JUCO transfers set to make immediate impact
Junior college transfers have been the backbone of recruiting for the majority of head coach Stew Morrill’s tenure at USU.
The ability of junior college players to step in and immediately contribute to Morrill’s Aggie teams has been a crucial aspect of the team’s success year-in and year-out.
This year is no different as the team must replace last season’s starting backcourt of Kris Clark and Jaycee Carroll.
Clark finished the 2007-2008 season with a USU single-season record for assists, while Carroll finished his career as the school’s all-time leading scorer. The graduation of that backcourt duo leaves a lot of expectations for this year’s group of junior college transfers in Jared Quayle, Stavon Williams, Richard Sirju and Clint Lee.
“We want production from all those guys,” assistant coach Tim Duryea said. “Coach Morrill tells them this from day one. We’re going to be on them, we’re going to push them hard, we’re going to coach them hard because we count on our junior college guys to help us right away.”
Jared Quayle
Quayle enters USU following his sophomore season at Western Wyoming Community College, where he scored 24.4 points per game to rank fifth in the nation in that category.
On top of the elite scoring numbers, he averaged 7.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.4 steals per game while shooting over 50 percent from both the field and from behind the 3-point line en route to being named second-team all-America by the National Junior College Athletic Association last season.
Quayle, having played the shooting guard position for his basketball career, is faced with the challenge of learning a new system as well as the point guard position, both of which are unfamiliar to him.
“We’re asking a lot of him because he’s playing a new position that he really hasn’t played before,” Duryea said. “He’s a smart kid, and he’s tough, and he’s competitive and we have a lot of confidence in him.”
Duryea also praised Quayle’s ability to score the basketball in a variety of ways, whether it be from behind the 3-point line, pulling up from mid-range or finishing around the rim.
When asked what he felt his would be the biggest asset he’d bring to the team this year, Quayle’s answer was his rebounding. Duryea echoed that feeling.
“He’s one of the best rebounding guards you’ll ever see,” Duryea said. “He has phenomenal instincts. He’s kind of like Jaycee Carroll in that respect. He can really go rebound the ball, and he wants to rebound.”
The number of defensive rebounds Quayle pulls down this season could have an effect on the offense as well when they offense runs the fast break, Duryea said.
“The best fast break is when your point guard rebounds because you don’t have to outlet the ball. We want him to get all the defensive rebounds he can.”
Duryea said Quayle’s instincts are likely to help him on the defensive side of the ball as well.
“Defensively he’s got good instincts,” Duryea said. “He’s a very good help defender. He sees the ball and is not afraid to get into the play and he does a great job of helping his teammates.”
Stavon Williams
Williams comes to USU praised as being a good scorer everywhere he’s been in his basketball career.
Last season at San Jacinto Junior College in Texas, Williams averaged 15.4 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 49.4 percent from the field.
“Stavon was the leading scorer for his team,” Duryea said. “He was one of the best guards in the Eastern Conference of the Texas junior college league, and they were very guard-strong. It was a very good year for guards in that league, and most people thought Stavon was the best.”
Williams will battle for minutes at the shooting guard position, where playing time could largely be determined by who will be the most capable scorers in that spot.
“That position in our offense has always been counted on to score a lot of points,” Duryea said.
Defensively Williams said he feels pretty good, but needs to get a little stronger, as is the case with several other newcomers in making the transition to Division-I basketball.
“He played in a very good junior college program that required them to play defense,” Duryea said. “He’s been asked to guard people before and he’s just got to raise it another, and so far so good.”
Richard Sirju
Sirju will be in competition with Williams for minutes at the shooting guard position.
He comes to USU following a sophomore season where he averaged 19.5 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game at Daytona Beach Community College. Sirju shot 39.4 percent from the field and 39.8 percent from behind the three-point line. He will be looked at to provide a consistent outside threat for the offense.
“He’s a guy that can make guarded shots,” Duryea said. “You have to kind of get used to that when you’re coaching him, that a lot of times he looks like he’s guarded, but he just has that knack to make semi-guarded shots.”
Sirju also is praised as a very good passer and post-feeder, two qualities that Duryea said are likely to be very beneficial with USU having two all-conference performers down low in Gary Wilkinson and Tai Wesley.
Duryea said the biggest thing for Sirju to adjust to will be the defensive side of the ball.
“He hasn’t been required to guard and defend like we require our players to do,” Duryea said. “In junior college he scored 20 points a game for his team, and so a lot of times he just rested defensively to stay out of foul trouble so he could play minutes and score at the other end. We don’t believe in that here, and you can’t do that at this level.”
Clint Lee
Lee, a former first-team all-state selection at Sky View high school in Smithfield, said he looks to bring plenty of defense and rebounding to this year’s Aggies.
Those two attributes were the aspects of Lee’s game that have stood out the most so far, Duryea said.
“Defensively he’s ahead of where he is offensively,” Duryea said. “He needs to improve his shooting, he needs to improve his passing, but he is a very good defender and rebounder for his size.”
The 6-foot-5-inch forward will battle for minutes at the small forward position this season.
“Clint is kind of in between a small forward and a power forward skills-wise,” Duryea said. “He’s learning to be a perimeter player.”
Duryea also praised Lee as a great teammate with a great attitude and work ethic.
–matt.sonn@aggiemail.usu.edu