2008-09 Vandals - University of Idaho Athletics

2008-09 season outlook
The players around the basket will provide a
different look than Idaho fans have seen lately.
At power forward are newcomers Brandon Wiley
and Luciano de Souza, both of whom can shoot
outside as well as play around the rim.
“We are hoping to be able to spread the
defense and move some of our forwards away
from the basket. We are athletic and will look
to utilize beating teams off the bounce rather
than throwing it inside and beating people up
that way,” Verlin said.
When the situation does call for getting the
ball inside, returning center Luis Augusto and
junior college transfer Marvin Jefferson offer
Idaho two distinct options. At 6-foot-8, 245-
pounds, Augusto offers a physical force under
the basket while the 6-foot-10, 235-pound
Jefferson provides length and finesse around
the rim.
“Our post guys are coming around and
definitely will improve as they gain more
experience,” Verlin said.
Although the Idaho roster boasts players with
star-caliber talent, Verlin feels the Vandals will
find more success by approaching the season
with a team mentality.
“This is a team thing and we need to be
balanced,” Verlin said. “The good teams in the Western Athletic Conference
are balanced and have three, four, or five guys in double figures for points
and the same amount battling for the team lead in rebounds. We need to do
it as a team. I really have been preaching that to our players. I don’t feel we
have one outstanding player who will overshadow the need for us to play team
basketball.”
Although the Vandals enter the season with 16 players on its roster, Verlin
feels depth is a concern as only 11 players are eligible this season with nine
being scholarship players.
The 2009-10 roster will boast four transfers from four-year colleges. Steffan
Johnson was a first team all-Big West Conference selection at Pacific, Marcus
Lawrence played two seasons at UNLV, Luiz Toledo was the 2007-08 Atlantic
University Sport (Canada) Rookie of the Year, and Mark Mahaffy is a walkon
who played last season at Schreiner University. Kyle Barone, a 6-foot-10
freshman, must fulfill a residency requirement before joining the Vandals next
fall.
“We went the way of taking some transfers and the ones we have will be
great players in this program, but we have sacrificed some depth for this
season. That can be a good thing, however, as our current players will see a lot
of minutes and we will get some players seasoned in our program. Barring any
injuries, we will be able to get our players some great experience faster than we
otherwise would have been able to,” Verlin said.
Verlin describes the schedule to be “unbelievably tough” in his first season.
It features 30 regular-season games, which ties for the most in school history.
It is the largest amount of regular-season games in a season which does not
feature participation in a tournament. Also on tap are matchups with NCAA
powers Michigan State and Gonzaga on the road and Washington State at the
Cowan Spectrum. All three teams advanced at least to the second round of the
NCAA Tournament and are in the preseason national rankings this season.
“Beginning the season at Michigan State and at Gonzaga, two teams ranked
highly in the preseason polls, would be tough for any team. We know that is a
big challenge,” Verlin said.
The remainder of the preseason includes
games in which Verlin feels his team can be
competitive and find some success. Idaho
ends the preseason with games at home vs.
Washington State and on the road at Idaho
State, two matchups Verlin feels are important
rivalry games.
“We are hoping our non-conference schedule
will help prepare us for the WAC season by
helping us get a little better each game and
teaching us to play with passion. We hope to use
the two rivalry games at the end to springboard
us into a very difficult WAC schedule,” Verlin
said.
The WAC looks again to be one of the premier
conferences in the nation and Idaho was done
no favors with four of its first five conference
games on the road.
“The WAC is brutally tough and we have a
tough start,” Verlin said. “We start with four of
our first five games on the road beginning with
Nevada and Utah State, which are two teams
that don’t lend a lot of wins on their home
court. We also head to New Mexico State and
Louisiana Tech shortly after which is a difficult
and long road trip.”
Ready to help Verlin in his task is a group of assistant coaches with 34 years
of combined coaching experience at the Division I level.
“I am very fortunate to have a very good staff that is well versed in a lot of
areas,” Verlin said.
Mike Score enters his second year at Idaho and brings experience from
Washington, Eastern Washington, and a Sweet 16 trip while at Utah.
“I was very fortunate to keep coach Score here with his experience at Idaho
and in college basketball in general. His experience recruiting international
players will do nothing but help the University of Idaho,” Verlin said.
Ray Lopes began at the Division I level in 1989 with stints at UC Santa
Barbara, Washington State, Oklahoma, and Fresno State before moving on to
three years at the NBA level.
“Coach Lopes is a great member of this staff because his experience at the
Division I level is not something a first-year head coach gets to take advantage
of. His experience at all levels of Division I and with the NBA Developmental
League is something that will help us tremendously. He also is a great recruiter
with fantastic contacts all across the nation,” Verlin said.
Also remaining at Idaho is second-year coach Mike Freeman. Freeman spent
five seasons at Iowa before coming to Idaho last year.
“The best way to describe coach Freeman is to say he gets it done. He
is fantastic with handling all of the behind-the-scenes aspects of running a
successful program and he will become a great recruiter in the future,” Verlin
said.
Rounding out the coaching staff is Director of Men’s Basketball Operations
Chris Helbling. Helbling graduated from Moscow High School, played and
coached at Walla Walla Community College, and also spent last season on
staff at Gonzaga.
“Chris’ knowledge of the area, and Moscow in particular, has been very
helpful. He is able to implement a lot of outreach in the community and his
passion for and knowledge of basketball are things we are fortunate to have on
our staff,” Verlin said.
2008-09 Idaho Vandal Basketball 31