Another day, another recruit, and this one's a pretty big fish.

Jacob Buchanan (*, #154 overall, #38 PF) - Buchanan was my primary target the entire recruiting period, and he'll play an active role as one of the first guys off the bench next year. I promised him 10 minutes a game, and he'll get that with ease. His offensive abilities may not increase, but he's already a very good scorer and a decent passer for a big man, so that's just fine. He's a decent athlete who will get faster/increase his stamina, and he'll turn into a top-notch rebounder as well.

Kenneth Brown was the safe frontcourt prospect. I fully expected to have more of a battle for Buchanan than I got. Lamar popped in briefly, but didn't spend too much time or energy on him. I'm pretty pumped to have him. He's going to turn into a pretty outstanding player, and as I mentioned, he'll be in the rotation right away.

We finished the season at 23-4 with (shocker) a loss in the CT to a Sim-coached team we beat in the regular season. What's more, that team ran the table and promptly got routed by Duke in the NT. I love the team-building aspect of this game, and the recruiting is as much fun as I've had in any college sports game ever, but we've gotten hit by some wacky outcomes at bad times over the past few seasons.

If there's any consolation to any of this, it's that James Lamm grabbed enough boards to finish his career as Central Connecticut State's most prolific rebounder. I'll have senior retrospectives up in the next few days.

I'm not sure if I'm sticking around. There are some appealing openings being discussed in bigger conferences that I may absolutely need to apply for. If I come back, though, the cupboard isn't bare. We graduate three guys, but while they're all very good, only Lamm will be incredibly tough to replace. In addition, we return our entire array of point guards and shooting guards, and that could make for a very fun depth chart to put together. We'll see what happens!

Okay, senior retrospectives below.

James Lamm - Much like Jerrold Young is the best guard to come through the program, Lamm is probably the best big man to ever suit up for the program. He was good enough to play as a freshman, but he red-shirted, and that decision turned him into a monster as an upperclassman. All three of these guys are good, but Lamm is going to be very, very tough to replace.

Records: 1st in rebounds (879), 1st in FG% (58.1%), 8th in points (1,423), 3rd in FG made (579), 11th in FG attempted (997).

Walter Tickle - I really liked Walter Tickle when I signed him. He took a while to come around, as he wasn't a good rebounder when he got here and actually played more SF than PF his first season or two. However, he developed just fine and even averaged seven boards per game as a senior while providing a rare kind of perimeter threat at that position. He's not irreplaceable, but it'd be nice if we had him another year.

Records: None.

Michael Koeller - When I signed Koeller, he was the #100 SG in his class. Switching him to a full-time SF, though, unlocked a lot of his potential, and he turned into an above-average starter. I've found it fairly simple to mold guys into effective SF's, and we're not lacking depth there moving forward with William Sheely and Jay Ronning, but Koeller got a lot out of his skill set, and that's fun.

Records: 12th in 3PT% (44.4%), 13th in FT% (79.9%)

Update: I applied to Cincinnati, an A- prestige program that came open, but got beaten out for it. I've got one other application pending, and if that one falls through, I'm 99% sure I'm coming back. I like what I've helped build here, but one fluky loss late in the year ruining the entire season gets old fast, and that's happened more often than not (such is life at a low-D1 program!).

EDIT: 0-for-2. I applied to Pittsburgh for a few reasons (B prestige, lots of talent coming back, I'm a sucker for the old Big East), but the Mississippi State coach got the gig over me. That one, I get, but a D2 coach beating me out for the Cincy job...stings just a little.

Unless something bonkers happens, I'll be back at CCSU for at least one more year, and more likely at least two (we lose two players next year, neither of whom are irreplaceable).

I usually detest recruiting players who want to sign late, but in this instance, I wound up getting a guy that'll help the program long-term.

Rodney Jones (#295 overall, #57 SF) - Jones will almost certainly redshirt this season, but it isn't for a lack of talent. Our depth chart at PG, SG, and SF is very, very crowded, and while he's ready to chip in now, he simply wouldn't get all that much playing time.

He's got plenty of room to improve in almost every area, which is really cool to see. He's going to turn into an excellent scorer with enough speed and passing ability to thrive in the system we run. He'll also wind up a passable defender and a decent rebounder for his position, and while his free throw shooting stinks now, that'll get better in due time. Assuming he redshirts this year, he'll sit one season, play very little as a freshman, and be ready to contribute at both SG and SF as a redshirt sophomore. He'll take a little time to reach his potential, but once he does, I think he'll be an excellent low-D1 player.

- - - - -

RECRUITING THOUGHTS

In a word: Phew.

This season's batch of recruits...simply was not good. There were far fewer options that appealed to me than in past years, and thankfully, the three guys I got were the three I wanted all along. Jones needing to sign late wasn't exactly ideal, and I was petrified over the possibility a major-conference program would sweep in and nab him, but everyone stayed away and I got a little lucky.

These guys aren't without their limitations. Brown will need a little time, Buchanan's scoring abilities won't improve, and there simply isn't room on the depth chart for Jones right now. However, they're all going to be at least good starters once they top out, and while it's not the monstrous class we brought in last year, it's very solid. Given how worried I was about having to go to backup options that didn't inspire much faith, I'm more than happy with this.

GRADE: B+.

We're 7-3 to start the season with no bad losses. We got beat by two good human-coached teams (Xavier and Army), and one Sim-coached team (Alcorn State) that had been built to be good by a coach that left. We beat both Rutgers and Vanderbilt, as well as some OK mid-majors (in particular, a win at Maine is going to look pretty good at the end of the year).

The biggest change this year is a switch to a full-court press. The zone may have cost us the Xavier and Alcorn State games (Army was just flat better), and I needed to see if we were good enough to press exclusively. That's worked pretty well for us, and I'm excited to see if it cuts down the chances at horrible, late-season losses, or if I'm just cursed.

Lots of good news to report. We're 20-4 on the season right now, with only one horrible loss (at Monmouth, when my starting backcourt got in terrible foul trouble). Our RPI is in the 70's, and the press seems to be working.

Recruiting has started, and we've only got two spots to fill. The biggest fish got reeled in this afternoon.

Ronald Kidd (*, #139 overall, #37 PF) - Ronald Kidd looks a TON like Jacob Buchanan, who I was pretty pumped to get last season. Like Buchanan, Kidd is almost totally topped out scoring-wise, but is still an offensive threat who can shoot a bit, and he'll also be an excellent rebounder. The trade-off is that Buchanan will be a superior on-ball defender, while Kidd will be a better athlete with higher speed and stronger passing/ball handling abilities.

Kidd knows the press, which will be handy, and he'll see plenty of playing time from the moment he steps on campus. We've got two soon-to-be seniors, and I think he may start as a sophomore. I really like him, and I think he's got the potential to do plenty of damage in a CCSU uniform.

One more signing to announce...

Terry Boyer (#103 PG) - ...and MAN, did the guards stink this year. I had five or six guards I was watching at the outset. I wound up on my third choice or so for a decent chunk of change, but I got bumped off of him by DePaul, who noticed the same things I did (he was underranked because he was ineligible and was going to be a pretty good pass-first point guard in due time) and was considerably closer. Boyer was one of the last guys I was even so much as willing to consider, but he became a necessity when the few good guards went elsewhere.

That isn't to say Boyer's terrible. He reminds me a ton of Hans Mleczynski from my very first recruiting class, in that he's not a bad shooter and has potential to grow into a decent point guard. He's fast enough to press, he takes care of the ball, and he'll turn into a good to very good passer. I'm not crazy about his low work ethic, but because of the nature of the press, he'll see the floor a fair bit as a freshman, so that has a chance to go up. It's not like he's a terrible signing; I just wish I'd had the opportunity to do better.

- - - - -

RECRUITING THOUGHTS

I can't imagine how I would've filled more than two scholarships this time around, because the crop of recruits was, once again, not good. Ronald Kidd was the #2 big on my board (the first one wound up signing with Villanova, so I was never getting him), and he'll be an excellent player. Boyer, not so much. He'll be competent in the long run, but no better than that, and I wish he didn't need to play as much as he'll likely have to as a freshman. He's not so bad that he'll sink our chances, but he's nowhere close to the type of player I've been able to land the past few seasons.

GRADE: B. This seems fair given an A/A- (Kidd) and a C/C+ (Boyer). I love Kidd, and I'll tolerate Boyer.

This is the first season in a while where I can report we reached our potential. We went 22-4 in the regular season and stomped all three CT opponents to make the NT. I don't know if it was what made the difference, but there was certainly a noticeable change when I switched to a FCP earlier this year.

We were a 15-seed in the NT, and we actually kept things competitive against Indiana in the first round before falling 83-70. There's no shame in that at all, and we've got 10 guys from that team coming back next year (including our two top scorers). I'll have senior retrospectives up this weekend or early next week.

Senior retrospectives from last year didn't happen, as Thanksgiving and then work got in the way. Such is life.

This year, we're having an incredible season. We're 21-2, with an RPI that's 51st in the country, and we even cracked the top-25 for a few days. We're exceptionally deep, and both losses came in overtime. One was to a very good Binghamton team, and the other came at Long Island, where my guys were on the wrong end of a 31-17 free throw disparity. All told, it's probably the best team I've ever had here.

I'm posting, though, because it's recruiting season. We've got four scholarships to fill this time around, and the first new player just signed.

Kent Seeley (#60 PG) - Seeley was not my first choice (more on that saga once all of my scholarships fill), but he's going to turn into a very good player. As it stands now, he's raw, and I wish he didn't have to play as much as he'll likely play during his freshman season (I promised him 10 minutes per game, and he'll get that). However, he'll develop into a very strong player on both ends of the floor. He'll be fast enough to press, and while I wish his ball handling could grow a bit, he'll be a very good shooter and passer once he tops out, too. It'll take a little while for him to mature, but once he does, he'll be a high-impact player at the low-D1 level.

Eugene Thurston (*, international so therefore unranked) - We're graduating our entire starting frontcourt, so getting more big bodies is a priority. Thurston isn't perfect, but he's a good get. He's going to be an excellent rebounder, and his "wing" stats will shoot up considerably by the time he's done here. I'm envisioning him as a two-year reserve and a two-year starter, and I think him being an international recruit helped me a bit.

Most of Thurston's weaknesses are manageable. He won't be a stellar athlete, but it's not like he'll be a liability, and while his on-ball defense won't be great, he's already a very good shot-blocker. The only thing I'm worried about is his low-post scoring, which is already topped out. Still, there's value in having a big that can pass and shoot with some range (especially in a motion offense heavily reliant on good passing). He reminds me a lot of David Allums, a senior on this year's team who's turned into a perfectly capable starter despite a few weaknesses, and I think he'll be effective in similar ways.

Liu Emanuel (international so therefore unranked) - This is a pretty fascinating recruit. For one, Emanuel comes to us from Ghana, easily the furthest away I've ever focused on a recruit, and I was hoping nobody else would zero in on him. Nobody did, and because so many of his preferences lined up with us, I didn't need to make more than a couple of visits.

As for his skill set, I love what he brings to us offensively. He's already very fast and an outstanding outside shooter, and every other offensive skill that matters for a guard will be decent to great by the time he's done (including his passing, which will be at least in the upper-80's by the time he tops out). He already knows the motion offense we run, and while he may not play a ton right off the bat, he won't hurt us when he's out there.

Defensively...well, therein lies the experiment/the reason I was able to get him. He's already fast enough to press, and judging by his preferences, he knows that system. His actual defensive skill, however, is pretty far below average. It'll get a bit better, but I'm hoping his top-tier speed will be enough to compensate. If it is, he'll be an asset and a potential starter for us. If he isn't, he'll be an "instant offense" type off the bench.

All told: Great season, lousy ending. We won 27 games this season and stormed through the conference tournament (which makes me wonder how many CT's I wasted with the HCP/zone when I should've been pressing exclusively all along), and we were impressive enough to get a 12-seed in the NT. However, we laid an egg in the first half of the first round, where we shot 9-for-31 in the first 20 minutes against a good Furman team. We lost by 19, and we finished at 27-3.

I'll have senior retrospectives up this week (no way I'm missing these guys). Next season's going to be fascinating. We'll have as talented a starting lineup as any mid-major team in the country, including a Levenson-Pittman-Ronning backcourt with three guys who have 90+ speed. If the press works as intended, that lineup will be insanely good, but we're replacing a top-10 player in program history, two quality frontcourt starters, and a backup who scored nearly 1,000 points while captaining that second unit. Depth may be an issue, at least early on, but once the freshmen develop a bit, I think we'll have a chance to do damage.

Okay, time for senior retrospectives!

Ronald Johns - When Ronald Johns was a recruit, he was a point guard without top-notch passing skills. However, when I landed him, I envisioned him as a shooting guard, or even a small forward, that provided a top-notch perimeter threat on one end and a defensive stopper on the other. That's precisely what he turned out to be, and the redshirt year he took meant he was a high-impact player as an upperclassman (and the NEC Player of the Year as a senior). For what he was, he was excellent, and he'll definitely be missed.

RECORDS: 8th in points (1,460), 5th in 3-pointers made (300), 9th in field goals made (491), 15th in 3-point percentage (44.4%)

William Sheely - Sheely was one of our most valuable players, yet he didn't start a single game. When we moved to the full-court press, his so-so speed wasn't a strength, and when Jay Ronning signed and was too much of an asset not to start, someone had to sit. This was Sheely, but he settled in, captained our second unit, and provided much-needed depth. He averaged double-figures in scoring as a junior and senior and scored nearly 1,000 points in his career, all while, again, never being in the starting lineup. He was the quintessential "glue guy" for us, and his graduation leaves a pretty big hole.

Terry Cohn - When we switched to a full-court press, we scored many more points in transition. This benefited our guards, but hurt our forwards, and Terry Cohn's stats suffered for it. He was still a very good starter at the low-D1 level, with his main limitations being just-OK stamina and lousy free throw shooting. Still, he played a lot of minutes for some strong teams.

David Allums - Allums wasn't an exceptional prospect, but he was very close to campus and proved to be a pretty strong rebounder. Like Cohn, he was never going to put up insane numbers given our press/transition game, but he was a useful starter this season for a team that won 27 games. That counts for something.

RECORDS: 7th in FG% (54.5%)

One more signing to round out the recruiting class!

George Ward (#245 overall, #60 PF) - I generally don't like going after recruits who sign late. As a mid-major, there's plenty of room for a big-time program that's struck out on recruiting to swoop in and snatch a guy (it's happened before, and it stinks). However, I didn't have much of a choice, as I struck out with two bigs I really wanted and needed to go down to my second tier. That included Eugene Thurston, who signed early, and it also included George Ward.

Ward's going to be a pretty strong "stretch 4" for us down the line. I wish he was a better rebounder, and while he's not slow, a little more speed would've been appreciated. However, he's already a decent scorer, and he's going to be a very good shooter, passer, and defender for his position by the time he's done. He'll be a very good frontcourt companion to Thurston, who'll be a great rebounder but not the best scorer. This system doesn't really lend itself to standout bigs, but he'll be an efficient starter down the line (with strong enough "wing" stats to add to his usefulness).

- - - - -

RECRUITING THOUGHTS

I had visions of this being a banner class. I had four top-tier guys I really wanted: Two JuCo big men, and two New England guards. All four of them got snapped up by much bigger schools, so I had to improvise. One of the guards was at "very high" for me before St. John's stormed in, which was pretty annoying, but hey, it's part of the game.

I did so reasonably well, though this won't be the best class I've ever reeled in or anything. Seeley will be a very strong guard in time (he's just a bit raw right now), while Thurston and Ward should develop into good bigs despite their limitations. Emanuel is a question mark. We'll see if his offensive skill and tremendous speed can offset his low defense. If it does, he'll be fine. If it doesn't, he'll be a bench player for four years.

GRADE: B-/B.