ETSU Tips Off Basketball Season, Looks Ahead

The East Tennessee State University men’s basketball team tipped off its 2008-09 season Friday night, with a scheduled three-hour practice inside the Memorial Center in Johnson City, Tenn.

The Buccaneers (19-13, 11-5 Atlantic Sun in 2007-08) still have 15 days remaining before their first exhibition contest, and 29 days left before their first official game – a matchup against Temple on Nov. 14 at the Charleston Classic in Charleston, S.C.

But ETSU coach Murry Bartow said he is already trying to determine how his team will handle a non-conference schedule that places the Bucs on the road in eight of their first nine contests.

The Bucs will play three contests at the Charleston Classic, then face road matchups against Bradley, Marshall and Appalachian State, among others.

And while ETSU has home court on Nov. 20 against Wingate, the Buccaneers don’t return to the Memorial Center until the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga visits the Mini-Dome on Dec. 17.

Bartow has studied, examined and poured over his team’s schedule, and he has no idea how his team will respond to the road trip – or what the Bucs’ season will look like once the journey is complete.

“You can ask any college coach in America – you can put that schedule in front of anybody – and the reality is that the home team wins 70 percent of the time in Division I games,” Bartow said. “And I’m not at all saying we’re going to lose those games. But it’s pretty daunting, and it’s pretty challenging.
“I do think if we can get through that in one piece … I think we’re in a position to compete and really make a run.”

According to Bartow, improved team defense is a major goal for the Bucs this season. Poor defending down the stretch plagued ETSU in 2007-08 – the Bucs allowed their opponents to average 77.2 points per game last year. In addition, ETSU gave up 38.4 rebounds per contest and was outscored by its opponents overall in the second half.

“No. 1 … we’ve got to be a lot better defensively,” Bartow said. “Last year, we won [19] games and had really similar offensive numbers [to a 24-win season in 2006-07]. But [we] just weren’t as good. … We’ve got to get better on the defensive end. And, kind of with that, we’ve got to be a much better defensive rebounding team. … Defense and defensive rebounding have been our two biggest priorities from day one.”

The Bucs return their top two scorers from 2007-08: senior guard Courtney Pigram (15.8 points, 3.4 assists) and senior forward Kevin Tiggs (14.6 points, 5.5 assists).

Bartow said the dynamic combination of Pigram and Tiggs is a valuable resource for a Bucs squad that will be forced to deal with the departure of graduated seniors Andrew Reed, Travis Strong and Kenyona Swader, who combined to average 28.9 points a game last season.

“[Pigram and Tiggs] are really a good one-two punch,” Bartow said. “For us to do what we want to do, both of those guys are going to have to have big years. And I’d be really surprised if they didn’t.”

Bartow also praised the offseason work of junior forward Mike Smith (7 points, 4.7 rebounds). Smith earned all-freshman team honors in the Atlantic Sun Conference during his initial campaign with the Bucs. But Smith, burdened with expectations among other issues last year, struggled during the majority of his sophomore season, and did not find his shooting touch until the latter part of the 2007-08 campaign.

Meanwhile, sophomore forward/center Tommy Hubbard, senior point guard Jocolby Davis and freshmen Adam Sollazo and Jarvis Jones all drew praise from Bartow for their work during the offseason.

“The guy that has really done the most to this point for the team and for himself has been Tommy Hubbard,” Bartow said. “We made the decision this summer to really move Tommy from the perimeter to inside. So, we’re looking at him really more as an inside player. And he really made the most of that opportunity. … He’s a tough kid.”

btsmith@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2569

ETSU preseason starting five
If the Buccaneers’ season began today, the following players would compose ETSU’s starting unit, according to Bucs coach Murry Bartow:
Point guard – Jocolby Davis 6-foot-1 Sr.
Shooting guard – Courtney Pigram 6-foot-1 Sr.
Forward – Mike Smith 6-foot-6 Jr.
Forward – Kevin Tiggs 6-foot-4 Sr.
Center – Tommy Hubbard 6-foot-4 So.

Looking back
2007-08 Bucs
Record: 19-13 (11-5 Atlantic Sun)
Last game: 69-65 defeat to Belmont in Atlantic Sun tournament semifinals
Stat leaders: Courtney Pigram (15.8 points, 3.4 assists per game); Andrew Reed (6.3 rebounds per game),
Graduated seniors: Reed, Travis Strong, Kenyona Swader