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2012-2013 Vermont Catamount Thread!

24K views 163 replies 32 participants last post by  UVM Hoop Cat 
#1 ·
Let's talk about how awesome we are!

We return 4 out of 5 starters.

Top scorer from this year will only be a sophomore.

Ethan O'Day is the #1 recruit in the country!

Becker now has the confidence and the clout that comes with winning a conference tournament and a game in the NCAAs.

Brian Voelkel has another year to improve on his biceps.

What else is making you excited about UVM Men's basketball!?
 
#2 ·
Let's talk about how awesome we are!

We return 4 out of 5 starters.

Top scorer from this year will only be a sophomore.

Ethan O'Day is the #1 recruit in the country!

Becker now has the confidence and the clout that comes with winning a conference tournament and a game in the NCAAs.

Brian Voelkel has another year to improve on his biceps.

What else is making you excited about UVM Men's basketball!?
???
 
#5 ·
i agree with that. very little weaknesses going into next year. we dont have a third string pg. We need O'day to fill in for glass and be the freshmen that outplayed highmajor talents in high school. we need more depth down low. can Mckeany gives us a few good minutes a night?

thats it. it will be interesting to see what we do with that scholly open. Rugg or some freshmen.
i could see santo leaving for more playing time which means we could get both. rugg a scholly and some freshmen
 
#6 · (Edited)
I think Sandro has solidified his spot as the teams PG. I wasn't convinced headed into the season and still wasn't convinced about 10 games into the season- but something clicked and Sandro was terrific the rest of the way. He played so well down the stretch and I am completely sold on him handling PG duties.


The biggest thing to look out for next year is the back court. We will have 5 guards that all get minutes. You have to imagine there will be plenty of people in Four's ear this off-season- I imagine a lot of people will want to talk to the only player in the NCAA that led his team on scoring from the bench. I obviously hope nobody leaves but you never know. Have to imagine reports on places like Recruit Scoop for 2012 guards has only been insurance, can't imagine we'd add a 6th guard to next years squad.


Bald seemed like he was willing to accept his role this year which is good. I don't think we'll go back to the Bald 30+ min again. I think the coaching staff did a great job handling the situation and easing him into a reduced role but still allowing him to start. Smart.


Really hope this team stays intact, because it could continue to be special.
 
#96 ·
Bump.


Re-reading the beginning of this thread is pretty interesting. I think this was created right after the loss to North Carolina- pretty crazy to see how much change occurred in terms of players in such a short period of time. I also think I knew all along Four was going to transfer- just didn't want to say it.
 
#7 ·
hoopcat we have had interest in a couple guards but they have all been pg's i believe. we only have 2 pg's on our roster. i think you would want 3. i'm ok with spike and that kid from ct mcloughlin??? coming in. i just hope they would be ok with a chance to be recruited over. i think we would still try to get a top tier pg in 2013. we have two juniors pg's next year. we need to start grooming a future starter soon
 
#10 ·
I'd like to see guards added to 2013 class- I don't think there's enough minutes for 6 guards next season, and the coaching staff is clearly committed to playing Elbaum. Rusin didn't transfer to not play.

If a guard is added for 2012, I just don't see how they see the court next year.
 
#8 ·
I'd like to see Big Ben have a big year next season. He's had some unfortunate set backs and injuries- really hoping for a healthy senior year for him and giving us quality minutes in the paint.
 
#9 ·
I don't think O'Day replaces Matt Glass. My understanding of O'Day is that he is a traditional back to the basket post player. He does not have much of an outside shot. As you know, Glass mostly played on the perimeter and did lots of damage from deep and in the mid-range. I'm not sold McKeaney will see minutes next year. He just plays soft out there and if O'Day is as advertised he will be a rotation player for the post replacing Bergman's minutes not Glass'. We still have Apfeld and Crenca to rotate down low as well. I too hope Santo stays because I really do think he can be a valuable all purpose player for this team. I also think alot will depend on how Rusin fits into the equation. He will need to define his role and play within the system which often can be difficult for a guy coming off of a year on the bench.

Next year will be harder for Becker. He came into this season flying under the radar. Many people doubted his abilities to lead this team and after a 5 game losing streak in November/December I imagine opposing coaches and players underestimated this team. Next year we will get everyone's best shot and the expectations will be much higher for Becker.
 
#11 ·
Santo definitely stays- where would he transfer to first? Second, the kid definitely has ability and will be solid rotation guy.
 
#15 ·
i see o'day replacing matt in minutes and production not in style of play. O'day will average a lot more minutes than pat did this year. O'day is def a traditional post player. He will get different stats for UVM but same amount of production. I think he is pretty good off the pick n roll though. Apfeld i think can turn into a pick n pop guy. He hit a crazy % of his outside shots this year. theres no reason for him not to shoot more. I like the idea of going with two guys who can score down low.....think fjeld and blakely and not just 1. we dont need a pick n pop pf. i would rather have a pf who block shots and score down low.

mckeany will have to play some games. he will prolly play less minutes than bergman but you have to use more than 4 guys down low in some games. We could use voelkel at the 4 instead for a little bit and it may be a better option. you would think with voelkel at the 4 it would open things up more for cutters.
 
#16 ·
the only way a freshmen pg sees the floor next year is if elbaum or sandro gets hurt, sick. its a good idea to have a third string pg. freshmen dont need to play. i would rather see a big man signed instead like payen. with two junior pg's next year though we need to start getting some young pg's. if we get 1 pg in 2013 and 1 pg in 2014 we will end up having a freshmen and sophomore pg as our only pg's that year. we do need more depth at pg right now.

maybe becker should let four play some pg. he showed some ability to pass on the drive. i like him breaking down defenses at the end of the shot clock and uvm pg's dont handle the ball as much as other offenses. we could still get four open looks off the flex
 
#17 ·
I really hope UVM can become the dynasty that this league needs... and they have all the makings to be it...

But nothing is guaranteed. BU was supposed to be the Dynasty of the AE after going to the NCAA's in 2002. The '02 Terriers started 2 Frosh, 2 soph's and a Jr. They returned their top 8 scorers from the year before. Despite 2 outright regular season titles and AP top 25 votes the next two seasons, they never got back to the NCAA's...

The point being not that UVM wont, but that in the AE you just never know, so really make sure to enjoy every ounce of this great team and great run, because nothing is guaranteed.
 
#22 ·
...well, if this was a rebuilding year for vermont... then we are f*cked next year (non-catamount fans)... lol...
 
#26 ·
Do you mean take one away from the current group of scholarship players? I'm not sure that has ever happened. I know lonergan didn't do it when it could have been beneficial. That's just a bad practice. I think what most teams do is at their end of year evaluations they tell their players what their realistic chance of getting playing time is and if that isn't satisfactory a player may transfer.
 
#28 ·
Giving Rugg a scholarship is an interesting dilemma. Rugg clearly deserves it- but then we will have a 7-man junior class that would all graduate at the same time (barring nobody leaving today)- Voelkel, Sandro, Elbaum, McKeaney, Apfeld, Rusin + Rugg

That's not balanced at all...I can't remember a Vermont team ever graduating that many kids in one year.
 
#30 ·
I have no window into Clancy's mind (or those of his parents), but I could imagine the knowledge that you aren't getting a scholarship, and that other, possibly lower-performing teammates are, could start to fester a bit. Yes, Clancy's a Vermonter, but so is Pat Bergmann, who was (I think) on scholarship for 5 years, and whose production after two years was considerably less than what Clancy's achieved. (Was Chad Powlovich ever offered a scholarship?)

Also, the 7-man class leaving at the same time is going to happen anyway, no matter who's on scholarship. The coaching staff will have to deal with that, maybe by recruiting another promising walk-on or two.

So even if it's not convenient to award a scholarship to Clancy, I'd still want to see that happen. Plus it serves as encouragement to other potential walk-ons.
 
#29 ·
i think we can assume he will get the scholarship.
he will be key to uvm's success next year. so unless he is getting a ton of grants and scholarships (maybe the green and gold? don't know if he was that level of student in high school) he will get the scholarship just to be on the safe side.
i'm sure plenty of other schools would love to have him.
 
#31 ·
the problem with a seven man class is not that you have seven quality players but you only have 6 jr's,so's, and fr's. thats not many experienced players going into the next year. if you dont give clancy a scholly you could have 7 underclassmen instead of 6. we prolly need a transfer to balance the classes out at some point.
 
#33 ·
Not sure of the timing, but at some point that number is going to be retired. That was the number Marqus wore.

Voelkel may want to have his own number to retire- so smart move.
 
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