Rhoades pushes freshmen hard to get up to speed
Rice men’s basketball coach Mike Rhoades always notices the first players to leave the practice court.
He also can name who is usually last: Max Guercy, Marcus Jackson and Egor Koulechov.
That’s likely why the senior, junior and redshirt sophomore transfer, respectively, were the only three definite starters for Rhoades this preseason.
The other players — including six freshmen — were challenging each other in practice for the remaining spots.
Those six freshmen — Harrison Brown, Amir Smith, Marcus Evans, Connor Cashaw, Chad Lott and Marquez Letcher-Ellis — will see significant playing time this season, especially since Rhoades held one scholarship that he won’t fill in order to help class numbers down the road.
Devil in the details
During preseason, those freshmen probably wondered how they got on Rhoades’ bad side as he pushed them hard to improve.
“It’s tough to come in and have a guy scream and yell at you for the small details like being one inch over to the left,” Jackson said. “They’ve been willing to learn, which is the biggest part.”
Attention to detail is what Rhoades wanted his team to focus on in the final two weeks of the preseason, leading up to Friday’s season opener at No. 14 California.
“We need to continue to move forward as a team,” Rhoades said. “We keep talking to them about what goes into playing … extra shots, extra lifts. Do all the little details, and things add up as the year goes on.”
There’s a lot of talent and athleticism in Rice’s youth, but Koulechov, junior center Andrew Drone and sophomore guard Bishop Mency have really stood out to Rhoades.
Green light for transfer
Koulechov is a transfer from Arizona State who sat out last season.
“He finds different ways to score the basketball,” Rhoades said. “He’ll shoot the most 3s on our team this year. He has the neon green light. If he sees daylight, he knows to let it fly.”
Rhoades is looking for leadership from Koulechov and Drone.
“He’s taken a huge step this offseason,” Rhoades said of Drone. “He’s in the best shape of his life. He’s moving well. He’s getting on his feet. He’s had great
practices for us.”
There’s a good chance Drone will be the man in the middle for the Owls. As for Mency, he’s fighting for playing time as one of four freshmen guards.
“We are going to throw them in the fire from day one,” Rhoades said.
Evans and Letcher-Ellis likely will switch between roles on the court. Evans can play point and shooting guard and even fill in at small forward. Lott and Cashaw also can play those three spots.
Letcher-Ellis can play anywhere along the front line.
Aggressive play
“Marcus Evans is best at the point,” Rhoades said. “Lott is best at the combo. Connor is probably best at the wing but has a high basketball IQ and can really handle the basketball.”
Rhoades liked the more aggressive style he saw from his team toward the end of its 12-20 season.
For the 2015-16 season, the Owls will fly across the court as if doing a choreographed dance crafted by their leader. Rhoades doesn’t want his players looking too far ahead. He wants them to focus solely on the two halves in front of them.
“For 40 minutes, if you lock in and follow the plan and play aggressive and go after people, you give yourself a chance,” he said.