McNeese State University 2014-15 COWBOYS BASKETBALL McNeese Sports Information Jack Doland Athletic Field House 700 E. McNeese Lake Charles, LA (337) 475-5207 Fax (337) 475-5202 SID: Matthew Bonnette wbonnette@mcneese.edu @WM_Bonnette cell (337) 263-4822 www.mcneesesports.com 2014-15 Schedule Nov. 14 at Baylor... 8:30 p.m. (FSSW+) Nov. 18 LOUISIANA COLLEGE... 7 p.m. Nov. 21 JARVIS CHRISTIAN... 7 p.m. Nov. 29 at LSU... 7 p.m. (SECN+) Dec. 3 SOUTHERN (N.O.)... 8 p.m. Dec. 6 LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE... 7 p.m. Dec. 13 at TCU... 7 p.m. Dec. 16 LSU-ALEXANDRIA... 7 p.m. Dec. 20 TOLEDO... 1 p.m. Dec. 22 CENTRAL MICHIGAN... 7 p.m. Dec. 30 at Mississippi State... 7 p.m. Jan. 3 *STEPHEN F. AUSTIN... 3 p.m. Jan. 5 *HOUSTON BAPTIST... 7 p.m. Jan. 10 *at A&M-Corpus Christi... 7 p.m. Jan. 17 *at Sam Houston State... 4:30 p.m. Jan. 20 *ABILENE CHRISTIAN... 7 p.m. Jan. 24 *at Northwestern State... 3 p.m. Jan. 26 *at Incarnate Word... 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31 *NEW ORLEANS... 6 p.m. Feb. 2 *at Southeastern La... 7 p.m. Feb. 7 *at Nicholls... 3:30 p.m. Feb. 9 *at New Orleans... 7 p.m. Feb. 14 *NORTHWESTERN STATE... 3 p.m. Feb. 16 *SOUTHEASTERN LA.... 7 p.m. Feb. 21 *at Lamar... 6 p.m. Feb. 24 *at Central Arkansas... 7 p.m. Feb. 28 *NICHOLLS... 3:05 p.m. (ESPN3) Mar. 2 *LAMAR... 7 p.m. Mar. 8 *CENTRAL ARKANSAS... 1 p.m. Mar. 11-14 at Southland Conference Tournament * - Southland Conference games All times Central and subject to change Home games in ALL CAPS All home games will be played in Burton Coliseum McNeese State Cowboys at Baylor Bears Friday, November 14, 2014 8:30 p.m. Waco, Texas Ferrell Center (10,284) TV: FSSW+ and FCSP Radio: None Series: Baylor leads 2-0 McNeese Notables McNeese will open the season on Friday against Baylor in a game that will be televised on Fox Sports Southwest Plus and also on Fox College Sports Pacific. The Cowboys are coming off an 11-20 season and a 9-9 mark in Southland Conference play for a seventh place finish... McNeese ended the regular season winners of 4 of its last 6 games but fell to Oral Roberts in the conference tournament first round Set a new single-season school record in 2013-14 with 203 three-point goals made, breaking the old mard of 194 set in teh 1991-92 season... set a season record with 666 three s attempted, breaking the old mark of 595 set in 1991-92... set a single-game record with 38 three s attempted against Georgia State on Nov. 18 of last year. The Cowboys played just one home game last season prior to conference play, going 2-10 during that stretch... of those games, the Cowboys faced three NCAA Championship coaches - Tom Izzo (Michigan State), Larry Brown (SMU), and Steve Fisher (San Diego State), and the non-conference strength of schedule rated as the 6th toughest in the nation. This year, McNeese will play 7 home games before league play begins. McNeese is 9 wins away from reaching 1,000 victories in the history of the program... the program s 312 Southland Conference wins are the most of any league team, past or present. Assistant coach Steve Welch was the Cowboys head coach from 1987-94... his assistant for all seven of those seasons was Dave Simmons, current Cowboys head coach. When Simmons was hired to head the McNeese program in 2006, it took him three years to lure Welch out of retirement. Welch has been at Simmons side the last five six. Probable McNeese State Starting Lineup Pos. No. Player Pts. Reb. FG 3FG FT A/G PG 1 Jamaya Burr (6-0, 167, So.-1L) 3.0 0.9 31.1 15.8 63.6 1.1 Started 4 games last season as a true freshman and played in 28 games. Season best 13 pts vs. Stillman in the NIT Tip- Off Classic... scored double figures three times including 11 in season opener at No. 1 Michigan State. G 3 Keelan Garrett (6-0, 180, Sr.-3L) 5.0 0.8 33.3 32.6 81.1 0.5 Top returning 3-pt shooter on the team with 36 makes last season and a 33.0 percentage... scored double figures 5 times with a career-high 21 points against Nicholls in a game where he sank 4 of 8 from long range. G 11 Kevin Hardy (6-2, 180, Sr.-3L) 8.0 4.9 45.8 33.7 55.2 3.2 Top returning scorer (11.0) and second-highest rebounder (6.7)... started all 31 games and has started 61 consecutive games heading into Friday... scored double-digits 16 times and has 33 in his career... recorded 4 double-doubles. F 32 Desharick Guidry (6-5, 200, Sr.-3L) 9.6 6.9 44.8 31.6 67.0 0.4/b Southland Conference rebounding champion last season with an 8.0 average... double-digit scoring in 9 games and had two double-doubles... scored 20 or more twice with a high of 21 at Lamar P 44 Austin Lewis (6-8, 215, Jr.-2L) 2.4 2.4 54.7 00.0 30.0 1.1/b Looking to shake the sophomore slump he was in last season and return to his freshman dominance where he ranked 4th in the SLC with 1.4 blocked shots per game... played in all 31 games last year making 5 starts.
Quick Facts Location............... Lake Charles, La. Founded......................1939 Enrollment................... 8,900 Nickname...................Cowboys Affiliation...........Southland Conference Colors.... Blue (PMS 287) and Gold (PMS 116) Arena................ Burton Coliseum Available Capacity............... 3,800 President............. Dr. Philip Williams Athletic Director...........Bruce Hemphill Ticket Office Phone........ (337) 562-4MSU Website......... www.mcneesesports.com Twitter............... @McNeeseSports................. @McNeeseMBB Men s Hoops SID........ Matthew Bonnette Phone................ (337) 475-5207 Cell................. (337) 263-4822 Email.......... wbonnette@mcneese.edu History 2013-14 Record................ 11-20 SLC Record/Finish.............. 9-9/7th First Year of Basketball............. 1946 All-Time Record............... 992-851 NCAA Touney Appearances, Last.... 2, 2001-02 All-Time NCAA Record...............0-2 NIT Appearances, Last.......... 3, 2010-11 All-Time NIT Record................ 1-3 CollegeInsider.com Apperances.......... 1 Last..................... 2011-12 Result................L 76-63 at Toledo SLC Championships, Last........ 6, 2010-11 SLC Tournament Titles, Last....... 2, 2001-02 All-Time SLC Record, Years..... 313-286, 42nd Team Information Starters Return/Lost................3/2 Lettermen Return/Lost............. 11/4 Class Breakdown Seniors..................... 4 Juniors...................... 4 Sophomores.................. 3 Freshmen.................... 3 Basketball Staff Head Coach......Dave Simmons (La. Tech, 81) Asst. Coach.......... Steve Welch (SLU, 70) Asst. Coach........ David Dumars (ULM, 80) Asst. Coach......Preston David (McNeese, 10) Dir. of Ops......... Eric Willis (McNeese, 14) 2014-15 McNeese State Numerical Roster No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr.-L Hometown/Previous School 0 Shaun Johnson G 5-10 178 Jr.-2L Pineville, LA (Pineville HS) 1 Jamaya Burr G 6-0 167 So.-1L Ruston, LA (Ruston HS) 3 Keelan Garrett G 6-0 180 Sr.-2L Lake Charles, LA (St. Louis Catholic HS) 5 Marcus Mathieu PG 5-11 178 Fr.-RS Richardson, TX (Plane East HS) 10 Craig McFerrin P 6-7 230 Sr.-3L Baton Rouge, LA (Warren Harding HS) 11 Kevin Hardy G 6-2 180 Sr.-3L Lake Charles, LA (St. Louis Catholic HS) 13 Jordan Wells F 6-7 250 Jr.-2L Orange, TX (Little Cypress-Mauriceville HS) 15 Matthew Moss C 6-9 212 Jr.-1L Anacoco, LA (Charis Prep) 23 Darrell Joubert G 6-1 180 Fr.-HS Opelousas, LA (Northwest HS) 24 Lance Potier G/F 6-5 189 So.-1L St. Martinville, LA (St. Martinville HS) 31 Stephen Ugochukwu F 6-7 210 Fr.-HS Lewisville, TX (Argyle Christian Academy) 32 Desharick Guidry F 6-5 200 Sr.-3L Lake Charles, LA (Washington-Marion HS) 35 Andrija Milovanovic G/F 6-5 210 So.-1L Belgrade, Serbia (Koledz Beograd HS) 44 Austin Lewis F 6-8 215 Jr.-2L Houston, TX (Westfield HS) Head Coach: Assistant Coach: Assistant Coach: Assistant Coach: Dir. of Basketball Ops: PRONUNCIATIONS: JAMAYA Burr DESHARICK Guidry Darrell JOUBERT ANDRIJA MILOVANOVIC Lance POTIER Stephen UGOCHUKWU Dave Simmons (9th season) David Dumars (14th season) Steve Welch (13th season) Preston David (4th season; 1st in new position) Eric Willis (4th season; 1st in new position) juh-my-yuh duh-shar-ick zhoo-bair an-dre-yuh me-low-van-o-vich po-shay you-go-chew-coo SENIOR-LED TEAM MOST EXPERIENCED SINCE 2010-11 CHAMPIONSHIP SQUAD The past few seasons have been building up to this one for the McNeese State Cowboys. That s because the Cowboys will field their most experienced squad since winning the 2010-11 Southland Conference regular season championship and following that up with a conference tournament championship game berth in 2011-12 behind the likes of standout athletes such as Patrick Richard, Diego Kapelan, P.J. Alawoya, and others. Interestingly enough, freshmen on that 11-12 squad that placed second in the SLC East Division, just one game out of the title, included this year s seniors in Kevin Hardy, Craig McFerrin and Desharick Guidry. That trio will be the main force in the Cowboys looking to win their first conference title since that 2010-11 season. HARDY TO ENTERS NEW SEASON RANKED HIGH ON SEVERAL SCHOOL CAREER STAT CHARTS Kevin Hardy, who has started in 61 consecutive games, will enter the season ranked 10th on the school s all-time assist list with 304 dishes and is sixth on the steals chart with 156. He s also scored 749 points in his career and needs just 251 points and 44 steals to become the only player in school history to score 1,000 points, dish out 300 assists, and 200 steals in a career. GUIDRY FIRST COWBOY IN 13 YEARS TO TOP LEAGUE IN REBOUNDING In 2013-14, Desharick Guidry became the first McNeese Cowboy to lead the Southland Conference in rebounding since 1991 after he averaged 8.0 boards per contest. He ll enter his final season with the Cowboys with 586 career boards (16th on the career list) and with 817 points scored. He needs just 183 points and 114 rebounds to become just the eighth player in school history to join the 1,000 pt/700 reb club, joining an elite group that includes Edmond Lawrence, David Lawrence, Henry Ray, Jermone Batiste, Anthony Pullard, Fred Gentry, and George Murphy. HARDY MOVING BACK TO ORIGINAL POSITION After spending most of his junior season out of position at point guard, senior guard Kevin Hardy will move back to the No. 3 position where he ll be able to show his talents from teh wing position. Hardy took on the role as a point guard last season when the Cowboys were in need of a leader after having just true freshman Jamaya Burr as the only other PG. Burr, along with redshirt freshman Marcus Mathieu, will take over the PG role this year allowing the athletic Hardy to move back to a spot where he can hit it from outside or physically dive the lane.
All-Time Series vs. Baylor Baylor leads 2-0 12/12/98 at BU 69, McN 66 ot 11/27/99 at BU 78, McN 55 McNeeese in the Final SLC Statistics (All Games) INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS Scoring 5. Ledrick Eackles 17.8 Rebounding 1. Desharick Guidry 8.0 10. Kevin Hardy 6.7 12. Craig McFerrin 6.5 Offensive Rebounds 1. Desharick Guidry 3.3 11. Craig McFerrin 2.3 14. Kevin Hardy 2.1 Field Goal Pct. 14. Ledrick Eackles.366 Free Throw Pct. 9. Ledrick Eackles.765 3-Point FG Pct. 7. Ledrick Eackles.364 3-Point FG Made 2. Ledrick Eackles 2.5 (78) Assists 5. Kevin Hardy 4.3 (134) Steals 3. Kevin Hardy 2.0 (62) 5. Ledrick Eackles 1.5 (48) Blocked Shots 16. Craig McFerrin 1.0 (30) 18. Kevin Hardy 0.9 (28) 20. Austin Lewis 0.8 (25) Minutes Played 1. Kevin Hardy 35.5 7. Desharick Guidry 33.5 Assist/Turnover Ratio 8. Kevin Hardy 1.7 (134/805) SLC TEAM RANKINGS Scoring Offense 12th (68.1) Scoring Defense 9th (76.1) Scoring Margin 12th (-8.0) Field Goal Pct. 14th (.392) FG Pct. Defense 5th (.441) 3-PT FG Pct. 14th (.305) 3FG Made 7th 6.5 (203) 3-PT FG Pct. Defense 14th (.379) Free Throw Pct. 7th (.696) Rebounding 4th (36.8) Rebounding Defense 12th (39.5) Rebounding Margin 10th (-2.7) Assists 11th (12.2) Blocked Shots 6th (3.8) Steals 5th (6.8) Turnover Margin 6th (0.03) Assist/TO Ratio 9th (0.93) Offensive Rebounds 1st (13.2) Defensive Rebounds 6th (23.7) McNeeese in the Final SLC Statistics (SLC Games ONLY) INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS Scoring 4. Ledrick Eackles 19.7 Rebounding 1. Desharick Guidry 8.4 10. Kevin Hardy 6.7 11. Craig McFerrin 6.6 Field Goal Pct. 11. Ledrick Eackles.414 Offensive Rebounds 3. Desharick Guidry 3.2 4. Craig McFerrin 2.7 14. Kevin Hardy 1.9 Assist/Turnover Ratio 4. Kevin Hardy 2.0 (94/47) Minutes Played 4. Kevin Hardy 36.2 7. Desharick Guidry 35.1 McNeese Career Totals Double-Digit Scoring Games Jamaya Burr 0 3 Keelan Garrett 0 6 Desharick Guidry 0 33 Kevin Hardy 0 34 Shaun Johnson 0 2 Austin Lewis 0 2 Craig McFerrin 0 21 20 + Point Games Keelan Garrett 0 1 Desharick Guidry 0 7 Kevin Hardy 0 2 Craig McFerrin 0 2 30 + Point Games Desharick Guidry 0 1 5+ 3- point FG Games Desharick Guidry 0 2 10 + Rebound Games Desharick Guidry 0 18 Kevin Hardy 0 8 Austin Lewis 0 1 Craig McFerrin 0 11 10 + Assist Games Kevin Hardy 0 1 Double-Doubles Desharick Guidry 0 10 Kevin Hardy 0 7 Craig McFerrin 0 6 Free Throw Pct. 19. Ledrick Eackles.727 3-Point FG Pct. 6. Ledrick Eackles.407 3-Point FG Made 1. Ledrick Eackles 2.8 (50) Assists 3. Kevin Hardy 5.2 (94) Steals 3. Kevin Hardy 2.0 (36) 10. Ledrick Eackles 1.3 (24) 16. Desharick Guidry 1.2 (22) Blocked Shots 7. Craig McFerrin 1.4 (25) 19. Kevin Hardy 0.9 (16) SLC TEAM RANKINGS Scoring Offense 9th (71.9) Scoring Defense 7th (73.1) Scoring Margin 7th (-1.2) Field Goal Pct. 14th (.423) FG Pct. Defense 3rd (.437) 3-PT FG Pct. 13th (.315) 3-PT FG Pct. Defense 10th (.375) 3-PT FG Made 6th (6.4) Free Throw Pct. 9th (.681) Rebounding 2nd (36.8) Rebounding Defense 11th (36.8) Rebounding Margin 7th (+0.0) Assists 7th (13.2) Blocked Shots 5th (4.2) Steals 5th (7.0) Turnover Margin 5th (+0.8) Assist/TO Ratio 8th (1.0) Offensive Rebounds 2nd (13.4) Defensive Rebounds 6th (23.4) Starts Desharick Guidry 0 64 Kevin Hardy 0 63 Craig McFerrin 0 47 Austin Lewis 0 16 Jamaya Burr 0 4 Keelan Garrett 0 1
The Southland Conference COWBOYS PICKED 5TH IN PRESEASON POLLS The McNeese Cowboys basketball team has been tabbed for a fifth place finish in the Southland Conference preseason polls conducted by the head coaches and sports information directors. Senior guard Kevin Hardy has been named to the preseason all-conference second team. Hardy will be joined by two other starters Desharick Guidry and Criag Mc- Ferrin as the Cowboys look to rebound from last year s 11-20 overall mark. Reigning conference champion Stephen F. Austin is picked to repeat as champions by both polls followed by Northwestern State. Sam Houston State, Texas A&M- Corpus Christi and McNeese round out the top five. The point differential from third to fifth place is less than 20 in both polls. Incarnate Word, Southeastern Louisiana, Nicholls, New Orleans and Lamar make up the next five while Abilene Christian, Central Arkansas and Houston Baptist close out the poll. Coaches Poll 1. Stephen F. Austin (11), 143 2. Northwestern State (1), 129 3. Sam Houston State, 118 4. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 115 5. McNeese, 96 6. Incarnate Word, 76 7. Southeastern Louisiana, 71 8. Nicholls, 68 9. New Orleans, 61 10. Lamar, 50 11. Abilene Christian, 31 12. Central Arkansas, 29 13. Houston Baptist, 27 SID Poll 1. Stephen F. Austin (10), 144 2. Northwestern State (3), 129 T3. Sam Houston State, 114 T3. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 114 5. McNeese, 98 6. Incarnate Word, 78 7. Southeastern Louisiana, 75 8. Nicholls, 64 9. New Orleans, 60 10. Lamar, 47 11. Central Arkansas, 41 T12. Abilene Christian, 26 T12. Houston Baptist, 26 McNeese s Record When... Home............................ 0-0 Away............................ 0-0 Neutral........................... 0-0 Leading at Half....................... 0-0 Trailing at Half....................... 0-0 Tied at Half......................... 0-0 Overtime.......................... 0-0 McN Shoots 50% FG or Better.............. 0-0 McN Shoots 40-49.9% FG................. 0-0 McN Shoots less than 40% FG.............. 0-0 Opp. Shoots 50% FG or Better.............. 0-0 Opp. Shoots 40-49.9% FG................. 0-0 Opp. Shoots less than 40% FG.............. 0-0 McN has more Rebounds................. 0-0 Opponents have more Rebounds............ 0-0 Same Number of Rebounds............... 0-0 McN Commits More Turnovers.............. 0-0 Opp. Commits More Turnovers.............. 0-0 Same Number of Turnovers................ 0-0 McN Better FT%...................... 0-0 Opponent Better FT%................... 0-0 McN Better 3PT FG%................... 0-0 Opponent Better 3PT FG%................ 0-0 McN Scores 70 or More Points.............. 0-0 McN Scores Less than 70 Points............. 0-0 Opp. Scores 70 or More Points.............. 0-0 Opp. Scores Less than 70 Points............. 0-0 TEAM - SEASON HIGHS Points... FG Made... FG Attempts... FG Percentage... 3FG Made... 3FG Attempts... 3FG Percentage... FT Made... FT Attempts... Rebounds... Assists... Steals... Blocked Shots... INDIVIDUAL - SEASON HIGHS Points... FG Made... 3FG Made... FT Made... Rebounds... Assists... Steals... Blocked Shots... * - School Record
Head Coach Dave Simmons The Simmons File PERSONAL Born: July 24, 1959 Hometown: DeRidder, La. Married: Wife Elaine Marie Children: Desmond, David, Deon EDUCATION 1977-85 Louisiana Tech M.S. Health & Physical Education B.S. Health & Physical Education Minor in Business Education COACHING CAREER 94-95 Edward Waters 16-13 95-96 Edward Waters 11-16 06-07 McNeese State 15-17 07-08 McNeese State 13-16 08-09 McNeese State 11-18 09-10 McNeese State 10-20 10-11 McNeese State 21-12 11-12 McNeese State 17-16 12-13 McNeese State 14-17 13-14 McNeese State 11-20 14-15 McNeese State 0-0 Total 11th season 139-164 at McNeese 9th season 112-136 2011 Southland Conference Coach of the Year 2011 & 2012 Tommy Joe Eagles Memorial Award Coach of the Year Throughout his eight seasons as the head coach of the McNeese State Cowboys, Dave Simmons has etched his name not only in the McNeese record book but also the Southland Conference history guide. In 2012-13, Simmons coached the Cowboys to a Southland Conference first when his team defeated Sam Houston State 59-58 in overtime on Feb. 7. That win marked the 300th conference win for the Cowboys the first league team in history to reach the milestone. Also that season, Simmons became just the fourth head coach in school history to reach the 100-win milestone at McNeese after a 91-88, double-overtime victory at Nicholls State in the regular season finale on March 9. And three years ago, Simmons did something for McNeese State that no other head coach in school history has ever done take his teams to national postseason tournaments in back-to-back years (2011 National Invitational Tournament and the 2012 CollegeBasketballInsider.com tourney. That kind of production led to the Louisiana Association of Basketball Coaches to award Simmons the Tommy Joe Eagles Memorial Award as the state s major college coach of the year two years straight in 2011 and 2012. In the 2010-11 season, Simmons guided the Cowboys to their first Southland Conference regular season championship since the 2001-02 season, and led the team into the National Invitational Tournament where it hosted Boston College, and last season, he led the Pokes to their second straight conference tournament title game appearance and later took part in the CollegeInsider.com tournament. McNeese did make back-to-back postseason appearances in 2000-01 (NIT) and 2001-02 (NCAA) but that was under two different head coaches (Ron Everhart and Tic Price). The 20-win season Simmons Cowboys produce in 2010-11 was also the first for the school in nine years and the 15-2 home record was one of the very best. McNeese knocked on the 20-win door once again last year where the 17-win season saw four games where the Cowboys came up short by four points or less. Simmons has hit some high spots during his career at McNeese, both as head coach and assistant coach. As a former assistant at McNeese (in the late 1980s on the staff of Steve Welch), the Cowboys won the league s tournament title and participated in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. He earned the SLC coach of the year honor as well as that for the state of Louisiana in 2011 and was also named the district coach of the year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. He s now 112-136 in eight seasons with the Cowboys and is 139-165 in 10 seasons overall. Simmons was also on the staffs at Northwestern State and Louisiana Tech when those two teams won league titles and played in the NCAA tournament, and an assistant at Delta State when it played post season. He was an assistant coach at Louisiana Tech when the team went to the NIT Final Four and made two NCAA appearances. He was an assistant at Delta State when it won 24 games and appeared in the Division II Final Four and he was an assistant at Northwestern State when the Demons won back-to-back league crowns, participated in the NCAA and gave the SLC a first round NCAA victory for the first time since the 1980s. During a 29-year career Simmons has coached more than 20 players who have gone on to play in the professional ranks including Karl Malone. He is a member of the Louisiana Basketball Hall of Fame, having been inducted for his playing career at Louisiana Tech and he is one of the few current collegiate head coaches in the nation who scored more than 1,500 points during their playing careers. At Tech he was the team captain and team MVP and in 1981 ranked fifth in the nation in free throw shooting. He still holds the school record for free throw accuracy in a single season and for career free throw accuracy. A native of DeRidder, he and his wife Elaine Marie have three children, Desmond, David and Deon.
2013-14 Overall Stats
2013-14 Southland Conference Only Stats
2013-14 Team Stats
March 6 & 8, 2014 at A&M-Corpus Chrsti and Houston Baptist McNeese Game-by-Game
March 6 & 8, 2014 at A&M-Corpus Chrsti and Houston Baptist Opponent Game-by-Game Stats
March 6 & 8, 2014 at A&M-Corpus Chrsti and Houston Baptist McNeese Points-Rebounds-Assists