Each day from October 23-November 3, there will be a blogger/fan previewing their team in this space. For previous previews and the future schedule, click here.
After back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances, the experts expected
Wofford to take
a sizable tumble in the 2011-12 season due to heavy graduation loses. But Mike
Young guided the team to a respectable 19-14 overall record, including 12-6 in
the SoCon. That
was good for second place in the SoCon's South division. Wofford played in the
CBI postseason
tournament. The team was lead by senior guards Brad Loesing and Kevin
Giltner, who
both played about every minute of every game, and senior center Drew Crowell. But now
Young and his Terriers will face another tough challenge as those three players,
who provided the lion's share of Wofford's scoring
last season, are all now playing professionally in Europe. The only returning
full-time starter is reigning SoCon freshman of the year Karl Cochran. This
incredibly athletic 6-1 So. guard averaged 11.1 points and 4.7 rebounds and was
tops on the team in both blocked shots and steals. Other key returnees include
So. F Lee Skinner, a physical 6-6 inside player who lead the team in rebounding.
Junior 6-7 F Aerris Smith, who started 19 games last season,
continues to improve steadily and may be poised for a breakout year. Very
athletic 6-6 So. F Jarrell Byrd showed flashes of brilliance in limited minutes
last season and the Terriers think his ceiling is very high. Rounding out the
returnees are 6-1 G John Swinton, who may see significant minutes at PG
this season, and 6-3 G Taylor Wagener, a shooter and the team's only
senior.
The fortunes of the 2012-13 Terriers will depend largely on the
development of the many newcomers to the team. The Terriers are very high on 6-4
G Indiana Faithfull from Australia, who will have a chance
to be a major contributor
at PG. Faithfull is a So. as he was ruled ineligible for
his freshman year. Faithfull has been a winner as his high school
record was 54-4. Another potential stud at guard is 6-2 Bryan Harris from the
Baltimore area. Harris averaged 24 PPG at Massanutten Military Academy (VA) last year, and
Wofford feels
extremely fortunate to have landed him. Also competing for minutes at guard will
be 6-4 sharpshooter Spencer Collins, who averaged 20.3 PPG and 7.6 rebounds
at Easley (SC)
High, including a 44 point performance in the playoffs.
There is no shortage of new forwards that will be competing for
playing time. The Terriers have 6-8 redshirt freshman Kevin Hickson and true
freshmen 6-8 Zac Grossenbacher, 6-7 C.J. Neumann, and athletic 6-6 Justin
Gordan. These four guys will all be vying to help the Terriers' inside game. One
of the three true freshman forwards may be redshirtted. 5-11 G James Long and 6-6 F Zach
Korkowski, a pair of
freshmen walk-ons, will round out the roster.
The 2012-13 schedule is a bit less daunting than some previous Wofford schedules,
perhaps due to the team's youth. Road trips to Colorado (the season opener on
November 9), Xavier, and
Virginia highlight the non-conference slate. Winthrop and Gardner-Webb will
visit Spartanburg, and the Terriers will participate in
The Classic in Wilmington, NC. Wofford will have an early opportunity to see how
they stack up in the conference as they must travel to league favorite Davidson
for an early SoCon game on December 8.
Complete Schedule: http://www.woffordterriers.com/schedule.aspx?tab=schedule2&path=mbball
THREE QUESTIONS
1. How will this young team's players develop throughout the year?
Of
the 15 players on the team roster, 8 are freshmen and 5 are sophomores. So this
is obviously a team without a lot of experience. But it is also a team with a
lot of talent and potential, as many of the guys have a very strong upside. How
fast can these guys develop, improve, and reach their potential? The answer to
that question will go a long way toward determining if Wofford can be a
contender in the SoCon.
2. How well will the new guards fill the void left by Loesing's and Giltner's
departures?
Make no mistake, these two guys are huge losses for Wofford. Both
averaged 38 minutes a game and were tremendous leaders. They were very smart
guys who were excellent shooters and
passers, excellent free throw shooters, and very cool and dangerous in the
clutch with a game on the line. Their presence will be very difficult to
replace. The only proven backcourt commodity is Karl Cochran, and he must
guard against a sophomore slump. Young guys like Swinton (who saw very
limited minutes last season), Faithfull, Harris, and Collins will have to
develop quickly. Can one or more of these newcomers step up and contribute right
away? The Terriers will have to have that happen in order to be a factor in the
SoCon.
3. Will the big men be able to provide a strong inside
presence?
Key returnees Lee Skinner and Aerris Smith must continue their development at a
good clip as both are projected starters. Both must also improve from the foul
line as the each shot less than 60% from the stripe last year. Newcomers Grossenbacher and
Neumann will
likely compete for minutes at center and will need to contribute right away to
fill the void left by Drew Crowell's departure.
Will they be up to it? It's a big question for the Terriers.
This is obviously a very young and inexperienced team. Mike Young will get the absolute maximum from them. But with youth comes many ups and downs. And this team may well struggle from the charity stripe at times, which is never a good thing when you are in a close game. I expect this team to win some games no one expected them to win but also lose some games that they are favored in and end up somewhere in the middle of the SoCon pack. But regardless of the outcome of games, this will be a very fun and interesting team to watch and these guys will grow and develop as basketball players with each game. So I hope to see some good crowds at the Benjamin Johnson Arena this season to get behind these young pups.
By Cody Cooper/woffordgrad94, TerrierFans.com
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