Men's basketball big men face tall task in 2017-18 season
Redshirt Freshman center Innocent Nwoko blocks during the Maroon and Gold Scrimmage on Oct. 19 at McGuirk Arena.
A change of pace is underway for the Central Michigan men's basketball team.
After losing 51.2 points per game from Marcus Keene and Braylon Rayson, CMU looks fill the void in the 2017-18 season.
“Offensively, I think we will have the best shooting team,” head coach Keno Davis said. “We want to be more balanced than we were last year. We need to make sure we have more of an inside presence.”
Cecil Williams, Luke Meyer and David DiLeo are a few big men who could make a difference on the court for the Chippewas this year.
Williams registered eight points, a team-high six rebounds and less than one assists per game last season. The 6-foot-6, 215-pound forward will take on more of a leadership role this season, along with captain Josh Kozinski.
“I’m really going to embrace this leadership role,” Williams said. “Josh is more of the vocal one and I lead with my actions by bringing the energy and showing everyone how it’s supposed to be done.”
Davis expects Williams to be an all-around player in order to have a chance to play at the professional level.
“I think Cecil understands he gets a chance to be in the spotlight with the losses of Keene and Rayson,” Davis said. “We expect him to be a scorer for us, but just as much a defender and rebounder. He understands he has to be a complete player.”
Along with Kozinki and Williams, Meyer is the team’s third and final returning starter.
Last season, Meyer averaged 5.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game for the Chippewas.
“He can shoot the three when he’s open, he’s able to score inside, and defensively he’s a presence to block shots, defend the rim, and rebound,” Davis said.
Senior forward Luke Meyer poses for a portrait on Oct. 19 at McGuirk Arena.
The senior forward expects the offense to be just as high-powered and fast-paced as it was last year.
The Chippewas averaged 88.3 points per game in the 2016-17 season, good for third in the nation. Only UCLA and The Citadel averaged more points per game than CMU.
“We will spread the ball out a little more than last year,” Meyer said. “Everyone’s going to get a lot of shots. I don’t expect it to be any less exciting than it was last year."
Sophomore forward DiLeo came off the bench last season. He averaged 8.5 points and five rebounds per game as the sixth-man for the Chippewas.
This season, DiLeo is rumored to be in the starting lineup. However, the starters have not been announced.
"We have six or seven guys of our 11 that are competing for those starting spots," Davis said.
Redshirt freshman center Innocent Nwoko will get his first in-game action for CMU this season.
“I’ve been getting better each day and each week,” Nwoko said. “I’m always working on something. If I get the opportunity to come off the bench, I need to play hard as much as I can.”
The native of Logos, Nigeria will back up Meyer at the center position.
“I’ve been watching Luke,” Nwoko said. “He’s been showing me some stuff I need to do. That’s helped me a lot.”
The presence of Meyer and Nwoko inside will help the Chippewas in a variety of ways using Meyer as an offensive center and Nwoko as a defensive presence off the bench.
“Teams aren’t going to be able to drive and finish at the rim with (Nwoko) and Meyer protecting it this year,” Davis said. “It allows us to not have to over utilize Meyer with minutes.”
DaRohn Scott is ineligible and will not be participating at the start of the season. His timetable to return is unknown.
