Gopher Basketball
What is nice about a 40-minute inter-squad scrimmage is there is enough playing time for everyone to get a good long look at where they are. Here is a breakdown of our thoughts of each players performance.
Gold Team
Jonathan Williams: As soon as you see Williams it is evident that he is in tremendous shape and is ready to log important minutes for the Gophers this season. After struggling with his weight the last few years and battling injuries (this was probably connected), Jonathan is noticeably thinner and with that, the athleticism that he showed in high school is back. He wasn’t a force on offense tonight (although he did hit a 12-foot jumper and finished with about eight points) his presence was felt on the defensive end and on the boards. It will be important for him to back-up Spencer Tollackson this year and he showed he’s capable of doing just that. He is only a freshman (although he’s two years removed from high school) so he’ll still experience some growing pains, but he is physically ready to bang in the Big Ten.
Brandon Smith: Brandon seemed to be the talk of Section 105 tonight as he was impressive. He has a body that is ready to compete in the Big Ten right off the bat and tonight showed the maturity and confidence usually reserved for a junior, let alone a true freshman that hasn’t played organized basketball in a year. Brandon will not log a ton of minutes this year as he’s backing up an impressive duo in Grier and Hargrow, but if tonight was an indication, the Gophers should feel very confident when he’s in the game and should expect big things from him over the next four years. Brandon finished with 14 points.
Dan Coleman: The nice thing about Dan’s game tonight was that he did not linger on the outside like he has a tendency to do. He put the ball on the floor, played with his back to the basket and hit the boards. Dan finished with 13 points and seems ready to build on his solid freshman season.
Zach Puchtel: Zach played double-duty tonight as he played for both teams. Zach is a guy that plays bigger than he is. He hits the boards hard, boxes out with the best of them, doesn’t avoid contact and is a reliable and smart player (heck, he’ll be a Harvard grad in two years!). I think Zach will earn legitimate minutes this season as he will be looked upon to spell Stamper, Coleman or the young freshman centers if they get injured or in foul trouble. He won’t log a ton of minutes but I won’t be surprised to see him draw an important charge at some point this year. This program will always have room for a Zach Puchtel.
Adam Boone: As he’s shown in the past, Adam Boone can be a dangerous outside threat. After a year on the shelf for a devastating injury, the programs elder statesmen hit five three-pointers and finished with 19 points. He also created his own shot off the dribble once and nailed a jumper with a defender in his face. He needs to have these games in the Big Ten season, but tonight was a good start.
Ryan Saunders: Ryan hit a nice three-pointer tonight and brings consistent energy when he’s on the floor. He is a smart player that will push his teammates in practice.
Moe Hargrow: Moe was outstanding tonight on both ends of the floor. He was also great in transition and had a number of nice passes off of penetrations and on fast breaks. He finished with 18 points and probably had the best all-around game. It will be a blast watching he and Grier on the same team together. His shot was a little flat as the game wore on, but he appears to be poised for a great senior season.
Maroon Team:
Rico Tucker: Rico appears to be getting his legs back underneath him. He had a few nice dunks in the warm-ups which is a sign he’s getting back to normal. He struggled a bit from the outside tonight, but did a better job limiting turnovers and played tough defense all night. He was also solid from the free-throw line and finished with nine points.
Lawrence McKenzie: Lawrence is a hot and cold shooter, but when he gets on fire he can be very dangerous. He didn’t penetrate as much as I would have liked and still has a ways to go to be a stereotypical point guard, but he has a full season to learn this, and will no doubt have some special shooting nights at The Barn in the next few years. He finished with 11 points.
J’son Stamper: If Stamper had an injured hamstring, it certainly was not evident tonight. He hit his free throws as usual and grabbed a few rebounds that no one saw coming. Stamper looks like he’s ready to lead by example again and epitomizes what playing tough is all about. He finished with just six points, but he looked healthy and looks like he’s ready to rebound against the big boys of the Big Ten.
Vincent Grier: Vincent was a little sluggish tonight and seemed quiet at times, but continues to take over the game at will and finished with a game high 21 points. Tonight wasn’t the best he’s played, but that’s a compliment as he still finished with 21 points. It seemed like his teammates may have relied on him a bit too much, but that’s not a worry as he and Hargrow will be a tough combination to stop. Grier is a special player.
Spencer Tollackson: “œWake me up before you go go?” Come on Spencer ““ is that the best you can do for introduction music? All kidding aside, Spencer is a true program guy and his energy and passion are contagious. Like Williams, Spencer is in outstanding shape. That is very important as we’ll need at least 20 minutes per game out of him. He had a few nice passes (as usual) and ran the floor very well (also as usual). He finished with 12 points and grabbed a number of nice rebounds. I don’t recall if he went to the free throw line or not, so I can’t provide an update on this area of his game.
Jamal Abu-Shamala: Jamal showed his athleticism during the dunk contest as he threw down a few nice ones. He also showed his shooting touch in the second half as he nailed a three-pointer and another nice jumper.
Damian Johnson and Kevin Payton:
Both participated in warm-ups but did not play in the scrimmage. There are rumblings that both players could redshirt this season. Johnson is hitting the weights more than his Gopher teammates in an attempt to put on extra weight on his frame.
Recruiting and other notes:
The Barnyard did a nice job with a number of signs for Gopher recruit, Cole Aldrich, who was in attendance. Also in attendance was future Gopher, Al Nolen and his new teammate Robert Eppinger. In addition, Armond Battle a 6-7 prep from Benilde-St. Margaret’s who the Gopher coaches have become very impressed with and are showing a lot of early interest in (he’s in the Class of 2008) was also in attendance.
Also in attendance were a few former Gophers including Rob Schoenrock (who had his newborn son, Caleb, with him), Aaron Robinson, Jeff Hagen and Brent Lawson.