- November 12th, 2008, 10:41 pm
#208466
Radford Highlanders (Last Season: 10-20; 5-9, 7th in Big South; Lost in First Round of Big South Tournament; RPI - 309)
Head Coach: Brad Greenberg (2nd season at RU)
Players that are Returning:
G Martell McDuffy, Sr. (6'4", 187 lbs) – 14.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 1.4 spg, 43.0 FG%, 34.8 3PT% (46 made threes), 68.8 FT%
G Kenny Thomas, Sr. (6'3", 182 lbs) – 14.3 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 45.6 FG%, 35.2 3PT% (51 made threes), 78.6 FT%
G Amir Johnson, Jr. (5'9", 193 lbs) – 13.3 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 5.5 apg, 1.9 spg, 37.3 FG%, 34.4 3PT% (42 made threes), 67.7 FT%
F/C Joey Lynch-Flohr, Jr. (6'8", 221 lbs) – 11.6 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 53.5 FG%, 0 made threes, 73.5 FT%
F Eric Hall, Sr. (6'8", 203 lbs) – 5.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.4 bpg, 47.3 FG%, 33.3 3PT% (1 made three), 69.4 FT%
F Philip Martin, Jr. (6'6", 190 lbs) – 4.0 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 53.0 FG%, 20.0 3PT% (3 made threes), 51.5 FT%
F/G Jamar Jenkins, Sr. (6'6", 217 lbs) – 2.6 ppg, 1.1 rpg, 36.2 FG%, 27.6 3PT% (8 made threes), 61.9 FT%
G Cole Wilder, Jr. (6'1", 180 lbs) – 2.5 ppg, .8 rpg, 28.6 FG%, 33.3 3PT% (11 made threes), 78.9 FT%
F Nick McFarlin, So. (6'7", 217 lbs) – 1.6 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 46.2 FG%, 0 made threes, 53.8 FT%
G Chris McEachin, So. (6'5", 181 lbs) – 1.6 ppg, 1.1 rpg, 22.2 FG%, 5.9 3PT% (1 made three), 57.1 FT%
Players that are Gone:
F Alex Gynes (6'6", 220 lbs) – 4.0 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 49.5 FG%, 0 made threes, 53.2 FT%
C/F Duane Ricks (6'9", 190 lbs) – 1.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 52.2 FG%, 0 made threes, 50.0 FT%
F Tyler Kleckner (6'8", 174 lbs) - Played in 11 games, 1.1 ppg, .9 rpg
C Colby Trent (6'8", 278 lbs) – Played in 7 games, .6 ppg, 1.1 rpg
New Players:
C Artsiom Parakhouski, Jr. (6’11”, 260 lbs) – Transfer from College of Southern Idaho
G Aaron Austin, Fr. (6’3”, 195 lbs) – Massanutten Military Academy, Newport News, VA
G Daniel Mitchell, Fr. (6’3”, 185 lbs) – Blacksburg HS, Blacksburg, VA
F Lazar Trifunovic, Jr. (6’8”, 225 lbs) – Transfer from Binghamton, Must sit out 08-09 due to transfer rules
In college basketball, teams that return their entire starting lineup generally see success. Radford is the only team in the Big South that can claim the return of all of their starters from 2007-08, so they have been proclaimed one of the league favorites, despite finishing 7th in the conference standings, with a 10-20 overall record and an RPI ranking in the 300s. But in a league that is largely inexperienced and with the improvement that the Highlanders showed during the latter part of Brad Greenberg’s debut season; it is not unreasonable to think that RU can make a big jump in the standings this season.
Not only does Radford have all of their starters back, but they also feature one of the few experienced and skilled big men in the Big South with Joey Lynch-Flohr. Lynch-Flohr is solid on both ends of the court, has enough size to bully the smaller post players in the conference, and has good enough touch with the basketball to enable to score around bigger players. He also will get plenty of opportunities as the longer three-point line and RU’s three-guard lineup should open things up in the paint for him. The guard trio for RU features Amir Johnson at point guard along with Martell McDuffy and Kenny Thomas on the wings. Johnson may be short, but he’s got the weight and strength to make up for his lack of height. He’s a good scorer, though his outside shot is streaky. Johnson is also a bit turnover-prone, though you would have to expect that to improve as he enters his junior year. McDuffy and Thomas are both athletic, and either one is capable of leading the Highlanders in scoring on a given night, though like Johnson, both are streaky shooters. McDuffy is the better rebounder and defender of the two, while Thomas has the higher upside on the offensive end. Lynch-Flohr, Johnson, McDuffy, and Thomas will be the core for this season’s Highlander squad, and each has the ability to be the go-to guy.
The final returning starter is senior forward Eric Hall. Hall does not contribute much on the offensive end, but his leaping ability makes him a shot-blocking threat and a rebounding threat. His starting spot may get challenged by 6-11 JuCo transfer Artsiom Parakhouski. With his big frame, Parakhouski can create matchup problems when paired with Lynch-Flohr, forcing the opponent’s tallest player to guard him while Lynch-Flohr gets the benefit of facing a smaller defender. On the bench, RU features a group of four players that all about the same size (around 6’6”) that can either fill in for one of the wing guards to make the lineup bigger, or for one of the post players in order to make the lineup a bit smaller. Philip Martin, Jamar Jenkins, Nick McFarlin, and Chris McEachin will all be battling for minutes as the primary bench weapons. Martin is the most battle-tested of the group, and probably the toughest and best rebounder. Jenkins is more offensive minded, though struggled in his first season with the Highlanders last year. McFarlin and McEachin each enter their sophomore seasons, neither getting much of a chance to show what they could do a year ago. The only freshman likely to contribute for RU this year is point guard Aaron Austin. He will give Radford the backup point guard that they lacked last year, which should help keep Johnson fresher and healthier down the stretch.
The returning starting lineup of Radford, along with the extra year of experience under Brad Greenberg’s leadership should help the Highlanders improve quite a bit from how they finished last year. But in order for RU to take the big leap from the bottom of the pack to title contenders, they will have to take much better care of the ball, shoot the ball more consistently from outside, and play better defense. It is not a stretch to think they will improve in all of those areas, but can they improve enough to win it all? That’s the big question.
My Prediction:
17-12 overall, 11-7 in the Big South; Second place finish; Will lose in the first round of the Big South tournament
Head Coach: Brad Greenberg (2nd season at RU)
Players that are Returning:
G Martell McDuffy, Sr. (6'4", 187 lbs) – 14.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 1.4 spg, 43.0 FG%, 34.8 3PT% (46 made threes), 68.8 FT%
G Kenny Thomas, Sr. (6'3", 182 lbs) – 14.3 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 45.6 FG%, 35.2 3PT% (51 made threes), 78.6 FT%
G Amir Johnson, Jr. (5'9", 193 lbs) – 13.3 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 5.5 apg, 1.9 spg, 37.3 FG%, 34.4 3PT% (42 made threes), 67.7 FT%
F/C Joey Lynch-Flohr, Jr. (6'8", 221 lbs) – 11.6 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 53.5 FG%, 0 made threes, 73.5 FT%
F Eric Hall, Sr. (6'8", 203 lbs) – 5.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.4 bpg, 47.3 FG%, 33.3 3PT% (1 made three), 69.4 FT%
F Philip Martin, Jr. (6'6", 190 lbs) – 4.0 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 53.0 FG%, 20.0 3PT% (3 made threes), 51.5 FT%
F/G Jamar Jenkins, Sr. (6'6", 217 lbs) – 2.6 ppg, 1.1 rpg, 36.2 FG%, 27.6 3PT% (8 made threes), 61.9 FT%
G Cole Wilder, Jr. (6'1", 180 lbs) – 2.5 ppg, .8 rpg, 28.6 FG%, 33.3 3PT% (11 made threes), 78.9 FT%
F Nick McFarlin, So. (6'7", 217 lbs) – 1.6 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 46.2 FG%, 0 made threes, 53.8 FT%
G Chris McEachin, So. (6'5", 181 lbs) – 1.6 ppg, 1.1 rpg, 22.2 FG%, 5.9 3PT% (1 made three), 57.1 FT%
Players that are Gone:
F Alex Gynes (6'6", 220 lbs) – 4.0 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 49.5 FG%, 0 made threes, 53.2 FT%
C/F Duane Ricks (6'9", 190 lbs) – 1.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 52.2 FG%, 0 made threes, 50.0 FT%
F Tyler Kleckner (6'8", 174 lbs) - Played in 11 games, 1.1 ppg, .9 rpg
C Colby Trent (6'8", 278 lbs) – Played in 7 games, .6 ppg, 1.1 rpg
New Players:
C Artsiom Parakhouski, Jr. (6’11”, 260 lbs) – Transfer from College of Southern Idaho
G Aaron Austin, Fr. (6’3”, 195 lbs) – Massanutten Military Academy, Newport News, VA
G Daniel Mitchell, Fr. (6’3”, 185 lbs) – Blacksburg HS, Blacksburg, VA
F Lazar Trifunovic, Jr. (6’8”, 225 lbs) – Transfer from Binghamton, Must sit out 08-09 due to transfer rules
In college basketball, teams that return their entire starting lineup generally see success. Radford is the only team in the Big South that can claim the return of all of their starters from 2007-08, so they have been proclaimed one of the league favorites, despite finishing 7th in the conference standings, with a 10-20 overall record and an RPI ranking in the 300s. But in a league that is largely inexperienced and with the improvement that the Highlanders showed during the latter part of Brad Greenberg’s debut season; it is not unreasonable to think that RU can make a big jump in the standings this season.
Not only does Radford have all of their starters back, but they also feature one of the few experienced and skilled big men in the Big South with Joey Lynch-Flohr. Lynch-Flohr is solid on both ends of the court, has enough size to bully the smaller post players in the conference, and has good enough touch with the basketball to enable to score around bigger players. He also will get plenty of opportunities as the longer three-point line and RU’s three-guard lineup should open things up in the paint for him. The guard trio for RU features Amir Johnson at point guard along with Martell McDuffy and Kenny Thomas on the wings. Johnson may be short, but he’s got the weight and strength to make up for his lack of height. He’s a good scorer, though his outside shot is streaky. Johnson is also a bit turnover-prone, though you would have to expect that to improve as he enters his junior year. McDuffy and Thomas are both athletic, and either one is capable of leading the Highlanders in scoring on a given night, though like Johnson, both are streaky shooters. McDuffy is the better rebounder and defender of the two, while Thomas has the higher upside on the offensive end. Lynch-Flohr, Johnson, McDuffy, and Thomas will be the core for this season’s Highlander squad, and each has the ability to be the go-to guy.
The final returning starter is senior forward Eric Hall. Hall does not contribute much on the offensive end, but his leaping ability makes him a shot-blocking threat and a rebounding threat. His starting spot may get challenged by 6-11 JuCo transfer Artsiom Parakhouski. With his big frame, Parakhouski can create matchup problems when paired with Lynch-Flohr, forcing the opponent’s tallest player to guard him while Lynch-Flohr gets the benefit of facing a smaller defender. On the bench, RU features a group of four players that all about the same size (around 6’6”) that can either fill in for one of the wing guards to make the lineup bigger, or for one of the post players in order to make the lineup a bit smaller. Philip Martin, Jamar Jenkins, Nick McFarlin, and Chris McEachin will all be battling for minutes as the primary bench weapons. Martin is the most battle-tested of the group, and probably the toughest and best rebounder. Jenkins is more offensive minded, though struggled in his first season with the Highlanders last year. McFarlin and McEachin each enter their sophomore seasons, neither getting much of a chance to show what they could do a year ago. The only freshman likely to contribute for RU this year is point guard Aaron Austin. He will give Radford the backup point guard that they lacked last year, which should help keep Johnson fresher and healthier down the stretch.
The returning starting lineup of Radford, along with the extra year of experience under Brad Greenberg’s leadership should help the Highlanders improve quite a bit from how they finished last year. But in order for RU to take the big leap from the bottom of the pack to title contenders, they will have to take much better care of the ball, shoot the ball more consistently from outside, and play better defense. It is not a stretch to think they will improve in all of those areas, but can they improve enough to win it all? That’s the big question.
My Prediction:
17-12 overall, 11-7 in the Big South; Second place finish; Will lose in the first round of the Big South tournament
- By LU Armchair coach