The Town Crier

[PointGuard 70]

First Half Dooms Penguins

By Steve Porter

 

Neither Cleveland State nor Youngstown State scored in the first 3 minutes of play last night.  At that point the Penguins hit a shot but then went scoreless for another 10 minutes leaving them with a 19-2 deficit.  The Penguins hit 1 of 15 shots during the first 13 minutes of play.  During that period both teams turned the ball over 8 times.  Things didn’t improve for the Penguins the rest of the half and they left the court with their heads hanging and trailing Cleveland State by a dismal 37-8 score. 

 

During those atrocious 20 minutes, Youngstown State made just 3 of 24 field goal attempts, 0 of 7 from 3 point distance, and only 2 of 6 from the free throw line.  They also had 11 turnovers and were outrebounded 22-13. 

 

As one Penguins fan was overheard to decry, “THAT was the worst play I’ve ever seen by a college team for an entire half.  And if the Vikings had played well, we’d be behind by 50 points instead of just, did I really say just, 29 points.”

 

The Penguins came out in the 2^nd half and missed their first 3 shots.  They then played better but never could get closer than 18 and were walloped 61-43. 

 

While Youngstown State shot better in the 2^nd half, they still finished the game hitting just 29% of their field goals, 13% of their 3’s, and 50% of their free throws.  The team’s ineptitude for the evening was exemplified by starters SG Josh Jones and SF Chad Delzell who combined to score on just 2 of 22 shots.  The only player to have a strong game was PF/C Jamal Grady who hit 7 of 11 shots, scoring 15 points and pulling down 11 rebounds.

 

Coach K.D. Durst said, “Play by both teams was ugly and ineffective early.  But we were unable to shake the infection throughout the entire first half.  This is a game we just need to put out of our memories and prepare for our upcoming game against Milwaukee.”

 

The loss dropped the Penguins Horizon League record to 7-6 and they sank to sole possession of 4^th place in the league, one game behind the three teams tied for first and one game ahead of five teams tied for fifth place.

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins Pass Panthers
By Steve Porter

Youngstown State trailed the Milwaukee Panthers throughout most of the first half and went to the locker room on the short end of a 46-41 score. Jamal Grady led the scoring for the Penguins with 9 points.

The lead shifted back and forth for the first 6 minutes of the 2nd half, but then after a total of 14 lead changes and 7 ties, the Penguins began to pull away and won going away 95-78. The Penguins dropped in 51% of their field goal attempts, 67% of their 3’s and 93% of their free throws, a complete turn-around from the debacle of their last game. They also out-rebounded the Panthers 38-25.

C Steven Puzey dropped in 20 points, PG Ryan Surpin didn’t miss a shot enroute to his 16 points, PF/C Jamal Grady scored 15, and SG Josh Jones added 10.

PF/C Jamal Grady was named the Horizon League Freshman Player of the Week based on his scoring 30 points and pulling down 14 rebounds in the two games played by Youngstown State this week.

[PointGuard 70]

Topping individual stats through Youngstown State’s first 24 games are:

PPG: C Steven Puzey, 11.3; PG Ryan Surpin, 11.3; PF/C Jamal Grady, 10.8; SG Josh Jones, 10.3

RPG: C Steven Puzey, 5.8; SF Chad Delzell, 5.0; PF/C Jamal Grady, 4.7; PF Kareem Toole, 4.4

APG: PG Ryan Surpin, 4.0; SG Josh Jones, 2.5, PG Tim Lostetter, 2.2; SG Jermaine Harrington, 1.7

[PointGuard 70]

First Half Again Dooms Penguins
By Steve Porter

After leading the Detroit Titans throughout much of the first half, Youngtown State’s defense totally disappeared and let the Titans roar ahead to take a 60-42 halftime lead. Detroit hit 68% of their shots. For the Penguins, C Steven Puzey scored 14 points.

The Penguins pecked away at the lead in the 2nd half, but could never get closer than 8 points and feel to the Titans 89-79. The loss dropped the Penguins into sole possession of 4th place in the Horizon League. 

C Steven Puzey had a big game, scoring 28 points. SF Chad Delzell hit for 13 and PG Tim Lostetter dropped in 12 points.

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins Defense Again Porous
By Steve Porter

Weak first half defense again cost Youngstown State. The Oakland Golden Grizzlies knocked down 54% of their shots to post a 45-35 halftime advantage. SG Josh Jones had 8 points to lead the Penguins offensively.

The Penguins let Oakland pull out to a 24 point lead midway through the 2nd half. While Youngstown State was able to cut into the lead, there just wasn’t enough time to make a serious run. Oakland won 81-71. Oakland hit 51% of their shots in the game. The Penguins have lost 6 of their last 8 games and are now mired in a 3-way tie for 4th place in the Horizon League. 

SG Josh Jones scored 19, PF/C Jamal Grady has 12, and C Steven Puzey added 10 for the Penguins. SG Josh Angner scored 21 points for Oakland.

[PointGuard 70]

Covering a winning team earlier this season for the newspaper was sure a lot more fun that covering the losing team that's been around the last several games. Almost makes me wish I had picked a different profession. Coach Durst has been rather surly as well and not talkative at all.

In addition, I met Claire, a woman who seemed like a good potential to replace Lynn, the girl friend I lost a couple months ago. But I then found out that Claire is allergic to dogs. There's no way I'm getting rid of my golden retriever, Max...so bye-bye Claire.

Not only that but I thought I had a big Lotto win this week. I began planning how I would spend all the money I was going to get. It turns out I was looking at my previous week's ticket which was a bust THAT week. Just wish I had used the same numbers THIS week. So my bank account remains in a condition where I have to be careful not to bounce checks.

[PointGuard 70]

Winter Blues
By Steve Porter

Just a month ago it seemed to be an incredible turn-around year for Youngstown State under the helm of new coach K.D. Durst. The Penguins were then 12-6, riding a 5-game win streak, and sitting atop the Horizon League standings.

What a difference a month makes. 2 wins and 6 losses during that month has made Coach Durst’s turn-around year seem to be “nice” rather than “incredible”. Yes, the Penguins have still won more games than they’ve lost (14-12). And yes, they no longer are at or near the bottom of the Horizon League (presently they are 8-8 and solidly in the middle of the pack).

But their six losses in the last 30 days have revealed glaring inadequacies. In each of the games either their offense has sputtered (in three of those losses they have averaged under 50 points) or a woeful defense has been exposed (in the other three losses their opponents have averaged almost 90 points). They’ve shown what they are: a team with some good players but no stars. No one who can carry them over the rough spots during the schedule. No one they can count upon to come up big each and every game to stabilize the team. And while Coach Durst has rightfully earned praise for developing a team with some relevance, he has not been able to fix whatever apparently ails the team. Instead the team has regularly found a way to lose rather than a way to win.

The Horizon League title is now impossible this season. With 3 games left (2 in the Horizon League), their upcoming “bracket buster” game against Wichita State is meaningless. The best they can do in their next three games is to “right the ship” and prepare for the League Tournament in hopes that they can pull off an unlikely run of victories in the Horizon Tourney which is their only chance to make the NCAA Tournament.

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins Shock Shockers
By Steve Porter

Last night’s “bracket buster” was really just a chance for one, rather than two, of the teams to impress the NCAA Tournament selection group. Wichita State was 15-11 this season and 9-7 in the Missouri Valley Conference. Unfortunately, Youngstown State’s recent swoon has left them out of contention for any at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.

The Penguins took an early 6-2 lead, but then a series of turnovers (7 in the first 4-1/2 minutes of play) led to a quick turn-around to put Wichita State on top. While the Youngstown Staters fought valiantly to keep in the game, they trailed 39-29 by the end of the half, primarily due to turning the ball over 16 times.

In the 2nd half Wichita State held the Penguins off, maintaining a double digit lead. But with 4 minutes to go, Youngstown State got within 7 at 62-55. Then two quick scores by the Penguins cut the lead to 62-59 with 3:19 remaining. The Shockers missed a shot and the Penguins worked the ball around, getting the ball into Steven Puzey, who stepped out and made a 12-foot turn-around jumper making it 62-61. Another miss by the Shockers gave the Penguins a chance to take the lead. A pass inside to Jamal Grady and he drove to the basket and was fouled with 2:17 on the clock. Grady made one of two and the game was tied at 62-62. Wichita State then made one of two foul shots to give them a one point lead. On the ensuing play after a time-out, Tim Lostetter cut around a pick for a shot in the key, but was fouled. He dropped in both free throws and Youngstown State took a 64-63 lead with 1:26 to play. Neither team could score on the next 3 possessions, but then with 27 seconds to play, Tim Lostetter drove on his man and pulled up to sink a 10 footer making it 66-63. The Shockers missed a 3-point shot, but tipped in the rebound to cut the lead to one. The Shockers then tried to steal rather than foul, freeing Ryan Surpin for a shot at the buzzer that fell through to give the Penguins an upset 68-65 victory.

Guards Ryan Surpin and Tim Lostetter scored 19 and 18 points, respectively while big men Steven Puzey and Jamal Grady each scored 10. SG Craig Sharp tossed in 20 for Wichita State.

During the post-game press conference, Coach Durst stated, “I was proud of how my guys hung in the game and then went for the jugular when the time was right. They hit some big shots and made key stops at the end. I thought we played well in all phases on the game tonight except for ball control. There’s no way to defend making 25 turnovers. We’d had some rough going recently and hadn’t played well. Sort of like newspaper journalists whose articles come up short and don’t reach the right conclusions. I think my guys wanted to prove our doubters wrong tonight.”

Well, OK Coach Durst! Touché! Congratulations to the Penguins on a big-time win.

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins and Norse Take It To The Wire
By Steve Porter

With reserve guard Lonnie Lott sidelined with a sprained toe, the Penguins were again short-handed at the guard positions as they hosted the Northern Kentucky Norse last night. In recognition of the strength of his recent play, Coach Durst started freshman Tim Lostetter at the point and moved Ryan Surpin to SG, thus benching Josh Jones who has been inconsistent lately.

After falling behind by 10 points, the Penguins reeled the Norse back in and took a lead late in the half to go to the break with a slim 48-46 advantage even though Northern Kentucky hit 58% of their shots. PG Ryan Surpin led all scorers with 12 points.

The lead was exchanged repeatedly throughout most of the second half, but the Norse took a 8 point lead with 2-1/2 minutes to play. Youngstown State cut the lead to 2 before Northern Kentucky scored from inside with 56 seconds to play putting them ahead 89-76. Tim Lostetter then hit 3 to cut the lead to 1 with 41 seconds remaining. Josh Jones blocked a shot and recovered the ball. After a time out, the Penguins designed play resulted in a miss and they fouled to stop the clock with 8 ticks remaining. The Norse made one of two shots. After gaining control of the subsequent rebound, the Penguins immediately called a time out. But with just one second remaining, they were unable to get a shot off and were defeated 81-79.

Again guards Ryan Surpin and Tim Lostetter led the team offensively with 19 and 18 points, respectively (same exact same number of points each has scored in the Penguins previous game). Surpin also grabbed 10 rebounds to record a double-double. Jamal Grady added 11 points.

The loss dropped Youngstown State into a 3-way tie for 5th place in the Horizon League.

After the game, Coach K.D. Durst expressed concerns about the end of the game, “I’m upset that the officials were late acknowledging our timeout request. Otherwise we could have had at least 2 more seconds to get off a final shot.”

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins Extinguish Flames

By Steve Porter

 

The Youngstown State Penguins took the floor last night without Coach K.D. Durst directing them.  Durst, who faulted the officials after the team’s last game and then blasted them further in a subsequent radio interview, was suspended by the league for the team’s final game of the regular season. 

 

Therefore, 1^st Assistant Coach Raymond Harrington led the team against the UIC Flames.  The Penguins played a controlled game in the first half.  After the lead switched back and forth during the first 8 minutes, the Penguins steadily carved out a lead that was 38-28 at the half.  Then in the 2^nd half, the Penguins hit their shots, finishing by dropping in 53% of their field goal attempts, to keep the Flames at bay.  Youngstown State came away with a resounding 80-66 road win.  The victory evened their Horizon League record at 9-9 so that they finished in a tie with Cleveland State for 5^th place.

 

SG Josh Jones stepped up to score 14 points and haul down 7 boards.  He was backed up by the inside duo of Steven Puzey and Jamal Grady who both scored 13.  Tim Lostetter scored 10 points.  For UIC, SG Dan Rucker scored 20.

 

Catching up with Coach Harrington after the game, he said, “I’d much rather have Coach Durst handling the reins during games.  But since he wasn’t allowed to be with us tonight, it really was fun making the decisions and working with the guys on our team.  They went out and made it easy for me by winning this for Coach D to show their appreciation for how he went to bat for them after last week’s loss.”

 

This year’s Horizon League Tournament is one big crap-shoot.  Even though the regular season title was won by Wisconsin-Green Bay, their 12-6 record didn’t reveal any type of dominance.  And even the teams that finished with 7-11 records have the ability to beat any other team on a given night.  So to try to predict a tournament champ is nigh impossible.  That means every team needs to put it all on the line in every game.

[PointGuard 70]

HORIZON LEAGUE TOURNAMENT RESULTS:

Horizon League Tourney Play-in Games:
UIC-73, Oakland-71
Detroit-74, Milwaukee-69

Horizon League Tourney Round One:
Wisconsin-Green Bay (#1 seed)-91, Detroit (#8 seed)-65
Valparaiso (#2 seed)-107, UIC (#7 seed)-105 (3 OT)
Wright St. (#3 seed)-72, Youngstown St. (#6 seed)-63
Cleveland St. (#5 seed)-82, Northern Kentucky (#4 seed)-67

Youngstown State tried to overcome the refs calling 12 fouls on them as compared to just 5 against Wright State in the first half. The two teams played nearly equally but free throws made the difference to give Wright State a 34-30 halftime lead. Both Jamal Grady for the Penguins and John Blanchard for the Raiders scored 17 points in the half.
 

The second half was nearly a duplication of the first. Free throws plus 26 points from the Raiders’ SG John Blanchard proved to be too much for the Penguins to overcome. Youngstown State went down to a 72-63 defeat. Jamal Grady scored 27 points and Josh Jones scored 10 plus pulled down 8 rebounds.

Horizon League Tourney Round Semi-Finals:
Wisconsin-Green Bay (#1 seed)-68, Cleveland St. (#5 seed)-66
Wright St. (#3 seed)-68, Valparaiso (#2 seed)-60

Horizon League Tourney Championship:
Wisconsin-Green Bay (#1 seed)-76, Wright St. (#3 seed)-65

[PointGuard 70]

Youngstown State Team Statistics:

Season Record: 16-14
League Record: 9-9
PPG: Penguins-70.8; Opponents-72.1
APG: Penguins-15.3; Opponents-16.7
RPG: Penguins-34.0; Opponents-31.8
SPG: Penguins-7.5; Opponents-6.9
BPG: Penguins-6.2; Opponents-5.8
TO: Penguins-15.2; Opponents-15.1

Youngstown State Player Statistics:

PPG: Puzey-11.6; Grady-11.3; Surpin-11.1; Jones-10.0; Lostetter-6.9; Delzell-6.7; Toole-4.4; Harrington-4.4; Braswell-4.2; Martin-2.3; Holt-1.6; Knight-1.4; Anderson-1.1
RPG: Puzey-5.6; Delzell-4.8; Grady-4.6; Toole-4.4; Jones-3.6; Surpin-3.6; Braswell-2.8; Harrington-2.3; Martin-1.8; Lostetter-1.6; Anderson-0.7; Holt-0.6; Knight-0.1
APG: Surpin-4.0; Jones-2.6; Lostetter-2.3; Harrington-1.7; Delzell-1.6; Grady-1.1; Puzey-1.1; Toole-0.8; Braswell-0.7; Martin-0.6; Holt-0.4; Knight-0.2; Anderson-0.0

[PointGuard 70]

Various excerpts from the Youngstown Vindicator:

NIT:

Alabama-79, Wright St.-56

NIT Championship: California-73, Kent St.-62

CBI:

Valparaiso-83, UNLV-65
Portland St.-83, Youngstown St.-75

In their opening game in the CBI Tournament against Portland State, the Penguins fell behind 19-7 after 7 minutes of play. The Penguins struck back to tie the game at 22-22 with 7-1/2 minutes left in the half. But the Vikings then exploded and pulled away to lead 45-37 at the half. PG Ryan Surpin led the scoring for the Penguins with 11 points, but SF Manny Cox hit for 17 for Portland State.

Midway through the 2nd half, Youngstown State cut the Vikings lead to 2 points. Three minutes later the Penguins cut the lead to a single point. Portland State was able to extend their lead again and the Penguins exited the tournament by a score of 83-75. The difference in the ball game was that Portland State got 12 more free throw attempts and scored 12 more points from the line than did the Penguins and two of Youngstown State’s starters fouled out early.

Ryan Surpin and Tim Lostetter scored 19 and 18 points respectively for the 3rd game this season. Chad Delzell hit for 12 and Steven Puzey scored 10. Manny Cox finished with 22 points for the Vikings.

Portland St.-63, Valparaiso-53

CBI Championship: St. Francis (NY)-64, Kentucky-57

CIT:

CIT Championship: Northern Arizona-98, Kennesaw St.-84

NCAA Tourney:

#1 Seeds: Indiana (29-3); Wake Forest (24-7); Florida (28-5); Temple (27-4)
Wisconsin-Green Bay (#13 seed)

Georgia-71, Wisconsin-Green Bay-62

NCAA Championship: Louisville-84, Oregon-60

[PointGuard 70]

Youngstown State’s Post-Season News
By Steve Porter

Senior C Steven Puzey has been named to the Horizon All-Conference 2nd Team. Puzey led the Penguins in scoring and rebounding and played solid defense. Puzey said, "I'm honored to be selected. It's a nice way to finish my collegiate career here." Puzey later indicated he had no plans to pursue any further basketball activities since he has accepted an advertising position at Jensen Manufacturing after he graduates later this mon

Today the Athletic Department announced that Steve Simmons has been promoted from 2nd Assistant to 1st Assistant Coach and will remain in charge of recruiting. Two new coaches have been added for the upcoming season. A. D. Kenna has been hired as 2nd Assistant in charge of practice and Kirk Smith has been hired as 3rd Assistant and will handle scouting activities for the Penguins.

The 4th scholarship available this season was not filled. Apparently the high flyers that Youngstown State was pursuing were not sufficiently interested to accept scholarship offers. By the end of April, the team’s recruiting budget was fully expended limiting their last-minute efforts to fill the scholarship. Coach Durst indicated that the team will look closely at available transfer players and will go that route to fill the available scholarship if there is a good fit. Durst said, "We're looking forward to taking a close look at the many transfer players who will be looking for new schools to attend. While we're confident we can get a good transfer player, should that not work out, it just means we will have two scholarships to offer next season rather than one."

[PointGuard 70]

PENGUINS PREPARING FOR 2017-2018 SEASON
By Steve Porter

The Athletic Department announced that PG Linehan Murphy has transferred from Boston University to the Penguins. The 5’7” Murphy is from Worcester, Massachusetts and was a part-time starter in his freshman year at Boston. He will have to sit out a year but will be a sophomore eligibility-wise when he is eligible to play in the 2018-2019 season.

 

Steve Simmons, who now is 1st Assistant Coach, advised that even though they only have one scholarship to offer this season, they’ve been working hard to land the best available recruit they can. “We’d really like to gain a player who can come right in and contribute in a big way next season,” said Simmons, “But even though Coach Durst turned things around for the Penguins last season, we still don’t have the reputation that gets star players easily attracted to coming our way.”

[PointGuard 70]

Youngstown State Lands Recruit
By Steve Porter

Youngstown State’s Athletic Department announced that William Swan from Huron, Ohio has given a verbal acceptance for a scholarship to play for the Penguins’ basketball team next season. Swan is a 6’0” shooting guard who averaged 15.6 ppg as a junior last season for Huron High School. Steve Simmons, the Penguins recruiting coach, said, “We’re extremely pleased to have William coming to play for us. He’s has an outstanding jump shooter from outside but also can put the ball on the floor and drive to the basket. We expect him to put a lot of points on the board for us. He’s also got some great athleticism and plays solid defense.” While ranked higher earlier in the summer, Swan presently is ranked as the 276th best recruit nationally. Don Pardoe, Huron High School’s coach, praised Swan profusely, “William’s a very hard worker who has developed into a player who carries our team.” Swan will fill Youngstown State’s lone scholarship that they can offer this season.

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins 2017-2018 Season Beginning
By Steve Porter

The Youngstown State basketball season kicks off Tuesday when the Penguins travel to Connecticut to take on the Hartford Hawks. Other pre-conference games include away games against Loyola-Chicago, Pacific, North Alabama, Elon, and Stony Brook and home games against Ohio, George Mason, and Wichita State. 

The Penguins had 3 starters from last season graduate and are picked to finish in 5th place in the Horizon League this season.

It’s anticipated the starting lineup this season will be:
PG Tim Lostetter, 5-6 sophomore who averaged 6.9 ppg last season
SG Josh Jones, 6-0 senior who averaged 10.0 ppg last season
SF Chad Delzell, 6-8 junior who averaged 6.7 ppg last season
PF Rich Braswell, 6-6 junior who averaged 4.2 ppg last season
C Jamal Grady, 6-10 sophomore who averaged 11.3 ppg last season
Reserves include:
Guards Levall Hart (6-3 So.) and Lonnie Holt (6-4 Jr.)
Small Forwards Rick Martin (6-6 Jr.) and William Worley (6-8 redshirt Fr.)
Power Forwards Aaron Tice (6-6 Fr.) and Charlie Praben (6-6 So.)
Centers Kent Jones (6-7 Fr.) and Kevin Anderson (6-8 So.)
B.J. Dennis has been redshirted and Linehan Murphy is sitting out the year due to having transferred.

Coach K.D. Durst said, “We have a young team this season and a pretty inexperienced bench. We had some good practices this past month and the guys worked hard so hopefully we develop quickly.”

[PointGuard 70]

A Tale of Two Halves
By Steve Porter

Traveling to Hartford, Connecticut, the season started poorly for the Penguins. It took over 4 minutes for the team to score. By that point, Hartford had a 9-0 lead and the Penguins had missed all 5 of their field goal attempts and had 3 turnovers. Two free throws by Aaron Tice finally put the Penguins on the board. But the team didn’t make their first field goal attempt until the 14:41 mark of the first half. Hitting just 24% of their first half shots, Youngstown State trailed the Hawks 37-25 at the break.

The Penguins defense stymied the Hawks, allowing the Penguins to take a 43-42 lead after 7 minutes of play in the 2nd half. With 6:15 remaining in the game, Youngstown State’s lead had grown to 57-50. The Penguins then put the Hawks away with a potent offense and a stalwart defense, pulling away for a 74-56 beatdown of Hartford. The Penguins outscored Hartford 49-19 in the 2nd half.

Youngstown State’s 2nd half turn-around resulted in the Penguins holding a 38-27 rebounding edge, a 47% to 35% shooting advantage, and hitting 22 of 25 free throws. SG Josh Jones scored 16 points (all in the 2nd half) and pulled down 8 rebounds. PF Aaron Tice hit for 14 points and PF Rich Bramwell added 12 points plus had 7 rebounds. Centers Jamal Grady and Kent Jones combined for 17 points and 7 boards.

Josh Jones admitted, “At halftime Coach Durst really blistered us for our poor play. He then exited the locker room so that we as a team were left to get together to commit to turning things around. That led to our coming out on fire when we took the court in the 2nd half. We all pulled together both offensively and defensively for the entire 20 minutes.”

Youngstown State (1-0) now travels to Chicago to take on the Loyola-Chicago Ramblers (0-1) Friday night.

[PointGuard 70]

Tough Loss For Penguins
By Steve Porter

Youngstown State held a small lead throughout much of the first half, but then the refs put all 5 starters on the bench with 2 fouls apiece. Loyola-Chicago then pulled ahead to take a 35-29 halftime advantage. 

The game stayed close in the 2nd half. With 46 seconds remaining and Loyola-Chicago holding a 67-65 lead, the Ramblers threw the ball away. The Penguins missed a 3-point shot and then were unable to foul because they had too few fouls to put the Ramblers on the line. Loyola-Chicago hit a 3 to ice the game 70-65.

Leading scorers for the Penguins were C Jamal Grady with 16 points and SG Josh Jones with 10.

PF Aaron Tice was selected as the Horizon League’s Freshman Player of the Week. Tice scored 20 points and pulled down 6 rebounds in his first two games for Youngstown State.

[PointGuard 70]

Youngstown State Drops Another Close Game
By Steve Porter

The Penguins had trouble scoring early in the half and fell behind by double figures quickly. They made a few runs that got them close to the Ohio Bobcats but never caught up and at the end of the first half, they trailed 34-26. Ohio hit 52% of their shots compared to just 25% by Youngstown State. The Bobcats also out-rebounded the Penguins 21-13. Ohio’s PG Brandon Hayes, who came into the gave averaging 17.3 ppg, scored 12 in the half. 

Both teams came out hitting their shots in the 2nd half. But in the first four minutes of the 2nd half, Youngstown State cut the Bobcats lead to 43-40. With 8:27 remaining, Jamal Grady was fouled on a breakaway and sank both free throws to knot the score at 49-49. Then with 7:30 on the clock, Levall Hart dropped in a 12-foot jumper to give the Penguins their first lead of the game, 53-52. But then the Penguins’ shooting let them down, and they dropped their season home-opener by a score of 67-63. Another tough loss that left their season record at 1-2. The Bobcats had a 41-25 rebounding advantage while the Penguins held a 26-12 turnover advantage. But ultimately it was the Penguins’ 35% shooting from the field compared with the Bobcats’ converting 48% of their shots that made the difference.

PG Tim Lostetter tossed in 20 points and dished out 7 assists to lead the Penguins. SG Lonnie Holt hit for 12 and C Jamal Grady scored 11 and had 4 steals plus 3 blocks.

Coach K.D. Durst said, “I was proud of how my guys came back in the second half, but we failed to attack the boards which gave them too many opportunities. We had a chance at the end of the game to win it, but let it slip away. We need to nail down these close games.”

[PointGuard 70]

Youngstown State Offensively Impotent
By Steve Porter

Even though the Penguins defense was solid in the first half, their offense wasn’t able to generate enough points and they trailed 30-26 at the break. SF Chad Delzell scored 6 points and had 5 rebounds in the half.

Pacific scored 10 unanswered points to in the first 1-1/2 minutes of the 2nd half. Without being able to ignite their offense, Youngstown State never threatened. The Penguin defense fell apart in the latter portions of the 2nd half and they suffered a 69-48 shellacking. The loss dropped their season record to 1-3.

Youngstown State his just 31% of their field goal attempts and had 19 turnovers. PF Rich Braswell, SF Chad Delzell and PG Tim Lostetter each scored 8 points. Delzell also pulled down 9 rebounds.

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins Rebound
By Steve Porter

The 1-3 Youngstown State Penguins took their 3-game losing streak down south to take on the Northern Alabama Lions who were 3-1 and sporting a 3-game win streak. Four Lions’ starters were averaging in double figures.

The Penguins scored 20 points, including 11 points by SF Chad Delzell, in the first 5 minutes of play and led by 13. Youngstown State finished the half ahead 45-35. They hit 55% of their shots and were +16 in rebounds. The only negatives affecting them in the half were 12 turnovers and early foul trouble by both of their starting interior players.

The 2nd half was pretty much a replay of the previous half. The Penguins stomped the Lions 89-71. Youngstown State held a 51% to 39% shooting advantage and a 46-27 rebounding advantage.

The Penguins were led by SF Chad Delzell who scored 17 and pulled down 12 rebounds. SG Lonnie Holt also scored 17 points while PG Tim Lostetter hit for 16, C Jamal Grady dropped in 15, and PF Aaron Tice added 10.

[PointGuard 70]

Evaluating the Penguins
By Steve Porter

Although it’s early in the season, a look at the Youngstown State basketball squad indicates the team needs to develop and mature if it is to be competitive in the Horizon League this season. While the team has shot very well from the free throw line (81%), their shooting from the field has been extremely inconsistent. As a team they’ve hit just 41% of their field goal attempts. Even more disconcerting has been their effectiveness from beyond the arc. They have knocked down just 24% of their 3-point attempts. But their opponents have not fared much better: 42% from the field including 33% of their 3-point attempts. On a positive front, the team is out-rebounding their opponents by more than 2 rpg and they have made 2-1/2 less turnovers per game than their opponents. Thus far the Penguins have averaged 67.8 ppg while their opponents have averaged 66.6 ppg.

Here's a quick position-by-position look at how players have performed thus far:

Point Guard: 

Tim Lostetter is averaging 25.6 mpg, 10.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg, and 4.4 apg. He’s hitting 37% of his FG attempts and just 18% of his 3’s. Levall Hart is his backup with 9.6 mpg, 2.4 ppg, 1.4 rpg, and 0.8 apg. He has hit just 27% of his FG’s and 25% of his 3’s. While adequate, neither is yet a standout. But both are sophomores so there is hope for substantial development and maturity as the season progresses.

Shooting Guard:

Senior Josh Jones, a second year starter, has yet to play up to his level of last season. While playing 26.0 mpg, he’s averaging just 7.8 ppg and hitting only 32% of his FG’s and 17% of his 3’s. On the positive side he is averaging 5.0 rpg and 2.2 apg. Meanwhile Lonnie Holt has been a pleasant surprise. Rarely used last season, the junior has played 14.4 mpg and averaged 8.2 ppg, hitting 54% of his FG’s and 44% of his 3’s. But he’s only pulled down 0.6 rpg and dished out 0.4 apg. He’s been a valuable reserve and is developing into a valuable 6th man who can come in and provide a quick offensive spark. Together the two are contributing 16 ppg.

Small Forward:

Chad Delzell returns as a second-year starter and is the team's top rebounder. He is averaging 25.2 mpg, 7.4 ppg, 7.0 rpg, and 1.4 apg. He is shooting well from the field (46%), although his 20% from 3-point distance is subpar. His 17 points and 12 rebounds in the Penguins’ last game reveals he can be dominant, but he has also disappeared in a few games. Another junior Rick Martin is Delzell’s relief. Martin’s play has been inconsistent, but he’s averaging 14.4 mpg, 4.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg, and 0.8 apg. While he’s not a strong rebounder like Delzell, Martin has hit 50% of his FG’s and 40% of his 3’s. The Penguins could use a little more offensive output at this position.

Power Forward:

While junior Rich Braswell has started 4 of the team’s 5 games at this position, freshman Aaron Tice, who has started the other game, has been on the court a little more time. Braswell is averaging 17.6 mpg and Tice 19.4 mpg. Braswell averaged 5.6 ppg while Tice hits for 6.4 ppg. Braswell has knocked down 42% of this FG’s and Tice 46%. Neither has attempted a 3-pointer. Braswell is the stronger rebounder (4.8 rpg) to Tice’s 3.6 rpg. Braswell has 0.8 apg and Tice 0.6 apg. As Tice develops, he is likely to get an even higher percentage of playing time.

Center:

Jamal Grady played well as a freshman last year, moving into the starting lineup midway through last season. This year he is averaging 23.0 mpg, 10.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg, and 2.0 apg. He is only scoring on 41% of his FG attempts and hasn’t shot a 3-pointer. Expected to star on the team this season, his performance thus far is close but not quite as strong as last season. The Penguins need him to be more aggressive on the boards. Freshman Kent Jones has been his main backup. Jones is averaging 11.0 mpg, 3.2 ppg, 1.4 rpg, and 0.4 apg. So there’s a drop off in performance when Grady is off the court, but Jones should develop as the season progresses.

Bit Players:

Freshman small forward William Worley and two walk-on sophomores, center Kevin Anderson and power forward Charlie Paben, have combined to play about 9 mpg and score 1.2 ppg.

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins Pound Patriots
By Steve Porter

Early in the game, the Penguins took a 6-point lead over visiting George Mason (3-1). But the Patriots hit shots from all over the court and spurted ahead in the middle of the first half and took a 10-point lead. Youngstown State recovered and moved ahead late in the half to come away with a 45-42 halftime advantage. Both teams hit over 50% of their shots, but the Penguins were +9 in rebounds. SG Josh Jones had a big half with 17 points and C Jamal Grady scored 11 and had 5 rebounds and 4 steals.

Youngstown State scored the first 7 points in the 2nd half to give them a double-digit lead. Again the Patriots made a run to cut the lead to 61-58 with 12 minutes to play. As fouls piled up on both teams, George Mason overtook the Penguins 71-70 with 5:16 remaining. On the following possession Jamal Grady scored on a reverse layup and was fouled. He converted the free throw to put the Penguins back on top 73-71. The score was knotted at 73 and then 75, but the Penguins scored the final 10 points to notch a resounding 85-75 victory that evened their season record at 3-3.

Youngstown State completely dominated the boards 42-21. C Jamal Grady scored 23, pulled down 9 rebounds and had 5 steals. SG Josh Jones finished with 21 points and PF Aaron Tice added 11 points. For George Mason, PG John Reed scored 20 points.

Coach K. D. Durst said, “Both teams played all-out tonight. I was really pleased to see how our guys hung in against a tough team like George Mason. Each time it looked like the Patriots might pull away, we struck back to regain the lead. Grady and Jones gave us a great inside-outside game but we had solid play from everyone tonight.”

[PointGuard 70]

Penguins Bewitch Wichita State
By Steve Porter

Last season the Penguins came away with a thrilling come-from-behind victory at the end of their “bracket buster” game against the Wichita State Shockers. As a result of that contest, Youngstown State was able to induce the Shockers to come to Youngstown for a game last night. Both teams had 3-3 records coming into the game. As they were last year, C Jason Wheeler, averaging 16.3 ppg and 8.0 rpg this season, has led the Shockers’ attack. Before last night’s game Penguins’ Coach K. D. Durst opined, “Wheeler is going to be tough for us to handle. We’ve just got to keep him from exploding.”

The Penguins came out in an attack mode, forging a 9-2 lead in the first 3 minutes of play. Their lead was expanded to 10 points with 13 minutes left in the first half, but 3 Penguins’ starters had been relegated to the bench due to foul trouble. Ten minutes into the game, Youngstown led 24-9. The Shockers cut the lead to 4 points several times, but the Penguins were able to pull away each time. The half ended with Youngstown State ahead 45-37. The Penguins outshot Wichita State 52%-37% and had just 5 turnovers compared to 11 by the Shockers. C Jamal Grady led the scoring for Youngstown State with 10 points.

The Penguins maintained a lead in the 2nd half until the Shockers tied the game at 61-61 with 8 minutes to go. Youngstown State rallied to retake a 76-63 lead just 3-1/2 minutes later. The Penguins continued to control the game to come away with an impressive 87-74 victory. The biggest contributing factor to the Penguins win was a 26-11 turnover advantage.

C Jamal Grady hit for 20, PF Aaron Tice had 17 (along with 3 steals and 2 blocks), and SG Josh Jones scored 13. For Wichita State, C Jason Wheeler lived up to expectations, scoring 21 points while pulling down 12 rebounds and dishing out 4 assists.

After the game, Coach Durst said, “I was impressed by how focused the guys were tonight. They were intent on winning this one and absolutely would not let the Shockers take a lead. While as a coach, you can never sit back against a team like Wichita State, it was fun to watch our guys play their hearts out. It was a real team effort.”

Youngstown State’s offense has come alive during their 3-game win streak. The team has scored 85, 87 and 89 points in those three games.

The Horizon League named C Jamal Grady Player of the Week and PF Aaron Tice Freshman Player of the Week.