2002-03 Men's Basketball Preview: Eagles Should Be Well Equipped
November 13, 2002

The postal service has always been partial to hiring veterans. When Ashland University head coach Roger Lyons makes his rounds through the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, he’s always preferred to have veterans carrying the mail, too.

Lyons has that luxury this year, at least in his starting lineup. AU returns three starters from last season’s 18-9 club (11-6 GLIAC, third in the South Division) that advanced to the first round of the GLIAC tournament. This team should have the ability to run and score in bunches, assets that Lyons loves. Questions and answers about this year’s team can be found below.

Seniors Isaac Kincaid and Angelo Edwards will start in the backcourt. Both have been All-GLIAC performers – Kincaid was a first team all-league choice two years ago and Edwards has been a member of the GLIAC all-defensive team for two consecutive years. What does a veteran backcourt mean to a team?

“When you need a big basket, it often comes from veteran guards,” said Lyons. “Those guys seem to make big plays. Angelo’s always been a guy who’s come up big. He understands what we want to do, he understands the game of basketball.”

The 6-2, 190-pound Edwards understands what his job is – shut down other point guards and distribute the ball to his teammates and put them in positions where they can score. He’s exceptional doing that and he can score, too. Last year, he was third on the team in scoring at 12.6 ppg. He was fourth in the league in assists (4.6 apg.), 10th in steals (1.7 spg.) and sixth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.52).

Kincaid, a 6-3, 185-pound sharpshooter, averaged a team-high 18.4 ppg. and was fourth in the GLIAC in scoring. He’s led AU in scoring for two consecutive years and is already a member of the 1,000 point club (1,037). That’s why Lyons has great confidence in the Indianapolis native.

“Isaac’s a scorer,” pointed out Lyons. “Scorers go through peaks and valleys. He’s not a point guard. As a scorer, the one thing you’ll see are defenses geared to stop you. A scorer’s there to put points on the scoreboard. You’ve got to have a scorer’s mentality.

In addition to Kincaid and Edwards, the Eagles have another option in 6-0 junior Shannon Miller. Miller is also from Indianapolis. He spent the second semester last season practicing with the Eagles.

“He’s a very good on-the-ball defender,” noted Lyons. “Secondly, he’s got excellent speed, he can push the ball. The question is his decision-making on the break. Angelo can help teach him that.”

Lyons warns that the Eagles could start all three by moving Edwards to small forward. That’s something the Eagles haven’t done in the past and having all three in the game at one time could really make the fast break sizzle. Or, Kincaid and Edwards could start and Miller could come off the bench. That’s a tantalizing thought for the coaching staff.

“You’re always looking for someone who can come off the bench and take the tempo higher,” Lyons explained. “You don’t want a guy who when he comes in, things slow down. Shannon can make plays and in baskeball, you look for players who can make plays. You have to go fast and make plays.”

Why is Lyons excited to have Trent Ingram back in the gym?

The 6-1, 175-pound Ingram was at AU last year, but decided not to play basketball. Prior to that, he had played two years of junior college basketball. He’s back now and his presence gives the Eagles three point guards. Why is that important?

When a team runs as much as the Eagles do, a fresh pair of legs at the point is a must. Ingram, a junior, can challenge players in practice and being three deep at point guard gives the Eagles a security blanket.

“The year we won 20 games (1999-2000) Heath Tillman was our third point guard,” recalled Lyons. “He gave us good minutes. At the one position, you need three players. I think not having that hurt our club the last two years. Trent’s learning to play fast. That’s important. He’s working on that.”

Ingram’s presence might mean that Edwards doesn’t have to average 30.5 minutes per game like he did in 2001-2002.

Will Eagle fans be singing the praises of (Tom) Church this season?

Lyons certainly hopes so. The 6-4, 198-pound senior has worked his way up from skinny walk-on to versatile small forward. He’s slaved away in the weight room and worked overtime in the gym firing away outside jumpers. He averaged 5.0 ppg. a year ago and was third on the team in three-point field goals (24).

“Tom is our most prolific three-point shooter,” Lyons said. “He has to stretch defenses for us. That’s his biggest threat, he can stretch a defense and nail threes for us. He should have a lot of confidence, I expect him to play with a lot of confidence. If he gets an open look we want him to know he has the green light. This has to be a big year for Tom.”

Is a sixth-man role tailor-made for Robert Taylor?

The one big question on this AU team is depth. As Lyons is quick to point out, most of the players coming off the bench this year are unknown quantities.

“Our bench is unproven,” admits Lyons. “How productive can our bench be?

If 6-6, 205-pound sophomore forward Robert Taylor pans out the way the Eagles think he can, AU could bench press some teams. Two years ago Taylor was red-shirted. Last year, he came off the bench and averaged 2.2 ppg. and 2.1 rpg. The Eagles need those numbers to swell this season.

“He’s got to contribute this year,” said Lyons. “He’ll probably be coming off the bench. His minutes are going to go up. He just has to continue to get better. He’s got to give us productive minutes. He has all the tools. He’s 6-6, runs well and can catch the ball.”

Can the Eagles avoid a power shortage at power forward?

A year ago, 6-4, 210-pound senior power forward Justin Larrick missed nine games due to a knee injury. He started just five times. Not having Larrick active gave the Eagles a bit of a power outage at power forward. It’s imperative that he remains healthy this season.

“Justin brings a certain quality to us,” said Lyons. “He plays with a physical nature all the time, as a starter or coming off the bench. The big thing is, will his knee hold up all season? He’s got to hold up.”

The perfect example of Larrick’s importance is the final game of last season. He played in the first round of the GLIAC tournament against Northwood and even though the Eagles lost, 84-76, no one took liberties with him inside. He contributed 15 points, seven rebounds and a steely attitude that Lyons craves.

The good news is that Larrick isn’t required to play every minute. The Eagles have 6-6, 221-pound senior Pat Rush. The three-year letterman may very well be the starter. He averaged 5.0 ppg., and 3.2 rpg., in 2001-2002.

“Pat Rush has taken the most active role as a leader,” said Lyons, who for the first time in his coaching career, has five captains (all five seniors). “He never takes a day off, he’ll do everything he’s asked to do. He’s as unselfish a player as I’ve ever had. There’s been none better than Pat Rush. Is he a perfect player? No. But he’s the perfect example of a guy who puts team before self every single possession.”

Can the Eagles count on Mike Campbell to have another year like 2001-2002?

China has a great wall and so do the Eagles in Campbell, a 6-5, 240-pound sophomore center. A year ago, Campbell was listed in the GLIAC’s Top 10 in six different statistical categories. He was third in rebounding (8.9 rpg.), seventh in field goal percent (.552), seventh in steals (49/1.8 spg.) and seventh in blocks (33/1.2 bpg.). He averaged 10.2 ppg. and was third in the league in double-doubles with eight.

Can Campbell continue to play like that? The AU coaching staff certainly hopes so.

“Whether he is starting or coming off the bench, he is our low-post threat,” said Lyons. “He has to be effective there. He had an excellent freshman year and now he has to back it up with an excellent sophomore year. I want to see Mike be our biggest presence on the boards. We have to make sure Mike understands his role on our team – excellent post defense, rebounding and some scoring on the low block.”

Can any of the newcomers on this year’s team contribute right away?

Because of their style of play, the Eagles like to use 10 players a night. That means the bench does more than model the latest in warmup gear.

LeBron Massey, a 6-7, 205-pound junior, is expected to provide relief for Campbell in the post. He comes to Ashland by way of Glen Oaks Community College and Lorain Admiral King High School.

“He hasn’t grown up in our system,” Lyons said. “He’s coming in and we’re force feeding him. But, he’s an excellent athlete, he can do a lot of things. It’s a day-to-day challenge. But, I’m extremely happy with him. He’s a great listener. He wants to contribute to the success of this team.”

Freshman Chris Steens, a 6-1, 185-pound guard from Akron, OH, and Central Hower High School, will also contribute. He’ll log minutes at the two guard, where he can learn the tricks of the trade from Kincaid.

“He’s a freshman who understands how to play,” explained Lyons. “When we recruited Chris Steens, the thing that we kept saaying was that he was an outstanding open court player. Open court players have a way of excelling for us. Still, we want to keep in mind that he’s a freshman. He has to restructure his thinking. But he’s part of our rotation, part of what we’re doing.”

Does this team’s experience give it an edge in playing a 17-game GLIAC schedule?

Lyons answers this question by saying, “They (team full of veterans) understand the length of the season. If you have a young team and hit a bump in the road, it can throw you off for a long time. If we hit a bump in the road we won’t like it, but we’ll move on and try to avoid the next bump.”

The GLIAC South Division has several teams long on experience. Hillsdale, which advanced to the NCAA Tournament, is one of the most experienced teams. Both Erie, PA teams – Gannon and Mercyhurst – have returning core groups good enough to think about a division championship. A year ago, Wayne State was playing for a first-year coach and now that group has had a year together. The Warriors will be older and wiser. Findlay’s Croy Gym is one of the league’s toughest venues and the Oilers are always talent-rich.

When speaking about experience, Lyons points out one positive that’s often overlooked. Assistant coach Steve Fleming is a former head coach (Tiffin), so he has a perspective many other assistants don’t have. Graduate assistant coach Richard Davis played at AU for four years and knows the league – the players and coaches – extremely well.