Cleanthony Early-SHOCKER!!

[RoyalShock]

Last three games:

11 pts (3-8 FG, 5-6 FT), 8 rebounds
24 pts (10-13 FG, 4-6 FT), 12 rebounds
23 pts (8-12 FG, 7-10 FT), 12 rebounds, 3 assists

He has only attempted one 3FG in that span, since going 0-6 four games ago.

Current averages: 26.3 ppg, 9.7 rpg.

[SubGod22]

If he can't average a double/double we don't need him...

I hope he starts hitting a few three balls and works on it before next season. I don't remember his numbers from last year, but he needs to be able to keep defenses honest to keep his slashing options open.

[RoyalShock]

Cleanthony's last two games:

Nov 29: 30 pts (12-18 FG, 1-1 3FG, 5-6 FT), 11 rebs
Dec 1: 36 pts (11-19 FG, 0-1 3FG, 14-16 FT), 13 rebs

[ShockTalk]

Cleanthony's last two games:

Nov 29: 30 pts (12-18 FG, 1-1 3FG, 5-6 FT), 11 rebs
Dec 1: 36 pts (11-19 FG, 0-1 3FG, 14-16 FT), 13 rebs

I'm very excited that Early will be a Shocker. That said, one should not get too excited about the numbers he's putting up. I believe he may very well be playing among a lesser talent pool. If he does put up high, quality D-I stats, all the more of a pleasant surprise. And regardless of the level he may be playing at, I love the 19-22 FT in those 2 games!

[Snapshot9]

I am excited about Early. He looks like a baller, a player that gets the job done, and they say he has the talent to be a NBA'r. I like his attitude too, sounds like he has his head on straight. He's going to be exciting to watch play.

[RoyalShock]

Early surpasses 1000 points at Sullivan.

http://www.jucorecruiting.com/?p=1078

[Ricardo del Rio]

"Wichita State commit Cleanthony Early (Sullivan CC) scored his 1000th point last night against Rockland Community College and finished the game with 29 points. Early reached this milestone in only the 12th game of his sophomore season and the 46th game of his junior college career.

Early commented on the feat saying, “I just want to thank my teammates, none of this would be possible without them.” Early’s teammates are getting the ball to him quite often and for good reason. He is averaging 27.5 ppg, 10.4 rpg and 3.1 bpg. He is shooting 57% from the field and getting to the line nearly ten times per game this season."

[wufan]

Early, Hawkins, and Green should team up well with Hall and White next year! We won't be as big w/o GS, but I think those five and EO will give us a nice combination of players from the center to the wing.

[Aargh]

I expect it will take Early a little longer to adjust to D1 than it's taken Hall, but...

...Hall Early, and Orukpe as the first 3 front court guys - and possibly all 3 on the court at the same time That could be a pretty solid front court. Hall and Early can score enough that using Orukpe primarily for D isn't a problem.

[Anthroshock]

Perusing the list of NJCAA-III teams, I came upon the Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology.Their only sport is soccer, but their mascot is the Shockers.

http://mail.bfit.edu/athletics/soccer_roster.php

[another shocker]

I didn't realize that Early was such a good rebounder. Him (once he gets going at D-1) and Hall should make a nice tandem on the boards.

[WSUwatcher]

He'll be fine as a rebounder. No one would have any doubts about the rebounding ability of a high schooler who averaged double digit boards. So, even taking into consideration that juco teams play 40 minutes vs. 32 for high schoolers (thus creating more rebounding opportunities than a high school kid would have), the higher overall level of talent in even lower division juco ball (vs. high school) should reassure us about his prospects.

[forevershockerfan]

In the scheme of things, it seems somewhat overwhelming that the Shocks will graduate 10 solid players in 2 Seasons. However, on the flip side, it is a breath of 'fresh cold winter Shocker Mountain air' to realize this recruiting class will be our best in the Marshall Plan. We will have some redshirts to add to these solid recruits such as Early, Hawkins, and VanVleet. Armstead "caught my eye" more than Cotton in the summer which is saying a lot. Baker WILL be a special player on both sides of the court. Take that to the bank or the black and yellow vaults in the confines of your dwelling place.

Yes, it is somewhat spooky to lose that many key players in 2 Seasons. However, look at Kentucky who plays with several very special underclassmen and doing 'finer than a frog' hair. More good news is that I doubt we are done recruiting yet if the need arises. You like?

[WSUwatcher]

Interesting comparison to Kentucky, FSF.

Obviously WSU doesn't bring in a crop of NBA players every year the way Calipari does, but what UK proves is that you can lose a bunch of guys every year and still be good as long as you can keep the pipeline flowing -- and Marshall's mix of jucos, transfers, and high schoolers is looking pretty good so far this season as a replacement for last year's four important seniors. There's still a lot of basketball to go, though, to see whether this group can take the next step into the NCAA.

Of course, if they do, the question then is whether next season's EIGHT new faces (the fall signees plus Baker, Armstead, and Mitchell) can replace this year's five important seniors. Maybe, maybe not -- but you gotta love a guy whose staff can find a way to bring in that many quality new players in the first place. And assuming a couple of the eight newcomers in 2012-13 redshirt, as is widely expected, WSU may be off to a good start toward still another good crop of newcomers the year after. If nothing else, they certainly seem to have the pipeline impressively filled and flowing.

[WuDrWu]

Armstead needs to work on his consistency but all the tools are there. The only thing you need to worry about with Baker is 1)do you have enough tickets and 2) how many Ron Baker jerseys are you going to buy for Christmas.


Not that I am wasting 2 minutes on next year, but I suspect this will be a fun team to watch, especially in February and March.