USD HOOPS CREATING CHEMISTRY

The USD men’s basketball team was in the final minute of an intersquad scrimmage in front of a smattering of fans at Jenny Craig Pavilion when there was a quick turnover and fastbreak opportunity for the team in light blue jerseys.

Seeing that the squad in dark blue did not sprint back on defense, coach Steve Lavin blew his whistle and loudly demanded that players line up for a set of wind sprints.

“That’s NOT happening!” Lavin declared before blowing his whistle to signal for the running to commence.

It was one of only a few occasions that Lavin raised his voice above the conversational/teaching tone he mostly used during a four quarter scrimmage in which assistants Tyus Edney and John Moore coached the split squads.

For a team integrating 12 newcomers with returnees like Jace Townsend, Marcellus Earlington, Wayne Mckinney III and Yavuz Gultekin, the scrimmage was about mixing and matching lineups, adjusting to calls and interpretations made by three officials and continuing to build chemistry ahead of the Nov. 7 opener against Sonoma State at Jenny Craig.

Lavin, who compiled a record of 226-133 during previous head coaching stints at UCLA and St. John’s and brought teams to eight NCAA Tournaments, is intrigued by what he’s seeing.

“I like the depth, I like the experience, the balance, the size, strength and quickness,” Lavin said. “We’ve got an interior attack. We can also light it up from the 3point line. We can play at pace. We’ve got ball handlers, shot makers and playmakers. So, it’s really about cohesion. Learning to play together. That will determine what kind of season we have.”

A starting lineup will likely come out of a group that includes Townsend, Earlington, Mckinney and Jaiden Delaire, a transfer from Stanford; Eric Williams Jr., a transfer from Oregon; Nic Lynch, a transfer from Lehigh; Sigu Sisoho Jawara, a transfer from Weber State and freshman Jeremiah Nyarko, who played at Sierra Canyon High in Chatsworth.

Townsend flashed shooting touch, knocking down several 3-pointers. Delaire’s 6-foot-9 wiry strong frame is buttressed by quick feet and scoring ability around the basket, traits he shares with Jawara and Nyarko.

Lynch is a rugged 6-11, 260-pounder who can score in the low post with a jump hook but also pop out and stroke a 3-pointer (he made 45.9 percent of them at Lehigh last season).

For a team picked to finish eighth out of 10 teams in the WCC preseason poll — ahead of only Loyola Marymount and Pacific and also unrepresented on the preseason all-wcc team — the Toreros seem to have a nice mix of quickness, size, length and experience.

“We can play small, we can play big, fast, whatever,” said Mckinney, a sophomore from Coronado. “We have length to play zone, quickness and a size to play man. This is a deep, versatile team. I think we’re going to surprise some people.”

“I’m pleased with where this team is considering how new we are,” Lavin said. “I’d love to have another month of practice, but instead we’re going to have to grow as we play games.”