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