The Dukes and the Hoos start their regular season off in Harrisonburg tomorrow night and even though they couldn't have ended their season any different last year, they have had similarities the beginning of this year. Both teams have key players suspended for this game which means new players will be getting a shot to earn time.
For the Hoos, PG London Perrantes is suspended one game due to team violations that happened over the summer. As a freshman last year, Perrantes started in 33 of the 37 games and was selected to the ALL-ACC Freshman team. Redshirt Freshman Devon Hall from Virginia Beach appears to be Perrantes' short term replacement. Coach Bennett has been impressed with Hall's improvement and has acknowledged that he has stepped up in practice and in the closed scrimmages the Hoos have participated in. Fortunately for the redshirt he has players to help him out on the court such as Anthony Gill and Malcolm Brogdon. Brogdon is coming off a break out season, leading the team in scoring and being named first team All-ACC. Gill was a key player for the Hoos last year but has even high expectations this year. He shoots the ball at a high rate and also gets to the free throw line often. These two player tandem will be hard for the Dukes to stop.
For the Dukes, Andre Nation will sit out his first of five suspension games. Nation is the Dukes previous leading scorer and his presence will really be missed. A few Duke guards/forwards that look to carry the load include Winston Grays, Paulius Satkus, and Hari Hall. Both Grays and Satkus saw time in the open scrimmage against PHILAU and both contributed really well while freshman Hari Hall sat out due to a knee injury. However, Hall is a possible started for friday now that he is healed and ready to go. He has a tall, lengthy frame with good outside range and extreme athleticism. I haven't seen the kid play yet but I am expecting big things from the Freshman.
Along with suspended players, both teams have had a rocky preseason. The Dukes lost their exhibition to DII PHILAU and the Cavaliers struggled and their two preseason games against Georgetown and Marquette. Both teams appeared to be outworked and outplayed by their opponents and definitely don't want to carry that into the regular season.
Despite being huge underdogs, I think this is an outstanding test for the Dukes and their performance could reflect on how the season may go. Especially with the disappointment of last year, the Dukes are ready to make another run at the CAA Championship and they have the roster to do it. There will be times in the game when things don't exactly go their way and its the same for the Hoos, that's basketball. If the Dukes are going to have any chance they need to take advantage of the Hoos mistakes and have a short memory when they make mistakes themselves. Its going to be a tough battle for the Dukes, but I wouldn't count them out.
My predictions for starters tomorrow:
DUKES:
G: #2 Ron Curry
G: #3 Winston Grays
G:#10 Jackson Kent
F: #25 Hari Hall
F: #40 Yohanny Dalembert
HOOS
G:#0 Devon Hall
G:#15 Malcolm Brogdon
G:#1 Justin Anderson
F:#5 Darion Atkins
C:#10 Mike Tobey
Special thanks to:
http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/va/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/2014-15/misc_non_event/1415factbook.pdf
http://www.streakingthelawn.com/2014/11/13/6993005/virginia-cavaliers-2014-2015-basketball-player-profiles-anthony-gill
http://www.dailyprogress.com/cavalierinsider/bennett-cavs-still-have-work-to-do-before-friday-s/article_c882216a-692a-11e4-8b78-db414f2a9466.html
http://virginia.sportswar.com/article/2013/11/08/hoos-slam-jmu-in-opener/
For the Hoos, PG London Perrantes is suspended one game due to team violations that happened over the summer. As a freshman last year, Perrantes started in 33 of the 37 games and was selected to the ALL-ACC Freshman team. Redshirt Freshman Devon Hall from Virginia Beach appears to be Perrantes' short term replacement. Coach Bennett has been impressed with Hall's improvement and has acknowledged that he has stepped up in practice and in the closed scrimmages the Hoos have participated in. Fortunately for the redshirt he has players to help him out on the court such as Anthony Gill and Malcolm Brogdon. Brogdon is coming off a break out season, leading the team in scoring and being named first team All-ACC. Gill was a key player for the Hoos last year but has even high expectations this year. He shoots the ball at a high rate and also gets to the free throw line often. These two player tandem will be hard for the Dukes to stop.
For the Dukes, Andre Nation will sit out his first of five suspension games. Nation is the Dukes previous leading scorer and his presence will really be missed. A few Duke guards/forwards that look to carry the load include Winston Grays, Paulius Satkus, and Hari Hall. Both Grays and Satkus saw time in the open scrimmage against PHILAU and both contributed really well while freshman Hari Hall sat out due to a knee injury. However, Hall is a possible started for friday now that he is healed and ready to go. He has a tall, lengthy frame with good outside range and extreme athleticism. I haven't seen the kid play yet but I am expecting big things from the Freshman.
Along with suspended players, both teams have had a rocky preseason. The Dukes lost their exhibition to DII PHILAU and the Cavaliers struggled and their two preseason games against Georgetown and Marquette. Both teams appeared to be outworked and outplayed by their opponents and definitely don't want to carry that into the regular season.
Despite being huge underdogs, I think this is an outstanding test for the Dukes and their performance could reflect on how the season may go. Especially with the disappointment of last year, the Dukes are ready to make another run at the CAA Championship and they have the roster to do it. There will be times in the game when things don't exactly go their way and its the same for the Hoos, that's basketball. If the Dukes are going to have any chance they need to take advantage of the Hoos mistakes and have a short memory when they make mistakes themselves. Its going to be a tough battle for the Dukes, but I wouldn't count them out.
My predictions for starters tomorrow:
DUKES:
G: #2 Ron Curry
G: #3 Winston Grays
G:#10 Jackson Kent
F: #25 Hari Hall
F: #40 Yohanny Dalembert
HOOS
G:#0 Devon Hall
G:#15 Malcolm Brogdon
G:#1 Justin Anderson
F:#5 Darion Atkins
C:#10 Mike Tobey
Special thanks to:
http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/va/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/2014-15/misc_non_event/1415factbook.pdf
http://www.streakingthelawn.com/2014/11/13/6993005/virginia-cavaliers-2014-2015-basketball-player-profiles-anthony-gill
http://www.dailyprogress.com/cavalierinsider/bennett-cavs-still-have-work-to-do-before-friday-s/article_c882216a-692a-11e4-8b78-db414f2a9466.html
http://virginia.sportswar.com/article/2013/11/08/hoos-slam-jmu-in-opener/