Baylor's basketball program enters Year Two of the Scott Drew Era and the second season of its substantial rebuilding project in 2004-2005, and the road ahead is challenging.
The downside: the Bears return just one scholarship player from last season's 8-21 squad and will likely suit up just six or seven scholarship players in 2004-2005.
The upside: Coach Drew and staff have experience playing with half a roster and still fielding a competitive team - having exceeded all expectations last season by winning three Big 12 games with a squad made up of five to seven scholarship players.
The Bears will suit up nine newcomers in 2004-2005, including two transfers who redshirted last season.
The nine newcomers will join three returnees: scholarship junior Tommy Swanson and walk-ons Turner Phipps and Ryan Pryor. "Tommy will have to be a leader on and off the court for our team this year," Drew said of the third-year big man.
The Bears return just 11.2 percent of last season's scoring and 13.6 percent of their rebounding.
The roster changes from last season are substantial. Gone is Baylor's all-time games-played leader Matt Sayman, the USBL's No. 1 draft pick R.T. Guinn, talented all-district honoree Terrance Thomas, and the scoring of third-team All-Big 12 selection Harvey Thomas.
Drew has responded by adding one of the most talented recruiting classes in school history to the roster. Baylor's incoming recruits, highlighted by freshmen Mamadou Diene and Aaron Bruce, were ranked the nation's 10th-best recruiting class by HoopScoop.
"What we're excited about is that we feel this recruiting class is made up of guys that are all gym rats and hard workers," Drew said. "They'll spend their time in the gym and work to get better. I think you'll see an optimal effort from them every game."
For the second consecutive season Baylor will field a team short on scholarship players and heavy on walk-ons. In addition to playing with a short stick, Drew faces the task of molding his inexperienced squad into a cohesive unit.
"Our guys don't have experience because they haven't been in the Big 12 and they haven't had any experience playing with one another," Drew said, "so we'll have to build chemistry."
Player graduations and departures have depleted the Bears' frontcourt, as a half-dozen forwards are gone from last season's roster. But the Bruins will boast adequate numbers of guards this season and plan to utilize the speed of a smaller lineup.
"We have a lot more perimeter-oriented players this year," Drew said. "That will help with our ball-handling, passing and outside shooting. Last year I think we were a bigger team, a stronger team - this year we will be a little more guard-oriented and a little quicker team."
Baylor's coaches also point out they will have more scoring options on this year's squad and less dependency on certain players.
"I believe on any given night someone else can step up and have a big night where last year you knew pretty much going into every game that the leading scorer would be Terrance Thomas or Harvey Thomas," Drew said.
The 2004-2005 schedule will again feature the grueling Big 12 slate and a mix of regional opponents. Games at the Ferrell Center against Kansas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Texas highlight the home schedule. Fans outside of Waco can see the Bears in Austin, College Station, Dallas (SMU) and Lubbock, as well as at out of state games.
"We are a young team and hope to have a chance to get our feet wet and gain some confidence by playing predominantly in front of our home crowd early in the season," Drew said.
The likely starter at point guard for the Bears is newcomer Roscoe Biggers (5-11, So.), a transfer from Globe Tech in New York. Biggers averaged 10.1 points and 7.8 assists last season as a freshman.
"Roscoe thrives on challenges and tough situations," Drew said. "He has a great feel for the game and knows when and where to pass the ball."
Another option at the point will be freshman Aaron Bruce (6-3, Fr.) from Australia. Bruce has international experience, having played for various Australian national teams, and averaged 21 points and 4.5 assists last season for Horsham College.
"Aaron is a very hard-nosed, aggressive player who grew up playing rugby," Drew said. "He has the flare for the spectacular but at the same time will do anything to help his team win."
The shooting guard position will be manned by either Bruce or JC transfer Kevis Shipman (6-0, Jr.). Shipman is a graduate of Dallas Lincoln High School who played two seasons at Tyler (Texas) Junior College, averaging 18.1 points and shooting 40 percent from 3-point distance last season as a sophomore.
"Kevis is an exceptional shooter and a very hard worker and tough-minded person," Drew said. "He's the kind of player that spends the necessary time in the gym to make sure he gets every ounce of ability out of his body."
Providing depth to the backcourt are walk-on returnees Turner Phipps (6-1, So.) and Ryan Pryor (6-1, Sr.).
Phipps played in 19 games off the bench as a freshman and scored 12 points. Pryor tallied seven points and six assists in 20 games last season, his first at Baylor.
Freshman walk-on Hall Henderson (6-5, Fr.) from Lufkin (Texas) High School is a swingman who may see time at the 3 spot.
Baylor's coaches expect newcomer Patrick Fields (6-5, So.), who they describe as a "jack-of-all-trades," to man the small forward position. Fields averaged 17.6 points and eight rebounds as a freshman at Panola (Texas) College last season. He spent a year as a redshirt at Mississippi in 2002-2003 after helping John Jay High School in San Antonio to the state title in 2002.
"Patrick can play anywhere from the 1 to 4 positions," Drew said. "He can shoot the 3, he can handle the ball, and he can rebound. He does a lot of things well."
Also logging minutes at small forward will be freshmen walk-ons Richard Hurd (6-5, Fr.) and Henderson.
Hurd, an athletic wing from Heritage Christian Academy in Cleveland, Texas, will provide frontcourt depth.
"Richard is working hard to continually improve his skill level," Drew said. "He'll be one of the better athletes on our team."
The possibilities at power forward are varied heading into the 2004-2005 season. A possible eventual starter is Tim Bush (6-6, So.), who sat out but practiced with Baylor during the second half of last season as a redshirt after transferring from LSU.
Bush, who played in 10 games as a reserve for LSU in 2002-2003, will gain his eligibility following the fall semester.
"Tim provides a tough matchup for opponents as he can score inside and outside," Drew said. "He has a good feel for the game. Tim has worked hard to trim down his body and become more athletic."
Other possibilities at the 4 position include veteran Tommy Swanson (6-10, Jr.), freshman Hurd and redshirt Mark Shepherd (6-9, RFr.).
Shepherd, a graduate of St. Michael's Academy in Austin, Texas, redshirted after joining Baylor for the spring semester last year.
"Mark is an athletic frontline player who is not afraid to mix it up," Drew said. "He has worked hard on adding strength to his body and improving his offensive scoring capabilities."
Baylor's lone returning starter, Swanson, will anchor the center position. The third-year player is the only Bear on this year's roster to have started a Division I game. Swanson averaged 6.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and blocked 23 shots in 2003-2004. He also led the squad with 92 personal fouls and fouled out of five contests.
"Tommy has worked hard to improve his body physically and is our lone returning scholarship player," Drew said. "He has worked on improving his outside shot as well as his post moves."
Backup to Swanson at the 5 is a talented but young newcomer Mamadou Diene (7-0, Fr.) from Senegal. The slender African became Coach Drew's first recruit to Baylor when he signed last fall. The coaching staff is excited about his potential.
"Mamadou is a very athletic and gifted player who will take a little time to adapt to the American style game," Drew said. "He provides a shot-blocking presence and is someone who can rebound and clog things up in the middle as well as provide inside scoring."
Shepherd could also provide minutes at center in a backup role.
