USD Basketball Preview: Dee Leads Toreros Against SDSU (The Other One)
By Josh Horton
March 8, 2013; Las Vegas, NV, USA; San Diego Toreros guard Christopher Anderson (00) and guard Johnny Dee (1) celebrate against the Brigham Young Cougars during the second half in the quarterfinals of the West Coast Conference tournament at Orleans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Game Time: 7:00 PM PST
Radio and TV can be found at USDToreros.com
Projected Starting Lineups – SCU –Anderson, Dee, Bailey, Kramer, Kok – SDSU – Jake Bittle, Brayden Carlson, Chad White, Jordan Dykstra, Jordan Heemstra
San Diego has had a lot of hype going into this season, and Torero’s will be on a quest to prove their supporters right. In the USD Classic – a tournament hosted by the University of San Diego – the Torero’s will square off with a formidable foe, who we will take a closer look at below.
Closer Look at South Dakota State
Conference: Summit
Head Coach: Scott Nagy
Record Last Season: 25-10 (NCAA Tournament First Round)
Returning Leading Scorer: Jordan Dykstra (12.5 PPG)
Returning Leading Rebounder: Jordan Dykstra (7.9 RPG)
Returning Leading Assister: Brayden Carlson (2.5 APG)
The Nate Wolters era is over, but this South Dakota State team is no slouch. Jordan Dykstra will be the Jackrabbits leader this season, and will likely be their leading scorer and rebounder. Without a true point guard, Brayden Carlson will be huge distributor this season. Coach Scott Nagy did not use his bench a lot last season, and that is not destined to change this season.
Keys to the Game
Who Steps Up on the Wing
This could be the difference between starting the season with a W or an L in the win-loss column for the Toreros. Mike Davis’s hand injury will diminish the Torero’s overall depth on the wing to start the season, and head coach Bill Grier has relied heavily on freshman Brett Bailey and sophomore Duda Sandaze to fill his role. These two players do not have a lot of experience, and will need to be locked in or they will struggle against the Jack Rabbits very tall backcourt – SDSU has three guards 6’4” or taller in the starting lineup.
Jito Kok the Rim Protector
With Jordan Dykstra being a prominent force down low, the Toreros will rely heavily on forward Jito Kok to protect the rim and either block his shots or alter them. Kok has shown this ability in the past (1.6 Blocks Per Game last season) and will need to build on that skill to help the Torero’s down low.
Christopher Anderson and Johnny Dee
This is the obvious one. If San Diego’s backcourt does not produce, its chances of winning are slim. Plain and simple.