With the beginning of the 2013-14 basketball season just around the corner, the Kent State basketball programs met with members of the media this past Wednesday to discuss their outlook on the season. On the men's side, 3rd-year head coach Rob Senderoff was joined by this year's captains: senior Mark Henniger and Darren Goodson and junior Kris Brewer. Here is some of what they had to say....
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| Head coach Rob Senderoff |
Opening statement:
"We're looking forward to the season starting a week from Friday. For a
basketball fan, this is a great time of the year. I think our kids are ready to
start it up soon. Our coaches are, and hopefully our students and fans in the
community will be there with us starting next Friday."
What the starting
lineup looks like for opening night:
"These 3 guys are returning starters from last year. There are still some
decisions to be made regarding the other 2 spots, although I’d say I’m 90% sure
with both of them. But more importantly, the rotation behind them is still very
much up for grabs. It changes day-by-day. This isn’t like football where the starter gets most of the reps and the backup rarely plays. "
Expectations of a more
balanced offense this season:
"We played 4 games in the Bahamas this summer, and we had nobody average
over 13 points and 7 guys that averaged 9 or above. I think there’s certainly more balance than
last year’s team. But at the same time, guys have to step up."
Overall versatility of
the this year’s team:
"Kris (Brewer) can play at any of the perimeter positions. He’s most
comfortable playing the point because that’s his position. K.K. Simmons has received a
ton of reps at the point in our practices. Devin Carter is very comfortable with the ball in his
hands. So there’s a lot of versatility around the perimeter, and even up front.
Melvin was strictly a center last year. I think the way that we’re playing and
the things that we’re doing I could play any combination of frontcourt guys, including
Marquiez Lawrence whose been playing well as of late."
Expectations of his 3 captains:
"I’m not expecting them every night to be the 3 best players on our team, but they need to lead our team every night whether it’s going well for them or not going well for them.
Darren has to be a facilitator and score when the opportunity arises for him. I’ve told him many times that I think he’s the passing frontcourt guy in the conference, but he has to go out and do that every night.
Mark has to be our most vocal defender, our best frontcourt defender, he’s got to become a better rebounder, and he’ll get the ball thrown to him a bit more than he did last year. Defensive rebounding is going to be huge for us.
I’ve told Kris this a lot, I expect him to be the best player on the floor most nights that we play. If he’s not the best player on the floor, then he certainly can’t be any worse than the 3rd-best player on the floor.
That’s pretty high expectations for all of them, and now they have to go do it. That’s what I want from these guys, and I know that’s what they want. Nobody else thinks that of these guys except me. Otherwise, they would have gotten some kind of recognition. But that’s fine because that’s why you play the games."
The defensive ability
of junior guard Derek Jackson:
"He’s got great anticipation skills. He’s got great feet. He’s active.
And it’s a priority for him. Kris (Brewer) could be the best defensive player.
He’s biggest, most athletic, fastest guard in the league."
The
improvement of senior forward Mark Henniger:
Mark’s been much better than last season. He’s more confident in the
post and just a more confident player. This is the most he’s weighed at this
point in his career. He’s at about 230 right now. And he’s always dropped down,
but now he’s been pretty consistently at 230.
Keys for
success this year:
"Unselfishness is going to be important because I don’t know that we
have a guy that will average 17 points per game like Chris Evans did for us
last year. Everybody has individual goals, so sometimes you have to take a
little bit of a backset to your individual stuff for the team stuff. I think we
have a very unselfish team this year. We also have to play with a defensive mindset
and a rebounding mindset. We’re not very big. Darren starts at the power
forward spot, so to speak, and we don’t have a big wing like Chris Evans. We
have to defensive rebound as a team, positions 1-5."
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| Senior forward Darren Goodson |
What he wants to be
known as this season:
"I just want be able to step up when the team needs me. Whether it’s
being vocal in the game or getting a bucket or and 1, I want to be that person
they can go to."
What he learned from
focusing on being more of a distributor late last season:
"I saw that my passing helped somebody else get a shot. To see Dev
Manley or Randal knock down a wide open shot, it got the team up to play
defense. Becoming more of an unselfish player helped my game out as well. When
I see the lane open, defenders have to stay with guys because they know I’ll
pass it, and it helped me get to the hole easier."
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| Senior forward Mark Henniger |
His improvement in the
offseason:
"Last year, I got more playing time so I got more experience in the
league. I think that helped my confidence out. Just being in the weight room
more was really big because I could play more how I want to play when I got
stronger. This year, I was here all summer long and was lifting all of the
time to get stronger."
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| Junior guard Kris Brewer |
His role on defense
this season:
"It’s more of a focus this season. As one of the team leaders, I should be one
be one of our best defenders on the court."
How he can contribute on nights he's not at his best:
I just want to be the leader out there and be vocal. I have to get my teammates
going and have them on their ‘A’ game.
We beat Temple Monday night, which was a really good win for us. It
was the first road game of the year and the game was on ESPNU, so it’s always
extra special to be able to win on national TV. 
