Chris Mooney's first season in
Richmond was full of ups, nice home wins over NCAA Tournament
teams like Old Dominion and Seton Hall, and downs, a 1-10 road
record. With six new faces coming in, Mooney is slowly
molding the roster to fit his style of play. He chats with
us about what should be an interesting season for Spiders fans.
Shawn Siegel (CHN): What
will the strengths and weaknesses of
this year’s team to be?
Chris Mooney (CM): I think that we will have to
count on a lot of young players in key positions, and while I
think those players are talented and have potential, it’s hard
to compete at such a high level without experience.
CHN: How will you overcome the loss of graduated seniors
Bucknor and Steeneberge?
CM: It will be difficult
to replace our graduated seniors. We relied on them for a lot
of scoring and rebounding. They were 2 guys who played college
basketball for 4 years and excelled. I think that Gaston Moliva
is in a position to take his game to a higher level. He is a
tremendous athlete and defender who could excel with better
players around him this year.
CHN: Talk about one or two of your guys that stands out
as being an unheralded leader and contributor?
CM:
Peter Thomas
has gone from a walk-on to a 2 year scholarship player. He lead
the team in minutes played last season and is a good
representative of what we want our program to be. He is a very
good defender and he has a good grasp of how we do things.
CHN: What should
we expect out of the incoming players. Who will make the biggest impact?
CM:
There are 6
incoming freshmen and 1 redshirt freshman. The redshirt
freshman is Ryan Butler. Ryan has a chance to play a lot of
minutes for our team at a number of different positions. He is
versatile and skillful and should be a key contributor. Dan
Geriot is a true freshman from Springfield, PA who has a chance
to help us this season. He is a good shooter and ball handler
and has a very good sense for the game. Brian Morris is a true
freshman from PA who also could play. He is a 6’5” guard who is
also versatile and skilled to play multiple positions. All of
the freshmen could get an opportunity.
CHN: How does this year's schedule compare
to recent seasons in terms of difficulty?
CM:
I like our
schedule for this team. We have 2 ACC teams and a Big East
opponent to play on the road this year in Virginia Tech, Wake
Forest and South Florida. Our home slate includes VCU which is
becoming a great rivalry for us.
CHN: Realistically, what are your expectations for this
team?
CM:
It is difficult with 7
newcomers to predict this season. I hope that we can be
competitive and gain experience quickly.
CHN: Thanks for your time coach.
More 2006 College Preview:
Head Coach
Interviews
