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#58 Houston Cougars
Conference USA
2004-05: 18-14, 9-7, 6th
2004-05 postseason:
NIT
By
Joel Welser
Houston returns four
starters and will be a team that will benefit from the new look
CUSA. If the conference gets a second team into the NCAA
Tournament, the Cougars have a great shot at making it. Coach
Tom Penders was extremely successful his first season in Houston
and will look to continue that trend.
Who’s Out:
Andre Owens is the big loss. The guard averaged a team high 18.3
points and added 4.8 boards, 2.1 assists and 1.3 steals. Joining
Owens is a large list of key roleplayers that spent most of the
time coming off the bench. Guards Bryan Shelton, Cedrick Hensley
and Kevin Barber are gone. Hensley saw the most action of the
group last year averaging 9.4 minutes per game. Forwards Dwight
Jones II and Englebert Cherrington both had starting experience.
Jones averaged 3.8 points and 1.7 rebounds last year, while
Cherrington put up 2.2 points and 3.0 boards per contest. Center
Rodney Hannah played in 28 contests, averaging 2.2 points and
3.0 rebounds.
Who’s In:
The newcomers have plenty of talent
to replace the loss of the departing roleplayers and add a new
dimension of athleticism and talent. Power forwards Jahmar
Thorpe, Richard Young and Lamar Roberson will add quality depth
to the frontcourt. Thorpe averaged 18.1 points and 11.0 rebounds
last year at Western Oklahoma Community College. At 6-6, Thorpe
is undersized for a power forward but he’s a big 225 pounds and
will battle underneath and earn plenty of minutes off the bench.
Young is a solid shot blocker and rebounder and has the
experience to contribute immediately after playing two years at
Hillsborough (FL) Community College. Roberson is a long,
athletic forward who can slash and wander out and make some
outside shots. Center Emmanuel Adeife, a native of Nigeria, has
some work to do before he’ll see quality minutes, but has loads
of potential. A trio of shooting guards make this squad
extremely deep. Tristan Martin is a great athlete who can break
backboards with the best of them. The Toronto, Ontario product
averaged 11.2 points per game at Midland College last year and
will see plenty of playing time this year. Oliver Lafayette is
another experienced guard who spent two years at Brown Mackie
College. Corey Bloom has good size at 6-5 and has a nice stroke
from long range. The New Orleans product earned All-State
accolades after averaging 15.6 points per game last year at
Brother Martin High School.
Who to Watch:
Lanny Smith will take over the roll
of leading scorer for Houston in the absence of Andre Owens.
Smith averaged 14.7 points as a sophomore last year and was the
only Cougar to start all 32 contests. He shot over 40% from
beyond the arc making 2.5 three’s per game. The Missouri City,
Texas native also led the team averaging 4.2 assists. Smith is
an experienced floor leader having started 58 of the 59 games he
has played in. The only knock on Smith is the turnovers, which
wasn’t too horrible last year with 3.2 per outing. That number
should decrease this year as it did after his freshman campaign
as Smith becomes more comfortable running the show.
Projected
Conference Rank:
Along with Lanny Smith; Ramon Dyer,
Brian Latham, Chris Lawson, Andrew Francis, Darrius Brannon and
Sergio de Randamie all have starting experience. Throw in the
talented newcomers and this has the potential to be a great
team, if they can come together and play well as a team. A 3rd
place finish is good, but it won’t do what it used to in the
conference. Two teams from CUSA might make the NCAAs, but the 3rd
place squad is headed to the NIT.
Projected
Post-season Tournament:
NIT
Projected Starting
Five:
Lanny Smith, Junior,
Guard, 14.7 points per game
Brian Latham, Senior,
Guard, 8.2 points per game
Chris Lawson, Senior,
Guard, 4.8 points per game
Ramon Dyer, Senior,
Forward, 9.8 points per game
Sergio de Randamie,
Senior, Center, 1.3 points per game
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