URI Men’s Hoops Kicks Off 2010-11 Season

KINGSTON–The University of Rhode Island Men's Basketball Team defeated Concordia University 89-50 Friday evening at the Thomas M. Ryan Center. 

It was the first showing for version 5.0 of the Runnin' Rams, now in the fifth season since head coach Jim Baron switched from the slow-paced style of previous Ram squads to the up tempo team of today. 

As expected the Rams blew out the Stingers, and in the process showed their athletic abilities at both ends of the court. 

This first glimpse of the 2010-11 Rams, however, was able to give us a small window into the new recruits and offseason improvements of returning players. 

The emphasis should be placed on small, as there is only so much you can learn about a team's character and ability based on a 39-point drubbing of Quebec's finest.

That being said, there were a handful of promising signs for the Rams, the brightest of which being the play of sophomore Ryan Brooks. 

The Rams are well aware of what they have in seniors like Marquis Jones, Delroy James and Will Martell, but it will need to be the play of their younger players like Brooks if they want to excel this season.

Brooks, who saw little time in his freshman campaign, will be looked on to be a major contributor in the front court with 6'9" junior Orion Outerbridge out for the first semester to focus on academics and starting center Martell nursing a high ankle sprain.

"Sometimes freshman don't play and they come back even hungrier, even when they think they should be playing, but he [Brooks] came back with a different focus and that's what he shows on the court," James said.

In the Rams matchup against the Stingers Brooks showed signs of what he could be capable of this season.

"I plan on playing how I played tonight, doing a little bit of everything," Brooks said.  "Helping on the press when I can, scoring inside, playing defense, getting rebounds, blocking shots, that's what I like to do."

Brooks finished with a very solid line that emulates his play style, 15 points, five rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal.

"I'm going to step up to the opportunity and play hard, and be out there to do no matter what to help my team win," Brooks said.

Brooks' classmate, Nikola Malesevic, also showed some of that same a-little-bit-of-everything style.  Touted as a three-point shooter, Malesevic showed signs of being able to be a defensive presence as well.  The 6'7" swingman had two assists, blocks and steals, respectively, to go along with nine points.

Sophomore Daniel West, a 6'2" point guard who transferred from Pensacola State College, is a player the Rams are expecting immediate contributions from.

He flashed great speed and tremendous ball-handling skills, which is something the Rams will need off the bench to replace the loss of Stevie Mejia.  Mejia, the Rams back up point guard last season, transferred to Hofstra University this past offseason.

The biggest player for the Rams in this upcoming season will no doubt be freshman Blake Vedder, literally.  Vedder, the tallest player to ever don the Keaney Blue jersey at 7'3", showed there's more to his game than his size.

Most players his size are generally slow and floor bound, but Vedder showed some athleticism and the ability to run the floor.  Vedder was responsibile for the Rams' final bucket, an impressive two-handed slam off an alley-oop pass from senior Ben Eaves.

This is, however, just a small window that looks out upon a vast field of question marks for the Rams this season.  There were high expectations for both Outerbridge and senior Jamal Wilson, but each will be out for an extended period of time (Wilson broke his ankle in practice about two weeks ago).

Graduates Keith Cothran and Lamonte Ulmer were a part of the winningest class in URI Basketball history, and provide two large shoes to fill.  

This season will be a telling one for the Rams, as all signs from the past few years are pointing toward the NCAA Tournament.  Each year the team loses significant talent, and each year they are able to improve on their previous season.

"We have a lot of question marks, but I think the people that we have will be able to answer a lot of those questions," James said.  "It's time for guys to grow up and play, because that's what they're there for."

The past three seasons the Rams have made the NIT, which is an impressive feat in itself, a testament to the stability of the program. 

"I'm going to take it one game at a time, but I think looking in practice how everybody is working that we are an NCAA type of team," James said. 

"I'm not going to disrespect the NIT, because the stuff we did there the last three years, I loved, but it's time to take the program to another level."

Their triumph, however, has been the greatest gripe with the program, as their inability to make the NCAA Tournament comes more to the forefront each season.

Whether or not this will be the year that the Rams make the NCAA Tournament is anybody's guess, but the potential for this to make it is certainly there.

MEN'S BASKETBALL

University of Rhode Island 89, Concordia University 50

Rhode Island  48        41 – 89

Concordia        25        25 – 50

Rhode Island: Eaves 2 0-1 5, James 5 3-4 14, Brooks 7 1-2 15, Jones 5 4-5 14, Richmond 6 3-4 18, Vedder 3 0-0 6, West 1 3-5 6, Malesevic 3 2-2 9, Malhoit 1 0-0 2. Team 33 12-18 89.

Concordia:  Moussignac 2 0-0 5, Clark 5 0-0 11, Laroche 4 4-4 13, Krah 4 0-0 12, Selman 1 0-0 3, Brisebois 2 0-0 4, Garner 1 0-0 2. Team 19 4-4 50.

3-pointers: URI 11 (Jones 4, Richmond 3, Eaves, James, West, Malesevic); CU 8 (Krah 4, Moussignac, Clark, Laroche, Selman). Fouled Out: None.