ESPNU Covers UAlbany Basketball

"COACH AND PROGRAM

Coach Will Brown believes …

''This is probably the most talented and deepest we've been since I've been here,'' Brown said. ''We return seven of our top nine scorers; we have guys who have played in big games. We don't have our bail-out guy yet, but we have some good players who will play defense and rebound.''

PLAYERS

One player who will have to adopt a different mindset is 6-5 senior guard Brian Lillis (6.9 ppg, 2.3 apg). Lillis played every position except center last year and earned America East Defensive Player-of-the-Year honors.

''We need him to be more aggressive on the offensive end,'' Brown said. ''No guy is willing to accept that challenge more than him, because he really wants to win.
''He's a guy who can elevate his game.''

Aside from working hard, Lillis could seek counsel from older sister Jennie, a three-time All-Big Ten performer who is among Iowa's all-time leading scorers with 1,762 points and is currently an assistant coach at Marquette.

Fellow Hawkeye starter Brent Wilson (11.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg) will be the Great Danes' primary offensive weapon. The 6-8 senior would be more well known if not for the other Wilson, who absorbed most of the spotlight during his career. He earned all-rookie honors as a freshman and All-America East third-team honors as a sophomore and junior.

He was the Great Danes' best three-point shooter last year, connecting 44 percent of the time. Brown, however, would like to see him develop his low-post game.

''He put on about 17 pounds in the last couple months, so he's stronger physically,'' said Wilson of the 250-pound Wilson. ''We're encouraging him to stay on the low block. But for a point forward to shoot the ball like he does, it allows our other guys to create more.''

The Great Danes' third senior, 5-9 guard John Iati (5.9 ppg, 1.0 apg), could be their most important player. Iati earned America East Rookie-of-the-Year honors after averaging 14 points per game, three assists and leading Division I in minutes per game with 40.

Brown is banking on the fact that Iati, like Wilson and Lil-lis, are in their final go-around and want to leave their own mark on the program.

''Brett, Brian, Jon; they're all tough kids and I think they want to go out in style,'' Brown said. ''They're also smart and they hear people saying that no way are they going to be as good without Jamar. It's a personal challenge for them.'' Lillis, Wilson and Iati will be the key figures for the Great Danes, but when Wilson talks about being excited about depth, he's talking about the next group of players, which includes experienced returnees and talented transfers.

Brian Connolly (5.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg), a 6-8 junior forward, played in every game last year. Brown likes to match him up with Wilson because of his ability to shoot.
''He can rip it from the high post,'' Brown said. ''He's a kid who's going to have a breakout year.''

Sharing time at center will be 6-11 sophomore Brent Gifford (1.5 ppg, 1.7 rpg) and 6-7 junior Jimmie Covington (1.9 ppg, 1.9 rpg). Covington is shorter than some of the Great Danes' wing players, but he makes up for it with his strength. Gifford, meanwhile, slimmed down in the off-season, from 285 pounds to 250.

Reid Anderson (0.8 ppg, 0.7 rpg), a 6-5 sophomore guard, will provide depth in the frontcourt.

Brown filled … three roster spots, plus the ones made available by graduation, with players he believes will help right now.

Brown went the junior-college route with two of the players. Jerell Hastings, a 6-5 guard from Lon Morris Community College in Texas, led his team to the NJCAA Na-tional Tournament, where it placed sixth. Hastings will be joined by 6-2 guard Rob Moores from Pratt Community College in Kansas. Moores originally agreed to a scholar-ship with Toledo and was offered one by La Salle before attending Pratt, which competes in the Jayhawk Conference, one of the best junior college leagues in the country. Moores has three years of eligibility remaining.

Tim Ambrose, a 6-0 guard, isn't a transfer but is new to the Great Danes' lineup. During his senior year at Our Savior New American School in Centereach, N.Y., received scholarship offers from several America East and A-10 schools.

Joining those three will be two high school recruits -- Josh Martin, Albert Turley, and Billy Allen.

''We want to bring in kids we feel are winners, and who are going to bust their butts to help us get better as a team and win an America East championship,'' Brown said. ''All the pieces of the puzzle have to fit right away.''

BLUE RIBBON ANALYSIS

BACKCOURT: B
BENCH/DEPTH: A
FRONTCOURT: A
INTANGIBLES: B "

by ESPNU


Further Indepth Coverage - 2007/08 Men's Basketball Recruits - by uofalbany blog

Billy Allen, swingman

Billy Allen is a 6-foot-6, 210-pound swingman from Hamilton, Ohio (Hamilton H.S.).
Allen was named to the 2005-06 Associated Press Division I All-Ohio squad in the honorable mention category. He averaged 17.3 points, 7.9 rebounds and 5.0 assists when he was chosen to the All-Southwest District second team. Allen, who posted a triple-double in one game as a junior, also earned a spot on the All-Greater Miami Conference squad. He contributed 12.0 points and 5.5 rebounds in his sophomore campaign, and was the sixth man on Hamilton 's 2003-04 Division I state championship team.

"He understands the game as a coach's son," UAlbany head coach Will Brown said. "He is a big-time shooter and plays every position on the floor for his high school team. His versatility, shooting ability and physical make-up will allow him the opportunity to make an impact as a freshman."

Albert Turley, forward

UAlbany received an oral commitment from 6-foot-7, 270-pound forward Albert Turley of Westfield High School in Houston, according to Westfield coach Larry Brown.

Turley averaged 14.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and a city-leading 4.2 blocks per game for Westfield, which finished 25-11 in Class 5A, Texas’ highest division.

“He’s a big kid and he’s got a lot of upside,” Larry Brown said. “He’s a great kid and he’s got good hands. His future is ahead of him. He’s a great character person.”

Larry Brown said Turley had scholarship offers from McNeese State and Southeastern Louisiana during the early signing period but decided to wait.

Larry Brown said Purdue, Arkansas State and New Mexico were scheduled to see Turley tonight, but he expected Turley to stick by his decision.

“He liked the (Albany) kids,” Larry Brown said of Turley’s visit to UAlbany .“Coach Brown did a tremendous job recruiting him. They’ve been in the (NCAA) tournament the last couple of years and they have a definite need for a big (player). It was just a good fit.”

Josh Martin, guard

Another addition to UAlbany is "Josh “SCRAP” Martin from Simon Gratz HS in Philly. Josh is a tough hardnosed city guard who has a great feel for the game. He won a state championship as a junior and lost in the city final as a senior. Simon Gratz has a history of sending players to the Division 1 level. NBA players Aaron McKie and Rasheed Wallace played at Simon Gratz. Josh had offers from several programs and we were fortunate to be the university that he decided to attend.

We are excited about the potential of the 2008 Great Danes! It was very important to me that we continued to recruit and sign quality people. The young men in this class will have an impact on our program over the next four years. They will work hard and represent our program and university in a positive manner!" by Coach Brown

Jerel Hastings, small forward

Jerel is a transfer from Lon Morris CC, TX. Jerel is an excellent athlete who has that special ability to draw fouls. He does a great job of attacking the basket. He is an excellent offensive rebounder and finisher. Jerel is a good mid-range shooter and can defend four spots on the perimeter.

Lon Morris CC won the region championship and advanced to Hutchinson, KS where they finished 6th at the NJCAA National Tournament. He was the teams 2nd leading scorer, leading rebounder, and leader in FT’s made and attempted. He can do a little of everything.

He played high school ball at Dallas South Oak Cliff HS and won a state championship as a senior. He signed with Stephen F Austin University and had a rough freshman year because of injury. He tore up his knee and had surgery during the early part of his freshman season. He missed 9 games as a result of the injury and came back too quickly. He was 100% this past season and was the best player on a very talented Lon Morris CC basketball team.

Robert Moores, guard

The UAlbany men’s basketball team filled its final scholarship for next season with the commitment of 6-foot-2 guard Robert Moores of Pratt (Kansas) Community College, Pratt coach Trevor Rolfs confirmed Tuesday night.

Moores, a Chicago native, averaged 13.9 points per game and shot 41.9 percent from 3-point range for Pratt, which was 24-8 overall as a member of the Jayhawk Community College Conference.

Rolfs said Moores can play both guard spots and fill UAlbany’s need for perimeter scoring following the departure of guards Jamar Wilson and Jason Siggers.

“He’s got good size for a point guard - at 6-2 he’s very long,” Rolfs said. “He handles the ball extremely well. He’s a very tough kid mentally and physically. Probably what sets Rob apart from a lot of point guards is that the best part of his game is that he’s a very good 3-point shooter.”

Moores spent two seasons at Pratt, but redshirted his first year, so he’ll have three seasons of eligibility remaining at UAlbany. That’s more than the usual two seasons a school gets from a juco transfer.

Rolfs said Utah State and Northern Colorado also were “heavily involved” with Moores but had yet to offer him a scholarship.

Moores visited the UAlbany campus last weekend and signed his national letter of intent on Tuesday.

Asked why Moores chose UAlbany, Rolfs explained, “They’re an established program in a good conference and they’ve been to the NCAAs the past two years. He just felt comfortable with their system and what they’re going to want him to do.”

Tim Ambrose, guard 2006 Recruit, eligible this coming year. Tim Ambrose is a delight to watch. He is an athletic guard who can dazzle a defender with his speed, strength or athletic skills. There was some interest from schools like Southern Cal, St. John's, Georgetown, Clemson, and Fairfield. Strong athlete who can get to the rim and play with tremendous athleticism.


Anthony Raffa, point guard

Anthony Raffa is a 6-foot-1, 175-pound point guard from Strathmere, N.J. (Wildwood Catholic H.S.). Raffa was the second-leading scorer in the Cape Atlantic League at 22.7 points per game. He also ranked among the league leaders in assists (3.0 pg), steals (3.3 pg) and free throw percentage (.715). As a junior, he was voted first-team All-Cape Atlantic League National Conference. Raffa led Wildwood Catholic to New Jersey 's Non-Public Class B final, the program's first appearance in the championship since 1988. The Crusaders, who went 22-8 overall, also captured the South Jersey , sectional and CAL National titles. Raffa averaged 11.0 points per game as a sophomore.

"He is our point guard of the future and a fierce competitor," Brown offered. "He led his team to the state championship game and played at the prestigious ABCD summer camp last year. He is fearless and can flat out make plays, so we have high expectations that he will have a postive effect on our program from day one."

Raffa will be joining the Great Danes for the 2008/09 season.