[WinthropEagleFan]

Liberty Flames
(Last Season: 14-17; 8-6, 3rd in Big South; Lost in First Round of Big South Tourney; RPI - 283)

Head Coach: Ritchie McKay (first season at LU)

Players that are Returning:

F Alex McLean, Sr. (6’8”, 235 lbs) – 14.5 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 54.4 FG%
G Anthony Smith, Jr. (6’5”, 215 lbs) – 11.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 49.0 FG%, 39.3 3PT%
G B.J. Jenkins, So. (6’0”, 178 lbs) - 4.8 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 37.2 3PT%, 76.6 FT%
F Tyler Baker, So. (6’9”, 215 lbs) – 4.4 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 39.5 3PT%, 92.6 FT%
F Rell Porter, Sr. (6’7”, 195 lbs) – 2.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg
G Justin Holland, Jr. (6’0”, 175 lbs) - 1.8 ppg, 1.6 rpg
C Russell Monroe, Sr. (6’11”, 235 lbs) – 1.8 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 66.7 FG%
G Kyle Ohman, So. (6’4”, 200 lbs) - Played in 10 games, .8 ppg, .5 rpg
F Armon Jones, So. (6’8”, 250 lbs) - Played in 10 games, .5 ppg, .6 rpg
G Tracey Quarles, Jr. (6'4", 185 lbs) - Did not play last year, Played in 1 game in 2005-2006

Players that are Gone:

G Larry Blair (6’0”, 185 lbs) – 20.4 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.3 apg, 1.9 spg, 30.2 3PT%, 84.7 FT%
G Dwight Brewington (6’5”, 190 lbs) – 14.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 59.9 FG%
F Damien Hubbard (6’6”, 210 lbs) – 3.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 46.2 3PT%
G Dominique Jones, So. (6’2”, 215 lbs) – Played in 11 games, .5 ppg, .4 rpg

New Players:

G TeeJay Bannister, Sr. (5'11", 176 lbs) - Transfer from Virginia, 3.6 ppg in 2005-2006
G Jeremy Anderson, Fr. (6'4", 200 lbs) - Warren Central HS, Bowling Green, KY
F Ozren Bjelogrlic, Fr. (6'7", 200 lbs) - Ploce, Croatia
F Nathan Campbell, Fr. (6'6", 205 lbs) - Hargrave Military Academy
G Garen Lafser, Fr. (6'1", 180 lbs) - Westminster Christian Acad., St. Louis, MO
G Tim Layer, So. (6'5", 180 lbs) - Transfer from Colorado State

The Randy Dunton era at Liberty ended the day after their season ended last year. After finishing in third place in the Big South, the Flames lost to VMI in the first round of the Big South Tournament, and Dunton's contract was not renewed. Dunton led the Flames to a Big South championship in 2004, but the last couple of years saw Liberty underachieve based on the talent they had, along with being a team that seemed to be disorganized and with visible friction between players and Dunton during some games. Dunton's departure led to the hiring of Ritchie McKay, formerly the head coach of New Mexico, Oregon State, Colorado State, and Portland State.

McKay inherits a team that lost the Big South's all-time leading scorer (Larry Blair) to graduation and lost Dwight Brewington, who decided to play pro ball even though he had a year of eligibility remaining. But the cupboard is not bare for Liberty. In the backcourt, the Flames return Anthony Smith at shooting guard/small forward. Smith is one of the most athletic players in the league and is a good scorer from inside and out, along with being a very strong defender. He will be accompanied by TeeJay Bannister, the Virginia transfer who will be the program's first true starting point guard since Brian Woodson. Bannister has been a little banged up so far this fall, but when healthy, he should give the Flames a solid floor general. B.J. Jenkins is likely to see quite a bit of time at either guard spot, and had some strong moments last year as a freshman. Kyle Ohman is a walk-on that is also expected to see quite a bit of playing time as well at the shooting guard or small forward spot. Finally, freshman Jeremy Anderson has alot of potential as a strong outside shooter, but his status for this season is up in the air due to injuries.

The frontcourt is anchored by Alex McLean. McLean can play either center or power forward and had a very successful debut with the Flames last year, despite being very new to the game of basketball. He is a very strong rebounder and proved that he can give the Flames plenty of scoring inside as well. Rell Porter has been a mainstay at power forward for the Flames program for the last few years, and though he does not put up alot of points, he is a team leader and does much of the dirty work that can help win games. Porter will split time with Tyler Baker, who is a much stronger offensive player than Porter, and has a very strong outside shot. Russell Monroe brings good height and decent touch to the back-up center spot, but he has yet to really live up to the potential he has shown early in his career. Freshmen Nathan Campbell and Ozren Bjelogrlic add some depth to the frontcourt, but it remains to be seen whether either one will be able to contribute much this year.

McKay brings a much different leadership style to the Flames than Dunton did, and his presence should help stabalize the Liberty team this year. Quality depth is going to be a major concern for the Flames, especially in the frontcourt, but Liberty does have three things going for them this year that should help them see some success. First, they have a true point guard in Bannister that should be able to lead the team on offense, something the Flames have lacked the last couple of years. Second, the Flames have one of the few productive true post players in the league with McLean. Finally, they have an athletic go-to guy in Smith, who will now be able to emerge from Larry Blair's shadow as one of the better all-around players in the league. Liberty does not have enough pieces to win the league, but they have enough to be competitive and finish in the upper half.

My Prediction:

18-12 overall, 9-5 in the Big South; Third place finish; Will be eliminated in semifinals of Big South Tourney

[SuperJon]

I think all of us would be more than happy with this finish this year.

[kel varson]

Agreed. I think you pinpointed what will turn out to be the 'make or break' issue w/ this team and that is whether or not our depth is of 'quality'.

[WinthropEagleFan]

Agreed. I think you pinpointed what will turn out to be the 'make or break' issue w/ this team and that is whether or not our depth is of 'quality'.

And before a season starts, since depth on most teams is made up of newcomers, it is always hard to determine what will be quality or not. I'm just not sure where LU gets points in the post when McLean is out of the game, and that's where I think the Flames run into some trouble. But many other teams have that same problem, and most teams don't have a player of McLean's caliber to begin with down low, so that's one of the big reasons I have LU picked at third.

[SuperJon]

WEF, I think you're going to be surprised by Russ. This is the first year he's had a coach to help develop him. It's three years late, but everyone around the team has said his jump in play is bigger than anyone else's.

[WinthropEagleFan]

WEF, I think you're going to be surprised by Russ. This is the first year he's had a coach to help develop him. It's three years late, but everyone around the team has said his jump in play is bigger than anyone else's.

It won't surprise me if he does well, and if he does, that will be good for LU, but it seems like his role diminished over the last couple of years, so it is hard for me to get a good read on what he can actually do.

[SuperJon]

His role diminished because anytime he'd do one small thing wrong, Dunton would yank him. The same with Tyler Baker, Justin Holland, and BJ Jenkins last year. None of them played with any confidence because they were always worried about getting benched for messing up.

You know more about basketball for the entire conference than anyone not in the press, but even having said that, I don't think you fully realize the problems between that team and Dunton. You saw them at CSU and got a glimpse of that, so just imagine that, every day, for the entire year.

[El Scorcho]

I'd be plenty happy with this outcome for the team this year. I'll admit that I don't know as much as I should coming in to this season, but the whole thing feels like a coin toss to me. I'm fine with that, though. I'm ready to get behind this team.

[Realist]

Hey, hey, I've finished the highest ranked in big south pick em since we've been doing it......though my picks virtually mirror WEF's except for a couple of flops in one ranking spot, it's really tough to pick it this year with total accuracy anyway though.

[TIMSCAR20]

I have seen a little and heard about Russ and I don't expect him to be a major contributor but he will be a factor. In fairness to coach D, a coach can only do so much to keep a player on the court when his understanding of the game and his lack of fire at times surfaces. I think Russell is talented but lacks that certain swagger and desire that you see in athletes that are successful. I am a big fan of his though and I hope this is his breakout year. There is a lack of depth though for sure. I wouldn't expect too much out of Bjorleck (sp) or Campbell this year. I don't know how ready either will be. They seem to be high on Anderson but injuries do make him a big question mark. Fatigue will be a factor for this team and a real challenge for this staff. I think Smith, Bannister, and McLean will average well over 30 mpg each. I think Baker will play 25 min a game and Rell, Kyle and BJ will get good minutes. I don't know for sure but I suspect McKay will have a short bench. J Holland will be TJ's backup and play about 10 min. Again, this is all my opinion with a little fact mixed in.

[PAmedic]

I'll be happy if Big Russ comes out sporting the goat' this year

(I'll post the pic if anyone would like a reminder)

[TDDance234]

WEF, I think you're going to be surprised by Russ. This is the first year he's had a coach to help develop him. It's three years late, but everyone around the team has said his jump in play is bigger than anyone else's.

I fell in to the 'Russ trap last year. Not this year... I'm going to reserve judgment for actual results, however, I'm not banking on anything from him except to give Ace a breather here and there.

Prove me wrong, please, Russ!

[Fumblerooskies]

My Prediction:

18-12 overall, 9-5 in the Big South; Third place finish; Will be eliminated in semifinals of Big South Tourney

I can promise you JB would be over that.

[PAmedic]

WEF, I think you're going to be surprised by Russ. This is the first year he's had a coach to help develop him. It's three years late, but everyone around the team has said his jump in play is bigger than anyone else's.

I fell in to the 'Russ trap last year. Not this year... I'm going to reserve judgment for actual results, however, I'm not banking on anything from him except to give Ace a breather here and there.

Prove me wrong, please, Russ!

sounds like the exhibition game wasn't one of his finer moments.