Let me say I don't think it is as bad as some people think it is!! There is a lot going on, who's the coach going to be next year, is this years team a lost cause, what kind of team might we have next year??? I, like everyone else really has no idea who the coach will be next year. I am different than many because right now I don't even have a favorite. I don't have enough info about enough candidates. I will admit I am a big Pooh fan and as soon as he took over, I was rooting for him and I still am because of the team. I just haven't decided if we need to clean the slate and start off with a new coach but I am leaning in that direction, although I must admit I would hate to lose Pooh. Now, I figure if we get the right coach, in 3 years he will be gone and we could hire Pooh then, when the present players will all be gone and he could start off with a clean slate. I do know one way we could get back in the national picture very quickly is to hire a high profile coach(ex coach) and even coming off a bad year (this year) would get us a couple of appearances on TV next year and some national press as they follow how he does at Tulsa. That kind of exposure is nice when a program has been down for a couple of years!! I also think about a young shining star on the horizon we could get, there are several of them out there too. No immediate pub but a recruiter that could build the program with a couple of recruiting classes that could last 5 or 6 years. I'm leaving my options open but I will get behind whoever they choose!!!! This years team isn't lost but it is as close as you can get to it!! This team has absolutely no stars or even semi stars. There are a few players on this team that might make a good supporting cast for a couple of stars but that's all. Because of Pooh I have raised my victory total in the WAC this year from 3 to 4 and they will be in the Play In game in the WAC tourney. The WAC is way down this year with really no stand out teams, which gives you an example of how far we have fallen. I will be cheering for them and Pooh the rest of the season and hope I'm wrong, two seasons in a row with less than 10 victories is really a hit to your basketball status!! I do have some hope for next year but even that is based on two "IF's" --If Baker stays around and is 80% as good as advertised and if we get a 40+% Juco 3-point shooter. Whether Pooh stays or a new coach comes in, they will know they have to turn things around, that only means to be a .500 team, fast. I don't believe I would want to rely on a Frosh to do that and I don't think the new coach would either, so he will get a Juco. We all love high school recruits and want to get away from Juco's, but with 3 HS kids coming in and a bunch of scholarships next year for HS players, a Juco is the best answer now. Besides what super HS players are left after the Nov signing, few if any and every school with a scholarship would be after them if they existed. With Baker and a 3-point shooter I think we will be in the mix in CUSA next year, as a matter of fact in the upper half of CUSA!! I think with a new coach, besides Baker, I think Davis will be the other starter under the basket and they will be a force both offensively and defensively. I think McDade could become a semi star, especially if he can come up with a pull up shot off a drive to the basketball. He could be almost unstoppable with his jumping ability, speed and athleticism. If Ramsdell could add only 10 lbs, I might even look at him as the starter at the small forward next year. Whoever the coach is next year I think it will be a much more excitng team and Tulsa will be heading back towards the promised land, NCAA's, in a short period of time!!
Different but effective
By BILL HAISTEN World Sports Writer
1/27/2005
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With an unorthodox jump shot, Brett McDade is emerging as an important player for Tulsa.
In baseball, there are Jeff Bagwell and Craig Counsell. Each has a distinctly abnormal batting stance, but Bagwell has a career average of .297 with 446 home runs, while Counsell wears a 2001 World Series championship ring.
In golf, there is Jim Furyk. He's got that funky loop in his swing, but he captured the 2003 U.S. Open championship, was a member of four U.S. Ryder Cup teams and has pocketed nearly $20 million.
In college basketball, there is Brett McDade. A redshirt freshman point guard at the University of Tulsa, he may have the most unorthodox shooting stroke in the country.
When the 6-foot, 185-pound McDade elevates for the shot, he does not have textbook form. What he has is the antithesis of textbook form. He is, however, emerging as an important figure for the Golden Hurricane.
"I wouldn't label him as a pure shooter," TU interim coach Pooh Williamson said, "but I would label him as a scorer. He has a chance to be pretty good."
McDade's shot is an oddity. He is a right-handed player, but as he begins the shot process, he brings the ball to the left side of his body. And then there is a hitch before he begins to take the ball to its release point. By the time he does launch the shot, his hands are in a basically conventional position. But the path he takes before arriving at that position -- it's quite unique.
"Brett is a left-ear guy -- brings it all the way around to the left ear," Williamson said. "But when he shoots it, it's locked in a good spot. His hands are in a good position.
"A lot of guys have something unusual about their shot. What's com fortable for one guy isn't comfortable for another. Brett is comfortable with his shot."
Said TU forward Vernell Davis: "It's different, but it's consistent. Whatever you've got to do to get it in the basket, that's all that matters."
At 9 p.m. Thursday, the Hurricane plays at San Jose State. Both teams are 4-12 overall, 1-6 in the WAC. TU and San Jose State share last place.
Last Saturday, San Jose State lost only 69-65 at UTEP. On Jan. 8, the Hurricane lost by 35 points at UTEP.
Against the Spartans, McDade gets his 12th start of the season.
"Most of the coaches I've had, they've tried to work on my shot and change it," McDade said. "And then slowly they leave me alone, and I slowly start going back to my left side."
During TU's last two contests, McDade has shown the potential of becoming in college what he was at Ryan High School in Denton, Texas -- a significant scorer.
In last week's loss to Nevada, he scored 15 of his season-high 17 points during the final six minutes. He got his 17 in only 18 minutes of playing time. During last Saturday's 68-65 triumph over Fresno State, McDade had 15 points. His 3-point basket and 3-point play were critical as TU rallied from a late eight-point deficit.
"When Brett McDade first got here, he had a hard time getting his shot off because (defenders) in college are so much quicker," TU forward Jarius Glenn said. "He's a lot better now at getting his shot off quickly."
McDade averaged 22 points as a high school junior and 28 as a senior. This season, his overall scoring average is 5.9, but in conference games he has averaged 8.2 points.
"We worked exceptionally hard before his senior year, trying to get the ball back to the right side of his body. It's just tough to change a player's shot, especially someone like Brett who has shot that way his entire life," Denton Ryan coach Bryce Overstreet said. "It's muscle memory. It takes a lot to change someone's shot, especially when it has a hitch in it like Brett's shot has.
"Nobody spends more time in the gym. His shot is different, but it's not broken. If it's not broken, don't fix it."
Since arriving at TU during the summer of 2003, McDade's bench-press maximum increased from 190 pounds to 250.
"He's a winner, and you never doubt his work ethic," Overstreet said.
While McDade is shooting only 33 percent from the field for the season, statistics seem to support his contention that he is feeling increasingly comfortable and confident.
Against Nevada and Fresno State, he was a combined 13-of-21 shooting.
McDade says he has recovered from a disappointing first month of the season.
After playing 43 minutes in the season-opening overtime loss to Wright State, he played only one minute against Oral Roberts.
"I'm rolling now and I'm trying to stay consistent," McDade said. "At the start of the year, I wasn't being aggressive.
"Now, we're all being aggressive and trying to get baskets. This is what I expected early in the year."
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Bill Haisten 581-8397
bill.haisten@tulsaworld.com
I saw McDade a couple of times in HS, both times he scored over 30 points, and I figured as soon as he got used to the college game, he would be a scorer. He's a natural scorer and he can attack the basket. Once he starts attacking the basket more, one of the opponents big guys will have to help and one of our big men will be open. On the drive to the basket if he can pull up, jump and shoot, as I said above, no one could stop him. I expect 12-15 points a game from him next year, although I thought he could do that this year too. He should be playing at least 25 mins. a game whether he makes a mistake or two--or none!!!!! He could play the two guard in the future.
Looks like Pooh is going to start McDade and James in the backcourt together again tonight @ SJSU. I like that move. They weren't ready for that earlier in the year, but now's a good time for that lineup.