By: Dustin Kent - JCFloridan.com
Patrick Blake's first season as head coach at Chipola College would be deemed a major success at most schools: 26 wins, an 8-4 record in the always tough Panhandle Conference, and seven Indians players landing on one of the All Conference teams.
However, success is defined at Chipola by championships, and on that front, the Indians fell short last season.
But they'll have the opportunity to get right back into conference and state title contention this year thanks to one of the most talented returning core groups of players in the country.
Chipola will have three sophomores who were first-team All Panhandle Conference as freshman: 5-foot-11 guard Demetrious Floyd (11.4 points per game last year), 6-foot-4 wing player Carlos Morris (13.3 points per game), and 6-foot-7 power forward and Florida State commit Cinmeon Bowers (11 points, 6.9 rebounds per game).
Highly-touted 6-foot-4 guard Torian Graham also returns looking for a breakout season as a sophomore, and the Indians also get a huge boost from 6-foot-3 redshirt freshman guard Sam Cassell, Jr., who sat out last season but steps into a prime role as the team's starting point guard this year.
The Indians again brought in a talented crop of freshmen such as 6-foot-7 forward Dont'e Reynolds, 6-foot-4 guard Jamaar McKay, 6-foot-9 Senegalese big man Alpha Ndaw, and 6-foot-6 former Malone Tigers standout Ty Baker.
But it's the play of the returning core of players that will likely determine just how far the Indians and Blake can go in year two.
"It's going to be very important. As far as scoring goes, (Morris, Bowers, and Floyd) were our three leading scorers last year," Blake said. "Where they need to grow is how they set the tone every day. I was watching the Bulls-Thunder exhibition game the other night and Jeff Van Gundy made a great point about how if you don't have the right best players who set the tone every day, then you don't have a chance to win a championship. If our best players don't set the right tone, then we don't have a chance to go where we want to be."
Morris echoed those thoughts in noting the importance of the sophomore class to be more than just productive players on the court, but also leaders off of it.
"It's about sticking together and fighting through adversity. We've been through it, so we have to keep the freshmen doing right," he said. "It was difficult (last year). We had no leadership. It's something that's getting better, but it's still a process. I know I have to be more vocal. Last year I was just playing. I wasn't a leader. I wasn't ready for that role, but I'm trying to better myself on and off the court."
While the returning players had a lot to learn after their freshmen seasons, their coach was also a rookie last year and said he also went into the off-season knowing that he had room to grow and improvements to make in order to get the Indians to the next level.
"The main thing I take away from last year is just how much better of a coach I have to be for us to be successful," Blake said. "That's been the tough part. I focused so much during the summer and fall on our players' recruitment because I believe it's more important what they do after Chipola than what they do at Chipola. It's my job to help mold these guys to be successful at the next level, but I had a tough time balancing what they're trying to do individually and the team aspect. But now my focus is strictly on the team.
"It was a great learning experience for me and I hope it was a great learning experience for some of our freshmen who played a pivotal part of that team."
Chipola had an uneven exhibition season, winning just four out of seven scrimmages.
Blake didn't sugarcoat the lack of preseason success for his team, noting that there is still much work to do to reach the level necessary to compete with the top teams in the Panhandle.
"We're 4-3. That's our record in scrimmages and that's who we are right now," the coach said. "The great thing about it is that doesn't count, so this Friday night (when the team opens the regular season against East Georgia) I'm going to put on the board '1-0,' or '0-1.' I'm hoping that will get their motor running.
"These guys have had a lot of practices and not that many games (since the summer), but now with the lights coming on, I hope that gets our motor ticking a little bit and gets us more locked in to what we need to do."
The Indians know what they have with Morris' perimeter scoring, Floyd's dynamic ability to break down the defense with his quickness and score in bunches, and Bowers' power and versatility on the interior, and the newcomers should all be able to make significant contributions as well.
The X-factor for the Indians could be Cassell, Jr., with the Connecticut commitment and son of the former Florida State and NBA star of the same name possessing the playmaking ability and court savvy to guide a Chipola ship full of guys more wired to score than to assist.
"We have a lot of guys who like to have the basketball in their hands and like to score, so I'm counting on him being that leader and distributor, but he's still talented scoring the ball," Blake said. "He's got a game similar to his dad. It's an old man's crafty game, and he makes big shots. It's rare to get a kid like this that's not only talented but brings a high basketball IQ and the savvy that he has. He just has to get the rust out and figure out how to use that in a game setting."
Chipola was picked by the coaches to win the Panhandle Conference in the preseason poll, receiving four of the five first-place votes, and is also No. 2 in the preseason state poll, receiving three of the 14 first-place votes.
By Blake's own admission, the Indians haven't quite looked like a preseason favorite in their exhibitions, though Cassell, Jr. said that the players' belief in what they can accomplish has not been affected.
"Everybody expects to win a championship," he said. "We've got a lot of work to do, but we're improving daily. Talent-wise, we're very good. We can get there; we've just got to stay focused on our goals and keep improving."