Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

[Deuce2223]

Okay guy's after being away from posting for almost a full year, I am back ready to start back up a passion of mine and what better game to thread about then College Hoops, my first love and the first game I ever shared with others via the old 2K forums back in the day.

I havn't decided if I will be taking any player caps for this legacy like I have done in the past and because I am playing on a new 360 with no past roster saved files or anything I will be just be using random named rosters from when the game first came out. I don't plan on posting game by game post's for the first couple years but will instead give some recap's/highlights of my coaches first job as I work my way up the ladder starting in a closed legacy, but once I land a job or roster I just have to play all the games, I will go to game by game reports as well as try and give you as much info on what is going around the league as well, so you can feel invested in the legacy as much as I plan to be.

First official post to follow

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

Ever since Ryne Dezaron was a little kid, all his memories revolved around basketball. As the son of a legendary college coach Ryne Dezaron , he spent his childhood inside a gym with a ball in his hands from the time he would walk. Named after his father Ryne quickly earned the nickname “The Deuce” because he was Ryne Dezaron II.

When Ryne started playing basketball in AAU he naturally wore #2, cementing the nickname. Now all family and friends and even people off the court called Ryne “The Deuce”

Well Deuce loved watching his father coach and take multiple schools to national titles, his dream was never to be on the sideline. He would spend his childhood in the living room watching past NBA stars like Jordan, Bird and Magic. Well other friends were playing with their Nintendo’s, Deuce would challenge his dad to Jordan vs Bird 1 on 1 on a Commodore 64. He dreamed someday someone would make a video game about him. However that dream would never become reality as a car accident during his freshman year at college would end any chance of a college career that would lead to the NBA. After spending what was almost a year away from any basketball court, Deuce was ready to step back into a pair of Air Jordan’s only this time it wouldn’t be as a player but as an assistant coach at a JC school in Twin Falls Idaho.

College of Southern Idaho (CSI) was a JC powerhouse who had sent many past players on to play at the Div I level and it’s where Deuce would get his start at the age of 19 in the coaching world, but fast forward 6 years later and Deuce was now 25 and ready to take on his first head coaching job. Despite no Head Coaching experience, Deuce didn’t waste time sending resumes to high schools, community colleges, JC’s or even Div II and III schools. Always wanting to be the best at whatever he did, he decided to go big and sent in his resume to 5 Division I schools, hoping 1 of them would give him a chance to start his new dream.

Day’s turned into weeks’ and the week’s turned into a month but finally Deuce got the phone call he was waiting for as he was waiting for. He drove to the airport and got onto a plane headed for.....

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

It was Saturday morning when Deuce landed in Greeley Colorado. He had just been offered the chance to be the next Head Coach at the University of Northern Colorado. . Well on the plane, Deuce got out the Bear's media guide and read up on his team's past season and tried his best to get to know the players he would have returning next season based off stat sheets. Problem is stat sheets don't tell you much of anything, Coach Deuce needed to see these guy's on the court and Monday couldn't come soon enough..

His roster would have 3 Seniors returning. All were projected starters and 2 players where considered to be the star's of the team. 6'9 C Egeman Gray (68) and 6'3 SG Josip Gibson (67/88 3pt) where both local kids who had put points on the board the previous season and had the talent Coach Deuce knew he could work around. SR PG Issa Mallory (60) was a walkon who stuck with the program for 4 years and now his hardwork had paid off as he would have a chance to run the show. The SF and PF spots where up in the air as 7 other players would have a chance to battle it out on the court for starting spots. That's right Coach Deuce had 10 players who were going to suit up for him and only Gray was taller then 6'7.

[slicknick3822]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

Dang, small roster but might work to your advantage as I know how you like to shoot those 3's. Good luck and I'll be following like always.

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

YEAR 1 RECAP

Welcome to ESPN "The Ocho" Year 1 Recap, joining me today is Coach Ryne Dezaron "The Deuce" who just completed his first year on the job with the Northern Colorado Bears, I am your host Pepper Brooks sit back and enjoy the show.


PB- Coach let's get things started, you finished 16-14 in Year 1 not bad for a first time head coaching job.

#2-Yeah Pepper I thought things went well. We started off strong winning the Hanger Classic with a opening round win over VMI (95-88) before beating Air Force (64-55) in the championship game, so it was nice to get that get some W's under our belt and a non conference tournament trophy (1 attribute point).

PB-You guy's finished 5-5 in non-conference play led by SR E. Gray (20.2 PPG) but you got some great outside shooting from both 6’3 SR SG Josip Gibson 7.7 ppg 35% for 3pt (16/46) and 6’0 FR SG Nate Boatner 7.5 ppg,36% 3pt (13/36).

#2-Yeah it was really great to see Boatner step up and provide us with a quality 6th man. Coming into the season I wasn't sure what type of player he was (Rated 57) but he has a nice 3pt stroke.

PB-Coach you finished 9-7 which was good for 3rd place in the Big Sky and made it to the Championship game against a 20 win Montana squad but came up short. With Gray (20.6 PPG 6.9 RPG) and Gibson (11.2 PPG 45% 3pt) graduating you had some big shoes to fill in recruiting. Can you give us a update on how that went.

#2-Well at first I was a little disappointed. We went hard after 6'11 Fab Ainge (3* Rated #446/43) from Thornton CO but he ended up signing with Colorado State. That left us 3 scholarships to use late in the season as we search for guy's who were not being heavily recruited.

PB-Yeah losing out on Ainge was a disappointment but in the end it was actually a blessing because you landed some pretty talented guy's including 1 player Cam Atkinson whom I excited to see play. Can you tell us more about him.

#2-Well Cam is every player a 1st year HC dreams about. He is a 6'7 PF out of Carson City Nevada and was rated a 4* Recruit and Ranked #92 Overall in this years class and the #20 PF in the nation. (Signing a 4* Recruit=another attribute point)

PB-Yeah I think Cam has the potential to be the best player in the Big Sky next year but you got 2 more pretty good player's including a World recruit (another attribute point). Tell us about them.

#2-Well our World guy comes from New Zealand. He is 6'10 Aron Thompson (3*) and will be a instant starter next year in the post with Atkinson. Our last recruit is 6'7 Kris Crenshaw (3* #394/#89 SF) out of Albuquerque New Mexico. Well Crenshaw doesn't shoot the ball well from the outside he does have a nice mid-range jumper and should slide into the starting lineup at SF.

PB-So with Atkinson/Thompson/Crenshaw locked in as starters who will be in the backcourt next year?

#2-Well Boatner will move from his 6th man role he finished #3 in scoring (9.4 PPG and shot well from 3pt-34%). 5'9 Ontario Dunnington (60) played well as a true freshman (5.1 PPG/2.1 APG) and will get a chance to run the point next season.

PB-Well coach it seemed like you really made some big strides in Year 1 (5 Attribute points). What are your goals for Year 2?

#2-Well Pepper, I want 20 wins and to accomplish that I believe we will need to win the Big Sky conference tourney. I also will have 4 scholarships to fill and I really want to fill out the roster with some solid guards who can shoot the 3pt so we can really run my offensive style to our potential. It would be also great if we could manage to pick up a win or 2 over some Top-25 teams to help build some confidence. I also would love to see Cam Atkinson win Big Sky FOY and of course I would love to be Big Sky COY.

PB-Well Coach those are some lofty goals.. Good luck to you..

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

YEAR 2 PREIVEW

Going into the season with 5 brand new starters including 3 Freshman, Coach Deuce wanted the team to spend some time together so he invited his roster of 10 players to his house to re-watch #6 North Carolina beat #5 Louisville (88-80) to win the National Title. He talked to the team about how none of the #1's (Clemson,Kansas,Michigan State and UCLA) even made the Final 4.

He then shared with them his goals. 4* Cam Atkinson (76 Overall) was considered to be the Big Sky's "Best Pro/Overall/Freshman) and with him leading the team along with Thompson (66 OVR) and Crenshaw (64 OVR) they had a special weapon, they had "the element of surprise". Nobody had seen these guy's play together but by the end of the season, Coach Deuce believe they would be a team many would fear.

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

Year 2 Season Review

In just 2 hours Coach Deuce would be walking out onto the court of the Jon M Huntsman Center to face #4 Villanova. He had done it. In just his 2nd season he had led his Northern Colorado squad to a NCAA tourney bid as a #13 seed after winning the Big Sky tournament.

The team started strong going 8-4 in non-conference play with Atkinson leading the way at 13.7 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 1.3 APG, 2.3 SPG, 1.4 BPG, shooting 51% FG.

Boatner had stepped up scoring over 12 PPG in his starting role and Thompson was chipping in 11 PPG.

The Bears went 11-5 in Big Sky play but failed to win the title finishing 2nd to Weber State 12-4 but manage to knock off the Wildcats (78-76) to win the automatic bid.

The starting 5 were playing great. They made through the season starting all 30 games together and Atkinson (13.9 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 1.0 APG, 1.5 SPG 1.2 BPG) had everyone's attention around the nation. How did the big schools pass up on this kid. He was the real deal. Thompson was playing great too chipping in 12.5 PPG and 8.6 RPG well Boatner was adding 12.8 PPG well hitting 38% from 3pt.

Could they do it? Could they beat Villanova?

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

YEAR 2 RECAP

The #6 Saint Louis Billikens had done it. They had won the National Title beating #10 LSU (76-73). For a 2nd straight year none of the #1's (Texas,Stanford,Tennessee or UConn) even made the Final 4.

UNC's bid in their first ever Field of 64 ended in Round 1 against Villanova (84-72) but Coach Deuce was feeling good about things. He had accomplished much in Year 2 (5 more attribute points). He had won 20 games, won the Big Sky tourney, making it to the NCAA tourney. Cam Atkinson was named Big Sky FOY well also making the 1st Team-All-Conference with A. Thompson.

With 20 wins and a tournament showing, Coach Deuce once again signed a great class to join a roster that lost just 1 player, as he signed 4 incoming freshman. All where 3* rated players led by 6'4 SF Kareem Conway (Rated #107 Overall/#21 SF). Conway is a scorer who can hit from the outside (11 PPG 33% 3pt in ABL). He was a lock to slide into the starting SF spot moving Crenshaw to the bench.

Joining him were 3 guards, 6'3 Trevor Sylia (#228/#68 PG), 6'3 W.M. Brady (#265/#64 SG) and 6'3 Filberto Perry (#310/#97 PG). All 3 where from Denver well Conway hails from Pueblo. The instate kids were taking notice of what was happening in Greeley. They wanted to be Bears.

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

YEAR 3 PREVIEW

With 4 incoming freshman with the potential of 3 of them joining Atkinson and Thompson in the starting lineup, Coach Deuce had his team meet him in the gym early. He was going to have to make some tough decisions. The roster had 13 players but everyone on the court knew that coach only played 10. After a had day of practice, Coach D posted the 10 who would make the squad and called Dunnington (62), Boatner (59) and Crenshaw (65) into his office. Even though all 3 logged 31 starts for him they would be going to the bench, joining SR S. Causey (63) and FR F. Perry (66) Going into Year 3, Coach Deuce would have 3 Freshman (Conway-74/75 3pt, Sylla-72/79 3pt, Brady-68/81 3pt) and 2 Soph's (Atkinson-76, Thompson-67) in his starting lineup as he put the goals on the whiteboard.

20 wins.
Big Sky regular season title.
NCAA tourney win.
Cam Atkinson Big Sky POY, 1 of the 3 FR's named Big Sky FOY and himself as Big Sky COY.

Alot was on the line in Year 3. Rumors were the UNC A.D. had a 5 year extension on the table for Coach Deuce, well many Mid-Majors were already keeping their eye on this young coaching protege.

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

YEAR 3 RECAP

UNC's season didn't start out how most had predicted as the Bears dropped 4 of their first 5 games including road games at Oregon (85-78) and Denver (73-59) as well as home games vs South Dakota State (83-75) and Gonzaga (103-93), with their only victory coming in a home game vs Deuce's hometown team Boise State (89-86).

Could Coach Deuce have made a mistake starting his 3 incoming Freshman? Winning 4 of their next 5 games helped turn the tide as they went into the Orange City Shootout with a 5-5 non-conference record. A loss in the opening round against Elon (68-64) left them zero hope of a above .500 non-conference record but a win over NJIT (86-71) left them 6-6 with hopes of 20 wins still a possibility as long as they could win the Big Sky regular season title.

BEAR'S WIN BIG SKY TITLE

With a 14-2 record, Northern Colorado had finally on the Big Sky regular season title losing both games on the road (Eastern Washington and Montana State).

With a 20-8 record UNC would enter the Conference Tourney as the #1 seed opening with a (88-60) victory over Idaho State in the 2nd Round to set up a Championship matchup against Montana State with the winner going to the NCAA tourney.

With a (71-60) victory in which SO A. Thompson posted a double double of 18 and 10 the Bears were headed to their 2nd straight NCAA appearance under Coach Deuce.

UNC NAMED #13 SEED

Instead of watching the selection show on campus, Coach Deuce invited the team over to his house. Not only would they be celebrating their automatic birth and enjoy seeing who their first round opponent would be it was also learned that Coach Deuce was named Big Sky Coach of the Year (another attribute point) and Soph PF Cam Atinkson was also named Big Sky POY (another attribute point) as he finished the season with a 18.3 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 1.4 SPG, 2.0 BPG stat line.

FR PG T. Sylia was also named the Big Sky FOY as a UNC Bear takes home the honor for a 2nd straight year. Sylia finished avging 9.5 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 3.9 APG, 1.0 SPG well hitting 57/141 3pt (40%).

Finally the Selection Show came on. Duke had drawn the #1 seed in the East, despite finishing 11-5 in the ACC (3rd place) as they went 14-0 in non-conference play.

ACC conference rival Maryland (26-6), Pac-10 Champ USC (26-4) and Big Ten Champ Wisconsin (28-4) were named the other #1's.

Oklahoma State, NC State, Florida,Vanderbilt were all named #2's, well Dayton, Seton Hall, Iowa State and Ohio State were named #3's.

Finally it came to the 4 seed's. Georgetown was put in the East, Mississippi State was put in the West, Kansas State was put in the South well Syracuse (23-8, 11-7) was put in the Midwest where they were matched up against Northern Colorado who had received the #13.

Could the Bears take down the Orange? Rumors were this was going to be Coach Jim Boeheim's last season, and with a veteran roster (3 SR's 5 JR's) it was going to be the Bear's toughest challenge yet..

[pfeifere1]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

So glad to see you back on the boards with a CH2k8 legacy! This is always a special time of year specifically for this sub-section on OS.

I'm also digging the preview-recap write-ups! Keep it up!

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

BEARS UPSET ORANGE IN 1ST ROUND!!!


vs

Going into the game, Coach Deuce knew his team had a chance to pull off the upset, but also knew it would take his teams best effort to do it. The Bears offense was unstoppable in the 1st half as Cam Atkinson led the team with 12 pts as UNC went into the locker room up (45-43)

In the 2nd half Atkinson continued to help his team where ever he could as he grabbed 10 rebs and blocked 4 shots well also adding 9 more points to finish as the P.O.G. with 21 pts 12 rebs 4 assists and 5 blocks as Northern Colorado pulls off the upset win, after Syracuse missed a 3pt at the buzzer to force O.T.

FINAL SCORE UNC-88 SYRACUSE-85

Coach Deuce after the game "It's a huge win for us. When I came to UNC I hoped I would be able to get the program to the Big Dance.. Now we have done it 2 years in a row and picked up our first ever "W". Beating Syracuse ranks as our biggest win in school history but if we are going to beat #5 Michigan State it's going to take another effort like this"

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

BEARS FAIL TO REACH SWEET 16

VS

Tied 44-44 at the half, excitement was at a all-time high in the Bears locker room. Deuce had earlier guided his team over Coach Boeheim and the Orange could he really do it over Coach Izzo and the Spartans?

No.. Michigan State was just to much in the 2nd half as the Spartans built a 9 point lead with less then a minute to play despite 3 Bear's scoring in double digits-Atkinson and Syllia (16 points each) well SR T. Causey (11pts) led the bench.

MSU-91 UNC-82

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

TENNESSEE VOL'S WIN CHIP!!!

It was another crazy March Madness Tournament.. For the 2nd time in 3 years all 4 #1 seed's failed to make the Final 4, in fact none even made it to the Elite 8.

#6 Texas beat #2 Oklahoma State (104-89) well #9 Tennessee beat instate/SEC rival #2 Vanderbilt (92-79) to set up the National Title bout.

In the Title game it was the Vol's who hit the century mark as they beat Texas 109-57 in one of the most lopsided games in NCAA history.

[Deuce2223]

Re: Following in the footsteps of a Legend (CH2k8)

Coach Deuce to stay at UNC!!

Despite job offers to Missouri State,Miami of Ohio, Arkansas State, Loyola IL, and Townson. Coach Ryne Dezaron II "Deuce" will instead sign a 5 year extension to stay at the University of Northern Colorado.

Coach Deuce- "Obviously it's every coaches dream to climb the ladder and someday coach at a elite school in one of the elite conferences in college basketball, and well any of the 5 schools who offered me a chance to become their head coach would've been a step up that ladder, I honestly didn't feel it was my time to leave UNC. We have all 5 starters returning next season including Cam Atkinson who was the Big Sky POY as well as T. Sylia the Big Sky FOY as well as 3 of our top reserves off the bench. So with 8 returning players coming off a 2nd round appearance and back to back 20+ win seasons and Big Sky Championships, I felt like this was the best place for me. I have some big goals for the upcoming season. If we meet them then maybe I consider a buyout and leave before the 5 years is up, but until then I am excited to see what the future holds for UNC Bears basketball."