Drovers Hope Large Recruiting Class Will Lead to 
National Tourney Berth

After trying a bit hard for instant success last season, USAO men’s basketball coach Brisco McPherson has embarked on the task of developing his team for the future. To that end, McPherson signed one of his largest recruiting classes including just one senior and five freshmen.

“Our national championship team was made up of guys who had played at least two years here,” McPherson said. “Hopefully, we can keep some of these new players in the system longer, and that will help lead us to another national championship.”

With about half the squad made up of freshmen and sophomores, McPherson hopes his young team will accelerate their learning process especially during the highly competitive Sooner Athletic Conference season.

“ We are a young team, and most of these new guys don’t know how tough our conference is,” McPherson said. “It will be a learning process; hopefully, not a long one.”

The Drovers return four players, including two starters, from last season’s squad. In 2003-04, USAO posted a disappointing 11-16 overall record and 6-12 in the SAC. But, the Drovers extended their season with two wins over Northwestern, in an SAC tournament play-in game, and blew past No. 1-seed Lubbock Christian in the SAC quarterfinals.

The Drovers’ season came to an end with a 76-64 loss to Wayland Baptist in the SAC semi-finals. USAO also ended its run of three consecutive appearances in the NAIA national tournament in Kansas City, Mo.

The first of USAO’s two wins over Northwestern gave McPherson his 200^th career victory. He now boasts a 202-170 record in 13 seasons at USAO.

As the 2004-05 season begins, the Drovers will rely on returning starters Wayne Gibson and Keith Miller to lead their young team.

“I think Wayne needs to be the leader of this team,” McPherson said. “He is an honorable mention All-American and a hard-nosed competitor. We’re expecting big things from him.”

Gibson, a 6-foot-5 senior forward from Fort Washington, Md., was the only Drover to start all 27 games last season and led the team in most offensive categories. He averaged 17.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, while dishing out 2.5 assists and grabbing 1.3 steals.

A 5-10 senior guard from Tulsa, Miller led the team in both assists and steals and finished fifth in scoring and sixth in rebounding. He averaged 7.5 points, 2.9 rebounds, three assists and 1.5 steals per contest.

“Keith competes hard day-in and day-out,” McPherson said. “He may make a few mistakes, but he’s competing hard all the time. I think he and Wayne know what it takes to be competitive in this league, and what we expect of them.”

Also returning for USAO is junior Nate Foster. A 6-1 guard, Foster was second on the team with 35.7 percent from 3-point range and averaged 5.4 points per game. McPherson said Foster is “coming along” in his transition to the college game, but “still has a way to go on defense. But, he understands his role and is a good player for us.”

To complement Gibson, Miller and Foster, McPherson signed 11 new players in the off-season. Only five of the 11 are upperclassmen, including one senior. Highlighting this year’s class are Tony Jimmerson, Fleans Dervishi, Avery Stevenson, Wayne Walls, Kevin Thames and Kareem Ligons.

Jimmerson, a 6-7 senior forward from Buena Park, Calif. He transferred from New Mexico Highlands University. At John F. Kennedy High School, Jimmerson was a two-time All-American and most valuable player.

“We need a huge effort from Tony this season,” McPherson said. “We hope he will be able to help us establish a presence in the paint. We need someone in there who can score and rebound.”

A 6-3 sophomore guard from Oklahoma City, Stevenson transferred to USAO after a season at Redlands Community College, where he helped lead his team to NJCAA national finals and a No. 2 ranking.

Walls, a 6-5 junior guard from Landover, Md., comes from Gloucester County College and Parkdale High School. Walls scores and defends well, but needs to get better at rebounding, McPherson said.

Thames is a highly-touted freshman from Western Heights High School in Oklahoma City. The 5-9 guard averaged 15 points, 8.4 assists, 5.1 steals and 2.7 rebounds in his senior season.

Dervishi, a 6-4 junior guard from Astoria Queens, N.Y., is a talented offensive player, who needs a bit of work on defense, McPherson said. Ligons, a 6-3 freshman guard from Chickasha High School, has the makings of a good college player but needs get more used to the speed of the game, the coach said.

Other new players include freshman Kawitton Benoit, a 6-6 forward from Lafayette, La.; freshman Tyree Hankerson, a 6-5 forward from Philadelphia; junior Romeil Perkins, a 6-0 guard from Fort Smith, Ark.; junior Je’van Sayles, a 6-8 forward from Philadelphia; and, freshman Adam Shoffit, a 6-3 guard from Duncan.