Rob Stone, the next big thing.

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ESPN.com

South Carolina State turning heads.

For a small school in middle of nowhere South Carolina, SCST is really making a lot of noise around the country. Led by sensation senior Everett Spencer is making NBA scouts take notice, freshman standout Errol Stockman is tearing up the high light reels, and many big teams are follow short to the small school.

In his first year as head coach Rob Stone led his bulldogs to a school best 28-9 record and a first round upset of Maryland. His star player Everette Spencer was named Mid Major Player of the year and was 1st team All-American. In the off season he landed 4 star Mr. Basketball of Arizona Errol Stockman and also two of the best players in Georgia. But his real impressive list comes from an early season sweep of big time schools in the Preseason NIT. Knocking off highly ranked Kentucky and Xavier. The next week he walks into the Dean Dome and knocks off the storied UNC Tarheels, one of the nations top ranked teams. But not to be stopped South Carolina State took a trip to Texas and knocked off #5 Texas earlier this week, by a narrow margin.

What can be done when SCST walking into the Carrier Dome to face #1 Syracuse? I think we have a very good game on our hands.

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South Carolina State Student Courier, Sports Edition

The Bulldogs pound rival Howard, 68-54.

In their first conference game of the season the Bulldogs knocked off rival Howard to open the season 1-0. They seemed to be a bit slow, possibly tired for the rough schedule of the past week. "We shot well from out side and out rebounded them buy a good margin. The Bison couldn't buy a basket in the frist half but did a good job of clawing back in the second half. We have a few more non-conference games and one more tournament that we are looking forward to."


Stats:
Burton 8 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assist
Spencer 19 points, 3 rebounds
Stockman 2 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals
Carter 6 rebounds
Temple 8 points, 5 rebounds, 1 blocks


Bench:
Bennett 5 points
McFadden 5 points, 3 assist
Cobb 3 rebounds, 2 assist
Carn 5 rebounds, 3 blocks
Telfare 21 points

SCST is now 7-0(1-0)

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South Carolina State Student Courier, Sports Edition

The Bulldogs fall to #1 Syracuse 108-98 in double OT.


"Damn! thats all I can really say, we had the best team in the land on the edge for 45 minutes, we just ran out of gas." The Bulldogs held the Cuse to their worst rebounding effort of the year while holding them to a poor second half shooting preformance, but in double overtime there was just not enough energy to carry the upset all the way through.

Stats:

Syracuse
Jardine 36 points, 7 assist, 4 steals
Devendorf 27 points, 8 assist, 6 steals
Johnson 11 points, 5 rebounds
Jackson 12 points, 11 rebounds
Jones 10 points, 3 rebounds

SCST
Burton 4 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assist
Spencer 25 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks
Stockman 20 points, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals
Carter 1 rebounds (injury early in the 1st)
Temple 4 points, 5 rebounds


Bench:
Bennett 5 points, 2 assist
McFadden 3 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist
Cobb 2 points, 4 assist, 5 rebounds, 1 block
Carn 10 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals
Telfare 25 points, 4 assist, 3 rebounds

SCST is now 7-1(1-0)

[smidger9]

I hate to announce I will not be able to do a full season game wrap up, but I will give you synopsis.. I hope my readers will understand!


12/1 @ 2 Syracuse L 98-108 OT
Leading Scorer: Spencer 25

12/15 @ South Carolina W67- 59
MVP: Westley Telfare 19 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assist

12/17 @ Oklahoma L 74 - 66 OT
MVP: Spencer 18 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assits

12/20 Longwood W 99- 53
MVP: Jessie Burton 29 points, 8 assist, 5 rebounds

12/27 UNC Greensboro W92- 51
MVP: Spencer 42 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assist

1/8 TCU W 77- 64
MVP: Jamie Temple 25 points, 7 rebounds

1/10 NC A&T W96- 49
MVP: Starting 5 scored all but 4 points. Comming out game for Errol Stockman: 18 points, 12 rebounds, 6 blocks, 2 steals.

1/12 @ MD-Eastern Shore W 82- 55
MVP: Stockman 19 points, 8 rebounds, 4 blocks

1/17 @ Winston-Salem State L 69- 68 OT
MVP: Burton 11 points, 8 assist, 3 steals

1/19 @ Hampton W 69-61
MVP: Stockman 20 points, 9 rebounds

1/24 Florida A&M L 97- 95 OT
MVP: Spencer 37 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assist, 3 steals

1/26 Delaware State W 59- 42
MVP: Spencer 13 points, 8 rebounds, 4 blocks
Sloppy game, starting center Jaime Temple was injured.

1/31 @ Bethune-Cookman W 55-49
MVP: Stockman 15 points, 12 rebounds

2/2 @ Norfolk State W 101-53
MVP: Temple 23 points, 16 rebounds, 5 blocks (Coming out game)

2/7 Coppin State L 81- 77
MVP: J'aron McFadden 19 points, 7 assist
Starting PG Burton hurt and lost for most of the regular season.

2/9 Morgan State W 67- 50
MVP: McFadden 18 points, 13 assist; Stockman 17 points, 15 rebs.

2/14 Winston Salem state W 97-65
MVP: Spencer 33 points; Temple 12 points, 14 rebounds, 3 blocks

2/16 Hampton W 89-59
MVP: Temple 22 points, 15 rebounds, 4 blocks

2/21 @ Florida A&M W 76-66
MVP: Spencer 30 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assist

2/23 Bethune-Cookman W 76- 60
MVP: Burton 15 points, 8 assist, 3 steals
The Hero returns

2/28 Delaware State W 79-77 OT
MVP: Stockman 20 points, 6 rebounds, 4 blocks
McFadden hit the game winning 3 with no time left.

3/2 Norfolk State W 122- 48 (You're reading that right.)
Mvp: Spencer 45 pts.; Temple 33 pts.; Burton 17 pts., 21 assist.

3/5 Howard W 88 - 72
MVP: Spencer with 32 on Senior night.

Post Season
First round MEAC
vs. Florida A&M
W 88-62
MVP: McFadden 20 points, 11 assist, 1 block

Second round MEAC
vs. Delaware St.
W 78- 31
MVP: Spencer 22 pts., 12 rebounds; Stockman 10 pts., 12 rebs.
Their starters had 9 combined points, rough night.

Finals MEAC
vs Winston-Salem St.
W 87 - 69.
MVP: Temple 20 pts. 15 rebounds; Spencer 22 points.

South Carolina State receives 6th seed in NCAA!

The Bulldogs collect a school recored 6th seed in the West reginal of the NCAA tournament. The Bulldogs will face 11 Texas A&M in St. Louis.

NCAA 1st round
vs 11 Texas A&M
W 83- 70
MVP: Spencer 35 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assist.

NCAA 2nd round
vs. 14 Tennessee St.
W 74- 50
MVP: Spencer 17 points, 4 rebounds, 3 blocks.

NCAA Semi-finals
vs 2 Memphis
L 79- 53
MVP: Burton 16 points, 11 assist, 4 steals

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Season Wrap up

NCAA Champions

Kentucky Wildcats

Player of the Year
Taj Gibson, USC

Mid Major POY
Omar Samhan, Saint Mary's

Coach of the Year
John Cal, UK

Defensive POY
Gani Lewal, GT

Big Man of the Year
Deon Thompson, UNC

ALL- AMERICANS
1st Team

Taj Porter, ORE
Jodi Meeks, uk
Jamelle Horne, ARIZ
Gani Lawal, GT
Thompson, UNC

2nd Team
Gene Harvey, SHALL
Eric Devendorf, SYR
Rod Flemings, Haw
Taj Gibson, USC
Omar Samhan, SMC

MEAC Wrap up

Conference Champions
South Carolina State

Coach of the Year
Rob Stone, SCST

Player of the Year
Everett Spencer, SCST

Freshman of Year
[COLOR="rgb(139, 0, 0)"]Errol Stockman, SCST[/color]

All-Conference

Justin Burton, SCST
Everett Spencer, SCST
Errol Stockman, SCST
Mike Freeman, HAMP
Jamie Temple, SCST

Players Leaving:
Burton, Graduation
Spencer, Graduation/Draft
Carter, Graduation
Cobb, Graduation

Bennett, transfer to Albany
Flagler, transfer to UNC Wilmington

[Deuce2223]

Sweet Sixteen. Pretty good.. Good luck next year.

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Quote: Originally Posted by Deuce2223

Sweet Sixteen. Pretty good.. Good luck next year.

Yeah we flamed out early, we stopped playing hard mid season, kinda like my deacs, and couldn't get back on the winning wagon or else we were a lock for final four. It didn't help that Tyreke Evans dropped 30 on us.

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Scout.com

End of season recruiting has come to a close and all the big names have found a school to play ball at. In what was a run-away year for Duke, collecting four 5 start prospects including the top 3 players in the country, there were a few surprises on the list. The surprises were Richmond at number 11 and South Carolina State coming in with the number 20 overall recruiting class. Both schools started with a dominant big man to anchor their team for the next four years but where one team went for shut down defense the other went for big time offense.

A closer look at South Carolina State:

Pulling in such a high ranking class was the goal of head Coach Rob Stone all along, before the season he claimed he would bring in a new look future full of fun and explosiveness. It seemed he could see the future.

The Dynamic duo out of California was the trophy of this class for Coach Stone. 5 star All-American Marcus Forbes will step in as a freshmen and be called on to be the man to keep the scoreboard operator on his toes. Frobes was a big time threat in high school and ABL play, turning a lot of heads but he said he would go no where unless the school was willing to take his best friend and teammate 3 star PG B.J. Anderson. The pain seems to have struck gold in South Carolina State, a team that had a big need in both guard positions. It seems Coach Stone will take the project Point Guard who was a small but speedy player who is known to be a deep ball threat like his accomplice.

Big man in the middle Channing Stiggers who played not to far from the South Carolina State campus is the real head scratcher of the class. With big time body and ability it seems he was poised to be a Big East or SEC recruit, standing at 7' 3 he had the size but also was athletic and can run the floor. Hasheem Thabeet was slow but big, this kid can do it all within 17 feet and has the quickness to react on defense. He isnt the best scorer but is a great defender and with his size he should average a double double in the MEAC. Coach Stone explains the recruiting of Channing, "We had heard a local kid had shot up from 6'9 to 7'3 over the course of his junior year of high school, so my staff and I went to see him in the state playoffs and you could tell he hadn't adjusted to his new size. We told him to attend some camps over the summer and he really changed his style to fit ours. We got to him early and told him that before any big schools offered that we were to thank for his jump from unknown to a wanted man around the country and he repaid us with an early commitment."

A pair of Power Forwards who can be of big use. South Carolina state lost most of its starters last season, but the biggest hole that Coach Stone wanted to fill was his need at Power Forward. In his first 2 seasons at SCST he had very little production at that position so he went out and found 2 very talented but complete opposite players to man the position down low. Jordan Butler was a player he had with a big star beside his name all season, SCST had to play hard ball to wrangle the 3 star PF away from Wake Forest but on the last weekend they pulled him in. A big time offensive threat and dynamic offensive rebounder Butler could be the need that SCST has been looking for. On the other end Tobias Strong a 2 star, but runner-up for Mr. Basketball, in Arizona is a terrific defensive player who is know to cause turnovers, swat away shots and bring in rebounds over taller players. He isn't the biggest player at 6'7 but in a league where not many players are of mosterous size he can become a very good PF off the bench.

The final piece and a "panic" pick some people call it was Zack Terry. After de-committing from Kansas State at the end of the season it looked like the 3 start small forward would get left out of the scholarship carousal but SCST offered late in the game and was lucky to pull Terry in. Terry is an athletic SF with good size at 6'7 and could be a glue guy when called upon, he will be coming off the bench to give MEAC Pre-Season Player of the Year Errol Stockman needed breathers, especially in conference play. "We needed one more guy to round out the class, we had talked to a few guards who could come in after we missed out on Chris Fearing to Wake Forest. We couldn't find a need for anyone though as we had both spots held down solidly, and then I took a look back out our pre season scout board and noticed I circled Zack Terry. I took a visit to see him and he still had some interest in SCST, we brought him down and had a workout and I could tell he would be a great role player and possibly a future started, I think he has a lot of potential."


In depth look at the new guys:

***** Marcus Frobes SG 6'6
All-American Riverside, CA
Overall: 16 Position: 10

Lanky and athletic, not a pure shooter but gets the job done with style. Plays good man defense and can run in transition. Doesn't have the greatest stamina but has elite hustle.
NCAA Comparison: Brady Morningstar, Kansas

*** BJ Anderson PG 6'
Riverside, CA
Overall: 155 Pos:17

Super quick point guard with great ball handing skill. Perfect guard for uptempo transition offense. Doesn't have the best passing ability but makes up for it with good decision making. Shooting ability has been suspect in ABL play against bigger players but can knock down the open 3 or an easy runner.
NCAA Comparison: Russel Westbrook, UCLA

*** Jordan Butler PF 6'9
Chapel Hill, NC
Overall: 128 Pos: 20

Explosive big man, good speed (A), and A+ vertical and quickness. He is a great finisher down low and in traffic, gets a lot of rebounds and can get the occasional put back. Not a terrific defender but can swat poor shot attempts and can shut down smaller players. Range is only around 10 feet but is automatic from inside 7 feet; can also knock down the occasional three when open.
NCAA comparison: Ed Davis

*** Channing Stiggers C 7'3
Columbia, SC
Overall: 144 Pos: 6

The biggest body to come out of this years high school class at 7'3 260, Channing is all muscle and athletic. He has elite speed, quickness, and hustle; all things you can teach. Automatic from 10 feet in, but can hit anything mid range. Not the best rebounder, but will get more than he should due to size. Could go 1st round in the NBA after this year, could be a lottery pick with a season of high level coaching.
NCAA Comparison: More athletic Hasheem Thabeet.

*** Zack Terry SF 6'7
Durham, NC
Overall: 334 POS: 60

A do it all player who isn't great at any one thing but isn't bad at any one thing either. Is a good defender and an athletic scorer. He will get lots of points of hustle plays an 50/50 balls but wont impress anyone with his jumpshot.

** Tobias Strong PF 6'7
Yuma, AZ
Overall: 505 POS: 39

Strong and powerhouse defensive player. Known to be aggressive and physical but always ends up on the winning end of rebounds and 50/50 balls. Not the fast player but moves well and has great quickness in half court sets. Is a great low post player usually knocking down shots in traffic and has a good range. Has known to step out and hit threes with consistency, 22 of 54 in ABL play. Best suited for half court offenses, but can find a way to be productive in up tempo offense getting rebounds and put backs.
NBA comparison: Boris Diaw