W&L Men's Basketball Notes - Week 1
Game 1: W&L (0-0) vs. Tufts (0-0)
Date: Friday, November 16, 6:00 pm
Location: Newark, N.J.
Series Record: Tufts leads, 2-0
Game 2: W&L (0-0) vs. TBA
Date: Saturday, November 17, 2 or 4 pm
Location: Newark, N.J.
LAST TIME OUT • NO. 7 VIRGINIA
WESLEYAN 87, W&L 63 (2/24/12)
Washington and Lee saw its 2011-12 season end with an 87-63 loss
to Virginia Wesleyan in the quarterfinal round of the ODAC
Tournament at the Salem Civic Center. The top-seeded and
seventh-ranked Marlins (23-3) shot 52.3 percent from the floor
(34-65), including 55.0 percent (11-20) from beyond the arc in
posting its 23rd-straight win over the Generals (13-24). W&L,
seeded ninth, scored the first two points of the game, by forward
J.D. Ey, but VWC ripped off six straight to take a 6-2 lead at the
17:05 mark. W&L trailed 11-6 following a pair of free throws by
guard Clay McClean, but the Marlins reeled off a 13-2 scoring run,
led by six points from guard Art Crew and five points from forward
Chris Astorga to assume a 24-8 lead with 12:07 left in the opening
half. The Generals trimmed their deficit to 13 points (26-13) at
the 10:18 mark on a three-point play from forward Larry
Whitaker, but VWC quickly pushed back out to a 20-point lead
and went into the break with a 19-point advantage (45-26). In the
second period, the Marlins extended to a 24-point lead by scoring
seven of the half's first nine points, capped by an Astorga dunk at
the 18:12 mark. The Generals once again managed to trim their
deficit to 13 points (54-41) with 13:18 left to play, but a 15-5
Marlin spurt ended any comeback hopes for the Generals. Whitaker
paced W&L with 20 points on 9-of-15 shooting, while also
notching seven rebounds. Guard Kevin Gill
added 14 points, including 3-of-4 shooting from deep, and center
Taylor Gilfillan chipped in 10 points and eight boards. Astorga led
all scorers with 23 points and guard Chris Teasley added 15 points
and guard DJ Woodmore netted 12 point and seven helpers. Guard Tre'
Ford totaled eight points, eight rebounds and six assists.
LAST TIME AGAINST TUFTS • TUFTS 80,
W&L 74 (11/20/94)
Washington and Lee last played the Jumbos in its second game of
the 1994-95 season. The Generals hosted Tufts as part of the
W&L Tip-Off Tournament. The Jumbos took a 38-33 lead into
halftime, and outscored the Generals, 42-41, in the second to
secure the 80-74 victory. Tufts relied on three players who
accounted for 70 of the team's 80 points. Chris McMahon lead all
players with 26 and Chad Onofrio and Eric Emmert each had 22. For
the Generals, Mark Connelly led the team with 16 points on 7-of-11
shooting and eight rebounds. Cam Dyer recorded a double-double with
14 points and 10 boards, and Jon Coffman netted 13 points.
SCOUTING TUFTS
The Jumbos are coming off a 16-9 season, which ended with a 57-54
loss against Bates in the New England Small College Athletic
Conference (NESCAC) Tournament quarterfinals. Tufts ended the
season on a four-game losing streak after starting the year
16-5. Senior forward Scott Anderson, a Second-Team All-NESCAC
honoree, and sophomore guard Ben Ferris, the NESCAC Rookie of the
Year, return as the top offensive threats. Anderson averaged 12.6
points and 6.6 rebounds per game in 2011-12, while starting all 25
games. Ferris scored 9.6 ppg, grabbed 5.1 rpg, while also totaling
34 steals in 24 games. The Jumbos shot 45.6 percent (691-1,517)
from the field, while averaging 74.4 ppg. The Jumbos hold a 2-0
advantage in the all-time series with the Generals.
SCOUTING BROOKLYN
In 2011-12, the Bulldogs ended the season 19-10, after losing in
the championship game, 88-77, of the Eastern College Athletic
Conference (ECAC) Division III Metro Men's Basketball Tournament to
Mount Saint Mary. Brooklyn was knocked out of the City University
of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) Tournament in the
quarterfinals by York, 79-73, in overtime. Brooklyn lost its top
two scorers from last season to graduation in Tyshawn Russell (22.1
ppg) and Amil John (17.3 ppg). Each player started all 29
games at guard. The Bulldogs averaged 75.2 points per game and
forced 23.4 turnovers. This would be potentially the first meeting
between Brooklyn and W&L.
SCOUTING RUTGERS-NEWARK
The Scarlet Raiders finished last season 14-13 overall, and were
knocked out of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Tournament
by Kean, 55-53. Rutgers-Newark ended its season at the ECAC Metro
Tournament with a loss to Brooklyn in the first round. Sophomore
Christian Garcia, the NJAC Co-Rookie of the Year, is the team's top
returning scorer at 11.2 points per game. He also grabbed 5.5
rebounds per game and had 32 steals. Senior Al'Don Muhammad is the
team's best distributer, following 140 assists last year for a 5.4
per game average. He also led the team with 34 steals and averaged
10.3 ppg. The team posted 70.7 points per game last year, but lost
but lost two of its top four scorers to graduation. This would be
potentially the first meeting between Rutgers-Newark and
W&L.
THE HEAD GENERAL
Adam Hutchinson (Amherst, '93) is entering his 10th season as the
head coach at Washington and Lee. He has led W&L to a 99-135
(.423) record. Last season, Hutchinson passed Harry (Cy) Young for
second all-time in coaching wins at W&L. The 2008 ODAC Coach of
the Year, Hutchinson led his 2009 team to the ODAC Championship
game for the first time since 1989. With one more win, he would
become just the second coach in school history to reach the
100-win
plateau. In his 13 seasons of coaching, Hutchinson has an overall
record of 132-201 (.396).
OPENING NIGHT
Under coach Adam Hutchinson, the Generals are 5-4 in their
season-opening games. The team is 4-1 when its opens at home, 1-2
on the road and 0-1 in neutral-site contests. W&L has won its
last four season-openers with the last loss on opening-night coming
at Drew in overtime, 57-55, on November 16, 2007. With the team
opening on a neutral court this season, this will be only the
second time it has happened under coach Hutchinson. The previous
came on November 20, 2004 at the NYU Tipoff Tournament. W&L
dropped an 85-61 game to Nazareth. The Generals began last season
at Dickinson and came away with a 69-67 victory.
DOUBLE DOUBLE THE TROUBLE
Senior forward J.D. Ey, a Second Team All-ODAC selection last
season, makes his presence felt in the scorebook and on the glass.
He led the ODAC last season with nine double doubles, and surpassed
Ben Goetsch '10 for the most double doubles in a season (8) under
Coach Hutchinson. Ey now has 13 in his career. He averaged 12.6
points per game last year and a conference-leading 9.0 rebounds per
game. He became the first General to average at least nine rebounds
per game since Skip Lichtfuss averaged 9.9 boards per game in the
1973-74 season.
FIRST-YEAR IMPRESSIONS
Sophomore Javon
McDonald certainly made an impact in his first season with the
Generals that will have opponents preparing for how to stop the 5-9
guard. McDonald totaled 318 points in 27 games for 11.8 ppg. He led
all first-year players in the ODAC in points, and became the
highest-scoring rookie at W&L since Greg Bienemann scored 290
(in 25 games) points as a first-year player in 2004-05. Bienemann
went on to score 1,573 points in his four-year career. McDonald
also led the Generals in both 3FGA (132) and 3FGM (50), and made
one triple in 22 of 27 games overall.
BOARDS AND DIMES
Last season if the Generals grabbed more rebounds or dished out
more assists than their opponents, they were almost unbeatable.
W&L was a perfect 10-0 when it had more assists than the
opposition, and finished the year 11-2 when it secured more boards.
The only two losses came at Bridgewater, 81-78, and at home against
Eastern Mennonite, 70-53.
DON'T FORGET ABOUT LARRY
Despite playing in the same frontcourt as J.D. Ey, junior forward
Larry Whitaker showcased his ability to clean the glass and score
buckets for W&L. Whitaker averaged 9.8 points per game on 48.4
percent (90-186) from the field and 7.4 rebounds per game. He led
or tied for the lead in scoring in four games and in rebounds in 11
contests. He recorded a season-high 21 points at Shenandoah on
November 22, and grabbed a season-high 13 rebounds at Bridgewater
on February 11.
BLOCK PARTY
Defending the rim turned into a habit for W&L last season as
the squad blocked 107 shots. The total set a new single-season
program record since blocks became an official NCAA stat during the
1985-86 season. The previous high came in the 2009-10 season, when
the Generals rejected 99 shots led by Zac White's 55. J.D. Ey led
the ODAC and the 2011-12 team with 62 blocked shots, which
surpassed White's single-season record. Before the block became an
official NCAA stat, Rob Smitherman swatted 74 shots in the 1978-79
season. White, Smitherman and Ey are all tied for the single-game
block record (7) at W&L.
ON THE ROAD
The Generals will get used to riding a bus early this season with
seven of their first nine games coming away from the Warner Center.
After opening the season with two games at the Rutgers-Newark
Tournament on November 16 & 17, W&L will play at Methodist
on November 20 and at Shenandoah on November 24. The Blue &
White hosts Randolph on December 1 to open ODAC play, and then make
a quick trip to Ferrum on December 3. The team returns home on
December 5 to face Averett, and ends 2011 at the Daytona Beach
Shootout against Bates on December 19 and against Marymount (Va.)
on December 21. The Generals went 6-8 on the road last season and
1-1 in neutral-site contests.
HERE'S WHERE THEY STAND
In the ODAC preseason poll, the Generals were picked eighth out of
12 teams. Defending league champion Virginia Wesleyan garnered the
top spot with 11 of the 12 first-place votes and 121 points.
Hampden-Sydney was picked second with 109 points. Randolph-Macon
received the other first-place vote and 99 points to take the third
spot. Guilford (87) and Randolph (72) complete the Top 5. Eastern
Mennonite was picked sixth (69) and Lynchburg (67) just edged the
Generals for seventh. Following W&L was Bridgewater (30), Emory
& Henry (30), Roanoke (30) and league newcomer Shenandoah
(14).
FRESH NEW FACES
W&L enters the season with five first-year players looking to
make their mark and provide depth for the Generals. The class is
comprised of two guards and three forwards. The two new guards are
Franklin
Wolfe and Darren
Douglas. Wolfe played his high school basketball at Sanderson
and is from Raleigh, N.C., while Douglas, who calls Elmsford, N.Y.
home, competed at Rye Country Day. For the front-court players, John
Martin hails from Huntsville, Ala., and completed his prep
career at Randolph. Jok Asiyo, from
Stroudsburg, Pa., competed at Pocono Mountain East, and Andrew Franz,
a Charlotte, N.C. native, laced up his sneakers for
Ravenscroft.
TOPPLING GIANTS
Washington and Lee has made it a habit of knocking off some the
country's best teams over the past several seasons. The Generals
have recorded at least one win over a ranked opponent in each of
the last five seasons. Last year, it was a 78-56 win over
then-21st-ranked Randolph-Macon. That accumen for defeating ranked
foes may come in handy as W&L battles a difficult schedule that
features a home game with preseason No. 2 Virginia Wesleyan, a game
at 24th-ranked Randolph-Macon and a home contest versus 25th-ranked
Hampden-Sydney.
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