Photo by: Andrew Fielding
The men’s basketball season officially begins on Friday when the team will hold its first practice, which commences a four-week preseason leading up to the team’s season opener at home against Portland State on Nov. 11.
The Pioneers return all five of their top scorers from last season, including senior co-captain Brian Stafford and junior Chase Hallam, who each averaged 12.9 points per game in the 2010-2011 campaign.
In addition, the team gains added experience with the return of redshirt senior and co-captain Rob Lewis, who missed last season with an injury.
“Having Rob back is great for us not only because he has a ton of experience at this level, but he’s matured and displayed significant growth to the coaching staff throughout the offseason,” said head coach Joe Scott. “He’s a guy that’s been in our program since year one, so he knows what the foundation of this program is.”
While Lewis and Stafford provide the much-needed experience on the court, the team brings in a group of five freshmen that will be heavily evaluated in the upcoming weeks, according to Scott and assistant coach A.J. Kuhle.
The group includes forward Marcus Byrd and guard Brett Olson, both Highlands Ranch, Colo. natives.
For the second straight season, the team has recruited talent from Texas as guard Cam Griffin and forward Rouce O’Neale look to make an immediate impact similar to what sophomore Chris Udofia (Irving, Texas) did in his first year at DU.
Perhaps the brightest prospect of the bunch is 6-foot-8 forward Jake Logan, who will provide the Pioneers with a body in the paint.
“Jake certainly provides us a nice big body in the post,” said Kuhle. “But when practice starts we will give them all an opportunity to play and over the course of the next month and a half we will determine who is going to get on the court and make an immediate impact for us. In my opinion, this is the best group we’ve brought in here so far.”
Although the newcomers are expected to contribute, the team will rely mostly on its veterans such as Hallam and his senior brother Travis, who averaged 8.6 points per game last season.
“We have a lot of depth at guard, but we haven’t necessarily had a true point guard on this team. Last season that meant we needed to use guys like Chase, Travis and Brian to take up the ball for us,” said Scott. “Our goal is to get those three guys back in a role that fits their individual strengths so they’re not overwhelmed.”
Scott suggests that Griffin could form into the true point guard the team has lacked in past seasons. However, the coaching staff hasn’t seen the team practice and doesn’t know what its starting lineup will be on opening night.
“There’s a lot of stuff we are going to be working on in the weeks to come,” said Scott. “I know our guys are excited to be back in season and start proving themselves on the court.”
