2011-2012 Utah State Aggies Basketball Preview

Utah State Aggies - Western Athletic Conference (WAC)

2010-11: 30-4, 15-1

2010-11 postseason: NCAA

Coach: Stew Morrill (324-103 at Utah State, 542-241 overall)

The departing seniors leave with four consecutive WAC titles in their pocket, but Utah State will keep the winning ways going. There is heavy turnover for Coach Stew Morrill, but this is not the first time he losses four starters and it will not be the last time. Coach Morrill has brought in a slew of new faces more often than most coaches have to and has done a superb job getting everything worked out very quickly. This may not be a team that goes 30-4 again, but they should win the WAC and get back to the NCAA Tournament.

Who’s Out:

Tai Wesley and Nate Bendall were the starting frontcourt last season and highlight the long list of departed players. Wesley has always been a dynamic scorer and he spent his senior season leading the Aggies with 14.8 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.1 blocks. Bendall did more of the dirty work in the paint. Much of his scoring was off of offensive rebounds, but he did do a very good job of clearing space for the scorers. Matt Formisano did not see too much playing time last season, but he has been around the block a few times and was always good for some quality minutes when needed. The backcourt does lose just as much as the frontcourt. Pooh Williams and Tyler Newbold started on the wing. Williams was a solid all-around scorer who could shoot and attack the basket. Newbold was more of a glue guy. He did average 6.8 points per game, but it was his ability to hit the glass and pass the ball that will be missed. Brian Green was a superb sixth man during his senior season, averaging 10.5 points per game and knocking down 46.9 percent of his attempts from long range. He always provided a spark off of the bench. The transfer of James Walker, who averaged about ten minutes per game last season, will not help the team depth.

Who’s In:

This is a long list. At point guard incoming freshman Sam Orchard will have some time to adjust to life at USU before being asked to play much. He is pretty much the only newcomer who has that luxury as the rest will compete for major minutes right away. Shooting guard Antonio Bumpus sat out last season after spending some time at the junior college ranks. He is a great scorer and that is what this team needs. Danny Berger, another junior college transfer, is a great shooter, but he may need some time to develop his game after spending the last two years on an LDS Church Mission. The battle at small forward will be an interesting one to watch. Mitch Bruneel has the experience after spending a year at the College of Southern Idaho. He is a quality scorer and a pretty good rebounder for a 6-5 wing. Freshmen Steven Thornton and Adam Thoseby will get an opportunity to compete with Bruneel for minutes. The newcomers up front are highlighted by Igor Premasunac. He did not put up huge numbers during his junior college career, but he is a big and tough player under the basket. Kyisean Reed, another juco guy, is a bigger scoring threat at this point in his career. Ben Clifford, David Collette and Jordan Stone are all freshmen who could play a few minutes here and there if they are ready.

Final Projection:

The frontcourt has a few more issues to address, but Brady Jardine is a fine player to build around. The 6-7 senior averaged 7.5 points and 7.0 rebounds last season, despite averaging just over 21 minutes per game. He has the potential to become the interior scoring force this team needs. Even if his scoring production does not increase dramatically, he is a proven rebounder and a pretty good shot blocker. Morgan Grim will have to battle it out with the newcomers for playing time after seeing limited action in 2010-2011. It would be easy to write off Utah State because they lose so many players, but this is a system team. They reload and Coach Morrill will have these guys playing great basketball by the time conference play rolls around.

Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA

Projected Starting Five:

• Brockeith Pane, Senior, Guard, 11.8 points per game

• Antonio Bumpus, Junior, Guard, DNP last season

• Mitch Bruneel, Sophomore, Forward, DNP last season

• Brady Jardine, Senior, Forward, 7.5 points per game

• Igor Premasunac, Junior, Forward, DNP last season

By Joel Welser courtesy of www.CollegeSportsMadness.com
CollegeSports-fans.com Senior Basketball Writer

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