FAIRMONT — Replacing a second-team All-America selection and the nation’s second-leading scorer will certainly be a tall order this winter for Fairmont State’s men’s basketball team.
However, the loss of Thad McFadden, who led FSU in scoring (25.4), 3-point field goals (106), assists (3.9) and steals (2.0) and was second on the team in rebounding (5.4) last season, will be lessened some by the fact that the Falcons return eight players, many of whom got a wealth of quality minutes last year on the floor as the Falcons finished 20-9 overall and 12-8 in the West Virginia Conference.
On Tuesday the WVC released its annual preseason coaches’ poll and FSU was tabbed to finish sixth in the 16-team league. That’s exactly the same spot Fairmont finished in during the 2008-09 campaign.
“Any coach will tell you preseason polls don’t mean a heck of a lot so it is what it is,” said sixth-year FSU head coach Tim Murphy. “After looking at the poll that’s about where I thought they’d put us and that’s about the way I figured the entire poll would turn out.
“All of the first-team all-conference selections from last year are gone this season, but everyone knows who everyone else had recruited and who they have coming in so I’d say it’s a pretty realistic poll.”
Defending regular-season champion West Virginia State (24-6, 19-1), despite losing four starters, was picked to repeat as the title holder again this year. The Yellow Jackets return senior guard Darren Jones, but have added three Division I transfers and a pair of junior college transfers.
West Liberty University (23-7, 16-4) was picked second in the poll and was followed by Alderson-Broaddus (27-6, 17-3), Pitt-Johnstown (24-8, 15-5) and the University of Charleston (13-15, 8-12).
FSU leads the second five and is followed by Wheeling Jesuit (14-16, 10-10), West Virginia Wesleyan (10-18, 10-10), Concord (10-18, 8-12) and Seton Hill (10-18, 7-13).
Rounding out the poll in the 11-to-15 spots are Shepherd (13-16, 11-9), Davis & Elkins (7-21, 5-15), Glenville State (20-9, 13-7), Bluefield State (3-25, 3-17) and Ohio Valley (5-23, 3-17).
Salem International is not eligible for the 2009-10 men’s basketball championship due to NCAA sanctions.
The Falcons, who open the season Nov. 15-16 in their own annual Tip-Off Classic at the Joe Retton Arena with Maryland Bible, Urbana and Glenville State, have practiced 16 times thus far and have held one scrimmage.
“To be honest I’ve been particularly pleased with our effort and the fact that our guys have been practicing hard,” said Murphy. “We’re still kind of feeling our way through it, though. We have guys competing and challenging one another for starting jobs and in my opinion that’s a good situation for us.
“We’ve really tried to put an emphasis on playing better defense this season and we want to become a better rebounding team. We’ll find ways to score points. We always have. We knew, though, that we had to get better defensively to win and we’ve put a big emphasis on that during the preseason.”
FSU welcomes back senior forwards Dan Bruner (11.4 ppg) and Pete O’Connor (2.6) as well as junior guards Michael Lopez (9.0) and Ryland Newman (2.9). The Falcons also have a bevy of talented sophomores returning in Steve Custis (10.3), Chris Thompson (5.8), Will Richardson (4.8) and Andrew Gunnoe (2.1).
Besides those eight, FSU also returns redshirt freshman guard Ben Wise. Newcomers on the team include junior college transfers Erving McFadden, a 5-9, 160-pound junior guard who is the younger brother of Thad McFadden, Terrence Green, a 6-3, 180-pound junior guard/forward, Michael Henderson, a 6-6, 195-pound junior forward and Chris Talley, a 6-1, 195-pound junior guard.
The Falcons also have talented true freshman guard Isaac Thornton, a 6-3, 185-pounder from Martinsburg High School who is expected to play early and often.
“We feel like we’re going to be quicker and more athletic than we’ve been in the past,” said Murphy. “We’re not real big, but all of the kids we brought in are more athletic than guys we’ve had here in the past.”
Duane Cochrane
FSU men picked sixth in WVC poll
- Duane Cochrane
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Falling short: SLIDESHOW
For Fairmont State’s men’s basketball team, the story this season has been an all-too familiar one.
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Lady Falcons top State, extend streak: SLIDESHOW
Kaitlin Snyder and Hailey Garrett combined for 43 points to help lead Fairmont State’s Lady Falcons to their third consecutive victory, 87-78, here Monday evening over visiting West Virginia State at the Joe Retton Arena.
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Lady Falcons halt UPJ’s winning ways: PHOTOS
One of the hottest teams in the West Virginia Conference paid a visit to the Joe Retton Arena on Wednesday evening and received a rude welcoming from Fairmont State’s Lady Falcons.
Pitt-Johnstown, winners of three in a row and eight of its last 10, got thoroughly dominated for 32 of the game’s 40 minutes as FSU halted the Lady Mountain Cats’ winning ways with an 88-66 victory. -
UPJ wins thriller over Falcons, 92-87
It was an electric atmosphere here Wednesday evening at the Joe Retton Arena.
Unfortunately, Fairmont State University’s men’s basketball team ran out of juice in the waning minutes and fell, 92-87, to visiting Pitt-Johnstown. -
Glenville completes season sweep of Falcons
Glenville State can make a living playing Fairmont State this season in men’s basketball.
That’s because half of the lowly Pioneers’ four victories this season have come at the expense of the Falcons.
Thursday evening here at the Jesse R. Lilly Gymnasium, Glenville State completed the regular-season sweep of Fairmont State, rolling to an impressive 80-59 victory over the floundering Falcons. -
Streaking Lady Pioneers hold off late FSU rally
Glenville State, the second-place team in the West Virginia Conference, shook off a horrid shooting performance in the first half, caught fire from the field in the final 20 minutes and rolled to a 92-78 victory over visiting Fairmont State here Thursday evening at the Jesse R. Lilly Gymnasium.
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Garrett, Lohr lead Lady Falcons past A-B: PHOTOS
Fairmont State possesses two of the more talented true freshmen in the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference this season in Hailey Garrett and Emily Lohr.
Saturday afternoon at the Joe Retton Arena that duo combined for 36 points and nine rebounds to help lead FSU to 66-56 victory over visiting Alderson-Broaddus. -
Battlers top Fairmont State for 13th straight win
Despite heroic efforts from its dynamic duo of Steve Custis and Isaac Thornton, Fairmont State University’s men’s basketball team couldn’t derail red-hot Alderson-Broaddus here Saturday afternoon at the Joe Retton Arena.
The streaking Battlers posted an 81-70 victory over the Falcons for their 13th straight win. -
FSU gets much-needed win over Rams
Chris Thompson was perfect.
Steve Custis and Isaac Thornton were their usual selfs and Mike Hurd stepped up big time off the bench.
As a result, Fairmont State University’s men’s basketball team snapped a two-game losing streak and got a much-needed, 80-66, victory over visiting Shepherd University Wednesday evening here at the Joe Retton Arena. -
Lady Pioneers hold off late FSU rally: PHOTOS
Glenville State senior guard Beth Deren buried a trio of 3-point field goals in a span of less than a minute late in the second half to help the Lady Pioneers hold off a fierce Fairmont State rally and record an 88-80 victory here Saturday afternoon at the Joe Retton Arena.
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