Liberty 2009 CIT Tournament Preview

Liberty Flames - Big South (21-11, 15-3)

RPI: 151

Big Wins: 11/25 at Virginia (86-82), 12/1 George Mason (69-66), 1/17 at VMI (91-80)

Bad Losses: 1/3 at Winthrop (57-59), 1/5 at Presbyterian (66-67), 2/4 at Gardner-Webb (90-95)

Coach: Ritchie McKay

Probable Liberty Starters:

• Jesse Sanders, Freshman, Guard, 6.5 ppg, 4.2 apg, 5.2 rpg

• Seth Curry, Freshman, Guard, 20.6 ppg, 2.4 apg, 4.3 rpg

• Anthony Smith, Senior, Guard, 17.1 ppg, 2.1 apg, 6.6 rpg

• Kyle Ohman, Junior, Guard, 14.2 ppg, 2.6 apg, 5.4 rpg

• Brolin Floyd, Freshman, Guard, 6.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg

Key Liberty Roleplayers:

• Tyler Baker, Junior, Forward, 4.7 ppg, 2.4 rpg

• James Spencer, Sophomore, Guard, 1.0 ppg, 1.2 rpg

• Johnny Stephene, Freshman, Guard, 3.8 ppg, 1.6 apg

Why Liberty Can Surprise:

If there was another Curry, everybody would recruit him. Like his brother, Seth Curry went under the radar out of high school and ended up at a smaller school. And like his brother, the younger Curry is tearing up the college basketball world. As a freshman, Curry is averaging 20.6 points per game for Liberty. He hits three three-pointers per game and will always find a way to score. This Curry is even a solid defender and passer and a decent rebounder.

But there are other scoring threats on this team too. Anthony Smith and Kyle Ohman are both effective shooters who connect on at least two three-pointers per game. Smith is the more aggressive player who will attack the basket. At 6-5, he is also a solid rebounder. Ohman is more of a shooting specialist and he connects on an amazing 42.4 percent of his attempts from long range. Those three combine to average 51.9 points per game. Nobody else on the team averages more than seven.

Why The Flames Can Disappoint:
The top six minute earners on the team are listed as guards. Coach Ritchie McKay has started a five guard lineup almost all year long. There are some decent rebounders on this team for guards, but they will still get outrebouned on a regular basis. Tyler Baker is the only forward who sees any major playing time and he averages just a dozen minutes per game. At 6-9 and 215 pounds Baker can make an impact under the basket, but the Flames would rather play quick when they can do so without getting dominated in the paint.

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Who To Watch:
Jesse Sanders is the man who makes this team tick. The 6-3 freshman dishes out 4.2 assists per game and rarely turns the ball over. The efficiency he provides on the offensive end of the floor makes up for the poor rebounding. Sanders is not much of a shooter, but he does average 6.5 points per game and can score if his team needs him to do so. However, Sanders is struggling with an injured ankle. Sanders missed the last three games of the regular season and unsuccessfully returned for the Big South conference tournament where he just logged a few minutes before being sent back to the sidelines. The time off before the tournament will help, but it remains to be seen if Sanders will be back at full strength. If he is not, the Liberty offense is far less effective.

Liberty By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 75.8 (52nd in nation, 3rd in conference)

Scoring Defense: 70.9 (253, 4)

Field-Goal Percentage: 45.5 (86, 2)

Field-Goal Defense: 43.1 (154, 5)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 9.3 (6, 2)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 36.1 (88, 1)

Free-Throw Percentage: 71.4 (88, 2)

Rebound Margin: -1.8 (250, 7)

Assists Per Game: 15.2 (52, 4)

Turnovers Per Game: 13.0 (91, 1)

By Joel Welser
CollegeSports-fans.com Senior Basketball Writer

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