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August 25th,
2006
By Joel
Welser
Broadcast Basketball
Winthrop
Eagles
Overall Rank:
#77
Conference
Rank: #1 Big South
2005-06:
23-8, 13-3, 1st
2005-06
postseason: NCAA
 Winthrop cruised
through the Big South, squeaked past Coastal Carolina in the
conference tournament final and was given a disrespectful 15
seed in March. Pundits everywhere saw the opportunity to pick a
15 seed over a two seed. And we were almost right. With an
offseason that saw Coach Gregg Marshall take the College of
Charleston job for a day before returning to Winthrop, hoops
have been on the minds of most in Rock Hill, South Carolina all
summer long.
Who’s Out:
The frontcourt loses some quality players in James Shuler, Otis
Daniels, Billy Houston and Scott Draughn. Shuler started nearly
every game, averaging 13.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.5
assists. Daniels was a quality option off the bench and Houston
started 10 games last season. Draughn, who averaged 3.6 points
and 2.6 rebounds per contest last season, will not play
basketball for Winthrop this year due to a back problem.
Who’s In:
Mantoris
Robinson should hardly be considered a freshman after spending a
year at prep school and redshirting last season. The 6-5 wing
can do a little bit of everything and averaged 21 points, 10
rebounds, four assists and three steals way back as a senior in
high school. Antwon Harris and Byron Faison will add more depth
to the backcourt. Harris, a transfer from Highland Community
College, earned Juco All-America honors last year and could
provide a big help on the wing. Faison, a 6-1 guard, is the
player that has Rock Hill excited. The incoming freshman is a
little small for a shooting guard, which inevitably scared away
some of the bigger schools, but Faison can score. Power forward
Rainer Blickle could use some time to bulk up and sophomore
Jason Killeen returns to be another big body up front after
redshirting last season.
Who to Watch:
Craig
Bradshaw led the team with 6.0 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game
as a junior. The 6-10 center proved to be an effective scorer
as well and bigger things are expected during his senior
campaign. Bradshaw will get some help on the glass from Phillip
Williams, who averaged 5.5 points and 3.3 boards in 2005-2006.
Small forward Taj McCullough has shown promise over his two
years at Winthrop and will battle for a starting gig this
season. If all three of those guys start, the frontcourt depth
will become an issue. Yet, the newcomers should have enough
talent to hold down the fort for a little while when Coach
Marshall needs them to.
Final
Projection:
The Eagles do
have an Achilles heel. Shuler was the only player Winthrop fans
didn’t sweat over when on the charity stripe. With his absence,
the team free throw percentage takes a major hit and will cause
some problems. And nobody likes to spend all summer working on
free throws. In the backcourt, Chris Gaynor does the dishing,
Torrell Martin does the shooting and last year’s sixth man Mike
Jenkins is still looking to develop into a scoring threat. No
matter how bad the free throw shooting becomes, there are enough
quality players in the backcourt to hit all the other shots.
This team may be more talented than a year ago, but losing
Shuler will be a small blow to chemistry early in the season.
And that is when Winthrop hits the road for their toughest games
until March.
Projected
Post-season Tournament:
NCAA
Projected
Starting Five:
Chris Gaynor,
Junior, Guard, 6.9 points per game
Torrell Martin,
Senior, Guard, 13.8 points per game
Taj McCullough,
Junior, Forward, 4.2 points per game
Phillip
Williams, Senior, Forward, 5.5 points per game
Craig Bradshaw,
Senior, Center, 12.8 points per game
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