Bennett’s third season tips off
PULLMAN – The building isn’t done yet, Dick Bennett admits. But the bricks, it appears, are at least in place.
Washington State University took the floor Friday night for the first basketball practice of the season, ready for year No. 3 of Bennett ball, one it hopes will be another step on the way back to postseason play.
“We have our work cut out for us, but it’s not unexpected,” Bennett said. “I’ve always felt it’s a three-year job to get a program turned and this is the third year.”
“These are the guys. These are the ones that will have to be the nucleus for, really, the next three years.”
Just one player, Randy Green, remains from the Paul Graham era as Bennett has six more newcomers this season after welcoming six others last year. Green is also the lone senior on a team dominated by sophomores and junior college transfers. That means players such as second-year point guard Derrick Low will have to shoulder more responsibility than might be expected elsewhere.
“It makes a lot more sense,” Low said of having a year under his belt. “It makes it a little easier because we know what to expect in practice.”
The Cougars have been able to work with coaches in the gym for a couple of hours a week since classes started, but that didn’t stop WSU from treating Friday night like a new beginning.
“Everybody’s happy conditioning is over,” laughed forward Ivory Clark, one of this season’s new transfers. “We’re real comfortable. We believe in Coach and we’re going to buy into his philosophy and his system. It’s the beginning so everybody hasn’t quite grasped it yet. But everybody believes in it, so we’re going to accept it soon.”
Even though this year’s team is younger than last year’s, Bennett said he’s looking for more offense from more people this time around.
“I hope we’ll see a little better offensive team where we’re not relying on trying to get Thomas Kelati open,” Bennett said. “Thomas carried us offensively and we need to get a much more balanced attack going. Hopefully you will see that.”
Some of that offense was expected to come from Rodney Edgerson, another JC import. But Edgerson hasn’t worked with the team yet because of a back injury that has been diagnosed as a stress fracture of the lower spine. The swingman is expected to spend the next six weeks in a back brace before being re-evaluated.
Sophomore center Chris Henry is also out because of a lower back injury, and there is no timetable on his return, either.
“I’m real concerned because I anticipated a major role for Rodney,” Bennett said. “We brought him in essentially to fill an important role. And we thought Chris would be legitimately in the role for a starting spot. Both were possible starters and we won’t have them for an undetermined amount of time.”