ODU MEN’S BASKETBALL 2011-12 QUICK FACTS LOCATION: Norfolk, Va. 23529 LETTERMEN LOST: (4) NICKNAME: Monarchs Frank Hassell: 6-9 Sr. C-F 15.1 ppg/ 9.4 rpg FOUNDED: 1930 (as the Norfolk Division of The College of Wil- (All CAA/CAA Trn. MVP/Mid Major AA/All-Region) liam & Mary) ENROLLMENT: 24,466 Ben Finney: 6-5 Sr. F 9.2 ppg/ 6.3 rpg. SCHOOL COLORS: Slate Blue (PMS 540), Silver (PMS 877), (Paradise Jam Tournament MVP) & Light Blue (PMS 283) Keyon Carter: 6-8 Sr. F 7.3 ppg/ 4.1 rpg. HOME COURT: Ted Constant Convocation Center (8,424) Darius James: 6-0 Sr. G 7.0 ppg/ 3.2 apg/ 1.9 A-TO ratio SURFACE: Wood CONFERENCE: Colonial Athletic Association STARTERS RETURNING: (2) PRESIDENT: John Broderick (Northeastern) Kent Bazemore: 6-5 Sr. G 12.3 ppg/5.1 rpg/2.2 stls/2.9 apg. ATHLETIC DIRECTOR: Dr. Wood Selig (Washington & Lee) (All CAA/All-Reg./Defensive POY) OFFICE PHONE: 757-683-3369 Chris Cooper: 6-9 Sr. C 5.0 ppg/ 5.5 rpg SR. WOMEN’S ADMINISTRATOR: Deb Polca ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT PHONE: 757-683-3375 ADDITIONAL RETURNING LETTERMEN: (4) TICKET OFFICE PHONE: 757 -683-4444 Marquel De Lancey: 6-0 Sr. G 1.9 ppg/ 1.1 apg ATHLETIC TRAINER: Jason Mitchell Trian Iliadis: 6-4 Sr. G 6.1 ppg/ 1.2 apg OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.odusports.com CAA Scholar Athlete of the Year) Nick Wright: 6-8 RS-Jr. F 1.3 ppg/1.1 rpg COACHING STAFF Anton Larson: 7-0 RS-So F 1.3 ppg/0.8 rpg HEAD COACH: Blaine Taylor (Montana (‘81) RECORD AT ODU: 215-110, (11th year) RED SHIRTS FROM LAST YEAR: (2) CAREER RECORD: 356-176 (18th yr ) Richard Ross: 6-6, 200 Fr. Wichita Falls, Tx./Hirschi HS ASSOCIATE COACH: Jim Corrigan (Duke’80) Three-time All-District/All-State Selection ASSISTANTS: Rob Wilkes (Stetson ‘93) Dimitri Batten: 6-3, 190 Fr. Hampton, VA.,/Kecoughtan HS & Lonnie Blow(Virginia Wesleyan ‘82) Three-time All-Peninsula District/All-State DIR. OF BASKETBALL OPERATIONS: Drew Williamson (ODU’07) OFFICE PHONE: 757-683-3362 NEWCOMERS: (4) BASKETBALL SECRETARY: Annette Manley Donte Hill: 6-4 So, G- VA. Beach, VA./Norfolk Collegiate HS Transferred from Clemson – Eligible after the Fall Semester 2010-11 RECORD: 27-7 Tidewater Conference Player of the Year/All-State 2010-12 CAA RECORD: 14-4, CAA Champions(2nd year in a row) Breon Key: 6-2, Fr., G- Hampton, VA/ Phoebus HS POST SEASON: NCAA (9th seed) Standout Defensive player- All-District Selection L 58-60 to Butler (in Washington, DC.) Nayquann Mitchell: 6-7 1⁄2 Jr., F. – Jamiaca, NY./ Bowne HS/Lon Morris JC Jason Pimentel: 6-8, Fr., F- Ocala, FL./Montverde Academy HISTORY County Player of the Year FIRST YEAR OF BASKETBALL: 1930-31 OVERALL ALL-TIME RECORD: 1218-843 (81 years) .591 FIRST YEAR OF DIV. I. BASKETBALL: 1976-77 DIVISION I ALL-TIME RECORD: 661-416 (35 yrs) .614 NO. YRS IN NCAA TRN/LAST: 11/ 2011, lost to #8 seed Butler (1st Rd.) NO. YRS IN NIT TRN/LAST: 10/ 2006 semi-finals, lost to Michigan, 66-43 RETURNING LETTERMEN: 6 NCAA RPI: #23 ODU MEN’S BASKETBALL SPORTS INFORMATION CAA MONARCH RANKINGS: ASST. ATHLETIC DIRECTOR FOR COMMUNICATIONS: Carol Hudson, Jr. TEAM RANKINGS OFFICE PHONE: 757-683-3372 Scoring: 7th - 65.6 E-MAIL: [email protected] Scoring Defense: 1st - 58.4 (3rd nationally) HOME PHONE: 757-625-2061 Scoring Margin: 2nd - + 7.3 ASSOC. COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Kim Zivkovich Free Throw Pct: 10th - .668 E-mail Address: [email protected] Field Goal Pct: 6th - .439 ASST. COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Dustin Semonavick Field Goal Pct Def: 2nd - .404 (36th nationally) E-Mail Address: [email protected] 3PT FG Pct: 11th - .329 ASST. COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Eric Bohannon 3PT FG Def: 9th - .366 E-Mail Address: [email protected] Rebounding: 2nd - 39.9 ASST. ATHLETIC DIRECTOR FOR CREATIVE SERVICES: Tina Price Rebound Def: 1st - 28.1 E-mail Address: [email protected] Rebound Margin: 1st - +11.7 (1st nationally) DIRECTOR OF CREATIVE SERVICES: Chrisie H.Brown Blocked Shots: 2nd - 4.3 E-Mail Address: [email protected] Assists: 2nd - 14.3 GRADUATE ASSISTANT FOR CREATIVE SERVICES: Rebekah O’Connor Steals: 2nd - 6.9 E-Mail Address: [email protected] Asst./To Ratio: 4th FAX NUMBER: 757-683-3119 Offensive Rebs: 1st - 15.4 MAIL ADDRESS: Rm. 1102/ Jim Jarrett Athletic Admin. Bldg/Nor- Defensive Rebs: 3rd - 24.4 folk, Va. 23529-0201 PRESS ROW NUMBERS: 757-683-5596 INDIVIDUALS ATHLETIC TICKET OFFICE: 757-683-4444 Scoring: Hassell (9th) 15.1 RADIO STATIONS OF THE MONARCHS: WXEZ 94.1/ESPN1310 Bazemore (16) 12.3 PHONE: 757-434-0746 Rebounding: Hassell (2nd) 9.4 (34th nationally) STATION PHONE: 757-671-1000 Finney (14th) 6.3 STATION FAX: 757-671-1313 Cooper (20th) 5.5 CONSTANT CENTER CONTACT: Mike Fryling Field Goal Pct: Hassell (3rd) .560 (25th nationally) OFFICE PHONE: 757-683-5762 Bazemore (10th) .481 Free Throw PCT: Hassell (14th) .737 2010-11 HONORS Assists: James (9th) 3.3 Ben Finney Paradise Jam Tournament MVP Finney (12) 3.0 Frank Hassell CAA Tournament MVP Bazemore (13th) 2.9 1st Team All-CAA Steals: Bazemore (1st) 2.2 (21st nationally) Paradise Jam All-Tournament Finney (9th) 1.3 Four-time CAA Player of the Week Blocked Shots: Hassell (8th) 1.3 First Team NABC District 10 Collegeinsider.com All-American Bazemore (13th) 0.9 SI.com Honorable Mention All-American Cooper (15th) 0.8 Kent Bazemore CAA Defensive Player of the Year Second Team Assist/TO Ratio: James (4th) 1.9 All-CAA Finney (10th) 1.6 CAA All-Tournament Collegeinsider.com Defensive Player of the Year NABC Second Team All-Dist. 10 Ranked 21st Nationally in steals (2.2) MEDIA SUPPLEMENT 2011-12 SEASON OUTLOOK The two-time defending CAA Champion Monarchs, winners of a school record 173 games the last seven seasons, return six lettermen which include two starters from last year’s CAA Championship team that won 27 games and reached the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row. “I am as invigorated by this challenge as much as ever. Over the years, we have handled the growing pains, shook hands and went forward. I believe this year’s team will have as much growth and improvement from fall to spring as any I have ever been around. That is quite a statement given history. To put it into perspective, you need to recognize that every player on our team will be in a different role, Kent Bazemore included. They will need to experience those roles, fit those roles together and put them to use in game competition. We will be adding ingredients to our recipe as we go. When you mix it all together, we will be like a plant that is coming out of the ground and is nurtured and I believe will blossom at the right time.” - ODU head coach Blaine Taylor Under the direction of head coach Blaine Taylor, ODU has appeared in national post-season play seven straight years, including four NCAA tourna- ments. ODU also reached the semifinals of the 2006 NIT and won the 2009 Collegeinsider.com post-season championship. The 27 wins are the second most in ODU basketball history behind only the 28 wins in the 2005 season, all under Taylor, the school’s winningest men’s basketball coach. Taylor is 215-110 as he enters his 11th season at ODU. He won his 200th game at ODU with a 69-65 win over George Mason in the Constant Center. The 173 wins the past seven years is the best among Virginia’s Division I schools at .721 percent. ODU has also won more CAA titles (5) than any current league member. Last year, the Monarchs compiled a 27-7 record, won the CAA tournament championship, then advanced to their second straight NCAA tourna- ment as a number nine seed, their highest since 1986. The Monarchs lost a heartbreaker at the buzzer to two-time NCAA Tournament finalist Butler, 60-58 in Washington, DC. As was the case last year, ODU ranked among the nation’s best in three team and three individual categories. The Monarchs were national cham- pions in rebound margin (+11.7) after ranking third in 2010. ODU was third nationally in scoring defense (58.4) after finishing sixth last year and ranked 36th (.404) nationally in field goal percentage defense. ODU lost four lettermen, led by 6-9 All-CAA center and Tourament MVP and SI.com honorable mention All-American, Frank Hassell. Hassell led the team in scoring at 15.1, shot .560 from the field, and had 9.4 rebounds per game. He was also named first team All-CAA, All-State, NABC District 10, and to the CAA and Collegeinsider.com national All-Defensive squads. Also gone are 6-5, forward Ben Finney (9.2 ppg/ 6.3 prg), 6-0 guard Darius James (7.0 ppg/3.0 apg), and 6-8 forward Keyon Carter (7.3 ppg/4.1 rpg). Finney is now ODU’s all-time leader in career games played with 139, followed by Hassell and James at 138. Heading ODU’s returnees are Kent Bazemore (6-5, Sr., 12.3 ppg/ 5.1 rpg), who was second team All-CAA, CAA Defensive Player of the Year, the CAA’s steal leader (2.2) and Collegeinsider.com National Defensive Player of the Year; Chris Cooper (6-9, Sr. 5.0 ppg/ 5.5 rpg.); and Trian Iliadis (6-3, Sr.