1956 Review:
It was a season of some disappointing lows, close calls and amazing highs. Washington was coming off a terrific 31-3 campaign that saw the Huskies claim their first PCC title and advance to the Sweet Sixteen, and the thought was 1956 would probably see a small step-back. The Huskies were able to defend their Pre-Season NIT championship (including a nice win over #7 San Francisco), but they fell badly on the road to #6 N.C. State. Still, the Huskies managed to go 13-1 against non-conference teams heading into PCC play. The conference was a buzz-saw with several strong, ranked teams in 1956. Still, the Huskies were 10-3 at one point and in position to retain their PCC crown only to lose two games late and finish a game back. Their 4th straight NCAA Tournament bid under Coach DeGrasse followed.
What happened after that will be remembered for a long time in Seattle. The Huskies had little problem with George Washington in the first round, and then proceeded to beat #11 Duquesne, #12 Seattle and #10 West Virginia to reach the NCAA Championship Game. Unfortunately for Washington they had to face off against Kansas State, very nearly a wire-to-wire #1 in the polls. The Wildcats squashed any dreams the Huskies had of taking home the title by winning in convincing fashion, but once that sting wore off Washington celebrated their most successful season in their history.
We would expect this season will result in another nice boost to our prestige rating – I would guess to somewhere around 86-88. It might also trigger more boosts to our assistants and perhaps goad our AD into launching improvements to our training facilities.
Team Leaders:
Points: PG Daniel Fenton (Sr) - 16.6, SG Italo Malocco (Jr) – 14.3, SF Ellis Murphy (RS-Sr) - 8.3
Rebounds: C Francis Calhoun (RS-Jr) – 8.4, PF Gregoire Dupretz (RS-Fr) - 7.3, SF Gisbert Bittes (RS-Sr) - 5.5
Assists: PG Daniel Fenton (Sr) – 4.4, SG Italo Malocco (Jr) – 3.3, PG Marquis Gray (RS-Fr) - 3.1
Blocks: C Francis Calhoun (RS-Jr) – 1.3
Steals: SG Italo Malocco (Jr) - 2.4
Fenton stepped up his game as a senior, perhaps enjoying the benefits of controlling the ball more as primarily a PG rather than a SG. Malocco moved from super-sub to very good starter, and along with Fenton gave the Huskies a couple of excellent ball-hawks in the backcourt. While the team lost some skill overall defensively from 1955’s outstanding unit, there wasn’t much drop-off in production. The Huskies ranked 17th overall in Defensive Efficiency, and they were 5th in steal % and were 4th in opponent turnovers. Offensively the team lost a bit of passing ability in the starting lineup and their Offensive Efficiency – while still good at 24th overall – took a bit of a hit. Francis Calhoun stepped up his rebounding and interior defense, but we’d like to see a bit more out of him on the offensive end.
Graduating players:
PG/SG Daniel Fenton: 16.6 ppg, 4.4 apg, 2.0 steals
Fenton leaves the Huskies as one of their all-time greats. A four-year starter, two-time 1st team All-Conference, Freshman All-American, PCC Freshman of the Year and PCC Player of the year as a Senior, he was clearly the MVP of this team and the biggest reason the Huskies advanced to the NCAA Championship Game. He was a fantastic combo guard with the ball skills and passing to play PG and the scoring ability to play SG. There were essentially no weaknesses in his game and only a few areas where he wasn’t outstanding. He rates as the 8th best pro prospect among the 1956 seniors and we’re certain he’s headed to a strong NBA career. Fenton’s name is all over the Husky record book, and he’ll be next to impossible to replace.
SF Gisbert Bittes: 8.3 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 1.2 steals
Bittes was a 3-year starter for Washington after coming over from his native Germany. A classic glue-guy who did a lot of things well but few things great, he managed to stay under the radar of most observers. But he was perfectly suited to SF with the quickness to hang with smaller wings and the strength to bang with the bigger forwards, and was a fundamentally strong defender all-around. He had some good scoring moves inside and could hit an open jumper, was a decent passer and ball-handler and wasn’t a bad rebounder. While not a star, he was an important player that allowed us to play our preferred style of basketball.
Recruiting Class:
Code:
#5 WASHINGTON HUSKIES Recruiting
Name Pos Ovl Reg Pos RPos AA AS MBB
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Charles Gonzales C 17 4 4 1 Yes Yes No
Thomas Davis SG 12 5 4 1 Yes Yes Yes
Washington was able to follow-up their big 1955 class haul with another one composed of highly rated prospects. With just two commits this class probably won’t rank any higher than 10th in the country, both commits are 5-star prospects and considered among the top-20 overall in the nation.
Gonzales is a long, lanky post out of Texas. At 6’10”, 204 lbs he has some work to do in the weight room, though he appears to already possess adequate strength, promising bounce and decent quickness for a big, though his stamina needs work. His numbers in high school and his high ranking (#17 overall, #4 C prospect, High School All American) suggest a better player than his scouting report. He appears to be a post that doesn’t mind shooting jumpers, but also has some ability beneath the basket. His rebounding – particularly on the defensive glass – should be a plus. He should be a pretty good shot-blocker, and his post defense should be at least adequate, though we have hopes it will be better than that.
Davis is a combo guard out of Florida. He’s on the smaller side (5’11”) but looks to be a terrific athlete: very quick, good jumper and surprising strength. He’s another player where the high school numbers and high ranking (#12 overall, #4 SG prospect, High School All American) suggest a better player than his scouting report. He was a big scorer (23.9 ppg) and also showed PG ability (6.1 apg, 3.10 A/T ratio) at Osceola H.S. He looks to be a strong offensive player with some ability to get to the basket and a good jump shooter. He also shows good hands and promising potential as a passer. Most importantly he projects as a strong perimeter defender, and we suspect he’ll end up a pretty good ball-hawk.
Washington has managed to build a lot of quality depth on the roster, so the Huskies should have the luxury of redshirting both.
1957 Preview:
It’s the end of an era for the Huskies with the graduation of Fenton, but with a trio of highly talented freshman ready to come off their redshirts and join the roster, the future looks bright.
It’s hard to believe C Francis Calhoun is heading into his final season as a RS-Sr. A sure bet to start for the 3rd straight season at C, Calhoun will be a significant key to the Huskies’ success in 1957. With adequate size (6’9”), terrific strength and surprising bounce, he does a lot of things very well in the post. He’s a very good rebounder (none better on the offensive glass) and a terrific post defender who is improving as a shot-blocker. He’s not a huge part of the offense, though he’s adequate in the paint and possesses a decent jumper. He was joined by RS-So Gregoire Dupretz in the starting lineup last season at PF. Dupretz has similar size, is a bit stronger and quicker than Calhoun but not as good a jumper. Dupretz was just OK defending the post but has room for growth, and should end up a pretty good shot-blocker. He’s an improving rebounder and has excellent potential on the defensive glass. He passes the ball reasonably well for a big man, and he’s similar offensively to Calhoun. Dupretz will face a serious challenge from RS-Fr Monroe Willman. A bit undersized at 6’7” and still developing his strength, he’s a quicker post player with the skill set to defend down low as well as out along the perimeter, and could see some minutes at SF as well. He projects as an elite all-around rebounder and already possesses good offensive moves in the paint and has some potential with his jump shot. He also looks to develop into a pretty good ball-handler and passer. The main backup down low his first two seasons, RS-Jr Burt Lingle will probably be the 2nd post off the bench in 1957. He’s got good size at 6’11”, is plenty strong and is a decent defensive player. He’s average on the glass and OK on the offensive end (he’s the best free throw shooter of our big men), though he’s not much with the ball in his hands.
Bittes graduating leaves an opening at SF, and there’s no doubt who will fill it – Jess Johnson, the #2 overall recruit last season. He’s an impressive-looking all-around forward. He’s got good size at 6’8”, has decent quickness, strength and jumping ability, can defend all over the court (already above-average and with lots of room to improve), could end up a very good ball thief and should develop into a strong rebounder at both ends. He’s already a skilled dribbler with decent potential as a passer. On the offensive end he’s a terrific shooter from deep, already possesses pretty good ability to get to the hoop and has the potential to be a very good shooter. In short, if he follows his expected development path over the next four seasons, he should be the kind of player that carries a team.
The backcourt remains very deep even with the graduation of Fenton. Entering his Sr season is SG Italo Malocco. A super-sub for us his first two seasons, he transitioned nicely into a starting role and should remain one of our two best scoring options. He’s a good athlete – quick, good jumper, reasonably strong – though perhaps a touch on the short side at 6’1”. He’s a terrific defender out on the perimeter and one of the best in the nation at grabbing steals. He’s an above-average passer and improving ball-handler. He’s got a well-developed all-around game on offense, able to penetrate or stick a mid-range jumper. He’ll likely be joined in the starting lineup by RS-So Marquis Gray who was the primary backup at PG last season. He’s exceptionally quick and has nice size for the position at 6’2”. He’s an above-average dribbler and a very good passer with more room for improvement. He’s an improving defender and should become above-average on the perimeter. He’s not much for generating his own shot, but he’s got a good jumper. RS-Jr Wayne Toro is his main competition at PG – he’s of similar size, very nearly as quick and a better dribbler, though not as good a passer. He’s similar offensively with a more well-developed shot. Where he falls short is on the defensive end – he’s below-average here, and unless he can show some improvement in this regard he’ll likely remain a backup. Another part of the deep stable of guards is RS-So Manuel Parenteau who should see time at both SG and SF. He’s a very good athlete – quick and an elite jumper. He’s similar offensively to Toro with a nice jump shot, especially from deep. He’s a decent passer and has the potential to help out on the glass. He’s below average defensively, but shows the potential to develop into an adequate defender. Yet another wing in the mix is RS-Jr Jose Park. At 6’3” and with decent strength he’s probably our best backup option at SF. He’s quick and another elite jumper. He’s at his best on the offensive end where he can create his own shot and complements it with a good jumper, and has pretty good handles. However he contributes nothing on the glass and is a below-par defender, so that limits him. Last, but certainly not least is RS-Fr Woodrow Shelley who will join the rotation and immediately compete for quality minutes. Shelley is another very good athlete – extremely quick, very good jumper, decent strength. He might be the best jump shooter on the team already and has at least adequate potential to drive to the hoop. He should end up an average rebounder and passer, but what sets him apart in this crowded backcourt is his defense – he’s already the 2nd best perimeter defender on the team with elite potential, and he’s got a good shot at replacing Malocco as a starter when he graduates.
As tough as it is to lose a talent like Fenton, there are some really terrific players returning and a potential star in Johnson to replace the production Fenton provided. With improving depth in the front court and an extremely crowded backcourt, this is a team that can withstand some injuries and should be able to challenge the stamina of opponents. I’m certainly not going to predict a return to the NCAA Championship game, and with the quality of teams in the dangerous PCC it’s foolish to predict a conference title. But this team certainly has the potential to do what the 1956 team did and should be among the top-10 teams in the country.