Sorry about the lack of TMIPFUSF posts as the Rutgers game had my full and complete focus last week. So we will have a couple of double posts this week until Thursday and Friday, when we will finish up with Numbers 2 and 1 before the season opener against Southern Miss. Last time we left you, Toarlyn Fitzpatrick dropped from 5th last season to 9th this year due to Ron Anderson jumping Fitzy in the post rotation.
So let's get to it. The 8th and Most Important Player for USF Basketball this season is Shedrick Haynes! The Sarasota native comes to USF via Lackawanna Junior College, where he led the Falcons to an impressive 20-9 record. He averaged 18.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.2 steals a game last year. Haynes also made 42% of his three pointers last year, which will always get me excited after the way we shot it last season. For his hard work, Shedrick was named to the Region XIX Division II All Region 1st team.
Haynes is battling Anthony Crater at point guard, and with his offensive arsenal, let's hope he can earn his way onto the court this season.
Onto the second entry today. The 7th Most Important Player for USF Basketball this season is Hugh Robertson! The 2nd ranked JUCO SG/SF in the country last season, the 6'6 wing from Tallahassee Community College was a leader for the FCCAA runners up, who finished with a 25-6 record. Hugh ended up on the All-Tournament team for making it to the finals, and for the season averaged 11.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists for the Eagles. Like Haynes, Robertson did well shooting from behind the arc, hitting over 38 percent of his attempts.
Coach Heath has said that Robertson and Jawanza Poland are competing for the 3 guard position, but right now I think Poland has a huge edge on Robertson.
Heath called out Robertson, Haynes, and Crater after the Eckerd win due to their lack of work ethic during practice. Both Crater and Robertson were held out of the first half, and Haynes was held out of the game all together. With the graduation of Chris Howard, Mike Mercer, and Dominique Jones, I thought Crater would step up and show the incoming guards what it took to be a part of a Big East caliber program. It might have been just a bit of motivation from Heath in an exhibition, but with the lack of cohesion the backcourt has, I'm a lot more nervous about the season now then I was two weeks ago.
So who do you think will be the 5th or 6th ranked player on the countdown? Your answers are below