Coach Whitford at The Ball State Alumni Kokomo Outing
Jun 17, 2016 7:17:47 GMT -6
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Post by bsu73 on Jun 17, 2016 7:17:47 GMT -6
BASKETBALL: BSU coach excited for Persons to get back on court
By PEDRO VELAZCO Kokomo Tribune
After a few minutes of talking about the state of his team and new Cardinal Tayler Persons, Ball State men’s basketball coach James Whitford wanted to get one more message through.
“The only thing I would tell the people of Kokomo is: We’ve got one of yours, we’re not very far away, I’d encourage you to come out and support us and watch the games,” Whitford said after rolling in from a round of golf at the BSU golf outing at the Kokomo Country Club on Thursday. “I think it’ll be worth your while. We’ve got a fun team to watch.”
Ball State finished last season 21-14, a 14-win improvement from the previous season. The improvement has generated excitement and hunger for more. And in addition to a lot of returning players next season, the Cardinals will add a local face in Persons, a former Kokomo Wildkat.
Persons played his freshman season at Northern Kentucky, then transferred to BSU. He had to sit out last season due to transfer rules and will be a sophomore on next season’s team. Even before he sees action in a competitive game, he generated buzz with effective play in practice.
“He’s really worked hard on his shot,” Whitford said. “I think you’re going to see a guy that’s a better perimeter shooter than he’s ever been, and Tayler’s always been quick but he played his year at NKU about 15 pounds heavier than he is today. He’s really worked on getting his body fat down, working on his speed and quickness, trying to become a collegiate athlete at the highest level.
“I think you’ll see a quicker Tayler, I think you’ll see a better shooting Tayler and then, other than that you’ll see a lot of what you have seen — a guy that can use pick and rolls, a guy that can create shots for himself, a guy that can create shots for teammates.”
Whitford has also gotten a look at how Persons impacts the team behind the scenes.
“I think he can be a difference maker, both on the court and in the locker room,” Whitford said. “He’s got this incredible infectious competitive spirit. That infects people around him in a real positive way. That’s something I’m really looking forward to having on the court.
“The other thing is, he’s a really good basketball player. He’s proven it, not only in high school but at the collegiate level. I watched him for a whole year so we’re really excited to have him. He’s really worked hard in his year off to become a better basketball player and I think you’ll see an even improved version of what you would have seen his freshman year at NKU.”
Persons was freshman of the year in 2014-15 at Northern Kentucky and was named to the Atlantic Sun’s second team. He’ll mix into a BSU squad that returns seven players from a team that finished tied with Central Michigan atop the MAC West and which got an extra boost from playing three postseason games in the Collegeinsider.com Tournament.
“I think internally we knew we actually had made a lot of strides the year before [2014-15] but you wouldn’t have seen it in the win-loss column, so it was great to have the validation and get a little bit of momentum from having produced more wins,” Whitford said.
“I think it’s exciting for everybody, and at the same time I try to make sure our guys stay grounded and recognize we had a good year last year because we had a great off season, and we have to have that same mentality now and don’t just assume we’re going to be good because we return a lot of guys.”
That success raised enthusiasm and expectations.
“It really stands out on a day like today [at the Kokomo outing], from a lot of people that kind of follow us, some closely, some from afar,” Whitford said. “You can certainly sense there’s been an upswell of interest and what I think I’ve sensed from the day I got [to Ball State] is there’s been a real burning for Ball State to become a winner again.”
Whitford isn’t shy about making his goals known.
“We’ve made a lot of progress but we’re certainly nowhere near achieved our ambitions going forward,” Whitford said. “I think winning the conference outright and getting to the NCAA tournament, those are benchmarks I want to accomplish here in the near future. I recognize they’re hard, but that’s where the bar is.”
By PEDRO VELAZCO Kokomo Tribune
After a few minutes of talking about the state of his team and new Cardinal Tayler Persons, Ball State men’s basketball coach James Whitford wanted to get one more message through.
“The only thing I would tell the people of Kokomo is: We’ve got one of yours, we’re not very far away, I’d encourage you to come out and support us and watch the games,” Whitford said after rolling in from a round of golf at the BSU golf outing at the Kokomo Country Club on Thursday. “I think it’ll be worth your while. We’ve got a fun team to watch.”
Ball State finished last season 21-14, a 14-win improvement from the previous season. The improvement has generated excitement and hunger for more. And in addition to a lot of returning players next season, the Cardinals will add a local face in Persons, a former Kokomo Wildkat.
Persons played his freshman season at Northern Kentucky, then transferred to BSU. He had to sit out last season due to transfer rules and will be a sophomore on next season’s team. Even before he sees action in a competitive game, he generated buzz with effective play in practice.
“He’s really worked hard on his shot,” Whitford said. “I think you’re going to see a guy that’s a better perimeter shooter than he’s ever been, and Tayler’s always been quick but he played his year at NKU about 15 pounds heavier than he is today. He’s really worked on getting his body fat down, working on his speed and quickness, trying to become a collegiate athlete at the highest level.
“I think you’ll see a quicker Tayler, I think you’ll see a better shooting Tayler and then, other than that you’ll see a lot of what you have seen — a guy that can use pick and rolls, a guy that can create shots for himself, a guy that can create shots for teammates.”
Whitford has also gotten a look at how Persons impacts the team behind the scenes.
“I think he can be a difference maker, both on the court and in the locker room,” Whitford said. “He’s got this incredible infectious competitive spirit. That infects people around him in a real positive way. That’s something I’m really looking forward to having on the court.
“The other thing is, he’s a really good basketball player. He’s proven it, not only in high school but at the collegiate level. I watched him for a whole year so we’re really excited to have him. He’s really worked hard in his year off to become a better basketball player and I think you’ll see an even improved version of what you would have seen his freshman year at NKU.”
Persons was freshman of the year in 2014-15 at Northern Kentucky and was named to the Atlantic Sun’s second team. He’ll mix into a BSU squad that returns seven players from a team that finished tied with Central Michigan atop the MAC West and which got an extra boost from playing three postseason games in the Collegeinsider.com Tournament.
“I think internally we knew we actually had made a lot of strides the year before [2014-15] but you wouldn’t have seen it in the win-loss column, so it was great to have the validation and get a little bit of momentum from having produced more wins,” Whitford said.
“I think it’s exciting for everybody, and at the same time I try to make sure our guys stay grounded and recognize we had a good year last year because we had a great off season, and we have to have that same mentality now and don’t just assume we’re going to be good because we return a lot of guys.”
That success raised enthusiasm and expectations.
“It really stands out on a day like today [at the Kokomo outing], from a lot of people that kind of follow us, some closely, some from afar,” Whitford said. “You can certainly sense there’s been an upswell of interest and what I think I’ve sensed from the day I got [to Ball State] is there’s been a real burning for Ball State to become a winner again.”
Whitford isn’t shy about making his goals known.
“We’ve made a lot of progress but we’re certainly nowhere near achieved our ambitions going forward,” Whitford said. “I think winning the conference outright and getting to the NCAA tournament, those are benchmarks I want to accomplish here in the near future. I recognize they’re hard, but that’s where the bar is.”
