Malibu, CA - In a promising start to the season, Pepperdine demolished Westmont 97-80 tonight at Firestone Fieldhouse (Box Score). Check out the official recap here. Here's our take on some of the new Waves, beginning with tonight's starting lineup:
PG Rico Tucker: Tucker is a familiar face to dedicated Waves fans after sitting on the bench all last year after transferring from Minnesota. The 'lil guy at the point showed some flashes of playmaking-ability but has a pretty shaky outside shot. He's got crazy hops though and almost brought the house to its feet on an alley-oop feed from Tyrone Shelley that he just missed slamming down (that's right, the feed was FROM Shelley TO Tucker).
G Jason Walberg: Waves fans know what they're getting with Walberg: an experienced floor general with an outside shooting touch and lots of hustle. Walberg showed some great hustle tonight, especially for an exhibition game. It's pretty clear he knows this is his last year - we should expect big things from him.
G Mike Hornbuckle: Basically Tyler Carr only a little less hustle and a little more shooting touch. Hornbuckle got the start and hit his first shot but did little else. If he can nail down some consistency in his long-range game, he'll be able to stretch defenses, but I wouldn't expect much in season one.
SF Tyrone Shelley: And now for the one we've all been waiting for: BIG TYRONE! Shelley sure lived up to his billing in person: he's a physical specimen - built like Lebron but with a Joe Johnson-esque outside shooting touch. Shelley finished with 19 points, but 12 of those came off 3 pointers (he went 4-9 from behind the arc). Two immediate concerns come to mind: free throws (he finished 1-5 and seemed almost lazy at the stripe) and a lack of tenacity to take it to the hoop. Shelley has all the talent in the world, but he hovered around the perimeter for much of the night. If the Waves are going to make any noise this year, Shelley needs to pick up that competitive desire and start taking it to the hole.
C Daniel Johnson: Johnson was by-far the biggest surprise of the night. He runs the floor very well for a big man, has a sweet outside shot, and even displayed some finesse low-post moves around the basket. Johnson led the team in points (although several of them came in garbage time) with 20 and contributed in the Waves full-court press, grabbing a few steals (the stat sheet says 2 but I counted 4 easily). Johnson should provide a nice change-of-pace to the more traditional C Jarrad Henry who'll come in and block shots and be a presence in the post.
Other Players
Malcolm Thomas: Thomas, a 6-8 freshman out of Crawford High School (San Diego), was by far the most effective player off the bench. He displayed some shifty low-post moves, ran the floor, and came up with two huge swats. He should provide a major athletic upgrade over former players like Willie Gallick and Chris Oaks. The main rub with Thomas is an awkward free throw motion and the fact that he seems to make mental errors sometimes on defense. Thomas should contribute early and often on this team.
Mychel Thompson: Thompson is a smooth 6-7 bruiser out of Ladera Ranch, CA. His offensive game is a little more raw than that of Shelley and Thomas, but he did show the makings of an outside shot and played a beautiful low pick-and-roll with Thomas that led to a slam. He needs to add consistency to his outside shot and improve decision-making, but he should contribute fairly soon on this team
Ryan Holmes: The 6-1 transfer from Phoenix Community College showed some command running the point but often passed on shots and didn't drive or put the ball on the floor going to the basket very much. He needs to improve if he's going to be a sparkplug off the bench.
Jon Reed: We didn't see much from the 6-5 freshman lefty from Rancho Palos Verdes, CA. He's supposed to have some serious range, but he looked tentative and didn't assert himself on offense. A slight disappointment.
Gus Clardy: The 6-6 forward from Nacodoches, TX is clearly a fan favorite and had his own little Texas cheering section. Walberg said he's been impressive in practice, but we didn't see much from him tonight. Hopefully he'll add some depth off the bench.
Tyler Tucker: Basically like Rico only 5-9 instead of 6-0. A nifty back-door pass was the highlight of his night.
Other Observations
- The whole team looked tired about mid-way through the second half; they're clearly not in top basketball-playing shape yet and a little more depth and youth this year should help them.
- The cheerleaders are better this year, which is always nice.
- Jarrad was sporting a new hairstyle: he ditched the 'fro in favor of some small dreadlocks.
- Mychel Thompson's brother Clay attended the game; he has verbally committed to play at Washington State
Season Outlook
The Waves look sharper than last year at this time and should improve on their 8-23 record. Unfortunately, the schedule is pretty brutal with games at Oregon (Nov. 10) and at Memphis (Jan 5). In fact, thirteen of the Waves' sixteen non-conference games are on the road or at neutral sites, which is especially tough on a young team that starts two (probably three) freshmen.
A lot rests on how quickly fringe players like Thompson, Thomas, Johnson, and Tucker can develop. The point guard spot is a major concern for the second year in a row as Kingsley Costain's departure leaves a huge void that hopefully Holmes and the Tuckers can fill. The Waves host Gonzaga Monday January 14th. If Pepperdine can play at-or-above .500 ball and keep that game competitive, they can create some serious momentum going into conference play. Not a lot is expected of the young Waves this season but with talents like Shelley and Thomas, they could surprise some people.
Other Notes
ESPN.com's Andy Katz has a touching story about the return of Josh Heytvelt and his search for redemption this year. We were touched, we really were. In any event, Katz notes that "Heytvelt is prepared to be ridiculed and jeered on the road, especially at WCC stops like Pepperdine and Saint Mary's." Touche, Mr. Katz. I say we give him a rendition of "Do you know the (muffin) mushroom man?" Other suggestions are welcome.
