The Starters:
James Ferrell (#11)
Guard
6 foot 2 175 pounds
senior
Winter Park,Fla.
Winter Park High School
Played in 27 games and may have been the Tars most improved player last season. Played 11.5 minutes a night. He averaged 2.7 points- 1.1 assists- and- 1.0 rebound per night. Shot 44 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line. Had a career high nine points against Palm Beach Atlantic on January 22nd. Hit his only 3-point attempt and made all six free throws he tried.
Coach Tom Klusman has always been very complimentary of the former Winter Park star:
"James just knows how to play the game and play it the right way." Klusman said to RollinsSports.TV
Pete's take: Ferrell will be the floor general for this team. He has paid his dues. Probably has the best basketball IQ on the team.
Deion Clark (#1)
Guard
6 foot 3 200 pounds
junior
Naples,Fla.
Barron Collier High School
Played 3.5 minutes a game. Averaged 0.8 points and 0.6 rebounds for Old Dominion last year. Fits well into the Rollins rotation.
Mike Bedulskis gave some insight into Clark's game:
"Deion made a smooth transition to our team and may be one of our better players. He is a really patient, crafty guard with a smooth jumper."
Klusman gave Clark about the highest praise you can get:
"Deion is a great guy who knows how to play the game. He is one of the best players I have ever coached in all of the years I have been doing this."
Pete's take: Welcome addition to this Tars team and starting five.
Mike Bedulskis (#14)
Center
6 foot 9 220 pounds
junior
Vilnius,Lithuania
Phelps High School (Philly)
Bedulskis had a solid season a year ago. Is a transfer from UNC Asheville. Can use both hands around the basket. Is a very good offensive post player. Defensively will look to improve from last season after having a year to learn the principles of the Tars zone.
Beduslkis spoke to me about the time and effort he put into improving his game in the off-season.
"The three things I really wanted to work on were my overall conditioning and strength, shot selection, and passing.I just really wanted to be an overall better team player and develop a greater feel for the game," Bedulskis said.
Pete's take: Bedulskis will need to rebound well and have some big nights on both ends of the court. Will play heavy minutes much of the season which is one of the big reasons why he was so focused on improving his conditioning this off season.
Sharif Almulla (#0)
Guard/Forward
6 foot 3 175 pounds
senior
Orlando,Fla.
Timber Creek High School
One of the Tars premier shooters. Almulla has been slowed by injuries each of the last two seasons. He played in 17 games in the 2013-14 season. Averaged 2.6 points a night. Had a career high 12 points against Eckerd on February 8th. Returned for the SSC tournament and scored three points in the loss to Nova Southeastern.
Coach Klusman had positive things to tell RollinsSports.TV about Almulla:
Sharif gave us a spark in many games last season and I expect more of the same and he will play well this year,"Klusman said.
Pete's take: A Spark for the Tars when healthy last season. One of the better shooters on the squad. Will have to shoot the ball well for this team to be successful.
Jeff Merton (#44)
Forward
6 foot 5 215 pounds
sophomore
Naples,Fla.
Community School Of Naples
Merton made a strong case for SSC freshman of the year last season. He got better as the season went along. The sky is the limit for this extremely talented sophomore.
Klusman commented on Merton's freshman campaign:
"Jeff is a guy who got better game after game last year. We threw him in there right away as a freshman. We are expecting a big year out of him this season."
Pete's take: The fact that he started as a freshman tells you all you need to know about Merton. Has immense talent and could be one of the best ever in the history of the program when all is said and done.
The Bench:
Kyle Koszuta (#10)
Guard
6 foot 2 190 pounds
senior
Niceville,Fla.
Niceville High School
Another of the Tars many long distance threats. Battled injury for much of last season but bounced back nicely. Originally played at Louisiana Monroe before coming to Rollins.
Klusman commented on Koszuta:
"Kyle is a guy who only knows one speed and plays full speed all the time."
Pete's take: When his feet are set, he can really knock down the 3-ball. Also very good at getting in passing lanes on the defensive end.
Joey Galvis (#32)
Guard
6 foot 1 165 pounds
junior
Tampa,Fla.
Tampa Jesuit High School
Galvin got better as the season went on last year. He saw some minutes in conference action. He has made great strides since last season, Bedulskis says:
"I think Joey has made great strides since last season, and will help our team a lot this year. He is a lot more confident than he was last season." Beduslkis said.
Pete's take: Much improved from last season. Has a knack for getting in passing lanes at the right time. Also a solid shooter.
Daniel Loh (#22)
Center
6 foot 8 220 pounds
redshirt freshman
Oviedo,Fla.
Oviedo High School
Came aboard the Tars program last season. Did not begin practicing with the team until January.
Bedulskis commented on facing Loh in practice:
"Dan is a great teammate and guy to play against during practice.
"He makes me very hard at the defensive end especially in practice. We battle every day in practice and this makes us better."
He added this about Loh's game:
"Dan is a really talented big who competes in every practice and can do a lot of things on the court. Will be very helpful to us this year."
Pete's take: His shooting ability, size and active hands should really help this team.
Sam Philpott (#31)
Forward/Center
6 foot 7 200 pounds
redshirt sophomore
Noblesville,Indiana
Noblesville High School
Had a solid season last year after redshirting the year before. Very good rebounder and a good shooter when he gets a little bit of space.
"Sam is also a great teammate and guy who works real hard in practice. Sam is quick,active and can shoot the ball from three."Bedulskis said.
He added this as well:
"Sam is also stronger than he was last season and one of the more seasoned players on our team now."
Pete's take:Philpott will see his role expand from last season. He will play more minutes on this team, as he now has more experience. Will slide over to the center position a lot more than last season.
Jack Fleming(#4)
Forward
6 foot 6 205 pounds
junior
Tampa,Fla.
Tampa Jesuit High School
Fleming played in six games for Colgate last season. Had a career high three points in win over Binghamton on December 1st, after draining first career 3-pointer. Had first career assists against Navy on January 18th. Played a season high four minutes twice.
Pete's take: Fleming will add some much needed size to a team that is much smaller than usual this year. Battled injuries for much of the off-season. Worked very hard and was ready to go for the opener.
Eric Castaneda (#15)
Guard
6 foot 4 175 pounds
redshirt sophomore
Oviedo,Fla.
Haggerty High School
Castaneda is a very athletic guard. Will benefit from redshirting last season. Averaged 16 points a game his senior season at Haggerty.
Pete's take: A very athletic guard that could help this team in the long run. Currently his
minutes are very limited.
Zach Ullian (#12)
Guard
6 foot 4 195 pounds
sophomore
Indianlantic,Fla.
Holy Trinity High School
Was on district champion Holy Trinity team in the 2013-14 season. Made it to the regional finals in both his junior and senior seasons. All time leading 3-point shooter at Holy Trinity. Had a school record seven in one game. Shot 47 percent from the 3-point line on the season. Had a career high 38 points against Father Lopez.
Pete's take: Good player who will have to pay his dues early
Injuries:
Marcus Camacho (#34)
Guard/Forward
6 foot 4 190 pounds
sophomore
Winter Springs High School
Camacho has a Jones fracture in the fifth metatarsal of the foot. He saw limited minutes last season. Word is he has improved a lot since last season With the injury and depth of this team going to be hard for him to find minutes.
Beduslkis had nothing but good things to say about Camacho:
"Marcus is the strongest guy in the weight room and has made a lot of progress as a shooter and a player overall. He also is a very funny guy off the court as well."
Alex Blessig (#3)
Guard
6 foot 2 181 pounds
senior
Berlin,Germany
Theodolinden Gymnasium
Blessig is the team's leading returning scorer. He was in the starting lineup for the first three games before dislocating his finger against Ave Maria. At halftime of that game the finger was numbed and had to be popped back into place. Blessig will be out four-six weeks.
He played in and started all 31 games for the Tars last year. He averaged 31 minutes a game. Put up 10.8 points a night, which was good for second on the team. Also averaged 3.4 assists a contest. Was the Tars top 3-point shooter and third in the conference shooting at a 43 percent clip from the 3-point line. Shot 82 percent at the foul line last season. Scored in double figures 14 times. Hit two free throws to seal upset win over then second ranked Florida Southern after tying it up with a jumper at the end of regulation on January 29th. Also shares the school record for three pointers made in one game.
Blessig will shift over to the two-guard sport from point guard this year. With playmakers like Ferrell, Koszuta and Clark on the team this season he will be able to play his natural position.
Pete's take: Was the engine that made the team go last season. When he played well offensively the Tars usually won. When he was quiet. They struggled offensively. Tough blow to this team but with the depth they have at guard they should be ok.
The Redshirts:
Blake Admire (#23)
Guard
6 foot 4 190 pounds
freshman
Mobile,Alabama
Spanish Fort High School
One of a pair of recruits from this year's freshman class.
Beduslkis had this to say about Admire in the early stages of his Tars career:
"Blake is getting better in practice every day. He is a quick, long and athletic guard. He provides great energy at both ends of the court."
Pete's take: Could be a solid player and should be in the long term. Good idea to redshirt him this season with all the depth this team has at the guard position.
Nils Lehmann (#42)
Center/Forward
6 foot 5 225 pounds
freshman
Kiel,Germany
Kieler Gelehrtenschule High School
Lehmann was a foreign exchange student who played at Winter Park High School. Could be a pleasant surprise for the Tars.
Bedulskis commented on Lehmann thus far:
"Nils is a strong shooter who plays solid defense and also rebounds very well. He will compete for playing time."
Klusman added his insight:
"Nils is a tough kid who will do anything you ask him to do."
Pete's take: The Tars usually know what they are doing when they collect big men. Let's hope this is another find. Guys like this are vital to a team that has struggled to rebound the last couple years.
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