Bigger, Better Chippewas Eye Continued Improvement
10/29/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - Building blocks, more pieces of the puzzle, steps forward.
Plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
That's the vibe surrounding the Central Michigan men's basketball team as it enters the 2014-15 season.
"We're a better shooting team, a better ball-handling team, better depth, better defense, better frontcourt, better backcourt, we're better in every area," said coach Keno Davis Wednesday at the team's annual media day. "What does that mean for wins? I don't know. But we're better than we've been. I'm optimistic because of that."
Fueling that optimism is the fact that the Chippewas return all five starters, including junior guard Chris Fowler, who was third in the Mid-American Conference in scoring, assists and steals last season.
"There's a bigger sense of urgency about this basketball team," said Fowler, who earlier this week was named to the MAC Preseason All-West Division Team. "We've got guys who have been around awhile. We've got guys who know the clock is ticking on them. It's closer to the end than it is to the beginning. That's how it is for the guys I came in with."
The Chippewas return more than 90 percent of their scoring from last season, including junior forward John Simons and sophomore guard Braylon Rayson, both of whom averaged 10-plus points per game a year ago.
The other returning starters are Blake Hibbitts and Austin Stewart, while key reserves Rayshawn Simmons and Austin Keel are also back. Keel is the lone senior.
"I think our fans are just starting to see a glimpse of not only what this year's team can be, and next year's team can be," Davis said, "but I really believe that as we go on, we're not poised to be good for one or two years, we're poised to -- when we get there, and we are good -- to be able to even go up another level."
Based solely on experience, the Chippewas should be able to improve on the 10-21 mark they posted last season. A major ingredient fueling the optimism is the addition of some size and bulk in the post in freshmen Luke Meyer and DaRohn Scott, along with the continued development of Milos Cabarkapa.
Meyer goes 6-foot-11, Scott is listed at 6-8 ½ and 230 pounds, and Cabarkapa is a 7-footer.
"Last year in some games we were a team that just got beat on the boards because we just didn't have the bodies in there," said Davis, who is entering his third season at the helm.
"What do you do? You get your players bigger and stronger and you recruit bigger and stronger players. Those guys coming in, they don't have the pressure to come in and lead this team, they just have to come in and play hard. And we've got the other guys who are going to lead the way. We're a different-looking team.
"People in the airport won't ask what sport we play. They'll know we're a basketball team." The development of the big men is key, and the only way for them to make progress is to play, Davis said, adding that the transition to college basketball is more difficult for a post player than it is for, say, a wing or a guard.
"It's a different speed to the game, it's a different physicality that you need, and the only way that they're going to improve and be ready for that is to get them out there in competition and play other guys," Davis said.
The addition of the big men will allow the likes of the 6-8 Simons and the 6-7 Hibbitts to move farther away from the basket to spots on the floor to which they are more accustomed, on both ends of the court.
Both Hibbitts and Simons are very capable 3-point shooters, combining last season to make 37 percent of their triple tries.
"Our shooters are going to benefit from" the additions inside, Fowler said. "I'm going to benefit from them because they can clog some things up in the lane and help me to find angles that I might not have been able to find in the past.
"They're going to suck some people into them and that will allow our shooters to get more wide-open shots. It's going to help everybody."
Additional capable bodies - along with the continued improvement of the veterans -- will provide much-needed depth and give Davis the luxury of allowing the likes of Fowler a breather from time to time.
"I think because of the emergence of Rayshawn Simmons and because of Braylon Rayson having such a good freshman year and being a year older, it allows Chris more time off the court, and allows him to have more energy and I think his numbers might improve," Davis said. "He might not have to log quite as many minutes as he did in the past."
Simmons is perhaps symbolic of where the Chippewas were, and where they are headed. The junior, who transferred to CMU last season from Moberly Area Community College in Missouri, has improved by leaps and bounds, Davis said, and shares the team co-captainship with Fowler.
"I just want to be the best two-way player that I can be," said Simmons, who appeared in all 31 games off the bench last season, averaging 21.5 minutes per game. "I want to be able to guard the best player (on the other team) and be able to give the team everything we need offensively.
"Honestly I felt last year it wasn't all about my skill level. I let mental stuff affect my skill level out on the court. This year I was just really focused on getting better, working on my skills. I want to be able to help this team as much as I can, and I want to play at the next level, and I can't do that without being in the gym and working.
"I wasn't focused as much as I should have been last year. I was watching a lot of TV and playing a lot of video games. Now it's sleep, eat, then the gym. Honestly I haven't touched a video game since last season was over."
Davis said Simmons may, in fact, be among the top defenders in the MAC and he said that Simmons and Fowler are the hardest workers on the team.
"He really stood out as a guy and a player who not only leads on the court, but he leads when we're not having practice," Davis said of Simmons. "He's getting guys in the gym, he's doing the right thing, he's focused on becoming a great player and seeing how great this team can become.
"If there was a ball bouncing in the gym (throughout the offseason), he was the guy in there. And because of that, you're going to see him on the court quite a bit."
The Chippewas open the season on Nov. 9 at home against Saginaw Valley State. Their first six games, all non-leaguers, are scheduled for McGuirk Arena.
Their first road test comes on Dec. 2 at Bradley, and they open the MAC season at Toledo on Jan. 6.
"I have high goals for this team," Davis said. "I haven't put a number on it, or a post-season (berth) on it, or a seeding on it, but I think where we've come from in a couple years is exciting and we're looking forward to the next couple weeks to see how good we can be when we start the season, not just how good we can be when we end the season."
