Great scrimmage tonight - thanks LMU.
My observations.
One mystery solved – others raised!
At today’s LMU scrimmage, the tentative roster showed that #23 is Kelsey Chine, a 6’5”, 190 lb, walk-on guard from Westchester via El Camino CC. A sophomore by athletic eligibility standards, he acquitted himself well in the scrimmage today.
Players who did not play:
Larry Davis – recovering from torn Achilles tendon.
Edgar Garibay – bruised heel (I hear)
Griffin Reilly – foot in boot (reason unknown)
Quincy Lawson – reason unknown (possible Redshirt and/or bona fide injury?)
Other observations:
Positives:
(1) Jared DuBois apparently is a slam dunk for skills as he was out of the game to give other guys a chance to play by 5 minutes into the game. I arrived late but heard Jared’s squad (“Blue”) was up 11-0 when he sat to give mercy to the “White” squad. Perhaps the all WCC predicts are well founded. He never reentered the game perhaps to avoid the possibility of injury.
(2) Drew Viney – shot well from the field and at the free throw line. This kid is a winner, including 3 pointers from the corner. A handful inside also.
(3) Gevin Kalipinde – showed his quickness, defensive skills and shot making ability with a nice lay up off the glass among other plays. Muscular for his size, this kid will get some minutes this season, perhaps at Vernon’s expense.
(4) Ashley Hamilton – Made 8 straight free throws (at least) but one did actually hit the rim before going in! He is a handful underneath the basket and did beat Kevin Young for a lay up on one play. He will get minutes.
(5) Alex Osborne – Garibay did not play so Osborne played Center on one team and Diederichs was with the Blue squad. Osborne needs to improve his court awareness on defense but did show a nice touch from the field and from the free throw line. He dropped in one from the top of the key and had a nice dunk late in the game. He needs some experience but will get some minutes this year at Kevin Young’s expense
(6) Kelsey Chine – 6’5”, 190 lbs, guard – as mentioned, acquitted himself well in the game. Coming from the Westchester program, he understands disciplined team play and will see some time this season. I guess he is a “walk-on” – he is not listed on the website roster - as we have no more scholarships to offer.
Neutral:
(1) Tim Diederichs – played a workmanship-like game at center for the Blues. Nothing special on offense or notable on defense. I guess I don’t watch the banging inside closely enough to tell. Listed at 225 lbs (down from 230 last year), Tim could use some more bulk to play inside against WCC centers he will meet.
(2) Vernon Teel – lots of energy but little output. His soft put up shot under the basket needs time to develop this year. A plus on the defense (against our newer players) with several steals late, but he is not yet in mid season form (is that an oxymoron?)
(3) Kevin Young - good defense, nothing special on offense in general – a good slam dunk and a few good jumpers. We would like more from Kevin.
(4) Kevin Berardini – workmanship like play at guard, not much on the offensive end, good ball handler, defense acceptable.
(5) Laron Armstead – needs to work on his jumper, seems more comfortable under the basket but lacks the size to compete. Buff physically and a top defender. Will have competition for time at guard from Kalipinde.
Negatives:
(1) Brad Sweezy – lots of energy, lots of fouls, little offense or ball handling skills. This will be Brad’s final season (in my opinion) so you Sweezy fans should shout your hearts out when he contributes. Good kid otherwise.
Practice squad players – Daniel Latimer and Brandon Gumaer. Thanks for helping out.
Mystery player – who wore #2 – he looked OK in his limited minutes on the floor? #2 is shown as Griffin on the roster, but Griffin had a boot on his foot and was not dressed.
Kudos to Max Good who turned over coaching duties to his assistant coaches and was more relaxed than I have ever seen him tonight. Coach Scholl was also neutral. Great work developing your assistants Max! And thanks on behalf of the youngsters in the audience for keeping your cool!
