Dig Magazine

Issue date: 11/3/09 Section: Sports

Sophomore guard Larry Anderson rises up for a dunk

PG Casper Ware dishes to an open T.J. Robinson

Senior guard Stephan Gilling knocks down a 3

The storm of all storms is fast approaching Cal State Long Beach.

A whirlwind of crashing boards, lightning quick steals, thunderous blocks, earth-splitting dunks and downpours by 3-point snipers are fast approaching. A flood of black and gold clad fans will soon break through the levee-like barricades of the Pyramid and spill into its bleachers. An all-mighty tornado is on its way, touching down on Saturday Nov. 14 at 4:05 p.m., combining joy, anger, sadness, elation, devastation and hopefully a little dancing in to an all encompassing, five-month storm.

But on this day, Oct. 17, the day before official practice begins for CSULB's Men's basketball team, third year coach Dan Monson sits in the eye of the storm. That one patch of calm weather before utter chaos ensues.

With his Nike running shoes still warm from pounding the morning pavement, Monson sits relaxed at his desk in gym shorts and a Long Beach State polo, looking out at center court of the Walter Pyramid.

His demeanor may seem calm and relaxed, but he is antsy on the inside.

"I'm very anxious," says Monson about the beginning of practice. "And also apprehensive. I don't know that we've improved as much as we need to, this was a 15-15 team, and everybody has high expectations for them, and if they don't get any better they're the same team that went .500 last year, minus four seniors."

And his team is anxious too.

After exceeding outside expectations that projected the 49ers to finish 8th in the Big West, but falling short of the league title by a final second buzzer beater, last year's returning players are anxious to get the bad taste that last year's season conclusion left in their mouths.

To improve, Monson has first and foremost preached consistency to his young team. Though he saw spurts of greatness, he also saw sloppy play and both mental and physical fatigue begin to hurt his team down the stretch, one of the pitfalls of starting three true freshmen throughout the season. To combat this, Monson and co. have focused increasingly in the off-season on strength and conditioning, something he hopes will lead to improved play on both sides of the ball.

"We would like our identity this year to be more on the defensive end and rebounding end," says Monson. "Try to be a team that really dictates other people's offense and try to convert from your steals, stops and turnovers. And not put so much emphasis on having to shoot perfect every night."

"And with that being said," he continues. "I think this year we've got to do a better job offensively with our shot selection. I think last year we had a lot of young guys who didn't know what a good shot was and I think the lesson was learned that we need to be more selective and have more of an inside-out approach to our offensive game."

Individually, the 49er's returning players have worked extremely hard in the off-season to build on their strengths and shore-up weaknesses in each of their games.

"The three guys that I am most happy with are Andrew Fleming, Gene Phelps and Greg Plater," says Monson. "Those are three guys that had limited roles last year, and all three have demonstrated in the off-season that they want to increase their roles. They have been very hungry and they've worked very hard in the off-season to have an opportunity to play more and expand their roles and hopefully they will get that opportunity."

7-foot senior center Fleming has bulked up considerably, and will look to find his role as a big man on the team. Plater, a sharp-shooting junior, (who exploded for a game-high 30 points in the team's annual Black and Gold Scrimmage,) has worked on perfecting his outside shot, as well as his movement with the ball and upped his defensive intensity.

Sophomore forward Phelps, who also looked very impressive in the intrasquad scrimmage, is proving to be the most improved on the team.

"Phelps just gets it more now," says Monson. "I think he is more comfortable now in the environment and has really settled down in to a player. He's gotten a lot stronger, he's more confident in what he can do and can't do at this level."

Also added to the mix are freshmen recruits Jules Montgomery and Kyle Richardson, who add length and athleticism to an already deep team. Junior College transfer Tristan Wilson is currently sidelined by a knee injury, but another juco transfer, 6'9" forward Lin Chang, a native of China, is an unknown on the roster.

"Lin Chang is a bit of an x-factor for us," says Monson. "He could give us a big guy that could stretch the defense, he can shoot the ball from the perimeter, and has very good offensive skills, but he needs to adjust both defensively and rebounding to this level."

The three highlighted players, along with LBSU's new recruits will look to find playing time around the four returning starters, senior shooting guard Stephan Gilling, a team captain, and the highly touted sophomore class, each of whom were named to the Big West's All-Freshmen team last year.

Led by the reigning Big West Freshmen of the year and the other co-captain on the team guard Larry Anderson, who has looked to develop a more consistent outside shot, as well as lightning quick point guard Casper Ware and dominating post presence T.J. Robinson who has also worked on improving his shooting outside of the paint, the Beach has a formidable lineup that will run deep.

"They say that the biggest jump players make is between that freshmen and sophomore year and I hope they are right in our case because we have so many of those," says Monson. "Basically, for them too, it's consistency. Those guys showed how great they can be, but they didn't do it every game and every night."

In what has become a Monson-era tradition, this year's Beach basketball team will face the most ambitious pre-season schedule the school has ever assembled. The 49ers' road schedule sounds like a who's-who list of NCAA basketball powerhouses, including trips to pre-season top 25 picks Kentucky, Duke and Texas as well as a first round match up with potential Big East champ West Virginia in the 76 Classic.

"My philosophy is you have got to challenge your guys at the highest level if you're ever going to get to that level," says Monson. "And we are going to see what that level is all about and let them know what kind of work we have to do and then get back in the Big West and work on those things."

That Big West that the Beach will be entering in to at the beginning of January is as wide open and volatile as ever and beyond the rebuilding Cal Poly Mustangs, the eight other teams will be in a season long dog fight for the top prize and a ticket to the big dance.

To get to that point, Monson is stressing fundamentals and leadership.

"Leadership is paramount for us," says Monson. "We have to establish some chemistry and some leadership. We have some parts, but parts don't make a whole, so we have to learn to play as a unit. That's just your job as a coach to make sure they're ready to play, and play together."

With improved returning players, talented newcomers, and a strong nucleus that looks to just keep getting better, Dan Monson's Long Beach State basketball team is certainly on the rise, and with growing community interest, the University could be on to something special this year.

"That's why everyone loves college athletics so much," says Monson. "The unpredictability of it, and how inconsistent people at that age are. And the one area, the way you become consistent is when you have a lot of interest in your program, big crowds and that kind of thing. It really makes the players focus and helps them through games and tough times. 67 percent of all college games are won by the home team, and when you get a home court advantage now you start to really have something special and I think we're starting to do that."

After the interview with Coach Monson concludes, a few harmless raindrops fall from the sky outside of the Pyramid. Nothing major, but clearly the eye of the storm is moving. The storm is almost here.

Get excited.

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