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EMU Basketball Media Guide • 2005-06 - Eastern Michigan Eagles ...

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10<br />

<strong>Eagles</strong> Eager to Enter <strong>2005</strong>-<strong>06</strong> Season<br />

Senior John Bowler (42) enters his final year as a<br />

preseason All-Mid-American Conference selection.<br />

Bowler finished eighth in the league in rebounding<br />

(6.3) and 15th in scoring (13.1) in 2004-05. He is<br />

tied for 32nd on the all-time <strong>EMU</strong> scoring list with<br />

864 points and his 500 career rebounds is good for<br />

11th in the school record book.<br />

throw percentage at 94.1 percent.<br />

The junior class will be counted on to<br />

provide some inside help to Bowler, in the<br />

presence of Craig Cashen (6-8, 210, Jr.-<br />

Jr.) and junior-college transfer Chris<br />

Knaub (6-10, 225, Jr.-Jr.).<br />

“Both Craig Cashen and Chris Knaub<br />

give us stability at the four spot,” Ramsey<br />

said of his junior class. “Both players have<br />

good range on their shots and can knock<br />

down some outside jumpers to take the<br />

inside pressure off John Bowler. Craig is a<br />

real energy guy, and Chris gives us stability.<br />

We look for those two guys to do well.”<br />

Cashen played in all 30 games last<br />

year and averaged 2.5 points and 1.9 rebounds.<br />

He made 84.4 percent of his foul<br />

shots and hauled down 58 rebounds.<br />

Knaub played last year at Jacksonville<br />

(Texas) Junior College where<br />

he averaged 3.5 points and<br />

4.0 rebounds while earning<br />

All-Region Academic Team<br />

selection.<br />

The sophomore class will<br />

provide both muscle,<br />

athleticism and ball handling<br />

to the mix as big man<br />

James Matthews (6-8,<br />

240, Jr.-So.), will join<br />

swingman Nick Freer (6-6,<br />

195, So.-So.) and guard<br />

Derek Van Solkema (6-1,<br />

175, Jr.-So.) in the battle for<br />

playing time.<br />

Matthews transferred to<br />

<strong>EMU</strong> from Marquette University<br />

and played his first season<br />

of competition for the<br />

<strong>Eagles</strong> last year after becoming<br />

eligible in the second<br />

semester while sitting<br />

out his transfer year. He<br />

played sparingly, averaging<br />

0.6 points and 0.6 rebounds.<br />

Matthews was awarded an<br />

extra year of competition<br />

from the NCAA after playing<br />

just one game at Marquette<br />

and he will be considered a<br />

sophomore eligible in <strong>2005</strong>-<br />

<strong>06</strong>.<br />

“James (Matthews) has<br />

been a pleasant surprise<br />

since I took the job,”<br />

Ramsey said. “He has been<br />

tremendous in the weight room as well as<br />

in conditioning and he is doing everything<br />

we ask of him. James is definitely going to<br />

bring us some muscle and toughness.”<br />

Another player that has caught<br />

Ramsey’s eye because of his athleticism<br />

is Freer.<br />

“The most pleasant surprise in the<br />

sophomore group is Nick Freer,” Ramsey<br />

explained. “He is the best athlete on the<br />

team and is tremendously talented. Nick<br />

can do a lot of things and the most challenging<br />

thing to him will be developing confidence.<br />

We’re going to let Nick go out and<br />

make plays.”<br />

Freer averaged just five minutes a<br />

game as a freshman last year while averaging<br />

0.8 points and 0.4 rebounds.<br />

Van Solkema sat out the 2003-04 sea-<br />

200 <strong>2005</strong>- 200 -0 -<strong>06</strong> -00<br />

E E E MU MU BASK BASKE BASK TBAL TBAL TBALL<br />

TBAL<br />

son as a redshirt and went on to play in 19<br />

games last year as a backup guard. He is<br />

a talented three-point shooter who averaged<br />

2.4 points and 0.7 rebounds.<br />

“Derek (Van Solkema) should be a<br />

good combo guy for us. He is someone<br />

that can give us some good backup minutes<br />

at both guard spots,” Ramsey added.<br />

Perhaps the largest question mark on<br />

<strong>EMU</strong>’s horizon is the addition of a talented<br />

group of six freshmen who have unlimited<br />

potential to give the <strong>Eagles</strong> a great base<br />

for the future.<br />

The six frosh: Carlos Medlock (6-0,<br />

170, Fr.-Fr.), Zane Gay (6-4, 195, Fr.-<br />

Fr.), Gino Smith (6-7, 215, Fr.-Fr.), Kyle<br />

Dodd (6-11, 210, Fr.-Fr.), Desmond<br />

Young (6-1, 180, Fr.-Fr.), and B.J. Ford<br />

(6-1, 170, Fr.-Fr.) will provide depth at<br />

every position on the court.<br />

Point guard Medlock will be the lone<br />

newcomer to move immediately into a<br />

starting role.<br />

“We all know that we needed a point<br />

guard and Carlos Medlock will get the ball<br />

right off the bat,” Ramsey explained. “If I<br />

had to compare him with someone it would<br />

be a player like Lorenzo Neely, who was<br />

a four-year starter at the point in the late<br />

80’s. Carlos is a consummate team guy<br />

who knows how to make his teammates<br />

better and goes out of his way to do that.<br />

We’ll give him the ball and go with it.”<br />

Gay was an all-stater in both basketball<br />

and football at Olivet H.S. as a senior<br />

and like, Freer, brings an extra dose of<br />

athleticism to the squad in his first intercollegiate<br />

season.<br />

“Zane (Gay) is a tremendous competitor<br />

who was runner-up for the Mr. <strong>Basketball</strong><br />

honor in the state, he played on a state<br />

championship basketball team that went<br />

33-0 and he was also an All-State football<br />

player so you know that he will be a strong<br />

addition to our team,” Ramsey said.<br />

Smith gives the <strong>Eagles</strong> a player that<br />

can go up front to help on the boards or<br />

move into a swing spot to add depth in the<br />

backcourt.<br />

“Gino (Smith) may get the nod at one<br />

of the wing spots because he can shoot<br />

the 17-18 foot jumper and he can also put<br />

the ball on the floor,” Ramsey explained.<br />

“We’ll get him into the fray right away.”<br />

Another big man that Ramsey and his<br />

staff will be working on to prepare for the

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