite come off the cart for Missouri State but they are certainly wobbling. They trail 46-37 with 11 minutes left. ****** Hawkins sinks a long 3 for Bradley to open a double digit lead at 57-47 with 7:15 left in the game. ****** Bradley hitting shots from all over the court. They now sport a 17 point lead with 4 minutes to go. ****** The game finally comes to a merciful end. The 2nd half was all Bradley. After hitting just 42% of their shots in the first half, the Braves drop in 59% of their shots for the entire game. They were lights out from the field the entire 2nd half. They also forced the Bears to cough up 19 turnovers. ****** Final Score: Bradley-77, Missouri State (5-10, 2-4, 8th place tie)—58. Leading players for Missouri State: C Joey Jones-12 pts, 8 reb; SG Brent Gregory-12 pts, 1 assist, 6 reb, 1 steal; PF Ricky Lee-9 pts, 1 assist, 5 reb; SF Aaron Wells-8 pts, 3 assists, 3 reb, 1 steal. Player of the Game: Bradley’s SG Adam Ross-17 pts, 6 assists, 1 reb, 3 steals. Others for Bradley: C Kareem Buse-18 pts. Injury: Brent Gregory strained his abductor muscle at the end of the game and may have to sit out the next game. But our trainers will be treating it aggressively in the hope he can be back when we meet the first place Drake Bulldogs. Award: Joey Jones was selected as Freshman Player of the Week for the Missouri Valley Conference.

Don and Teri Kriley, Meaghan’s parents We’re so happy. Meaghan accepted the news anchor job for a TV station in Springfield, Missouri. She said she had a hard time convincing herself to transition from investigative reporting, but thinks she still may get some opportunity to do some of that in her new position. She has already moved back to Springfield and begins as the evening news co-anchor on January 16th. She said Bret Vandergard sounded very happy to have her coming back there. We both like Bret, so hopefully they will hit it off again. Meaghan is studying up on local cities, towns, and geography plus learning the names and backgrounds of key political players in the area and primary industry and organizational leaders. Transitioning to becoming a news anchor is a big challenge, but we have all the confidence in the world in our little girl. She’s personable and warm and that will come across well on TV.

Season 2, Games 13 thru 16 Game #13 @ Houston: We played heads up ball in the 1st half and rolled to a 45-24 lead at the half. Houston closed on us in the 2nd half, but we held them off for a 67-56 victory. Joey Brown carried us with 22 points and 15 rebounds. Our starting guards, Antonio Greer and Dalron Jones scored 13 and 11 points, respectively. (13-0, 2-0, 1st place tie, Ranked #3, RPI: 2) Awards: Joey Brown once again both the conference Player of the Week and the Freshman Player of the Week awards. Game #14 @ Connecticut: In the early stages of the first half, we played well and held a small lead but by the midpoint of the half, Connecticut turned things around and by the end of the half led 42-33. With the refs called things tight on us, our players simply lost their aggressiveness. I was all over the refs. The zebras definitely noticed, because they came out with a vengeance in the 2nd half, whistling our players for just looking at their opponents. Connecticut took full advantage of this and opened a 25 point lead. In the latter stages we tried to make a comeback, but the difference was just too great. We dropped our first game of the year by a score of 76-61. Shooting, turnovers, and rebounds were very equal between the two teams. What wasn’t equal? We were called for 10 more fouls. Dalron Jones played only 18 minutes and scored just 8 points because of continual foul problems. The Huskies got to the foul line 20 more times than we did! And they scored 16 more points on free throws...more than the final difference in the score. In other words, we were jobbed! Rob Ferguson scored 14 points and pulled down 7 rebounds and Joey Brown scored 12 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. (13-1, 2-1, 2nd place tie) Game #15, Cincinnati: The Bearcats entered the game in 1st place in the American Athletic Conference. We came out playing a withering defense that immobilized Cincinnati in the first half and led us to a 40-25 lead at the half. The Bearcats came out in the 2nd half hitting their shots and trimmed our lead a little but we never let them get close enough to put a real scare into us. We came away with a 74-65 victory that got us back into a tie for the top spot in the conference. Antonio Greer led our scoring with 19 points, but Rob Ferguson scored13 points and had 12 rebounds while Joey Brown knocked down 10 points and hauled in 11 rebounds while getting 3 steals and blocking 2 shots. Dalron Jones scored just 10 points but had 6 assists and 6 rebounds plus 2 steals and 2 blocks. (14-1, 3-1, 1st place tie, Ranked #3, RPI: 2) Award: Joey Brown again won the Freshman Player of the Week Award for the American Athletic Conference. Stats thus far for our 3 main players: SG Dalron Jones (18.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 3.3 apg, 1.6 spg, 0.5 bpg); C Joey Brown (12.5 ppg, 10.0 rpg, 2.0 apg, 2.1 spg, 0.9 bpg), and PF Rob Ferguson (12.5 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 1.1 apg, 2.0 spg, 1.3 bpg). Game #16 @ Central Florida: Good defense crushed Central Florida in the first half allowing us to achieve a 39-21 half time lead. We put it on cruise control in the 2nd half. Central Florida scored well, particularly PG David Holman who finished with 26 points, but we never let them get close. We won 79-68. Rob Ferguson led us with 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 blocks. Dalron Jones put 14 points on the board, Joey Brown had 13 points, and Johnnie Campbell added 12. (15-1, 4-1, 1st place tie)

Season 2, Game 9 thru 12 Game #9, #8-ranked North Carolina: North Carolina sported a small lead early in the game, but by the half we were ahead 41-31. We then pulled away in the 2nd half to win easily 81-60. Dalron Jones dropped in 25 points plus grabbed 9 rebounds and Rob Ferguson added 10 points. (9-0, Ranked 3rd, RPI: 3) Game #10, Tennessee: Remembering how the Vols stomped us last year, our guys wanted revenge. We did a great job of doing exactly that in the 1st half and pulled away to a 45-24 halftime advantage. Our defense was porous in the 2nd half, but we continued to score well and put together an 87-65 victory. Dalron Jones achieved a double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Rob Ferguson scored 17, and Antonio Greer and Johnnie Campbell both scored 16 points. (10-0, Ranked #3, RPI: 2) Award: Dalron Jones was named the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week. Game #11 @ St. Bonaventure: St. Bonaventure controlled the tempo in the 1st half, built as much as an 11 point lead. We finished the half trailing 37-30. Even though we weren’t hitting our shots and were taking too many bad shots, our defense bailed us out in the 2nd half, as we leap-frogged by the Bonnies and won 68-60. Dalron Jones scored 15 but the game MVP went to Rob Ferguson with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Valder Greene also scored 14 and Antonio Greer added 10 points. (11-0, Ranked 4th, RPI: 2) Ineligibility: SF Bradley Ides, a sophomore SF walkon, finished the term with a 1.9 GPA. My reaction was that I wanted to cut him, but my assistants convinced me to keep with since he’s been practicing our sets for 18 months. We got him a tutor. Game #12, Tulane: We came out flat and could only manage a 33-33 tie at the end of the first half. We led most of the 2nd half, but could never put the game out of reach, finishing with a 73-63 victory in our first conference game of the season. Dalron Jones had 22 points and 8 assists and Joey Brown and Rob Ferguson both had double-doubles, 13 points and 10 rebounds for Brown and 14 points and 10 rebounds for Ferguson. (12-0, 1-0, 1st place tie)

Great Story! Thanks, CoachVN! I too wonder how long he will get away with his corrupt ways.

Season 2, Games 5 through 8 Game #5, Akron: Another defensive gem. We take a 30-21 halftime lead and then leave Duquesne in the dust, winning 61-39. Rob Ferguson stars with 18 points and 10 boards. Joey Brown picks up 13 points, Antonio Greer scores 11, and Dalron Jones finishes with 9. (5-0) Game #6, UTEP: Our offense takes over in this game as we spurt out to a 43-25 halftime advantage. The 2nd half is nearly a repeat of the first and we come away with an 87-50 victory. Dalron Jones scores 20 while adding 7 rebounds and 5 assists, Joey Brown gets another double-double (11 points and 11 rebounds), Rob Ferguson scores 14, and Antonio Greer adds 9. (6-0, Ranked #1, RPI: 1) Award: Dalron Jones is the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week. Game #7, Southern Illinois: We hit shots from all over the floor in the 1st half and built a 53-30 halftime lead. The team kept the Salukis from making any serious runs in the 2nd half and went on to win 90-71. Joey Brown dropped in 21 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. Dalron Jones scored 19, Valder Greene came in off the bench to score 14, Johnnie Campbell put in 12 points, and Rob Ferguson added 10. (7-0) Game #8 @ North Carolina St.: This was a close game almost the entire 40 minutes. At the half, we led 33-29, and could not pull away in the 2nd half. We pulled out a narrow victory, 66-62. Dalron Jones took high-point honors with 21 points, but Joey Brown had another awesome game with 15 points and 15 rebounds. (8-0, Ranked 2nd, RPI: 2) Award: Joey Brown again won both the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week and Freshman Player of the Week awards.

Cal Phillips, Missouri State athletic department janitor Game #14, Jan. 10, 2018: Illinois State Redbirds (9-4, 2-2) at Missouri State Bears (4-9, 1-3) I see these guys playing all the time during practice, but don’t get to too many of their ballgames. I have a big family, so don’t have all that much time after getting done with work. I used to play a little ball. I like the guys, but they’re just a little soft. They need to toughen up and start asserting themselves more on the court. Coach V has a big challenge with this group. No stars in the bunch even though most all work hard. But Coach V’s spending way too much time here. Must not have any social life at all. I guess the first year coaching a team is tough, though. He’s been good with me. Treats me with respect unlike some of the coaches here in the past. Rudy Cage is a real great guy and always has been. Hard worker, good personality. But something’s been bugging him lately. I’ve been talking with him some but he’s not opening up about it. As a walk-on, he doesn’t get to play much, but I don’t think that’s it. Kenneth Grandison is a transfer so isn’t playing this year. But he’s practicing and working out here. He leaves stuff all over. I’m always having to pick up after him. I’d like to kick his butt sometimes. I’d like to see the team win one tonight. They’ve had a hard season so far. But the Redbirds are a good team. They’ve beaten #12 UNLV, Stanford, and Georgia. Three of their starters are scoring in double figures: PG John Gresham, 13.1 ppg, SF Morris Cummings, 11.5 ppg, and PF Johnny Lindsey, 11.0 ppg. Yeah, not going to be an easy game for the Bears at all. We started out good, taking a 12-6 lead, but then we got sloppy and let the Redbirds back into the game. Like I said, we’re too soft. Darned if our bench didn’t come on and give us a 6 point lead with 4 minutes to go in the first half. Starters came back out on the court and let the lead evaporate. We trailed 35-34 at the half. Too many turnovers (10). Brent Gregory and Terrance Simmons both had 7 points to lead our scoring. Brent Gregory came out hot in the 2nd half, scoring 7 points in the first 90 seconds to put the Bears ahead 41-35. We expanded the lead to 11 points with 17 minutes to play. Terrance Simmons then hit some big shots to give us a 53-41 lead with 15-1/2 minutes left. The lead then stayed in the 8-12 point lead from there on. The Bears outshot Illinois State 53% to 42%, out-rebounded them 34-23, and had a 13-12 turnover advantage. Final Score: Missouri State (5-9, 2-3, 5th place tie)—78, Illinois State—69. Leading players for Missouri State: SG Brent Gregory-20 pts, 2 assists, 10 reb; PG Terrance Simmons-15 pts, 5 assists, 2 reb, 3 steals; C Joey Jones-10 pts, 3 assists, 3 reb, 1 steal. Player of the Game: SG Brent Gregory-20 pts, 2 assists, 10 reb (big double-double, particularly for a guard).

2nd Season, Games 1 thru 4 Game #1 @ Virginia: The lead flip flops throughout the 1st half, but we head to the locker room ahead 39-35. We draw away throughout the 2nd half by tightening our defense. We win our opener 75-58. Dalron Jones picks up where he left off last season, scoring 29 points. Joey Brown has a great first collegiate game, hitting for 15 points and grabbing 15 rebounds. Rob Ferguson tosses in 18 points while pulling down 8 boards. (1-0, Preseason #7 ranking) Game #2, Hawaiian Shootout vs Pepperdine: We’re the #1 seed in the tourney. Since Valder Greene needs a bit more seasoning and experience running our sets, Antonio Greer will be starting at PG. We roll in the first half, clamping down defensively to take a 39-20 halftime lead. We win with ease 72-51. Dalron Jones leads our scoring with 23 points. Joey Brown continues to dominate inside, scoring 17 and getting 17 rebounds. Rob Ferguson also gets a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. (2-0, Ranked #2, RPI: 13) Awards: Joey Brown picked up both the American Athletic Conferences Player of the Week and Freshman Player of the Week awards. Game #3, Hawaiian Shootout vs Clemson: We began pulling away late in the first half and left the court at intermission with a 42-30 lead. In the 2nd half, we expanded our lead to 22 and then coasted to a 72-56 victory, sending us to the Tournament Championship game. All 5 starters scored in double figures: Joey Brown with 15, Antonio Greer getting 13, Dalron Jones scoring 12, and Rob Ferguson and Johnnie Campbell both adding 10. Joey Brown had 9 rebounds and Rob Ferguson had 7. (3-0) Game #4, Hawaiian Shootout Championship vs Duquesne: Our defense was stellar throughout the entire game. We led 40-25 at the half and finished with a 70-49 win taking theTournament Championship. Dalron Jones led our scoring with 22 points and Rob Ferguson contributed 11. Joey Brown pulled down 9 rebounds. (4-0)

Season 2 Player News Norton Award: 3 players nominated for the Norton Award: SG Dalron Jones, C Joey Brown, and C Rob Ferguson Starters at the beginning of season 2: PG Valder Greene, 6-0 FR (3.5/4.5 stars) [High school senior last year] SG Dalron Jones, 6-5 SR (4.5/4.5 stars) [20.2 ppg last year] SF Johnnie Campbell, 6-5 JR (3.0/3.0 stars) [8.1 ppg last year] PF Rob Ferguson, 6-8 SR (4.0/4.5 stars) [5.9 ppg last year] C Joey Brown, 6-8 FR (4.5/4.5 stars) [High school senior last year]

Fall Recruiting Recruiting Violations and Probations The NCAA has not investigated our program. One team was placed on probation though: Georgia Tech (no post-season tourneys for 2 years and no scholarships for 3 years). Recruiting We have 3 scholarships to offer this year. A lot of Tennessee high schoolers are showing interest in us this season since we made it to the Sweet Sixteen last year. But most aren’t high enough rated for me to want. We put two of the better ones on our list, but even they probably won’t make the cut. We add about 5 from the Southeast region...again not enough good players down here this year. Looking over the international players, there’s a good PG, but hey, I got a superstar PG so decide to pass. So we next look at the national crop. The #1 player in the nation already is showing interest in us, but he’s got a 2.1 GPA, so taking him would be a big risk since he likely won’t meet even our SAT minimums. We put him the list, though, and will get a little more information about him. We add most everyone in the top 25. Seems as though our academic standards (or lack thereof) attract a lot of the guys with GPA’s in the very low 2’s. Since Dalron Jones will be graduating this year, I’d like to pick up a top-flight SG to replace him. Alternatively, Antonio Greer could take over his spot next season, but even though he’s a natural SG, Antonio is a bit smaller (at 6-0) than I’d like at the 2. I definitely want at least one talented big man, and maybe even two. But we probably should try to nail down a stellar SF with our 3rd scholarship. Our ultimate goal is to fill all 3 of our scholarship with Top 10 recruits, but that may be more than we can do in our 2nd year. But they say, money talks. Ray slips me the wrong list and I end up making some calls the first week of recruiting to a few guys outside the top 10. I ream Ray out, but hell, we have so many lists, that it’s easy to make a mistake. A couple of the top 10’s I get ahold of turn out to be from extremely wealthy families and I swear under my breath when I find that out from them. After developing some interest, we were ready to put out our bait. So at the end of July and in early August, I made bribe offers to 13 players: Name, ranking, relative family wealth--bribe--palyer's response and interest level (school they eventually chose) Rowher,1, moderately poor--20K apt--No Anderson,2, very poor -20K apt-No (Kentucky) Mociler, 3, very poor-20K apt-tempting/factor in decision---interest immediately from + to +++. (NC) Dudley, 4, fairly poor,-20K apt--tempting/factor in decision--interest immediately from + to +++ (Kansas) Thurman, 11, very poor-no interest, 10K cash-No Manion,5, very wealthy, $10k cash,--No--went from + to - (Michigan St) Robins,6,Fairly poor, $10K cash--tempting/factor in decision-interest immediately from + to +++ (UCLA) Owens, 7, Pretty wealthy, $10K cash--Tempting/factor in decision, interest immediately from + to +++ (UCLA) Alexander, 9, middle class, $5K hang with celebrity, tempting/factor in decision, immediately from + to ++ (Oklahoma) Crispin, 10, lower middle class, $5K hang with school celebrity--tempting/factor in decision, immediately from + to ++ (Virginia) Banks, 12, very poor, $5K hang with school celeb--No, Immediately form + to - (North Carolina) Johnson,13, very wealthy, $5K, hang with school celeb-tempting/factor in decision, Immediately from + to ++ (Oregon) Mickens, 14, fairly poor, $5k Hang with school celeb-no--immediately from + to - (Kentucky) With each potential acceptance of a bribe by a player, that amount of $$ is deducted from budget...only to be reimbursed if that player doesn't sign with you...so we began running low in $$. C Ruben Rowher, has been #1 or #2 ranked throughout recruiting. He is fantastic on the court (26 ppg, 16 rpg and a player with an excellent shot from both the inside and outside, a great passer, a dominant rebounder and defender and he has a tremendous work ethic. But...his GPA is 2.1 and it’s unlikely he will meet even our SAT minimums, so reluctantly we withhold an offer, even though we’re on the top of his list of school at which he’d like to play. Instead we make offers at the end of August to: #3 SG Anderson—PT,--he chooses Kentucky #5 C Dudley—he chooses Kansas #9 C Alexander—he chooses Oklahoma After they go elsewhere we make offers to: #1 PG Mociler—PT,--he chooses NC #8 PF Crispin—SP, CP—he chooses Virginia When we lose out on those recruits, our sites come back to Ruben Rowher. Everyone has shied away from him because of his low GPA. Finally we decide to take a flyer and make an offer, realizing he very well not qualify academically. And he accepts in early October. And this guy wouldn't even accept our generous bribe!!! If he squeaks by with his SAT’s, it’s a coup. If not, it’s back to the drawing boards. After a number of the players to whom we made bribes go elsewhere, that money is freed up so we make a second round of bribes to: Williams, 44, poor, $5K school celeb—No (Gerogia) Younger, 31, fairly poor, $10K cash—tempting/bribe will factor into decision (Connecticut) Boone, 24, very poor, $10K—tempting/bribe will factor into decision (Arizona) We then continue to offer scholarships and are continually rebuffed: #31 PG Younger—PT—he chooses Connecticut #44, SF Williams—Loc,---he chooses Georgia #33, PG Camara—PT—he chooses Kansas Int'l #46, Muge—SP—he chooses Arkansas #24, C Boone—SP, Fac—he chooses Ariz #61, PG Sankes—Loc—he chooses Ariz St. #66, PG Forman—Loc—he chooses Depaul What the hell? Do these guys not like money, is there no way to "persuade" them to give the finger to the elite schools, or are we just being outbribed by the elites? Our recruiting efforts and our bribe offers have gone for naught. We were playing with the big boys and got our a$$e$ kicked. After the home visit period, we tuck our tails between our legs, add players to our watch list and decide to build interest through the winter and offer our two remaining scholarships in the spring. At least we will have a lot of bucks to throw around in the spring. Top 10 Recruits—who got them 1. North Carolina 2. Memphis 3. Kentucky 4. UCLA 5. Oklahoma 6. Michigan State 7. Kansas 8. UCLA 9. Duke 10. Virginia

Year 2, Memphis Tigers Last season we met all 5 goals (sign 4 star recruit, win 20+ games, win conference tournament, get to Sweet Sixteen, improve school prestige) this past season. Our goals for this year aren’t much different. My 2nd assistant moved on to greener pastures, but I hired a replacement at the 2nd Assistant position who has excellent Player Development skills. His name is Evan Jackson. I also extended the contracts of Ray Schau, my 1st Assistant (recruiting) and Kelvin Chadwick, my 3rd Assistant (scouting). A little costly, but I think we can afford it. We still have $128,100 left for recruiting (and “whatever it takes”) this season. We will have 3 seniors graduating. Ray and I get together and decide that since it was so easy last year, we might as well go after the top dawgs with any and all ammunition we can fire at them. Hell, a bribe doesn’t cost us anything until the guy accepts our scholarship. The list of the Top Recruiting Classes for last season comes out and we had the 4th best. Only Duke, Arizona and Wake Forest topped us. I think that if we’d had a 3rd scholarship to offer, we would have moved up a notch or two. Looking over the team this year, we should be stronger than last year with the addition of freshman PG Valder Geene and freshman center Joey Brown. We’re weakest at SF, but we’ve got a couple big guards who can step in at the 3. We blow $10K on the National Report and $5K on the Southeast Report. The basic reports are fine with me. No need wasting money on the gold reports...we may need the bucks for “other things”. We decide to go to the Indy Elite Camp...might as well check out the studs. Reviewing the transfer pool, there are a couple very good transfer players who from Georgia Tech and Missouri who are sniffing us out plus there’s guy from Michigan we probably would have a chance at since we played the Wolverines last season. But we don’t have any vacant scholarships and I don’t really want to cut anybody plus I think we can get better with high school recruits this year than the available transfer players. We have a bunch of players on our roster with GPA’s in the low 2’s, including last season’s ineligible player, Johnnie Campbell (now up to 2.2 GPA). My assistants think we should hire some tutors for some of these guys. But hey, they guys are big boys and should be able to take care of themselves, so no tutoring. I tell my assistants they just need to find out who the profs for our players are and let them know where their bread is buttered.

Bobby Hendricks, owner of KSMO radio in Springfield, MO (phone conversation with Brenda Portman, Branson entertainer) BH: Yes, Brenda, I called her. BP: Well, did she accept? BH: She asked a lot of questions and said she needed to think it over. BP: What? She needs to think a great offer like this over? Offer her more money! BH: Now Brenda. It’s not unusual for people to talk with others about these sorts of opportunities before deciding what they will do. BP: All I can say, Bobby, is you damn well better lasso that woman and get her over here near Coach Vandergard.

Recruits PG Valder Greene, 6-0 HS Sr, Dawsonville, GA, 3.2 GPA (1040 SAT). 24.9 ppg, 11.1 apg, 8.0 rpg, 7.1 spg, 4.7 bpg. Outstanding scorer, passer, rebounder, shot blocker, stealing, outside shooter. Excellent ball handler and defender and strong athleticism. Hard worker who, while not a leader, doesn’t cause problems. Top 5 player at East Coast Jam Camp. Ranked 8th best in nation with Overall Rating of A. (And yes, we surreptitiously transferred the $10,000 to a clandestine bank account that Valder can access.) C Joey Brown, 6-8 HS Sr, New Martinsville, WV, 2.8 GPS (1030 SAT). 21.3 ppg, 6.8 apg, 14.3 rpg, 5.5 spg, 2.6 bpg. Outstanding scorer, passer, rebounder, defender, and stealing. Strong athleticism. Top 10 player at Indy Elite Camp. Tremendous work ethic. Ranked 10th best in nation with Overall Rating of A.

Awards 1st Team All-Conference: Dalron Jones 1st Team All-Conference: Mark Byams

Tournament Championship Games CBI Tournament: Mercer-64, South Dakota State-57 NIT Tournament: Arizona State-56, Buffalo-55 NCAA Tournament: UCLA-100, Virginia-68

NCAA Tournament, Round 3 Game #34 vs Kentucky: Interestingly we started the season with a win over Louisville, now we get a chance to knock off Kentucky. We out-played the Wildcats in the first half, but not by much and held a 45-42 lead at the half. The game was tight throughout the 2nd half. After 9 lead changes and 5 ties, we dropped a heart-breaker, 77-76. Antonio Greer had 18 points, Dalron Jones scored 17 with 9 rebounds and 6 assists, Rob Ferguson had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, Mark Byams scored 10 and pulled down 7 boards, and Howie Tyler scored 9 points. A valiant effort that came up the slimmest of differences short. Oregon-70, Houston-52

Mike Martin, 2nd Assistant Coach Game #13, Jan. 6, 2018: Missouri State Bears (4-8, 1-2) at Wichita State Shockers (7-5, 1-2) I scouted the Shockers and feel they have a solid team. We match up well with them at the 2, 3 and 4 but they’re stronger at PG and C. Their C Hector Weaver is particularly strong on the boards and their PG Scott Tucker scores well (12.6 ppg) and feed the ball smoothly to others. Their top scorer is SG Anton Overton who is averaging 14.1 ppg. We’ve got a real challenge in trying to contain both their guards. Their primary set is the shuffle offense, but they also run the high post effectively. On defense they mostly employ man-to-man but mix in a 1-2-2 zone. They took on Louisville in the Las Vegas Jam Tournament, and even though they lost, they gave the Cardinals a real challenge. We controlled the boards in the first half (18-12). But we shot poorly (39%), Wichita State shot well (52%). We made too many turnovers (10), Wichita State didn’t (6). So after being competitive with the Shockers for the first 7 minutes, we then allowed them to gradually pull away. The half ended with us trailing 42-30. Our lone effective offensive weapon was Brent Gregory who scored 12 points, but he also picked up 3 fouls. Things didn’t improve in the 2nd half. The Shockers opened 22 points leads several times. We made a few mini-runs that cut the margin to as low as 14 but were never truly in it. Final Score: Wichita State-88, Missouri State (4-9, 1-3, 9th place tie)—68. Leading Players for Missouri State: SG Brent Gregory-21 pts, 4 reb; PG Terrance Simmons-9 pts, 2 assists,4 reb; Aaron Wells-8 pts, 3 reb. Player of the Game: Wichita State’s PG Scott Tucker-26 pts, 3 assists, 6 reb, 1 steal. Others for Wichita State: SG Anton Overton-17 pts. Note: Rudy Cage and Aaron Wells got into an argument, the escalated to pushing and shoving and then some blows before teammates broke it up. Coach V called both into his office. Both players were contrite and got off with verbal warnings.

NCAA Tournament, Round 2 Game #33 vs Brigham Young: The first half was back-and-forth as evidenced by the halftime score of 37-37. We opened an 11 point lead in the 2nd half but then had to hang on for a tight 71-67 win. Antonio Greer was our top scorer with 16 points, Dalron Jones had 15 points, 9 rebound, and 5 assists, Rob Ferguson scored 11 and pulled down 10 rebounds. (25-8) In the Sweet Sixteen we will be matched against #2 seed and 7th ranked Kentucky. Houston-90, Marquette-74 (Houston scored 67 points in the 1st half) Houston’s next opponent with #3 seed and 13th ranked Oregon.

NCAA Tourney, Round 1: Game #32 vs Harvard: We completely stymied Harvard in the 1st half and opened a 42-17 halftime lead. We continued to build upon that lead and won with ease, 73-40.Rob Ferguson scored 20 points and pulled down 9 rebounds, Mark Byams scored 17 points and had 8 rebounds, Dalron Jones scored 10 points and had 6 assists. (24-8) The win sets up for our 2nd round game against #6 seed and 18th ranked Brigham Young. Michigan-76, Connecticut-74 Houston-59, Delaware State-46 (the Cougars will play #10 seed Marquette in the 2nd round) Louisville-77, Cincinnati-72 Western Carolina-72, Tulane-59

NCAA Tournament Selection Show Top Seeds: UCLA, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Arkansas. Memphis is 3rd Seed in the Minneapolis Region and will play 14th seed Harvard. Connecticut is 9th Seed in the Minneapolis Region and will play 8th seed Michigan. Houston is 2nd seed in the New Orleans Region and will play 15th seed Delaware State. Cincinnati is 11th seed in the New Orleans Region and will play 6th seed Louisville. Tulane is 9th seed in the New Orleans Region and will play 8th seed Western Carolina.