Path to the Hall of Fame (DDSCB2)

randy · March 21, 2015

Career Game #90

Current streaks on the line

33-game home win streak
7-game win streak

Feb 15, 2003: Bethune-Cookman (10-14, 4-9) @ #13 Delaware St (22-2, 11-2)

Scouting Report

Offense: fast pace, balanced, some freedom, motion
Defense: m2m, rarely press
Key Players: Sr C Diego Daniels 11.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg
Notes: BETH gives up 70.8 ppg, 2nd worst in MEAC

1st Half

1st half went very long because of the combined for 42 FT attempts. But we shot way better on the field because of BETH's porous defense

Halftime: Up 53-25

Key stat(s)

FG: DELST 52%, BETH 19%
FT: DELST 16-20, BETH 17-22

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 14 pts, 8 rebs

2nd Half

We gave our fans a treat today, reaching the century mark for the 1st time this season

Final Score: Bethune-Cookman - 53, Delaware St - 105

Box Scores

Braun 28, 14, 1 (*)

Stokes 17, 4, 2, 3 3s

Winter 12, 7, 1

Smith 10, 3, 2, 2 3s

Fleming 9, 5, 2

Turner 9, 4, 9, 3 tos

Lepore 8, 2, 6, 2 3s

Legans 6, 8, 0

Murphy 4, 1, 1

Jefferson 2, 0, 0

Team Stats

FG: 54-29%

Rebs: +23

Asts: +14

TOs: -8

Pts in paint: +30

2nd chance: +20

Fast break: +19

Post game observations

(+): Everything fell into place today. Best things is our defense was still great even though we are already scoring a ton on offense
(-): None; this was as close to a perfect game as possible

MEAC Conference Standings

Delaware St, 12-2 (W8)
Norfolk St, 9-5 (L1)
Florida A&M, 8-6 (L3)
Morgan St, 8-6 (W2)
Howard, 8-6 (W2)
Lipscomb, 8-6 (W1)
Coppin St, 6-8 (L1)
Belmont, 6-8 (W1)
Quinnipiac, 6-8 (L3)
MD Eastern Shore, 5-9 (W2)
North Carolina A&T, 4-10 (L2)
Bethune-Cookman, 4-10 (L2)

randy · March 22, 2015

Norton Award Update

C Brandon Braun is currently #14 on the list of Norton semi finalists

randy · March 22, 2015

Career Game #91

Current streaks on the line

34-game home win streak
8-game win streak

Feb 18, 2003: Howard (15-10, 8-6) @ #13 Delaware St (23-2, 12-2)

Scouting Report

Offense: normal pace, balanced, some freedom, flex
Defense: 3-2, rarely press
Key Players: So SG AD Johnson 17.8 ppg, 5.1 rpg
Notes: We lost to HOW in our 1st meeting, in a game where they shot 53% FG

1st Half

A very productive bench in the 1st half allowed us to pull away

Halftime: Up 48-30

Key stat(s)

FG: DELST 56%, HOW 44%
Turnovers: DELST 3, HOW 8

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 11 pts, 5 rebs

2nd Half

Not even HOW's +21 FTA advantage made a difference. We were consistently hitting our outside shots, led by reserve SF Anthony Jefferson

Final Score: Howard - 65, Delaware St - 87

Box Scores

Braun 23, 8, 0 (*)

Jefferson 17, 3, 2, 3 3s

Winter 14, 8, 1

Stokes 10, 6, 1, 2 3s

Smith 8, 2, 0, 2 3s, fouled out

Turner 6, 1, 8, 3 tos, 2 3s

Lepore 5, 3, 8

Legans 4, 2, 0

Murphy 0, 1, 2

Fleming 0, 1, 0

Team Stats

FG: 48-41%

Rebs: +8

Asts: +10

TOs: -6

Pts in paint: +22

2nd chance: +7

Fast break: +7

Post game observations

(+): We shot 10-20 3PT. Another impressive stat is our 22:7 assist-turnover ratio
(-): Only 6 FT attempts

MEAC Conference Standings

Delaware St, 13-2 (W9)
Florida A&M, 9-6 (W1)
Norfolk St, 9-6 (L2)
Morgan St, 9-6 (W3)
Howard, 8-7 (L1)
Lipscomb, 8-7 (L1)
Quinnipiac, 7-8 (W1)
Coppin St, 6-9 (L2)
Belmont, 6-9 (L1)
MD Eastern Shore, 6-9 (W3)
Bethune-Cookman, 5-10 (W1)
North Carolina A&T, 4-11 (L3)

randy · March 22, 2015

Career Game #92

Current streaks on the line

9-game win streak

Feb 22, 2003: #13 Delaware St (24-2, 13-2) @ Lipscomb (12-14, 8-7)

Scouting Report

Offense: slow pace, balanced, not many freedom, 5 out
Defense: m2m, rarely press
Key Players: Jr PG Linton McKenzie 14.1 ppg
Notes: Despite shooting just 37% FG, we stil beat LIPS by 22 in our 1st meeting

1st Half

It's not only LIPS' outside shooting that bothered us, but also our turn overs. We've got to play better defense in the 2nd half

Halftime: Down 31-38

Key stat(s)

3PT: DELST 1-6, LIPS 6-17

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 13 pts, 8 rebs
LIPS: PG Linton McKenzie 15 pts, 2 3s

2nd Half

One of those games where your opponent cant seem to miss even contested long distance shots. LIPS adding 3 more triples. Trailed by 10 early in the 2nd half. We are just trying to keep close.

14:25, Down 43-49

Finally getting some steps and momentum. LIPS with 9 turn overs in the 2nd half.

6:53, Up 57-54

Game remained close as both teams committing too many turn overs. LIPS tied the game with a 3. C Jason Winter gave us the lead with a short jumper. And then LIPS regains the lead with another 3, their 12th of the game. We turned the ball over on our next play. Down 1. We got called for a foul on the act of shooting. LIPS splits. Timeout

1:32, Down 64-66

Foul on LIPS. Both teams in the penalty. SG Kevin Stokes hits 2 FTs. Tied game. LIPS hits another jumper! Timeout

1:04, Down 66-68

A bad pass by C Jason Winter. LIPS' PG Linton McKenzie drives, and scores! McKenzie with 28 pts. The double team was late. Timeout

0:27, Down 66-70

We are looking for a 3. LIPS fouls; perhaps a wise foul. PG Lewis Lepore hits 2 FTs. Down 2. We give up a foul. LIPS gets 2 FTs to go in. Timeout

0:14, Down 68-72

We miss a 3. C Brandon Braun made a meaningless put back right before the buzzer. We had the momentum already earlier, we just wasted it

Final Score: Delaware St - 70, Lipscomb - 72

Box Scores

Braun 23, 15, 1, 2 stls

Stokes 16, 3, 0, 3 tos, 2 3s

Winter 11, 10, 1, 3 tos

Feming 6, 3, 2, 4 stls, 2 blks

Tuner 4, 3, 4, 2 stls

Smith 4, 0, 2

Legans 3, 3, 0

Lepore 2, 0, 1, 4 tos

Murphy 1, 2, 0

Jefferson 0, 1, 0

Team Stats

FG: 41-47%

Rebs: +13

Asts: -11

TOs: -2

Pts in paint: +16

2nd chance: +11

Fast break: +16

Post game observations

(+): We won what we're supposed to dominate - rebounds, 2nd chance pts, and fast breaks
(-): But we were not able to make the necessary stops in the stretch

MEAC Conference Final Standings

Delaware St, 13-3 (L1)
Howard, 9-7 (W1)
Florida A&M, 9-7 (L1)
Norfolk St, 9-7 (L3)
Lipscomb, 9-7 (W1)
Morgan St, 9-7 (L1)
Quinnipiac, 8-8 (W2)
Coppin St, 7-9 (W1)
MD Eastern Shore, 7-9 (W4)
Belmont, 6-10 (L2)
North Carolina A&T, 5-11 (W1)
Bethune-Cookman, 5-11 (L1)

randy · March 22, 2015

Career Game #93

Current streaks on the line

6-game conference tournament win streak (2-time defending champs)

Mar 2, 2003: (8) Coppin St (13-15, 7-9) vs (1) #14 Delaware St (24-3, 13-3)

Scouting Report

Offense: fast pace, balanced, some freedom, flex
Defense: m2m, rarely press
Key Players: Jr SG Kevin Benton 13.6 ppg
Notes: We beat CSC by an average margin of 25 pts in 2 games this season

1st Half

Slow start for both teams. Afetr being down 3-4, we went on a 13-0 run, and continued to build our lead from that point on

Halftime: Up 36-14

Key stat(s)

3PT: DELST 3-3, CSC 0-10
FT: DELST 9-13, CSC 2-3

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 10 pts, 6 rebs; SG Dan Smith 9 pts, 3 3s

2nd Half

Our lead was never threatened. Gave more time to the bench in the 2nd half

Final Score: Coppin St - 45, Delaware St - 71

Box Scores

Braun 20, 9, 3 tos (*)

Smith 18, 6, 2, 4 3s

Fleming 8, 1, 1

Winter 5, 6, 1

Turner 5, 3, 4

Jefferson 5, 3, 1

Ward 4, 3, 0

Stokes 4, 1, 0

Legans 2, 4, 0

Lepore 0, 1, 6, 3 blks, 3 tos

Murphy 0, 0, 0

Team Stats

FG: 46-27%

Rebs: +14

Asts: +4

TOs: +1

Pts in paint: +16

2nd chance: -5

Fast break: Even

Post game observations

(+): CSC was 0-14 3PT
(-): 15 turn overs

randy · March 22, 2015

Career Game #94

MEAC Tournament Semifinals

SF Anthony Jefferson out for the rest of the conference tournament due to an injury (should be ready before the NCAA tournament)

Current streaks on the line

7-game conference tournament win streak (2-time defending champs)

Mar 3, 2003: (5) Lipscomb (15-14, 9-7) vs (1) #14 Delaware St (25-3, 13-3)

Scouting Report

Offense: slow pace, balanced, not many freedom, 5 out
Defense: m2m, rarely press
Key Players: Jr PG Linton McKenzie 15.3 ppg
Notes: We got beaten by LIPS last week, where McKenzie scored 28 pts

1st Half

Suddenly, the basket seems to have sealed as we're missing a lot of shots. We are getting the ball inside to our big men, but shots are simply not falling. Foul count is also clearly not in our favor

Halftime: Down 26-33

Key stat(s)

FG: DELST 30%, LIPS 39%
Fouls: DELST 12, LIPS 3

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 6 pts, 7 rebs

2nd Half

Still no luck with our shooting, but perseverance on pushing the tempo and rebounding got us back in this game

11:31, Down 44-45

Offense still not productive, but our defense clamping down on LIPS

8:14, Up 46-45

We took a 5 pt lead. LIPS able to come back and regain the lead. Down by 2, SG Dan Smith hits a big 3! Up 1. Smith has been huge off the bench with 13 pts. LIPS turned the vall over on their last play

2:19, Up 56-55

C Brandon Braun takes it inside, and got fouled. Braun makes both FTs. Up 3. LIPS PG Linton McKenzie drives, missed. McKenzie only has 12 pts, but has shot only 4-16 FG. We get the rebound. Traveling on SG Dan Stokes. LIPS taking a lot of time looking for a shot. Shot clock about to expire. McKenzie has to put up a long 3. Missed. Timeout

0:48, Up 58-55

SG Kevin Stokes drives. Missed. But SG Dan Smith able to get the offensive board. We reset. Ball goes to C Jason Winter. Winter scores! Timeout LIPS

0:29, Up 60-55

LIPS missed another 3. LIPS gives up a foul. SG Kevin Stokes sealed the game with 2 FTs. In our last game against LIPS, we didn't get the needed stops in the end game. It was a different story this time around

Final Score: Lipscomb - 55, Delaware St - 62

Box Scores

Braun 19, 11, 0 (*)

Smith 13, 6, 2, 2 stls, 3 3s

Stokes 12, 5, 2, 5 tos, 2 3s

Winter 8, 9, 1

Fleming 4, 4, 0

Turner 2, 3, 6

Legans 2, 2, 0

Lepore 2, 1, 3, 2 stls

Murphy 0, 1, 0

Team Stats

FG: 34-36%

Rebs: +5

Asts: +1

TOs: -3

Pts in paint: +8

2nd chance: +2

Fast break: +4

Post game observations

(+): 2nd half defense was great, limiting LIPS to just 22 pts. We went perfect in the line, 11-11 FT
(-): Missed a lot of shots, esp SG Kevin Stokes (4-21 FG)

randy · March 22, 2015

Career Game #95

MEAC Tournament Finals

Current streaks on the line

8-game conference tournament win streak (2-time defending champs)

Mar 4, 2003: (2) Howard (18-11, 9-7) vs (1) #14 Delaware St (26-3, 13-3)

Scouting Report

Offense: normal pace, balanced, some freedom, flex
Defense: 3-2, rarely press
Key Players: So SG AD Johnson 17.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg
Notes: We face another team that has beaten us this season. Aside from Johnson, HOW's rotation of huge big men (two 300+ lb centers) have given us problems in the past

1st Half

Again we're missing a lot of shots at the start of the game. Fortunately the collective effort of our bench helped us turn around our performance in the 1st half, led by SG Lewis Lepore's 3 triples. We have to cut our turn overs though.

Halftime: Up 39-29

Key stat(s)

Bench pts: DELST 36, HOW 9
Turnovers: DELST 9, HOW 4

Key Players

DELST: C Jason Winter 11 pts, 5 rebs

2nd Half

SG Kevin Stokes, who was scoreless i the 1st half, has exploded for 10 pts already here in the 2nd half to help keep HOW at bay

11:26, Up 53-40

Every time HOW is poised to start their rally, we were able to respond immediately

2:45, Up 67-53

SG Kevin Stokes scored 5 straight pts to put us ahead by 19, and virtually assured us of this win.

3-peat MEAC Tournament Champs!

Final Score: Howard - 62, Delaware St - 72

Box Scores

Stokes 17, 4, 0, 3 3s

Winter 14, 9, 0, 3 tos (*)

Lepore 11, 3, 5, 3 stls, 5 tos, 3 3s

Smith 8, 1, 1, 2 3s

Braun 7, 7, 3

Legans 6, 4, 1, 2 stls, 2 blks

Fleming 6, 1, 2, 2 stls

Turner 3, 2, 4

Murphy 0, 7, 1, 2 blks

Team Stats

FG: 43-41%

Rebs: +10

Asts: +1

TOs: -1

Pts in paint: +2

2nd chance: -3

Fast break: +13

Post game observations

(+): Each one of the 4 players who came off the bench (Lepore, Smith, Legans, Murphy) had significant contributions
(-): Games in the upcoming NCAA tournament become more defensive-oriented, so we must avoid these slow starts as much as possible

randy · March 22, 2015

Norton Award Update

C Brandon Braun is currently #7 on the list of Norton finalists, assuring him of his 3rd consecutive All-American selection

randy · March 22, 2015

2003 Selection Show

Rank: #13, RPI: #8

We're in the East Regionals (Greensboro). 1st Round Matchup:

(6) #13 Delaware St (27-3, 13-3) vs (11) St Joseph's (18-10, 9-7)

Quinnipiac will play in the CBI tournament

Teams in the East Regionals

(1) #3 Duke
(2) #4 Gonzaga
(3) #6 Kansas
(4) #19 Pepperdine
(5) #16 Marshall
(6) #13 Delaware St
(7) Wake Forest
(8) Utah
(9) Minnesota
(10) Baylor
(11) St Joseph's
(12) Stanford
(13) Maine
(14) Utah St
(15) Furman
(16) (Play In)

Other Ranked Teams

Midwest

(1) #5 St John's
(2) #2 Georgia Tech
(3) #9 Louisville
(4) #20 Kansas St
(5) #12 Toledo

South

(1) #8 Villanova
(2) #7 Seton Hall
(3) #15 Iowa
(4) #22 Oklahoma
(5) #24 North Carolina
(6) #23 Akron
(7) #21 Tennessee Tech

West

(1) #1 Temple
(2) #10 Syracuse
(3) #14 Memphis
(4) #25 Southern Miss
(5) #17 Houston
(6) #18 UNLV

On Probation

#11 Georgia

randy · March 22, 2015

Career Game #96

2003 NCAA Tournament 2nd round (64)

Mar 16, 2003: (11) St Joseph's (18-10, 9-7) vs (6) #13 Delaware St (27-3, 13-3)

Scouting Report

Offense: normal pace, balanced, some freedom, motion
Defense: m2m, rarely press
Key Players: Jr PG David Mouton 12.5 ppg, 3.6 apg
Strengths: 72.1 ppg (#37), 45.9% FG (#55), 41.6% opp FG (#55), 16.0 opp topg (#49)
Notes: Stopping their outside shots will be key. In their last 2 losses, they shot a combined 4-32 3PT (12%)

How they got here

At large selection (3rd in A10)

1st Half

STJO(PA)'s PG Damon Mouton with 8 early pts, including 2 3s, and is proving to be a tough match up against our guards. When Mouton went to the bench to get some rest, that is when we were able to take the lead. 11 of 13 made FGs by STJO(PA) were from jump shots, while we took advantage of our inside scoring. C Brandon Braun and C Jason Winter combined for 26 pts.

Halftime: Up 48-39

Key stat(s)

Pts paint: DELST 20, STJO(PA) 6
Turnovers: DELST 5, STJO(PA) 8

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 18 pts, 5 rebs
STJO(PA): PG David Mouton 11 pts, 2 3s

2nd Half

Almost even in 2nd output. STJO(PA) still shooting well from the outside, while our big men continue to dominate the inside.

11:37, Up 62-52

STJO(PA) putting a lot of pressure on us by scoring on almost all their succeeding possessions, even going to as close as 6 pts. But we are able to counter them, with inside scoring from C Jason Winter who now has 20 pts

6:48, Up 74-64

STJO(PA) had 3 turnovers in their last 5 possessions, slowing down their momentum

3:26, Up 82-70

Teams traded turn overs. We miss. STJO(PA) scores a 2. Down 10. C Brandon Braun answers back with another inside basket. Up 12. Time is certainly on our side now. We get a block and recover the ball. I told the team we can slow down. STJO(PA) and they are in the penalty. Braun added 2 more FTs.

1:22, Up 86-72

Not enough time left for STJO(PA). Their PG Damon Mouton has scored his 18th pt early in the 2nd half, and has been quiet then; he made a 3 in the last 10 secs when the game is already settled. SG Lewis Lepore did a pretty good job making life difficult for Mouton. Both teams were able to take advantage of their respective strengths; we just had a little less number of turn overs than STJO(PA). We advance to the next round.

Final Score: St Joseph's - 77, Delaware St - 90

Box Scores

Braun 32, 7, 0, 14-15 FT (*)

Winter 20, 9, 1, 7-8 FG

Stokes 13, 2, 4, 3 stls

Fleming 7, 2, 2, 2 stls, 3 tos

Lepore 7, 2, 1

Legans 6, 4, 2, 3 stls

Jefferson 5, 0, 0

Turner 0, 1, 4, 4 tos

Murphy 0, 1, 1

Smith 0, 1, 1

Team Stats

FG: 52-46%

Rebs: +1

Asts: -2

TOs: -5

Pts in paint: +22

2nd chance: +3

Fast break: +6

Post game observations

(+): Best part of C Brandon Braun's performance today was his FT shooting
(-): Not enough outside shooting to relieve the pressure of our big men; just 3-14 3PT today. Playing in his 1st NCAA tournament game, SG Dan Smith was jittery, going 0-5 FG.

randy · March 22, 2015

Career Game #97

2003 NCAA Tournament 3rd round (32)

Mar 18, 2003: (6) #13 Delaware St (28-3, 13-3) vs (3) #6 Kansas (24-5, 13-3)

Scouting Report

Offense: fast pace, balanced, lots of freedom, motion
Defense: 2-3, rarely press
Key Players: Jr C Ray Johnson 11.3 ppg, 13.1 rpg (#1 Nat'l); Sr SG Brooks McClinton 15.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg
Strengths: 41.3 rpg (#1 Nat'l), 8.5 spg (#9), 10.3 topg (#1), 54.2 opp ppg (#3), 35.4% FG (#1)
Weakness: 42.9% FG
Notes: The #1 rebounding, and arguable the #1 defensive team, is just a 3-seed? This will be a very tough match up for us

How they got here

1st in Big 12 regular season
(NCAA 2nd) Def Utah St, 84-57 (McClinton 22 pts, 6 3s)

1st Half

Sensational job by our bench once again, providing the outside shooting that we need in this game. After trailing 9-15, and looking like KAN is on the verge of pulling away, the troika of SG Lewis Lepore, SG Dan Smith, and SF Anthony Jefferson combined for 6 triples to give us a 9 pt lead. KAN coming back on the heels of their rebounding, and FTs from our early penalty. This is anybody's ball game

Halftime: Up 37-33

Key stat(s)

3PT: DELST 7-14, KAN 2-7
FT: DELST 2-2, KAN 11-13

Key Players

DELST: SG Lewis Lepore 8 pts, 4 asts
KAN: SG Brooks McClinton 11 pts, 3 rebs

2nd Half

We are playing good half court defense. But our 6 2nd half turnovers have led to at least a coupe of easy transition baskets by KAN. We have connected on 2 more triples

11:56, Up 50-45

After KAN has gotten to within 2 pts of our lead, we got off to a 14-6 run. Most of those pts came from unlikely sources, like SF Nick Fleming who was scoreless in the 1st half, and even C William Murphy contributing his 1st 3 pts of the game. KAN forced to call a timeout

6:35, Up 66-56

But just as quickly we have built a double digit lead, KAN came roaring back with 7 unanswered pts. My turn to call a timeout

4:30, Up 66-63

I bring back SG Kevin Stokes during the timeout, and Stokes immediately scores on a jumper. Up 5. A turnover by KAN, #12 on them. SG Lewis Lepore left wide open for a 3, and buries it! Up 8. KAN missed a 3. This time it is SG Kevin Stokes who scores a 3! Wow!

3:16, Up 74-63

KAN had 2 attempts on their next possession. Both missed. KAN feeling the pressure now. We finally get the rebound. And another 3 by SG Kevin Stokes! Up 14. We are not giving an inch to KAN's SG Brooks McClinton. But the PG of KAN able to drive and score. Timeout.

2:15, Up 77-65

SG Kevin Stokes throws up a bad pass; turnover #15 for us. We certainly didn't need that at this stage. KAN with the ball. Foul on the act of shooting. KAN splits. We secure the rebound. Up 11. We setup once again to SG Kevin Stokes, coming off several pick. Stokes fires up a long one from downtown. BANG! Up 14. KAN shoots a 3. Miss. KAN with the offensive rebound. Followup was blocked by C Brandon Braun. KAN recovers. Another shot. Block this time by SG Lewis Lepore. We finally secure the leather. A minute remaining. We can slow down. Lepore and SF Anthony Jefferson didn't want the 3pt shootout party to end just yet, and added a triple each before the game ended. What a performance! 15 3s!

We're going back to the Sweet 16 for the 2nd straight season

Final Score: Delaware St - 86, Kansas - 66

Box Scores

Stokes 27, 6, 1, 5 tos, 5 3s (*)

Lepore 14, 4, 6, 4 3s

Jefferson 12, 0, 4, 4 3s

Winter 10, 9, 1

Smith 8, 2, 1, 3 tos

Braun 6, 10, 0

Fleming 4, 1, 1

Murphy 3, 4, 1, 2 stls

Legans 2, 3, 1

Turner 0, 0, 2

Team Stats

FG: 48-37%

Rebs: +1

Asts: +5

TOs: +3

Pts in paint: -4

2nd chance: +3

Fast break: -2

Post game observations

(+): Superb shooting at 15-26 3PT (58%), and it came on such a big game.
(-): 16 turnovers; fortunately, it didn't played much of a factor late in the game

randy · March 22, 2015

Major Upsets

2nd Round

(13) Maine def (4) #19 Pepperdine
(13) Texas-Arlington def (4) #20 Kansas St
(12) Stanford def (5) #16 Marshal
(12) Southern Illinois def (5) #12 Toledo

3rd Round

(10) Kentucky def (2) #2 Georgia Tech
(11) North Carolina St def (3) #15 Iowa
(6) Brigham Young def (3) #9 Louisville
(6) #13 Delaware St def (3) #6 Kansas

randy · March 23, 2015

Career Game #98

2004 NCAA Tournament East Regionals Semifinals (Sweet 16)

Mar 23, 2003: (6) #13 Delaware St (29-3, 13-3) vs (2) #4 Gonzaga (29-6, 13-3)

Scouting Report

Offense: fast pace, balanced, some freedom, shuffle
Defense: m2m, press at points
Key Players: Sr C Victor Prince 12.6 ppg, 10.5 rpg (#3 Nat'l), 2.8 bpg (#2); Fr SF Esmond Erskin 14.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg
Strengths: 8.4 spg (#11), 5.4 bpg (#4), 58.6 opp ppg (#12), 38.9% opp FG (#11), 18.3 opp topg (#4)
Weakness: 31.9% 3PT (#286), 67.8% FT (#310)
Notes: We face another elite defensive team. If it comes down to a tight finish, we could take the risk of letting ZAGA shoot 3s, or even send their big men to the line

How they got here

1st in WCC regular season
(NCAA 2nd) Def Furman, 75-51 (Prince 14 pts, 8 rebs, 4 blks)
(NCAA 3rd) Def Baylor, 77-56 (Bench scoring 37 pts)

1st Half

We started the game with 0-8 FG. We're supposed to get some break when ZAGA's C Victor Prince and SF Esmond Erskin picked up 2 early fouls each. But we didn't took mch advantage of ZAGA's penalty; we missed 7 FTs already. What bothered me the most were our turn overs, and ZAGA's surprisingly good outside shooting

Halftime: Down 25-40

Key stat(s)

3PT: DELST 2-8, ZAGA 5-10
Turn overs: DELST 11, ZAGA 6

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 9 pts, 3 rebs
ZAGA: PG Murry Collum 9 pts, 3 3s

2nd Half

ZAGA's defense has become even more airtight. We had to bleed for our pts, while ZAGA's production seemed effortless. We're the one who's early into penalty. Our chance of advancing becomes bleaker now

11:24, Down 32-53

Fought hard the remainder of the game, but we can't manufacture an extended run. Still a 16 pt deficit with just over 2 mins remaining. I put in all of my seniors to finish the game. ZAGA had a total of 11 blks. A bit of a letdown as compared to how we performed in our previous game against KAN. But still a relatively successful season.

Final Score: Delaware St - 46, Gonzaga - 64

Box Scores

Braun 15, 11, 1, 3 tos

Stokes 12, 4, 0, 3 tos, 3 3s

Murphy 4, 7, 0

Fleming 4, 5, 0

Winter 3, 9, 0

Lepore 3, 3, 3, 2 stls, 4 tos

Turner 3, 3, 2, fouled out

Legans 2, 2, 1

Jefferson 0, 3, 1

Smith 0, 1, 2

Team Stats

FG: 27-43%

Rebs: +12

Asts: -9

TOs: +4

Pts in paint: +6

2nd chance: +5

Fast break: -1

Post game observations

(+): Good job on the boards, including 19 offensive rebounds
(-): Lots of factors attributed to this loss, including 16 turn overs and 12 missed FTs. But in general, we just couldn't anything against ZAGA's defense

randy · March 23, 2015

2003 Final Four

(1) #3 Duke
(10) Kentucky
(1) #8 Villanova
(2) #10 Syracuse

Championship

#8 Villanova def Kentucky, 67-59, and win their 1st national title

randy · March 23, 2015

2003 Awards

National

2nd Team: Jr C Brandon Braun

Conference

POY: Jr C Brandon Braun
DPOY: Jr C Brandon Braun
1st Team: Jr C Brandon Braun, Sr C Jason Winter, Jr SG Kevin Stokes
I won MEAC COY

randy · March 23, 2015

Best Coaching Offers

Charlotte (Prestige: 18)
Missouri St (Prestige: 18)

Will stay at Delaware St

randy · March 23, 2015

Final set of recruits

HS Senior

SG Dan Spatola, #177 (OUT: A, SCR: B, PAS: B, OVR: C)
SF Ryan Roma, #226 (SCR: B, REB: B, ATH: B, OVR: C)
C Chad Croshere, #1363 (REB: B, DEF: B, BLK: B, OVR: C)

Junior College

SF Taj Prewitt, #266 (SCR: B, ATH: B, OVR: C)

randy · March 23, 2015

2002-03 Individual Stats and Rankings (Nat'l Rank)

Points

C Brandon Braun - 17.8 ppg (#44)
SG Kevin Stokes - 16.0
C Jason WInter - 11.4
SG Dan Smith - 8.2
SF Nick Fleming - 8.0
PF Jordan Legans - 5.0
PG Anthony Turner - 4.0
SG Lewis Lepore - 4.0
SF Anthony Jefferson - 3.1
C William Murphy - 1.7

Rebounds

C Brandon Braun - 9.6 rpg (#10)
C Jason Winter - 8.7 (#14)
SF Nick Fleming - 4.1
PF Jordan Legans - 3.8
SG Kevin Stokes - 3.6

Assists

PG Anthony Turner - 5.9 apg (#2)
SG Lewis Lepore - 3.4

Steals

SF Nick Fleming - 0.9 spg
SG Kevin Stokes - 0.9
C Brandon Braun - 0.9

Blocks

C Brandon Braun - 0.9 bpg

Turn overs

SG Lewis Lepore - 2.2 topg

3pt shots made

SG Kevin Stokes - 73
SG Dan Smith - 40
SG Lewis Lepore - 20
SF Anthony Jefferson - 16
PG Anthony Turner - 16
SF Nick Fleming - 2
PG Brandon Perry - 2

FG % (min: 30 FGA)

C William Murphy - 55.0% (22 of 40)
SG Dan Smith - 54.7
C Brandon Braun - 53.4
SF Anthony Jefferson - 50.0
PF Jordan Legans - 50.0
C Jason Winter - 45.4
SG Lewis Lepore - 44.3
SF Nick Fleming - 44.0
SG Kevin Stokes - 38.5
PG Anthony Turner - 38.0

FT% (min: 20 FTA)

SG Kevin Stokes - 95.7% (44 of 46)
SF Nick Fleming - 91.8
PG Anthony Turner - 81.5
C Jason Winter - 69.9
PF Jordan Legans - 64.0
C Brandon Braun - 61.8

3PT% (min: 10 3PA)

SF Anthony Jefferson - 50.0% (16 of 32)
SG Dan Smith - 41.7
SG Lewis Lepore - 39.2
SG Kevin Stokes - 36.1
PG Anthony Turner - 34.0

Minutes

C Brandon Braun - 28.5
SG Kevin Stokes - 25.8
PG Anthony Turner - 24.2
SF Nick Fleming - 23.9
C Jason Winter - 23.3
SG Lewis Lepore - 17.9
SG Dan Smith - 17.0
PF Jordan Legans - 16.8
C William Murphy - 9.0
SF Anthony Jefferson - 8.5

randy · March 23, 2015

2002-03 Team Stats, Rankings, +/- from last season

Team

Points: 78.7 (#1), +2.6
Rebounds: 39.2 (#3), +4.4
Assists: 16.8 (#4), +0.4
Steals: 5.9 (#173), -2.4
Blocks: 3.2 (#40), -0.1
TOs: 11.4 (#2), +1.0
FG%: 45.9 (#58), +0.4
3PT%: 38.0 (#48), +4.0
FT%: 72.5 (#161), +5.7

Opposition

Points: 61.4 (#29), -1.5
FG%: 39.9 (#18), -1.3
3PT%: 33.2 (#87), -1.0
TOs: 15.2 (#90), -2.3

Efficiency

Offense: 56.2 (#3), +1.3
Defense: 43.9 (#75), -1.5

randy · March 23, 2015

Coaching Stats as of 2003 (3 years)

Ratings

Offense: 17 (+5)
Defense: 17 (+5)
Recruiting: 12 (+4)
Scouting: 4 (+1)
Development: 17 (+5)
Reputation: 14 (+5)

Record

Overall W-L: 80-18 (0.816)
NCAA App: 3
Sweet 16: 2
NCAA W-L: 4-3
Conf Titles: 3
Conf COY: 3
20-Wins: 3

randy · March 23, 2015

Graduating Players

SG Lewis Lepore

Regular season: 91 G, 8.5 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 2.5 apg, 80% FT, 41% 3PT, 142 3s

Post season: 7 G, 9.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.7 apg, 67% 3PT, 14 3s

GPA: 4.0

SF Anthony Jefferson

Regular season: 114 G, 5.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.0 apg, 46% 3PT, 127 3s

Post season: 5 G, 3.4 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 1.6 apg, 42% 3PT

GPA: 3.6

SF Nick Fleming

Awards: MEAC All-Conference 2nd Team (2002)

Regular season: 118 G, 10.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.4 apg, 29 3s

Post season: 7 G, 6.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.4 apg

GPA: 4.0

C William Murphy

Regular season: 119 G, 1.9 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 57% FG

Post season: 7 G, 2.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg

GPA: 3.2

C Jason Winter

Awards: MEAC All-Conference 1st Team (2002, 2003)

Regular season: 88 G, 9.2 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 1.0 apg

Post season: 7 G, 9.4 ppg, 6.3 rpg

GPA: 3.7

randy · March 23, 2015

2003-04 Delaware St Lineup

Starters

1: Jr PG Anthony Turner, 6-4, 2.5/4.0 (Raleigh, NC)
2: Sr SG Kevin Stokes, 6-3, 2.5/3.5 (Prestonsburg, KY)
3: So SG Dan Smith, 6-5, 1.0/1.0 (Middletown, DE)
4: Sr PF Jordan Legans, 6-6, 4.5/5.0 (Nanty Glo, PA) (*)
5: Sr C Brandon Braun, 6-8, 4.5/5.0 (Woodside, DE) (*)

Reserves

2: Fr SG Dan Spatola, 6-1, 3.5/4.5 (Woodstock, VA)
3: Jr SF Taj Prewitt, 6-7, 3.5/4.5 (Camden-Wyoming, DE)
4/5: Sr C Matt Ward, 6-10, 2.0/4.0 (Rosendale, WI)
1/2: So® PG Jack Nixon, 6-4, 1.0/1.0 (Eagle Point, OR)
4/5: Fr C Chad Croshere, 6-10, 1.5/4.0 (Fitchburg, MA)
3: Fr SF Ryan Roma, 6-6, 1.0/1.0 (Wilmington, DE)
1: Sr® PG Brandon Perry, 5-8, 2.0/3.0 (Riverton, KS)

Walk-ons

4/5: Sr PF Michael Spencer, 6-11, 1.5/1.5 (Wilmington, DE)
3/4: Fr SF Caron Hackworth, 6-7, 3.5/4.0 (Wilmington, DE)

Transfers (ineligible to play this season)

4/5: Jr Jon Mason (from New Hampshire), 6-10, 4.5/4.5 (Central Falls, RI)

(*) Norton candidate

randy · March 23, 2015

Career Game #99

Current streaks on the line

20-game non-conference win streak

Nov 16, 2003: Delaware St (0-0) @ Troy (1-0)

Scouting Report

Offense: slow pace, inside, some freedom, princeton
Defense: m2m, rarely press
Key Players: Sr PF Henry Smith 13 pts, 9 rebs in their 1st game
Notes: TROY committed 19 turnovers in their 1st game

1st Half

Not much defense played on both sides, resulting in a relative high scoring 1st half.

Halftime: Up 47-38

Key stat(s)

FG: DELST 60%, TROY 55%

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 17 pts, 6 rebs

2nd Half

Still is a goal fest out there. PG Anthony Turner has 12 asts.

11:26, Up 67-56

Slight improvement on our defense was more than enough to give us an 18 pt cushion with less than 3 mins remaining. We slowed down the game and hold on. C Brandon Braun is his usual dominant self. SG Kevin Stokes and SG Dan Smith had good partnership in our 3-guard starting lineup. Freshman SG Dan Spatola had an impressive debut

Final Score: Delaware St - 97, Troy - 81

Box Scores

Braun 33, 9, 0, 14-18 FG (*)

Smith 14, 5, 2, 4 3s

Stokes 14, 5, 0, 5 tos, 2 3s

Spatola 12, 1, 2, 2 3s

Ward 8, 0, 0

Nixon 6, 0, 3

Turner 4, 2, 15

Legans 2, 4, 1, 2 stls

Prewitt 2, 1, 1, 3 tos

Croshere 2, 1, 0

Team Stats

FG: 65-49%

Rebs: +2

Asts: +7

TOs: +1

Pts in paint: +28

2nd chance: -5

Fast break: -4

Post game observations

(+): If our offense continues likes this, PG Anthony Turner would be the beneficiary of tallying up lots of assists
(-): We can't bring that 49% opp FG at the later part of the season

randy · March 23, 2015

Career Game #100

Current streaks on the line

35-game home win streak
21-game non-conference win streak

Nov 19, 2003: St Louis (0-1) @ Delaware St (1-0)

Scouting Report

Offense: normal pace, balanced, lots of freedom, motion
Defense: m2m, rarely press
Key Players: So SG Desmon Taylor 12 ppg
Notes: STL gave up 82 pts in a home loss

1st Half

Offense remains explosive, only this time we were aided by our offensive rebounding and pts on the break. Excellent job on the boards by PF Jordan LEgans

Halftime: Up

Key stat(s)

Fast break: DELST 10, STL 2
Rebounds: DELST 21, STL 11

Key Players

DELST: PF Jordan Legans 6 pts, 9 rebs

2nd Half

A sloppy start of the 2nd half, in terms of our defense and ball handling. C Brandon Braun even picked up his 4th foul and has to sit. We only had a 12 pt lead with 11 mins remaining. Our entire 2nd unit on the floor, and they extended our lead to 23 with 6 mins remaining. STL never recovered after that. More than the offense, I was pleased on how our reserves played well as a unit on defense

Final Score: St Louis - 47, Delaware St - 71

Box Scores

Stokes 13, 2, 1, 2 stls, 3 tos, 2 3s (*)

Spatola 13, 1, 1, 3 3s

Smith 12, 1, 1, 3 tos

Braun 8, 7, 1, 2 blks, fouled out

Ward 7, 4, 0

Legans 6, 13, 0, 2 blks

Nizon 6, 2, 2

Turner 4, 1, 6

Croshere 2, 6, 3

Prewitt 0, 4, 0

Team Stats

FG: 39-31%

Rebs: +10

Asts: +4

TOs: -6

Pts in paint: +16

2nd chance: +8

Fast break: +10

Post game observations

(+): We controlled the boards, not allowing a single 2nd chance pt for STL
(-): Went to the line just 7 times

randy · March 24, 2015

Career Game #101

Current streaks on the line

36-game home win streak
22-game non-conference win streak

Nov 23, 2003: Ohio (1-1) @ Delaware St (2-0)

Scouting Report

Offense: normal pace, balanced, some freedom, 5 out
Defense: m2m, press at points
Key Players: Jr SG Louis Craig 22 ppg, 63% FG
Notes: OH shooting just 25% 3PT

1st Half

Solid defense right from the opening whistle. We didn't shoot well at the beginning, but got plenty of fast break pts towards the end. SG Kevin Stokes started 0-8 FG but heated up towards the end, and still finish with 9 pts

Halftime: Up 45-24

Key stat(s)

Turn overs: DELST 2, OH 10
FG: DELST 52%, OH 34%

Key Players

DELST: C Brandon Braun 12 pts, 2 rebs

2nd Half

C Brandon Braun picked up his 4th foul early in the 2nd half, and has to sit. The rest of the players did a good job, particularly on defense, to keep our comfortable lead. We still scored a decent offensive output, despite sub par FG%

Final Score: Ohio - 59, Delaware St - 79

Box Scores

Braun 20, 7, 1, fouled out (*)

Stokes 14, 5, 3, 3 3s

Smith 10, 3, 0, 2 3s

Turner 9, 3, 4

Ward 7, 6, 1

Spatola 6, 2, 2, 2 3s

Roma 4, 2, 1

Legans 3, 7, 3, 4 stls, 2 blks

Nixon 2, 1, 1

Prewitt 2, 1, 0

Croshere 2, 1, 0

Team Stats

FG: 40-40%

Rebs: +5

Asts: +6

TOs: -12

Pts in paint: +12

2nd chance: +5

Fast break: +10

Post game observations

(+): Way to go with just 5 turnovers
(-): I would expect a better FG% especially playing at home

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