Oct. 25, 2006
It's often said that those who fail to learn the lessons of history are destined to repeat their mistakes.
This holds special significance for The University of Texas-Pan American men's basketball team who lost its' last seven games on its way to a 6-24 record last season.
In his first year as head men's basketball coach at UTPA, Tom Schuberth, vows not to let history repeat itself by changing the mentality of the team and by sticking to fundamentals of the game that he's coached for the last 24 years.
"I know we are going to have some adversity and challenges this year, and the best way to try and overcome that is to stay solid with our fundamentals. I love the team's attitude, but I think the thing we need to do is change it from a, for lack of a better word, losing mentality to more of a winning mentality. I'm not going to base our success on winning and losing, although that's the ultimate goal. My thing is to be as competitive as we can and give ourselves a change to win regardless of who we're playing," said Schuberth.
To help usher in the new era of Bronc basketball Schuberth has surrounded himself with a diverse group of coaches from a variety of backgrounds. Assistant coaches Ben Johnson, Lance Madison and Brad Enright along with graduate manager Darren Johnson and administrative assistant Grant Leonard combine to create a Broncs' coaching staff that is as varied as they come.
"The one thing I tried to do in hiring a staff was surround myself with great people. I wanted a diverse staff from different backgrounds, philosophies and different levels. Some of them played college basketball while some of them did not. They've become like a family to me in a short period of time," said Schuberth.
With most of the players on the team away from home, Schuberth believes the family aspect his coaching staff provides is as important as any screen drill or pick and roll.
"The players are the most important people in these guys' life. No one has an immediate family like a wife or children so we treat our players like they're our own kids. I like that, I like a family atmosphere," said Schuberth.
Below is a preview of the 2006-07 University of Texas-Pan American men's basketball team.
Point Guard
Senior Larry Sheppard (Baton Rouge, LA/Iowa Western C.C.) returns for his second year in a Bronc uniform and is coming off a season in which he started all 31 games at point guard. The veteran floor general led the Broncs in assists, steals and minutes played as he averaged 33.4 minutes per evening. Sheppard led all NCAA Division I players in assists per game and was named Independent Newcomer of the Week during the Month of January last season.
"Larry brings a lot of energy, and he's a tremendous on-ball defender. He's super coach-able, and he's as nice a young man as you'll ever meet. Larry's going to have to be our leader for us to have the kind of success we want to have," added Schuberth.
Newcomer Paul Stoll (Lansing, MI/Lansing Community College) will also take on ball-handling duties for the Broncs. Stoll comes to UTPA from Lansing Community College where he led the Stars to an 18-8 record and a Michigan Community College Athletic Association post-season tournament berth.
Stoll was an honorable mention MCCAA All-Western Conference selection during the 2004-05 season and was a standout among all Region XII men's basketball players. He led Region XII in free throw percentage after connecting on 89 percent of his attempts and recorded 3.1 steals per game, which ranked him second in Region XII.
"Paul is the ultimate point guard, but he needs to improve defensively. He has the ability to make open shots, but also has the savvy to get other teammates involved. He's got some bad habits he's carried over the last couple of years, and we have to get him to snap out of them. He's a good energy guy, and we're going to be asking him to be a leader as well," said Schuberth.
Local product Danny Puente (McAllen, TX/McAllen Memorial H.S.) will be limited in the point guard position as most of his work on the court will come from the two-spot. Puente returns to the Broncs after shooting a team-high 42.6 percent from behind the arc, and 94.4 percent from the charity stripe.
"Danny does everything fundamentally sound, and is very coach-able. You know what you're going to get when he steps on the floor. He's a very good shooter as well. This year, we would like him to concentrate more in the off-guard so he can concentrate more on guarding people and making open shots," added Schuberth.
Freshman Gino Sanchez (Corpus Christi, TX/Miller H.S.) joins the Broncs after having a successful high school athletic career where he lettered in five sports, including cross country, track and field, baseball, tennis and basketball. His athleticism and attitude on and off the court should prove to be a valuable asset to the Broncs.
"Gino is a guy that brings a lot of energy, and is a likable young man. He's a product of the Army so he understands discipline and structure, and he brings a lot of camaraderie and energy to our program and hopefully he continues to do that," commented Schuberth.
Shooting Guard
A key newcomer for the Broncs this season is Brian Burrell (Nacogdoches, TX/Paris Junior College), who will strengthen the shooting guard position. Burrell was a member of a Paris Junior College squad that won the 2004-05 National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship during his freshman season where he averaged 7.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game while appearing in all 37 games that season.
"Brian is a winner. If you can describe him in one word it's `winner'. He's played on a NJCAA championship team, and he understands team basketball. He takes what the defense gives him. Brian is also an exceptional outside shooter, and a great athlete with his dunking ability. He brings consistent effort and a total team attitude. I love the way he's rubbed off on some of the old guys and some of the new guys," said Schuberth.
Junior Dexter Shankle returns for his third year with the Broncs, and is coming off his best season yet. Shankle started in each of the 30 games he appeared in as a sophomore and was the Broncs' leading scorer in his second season with the squad where he averaged 11.0 points per game.
He posted career-highs in 17 different categories, including points, steals, assists, blocks, rebounds, rebounds per game, games played, games started, field goals made, field goal attempts, three-point field goals made and three-point field goal attempts.
"Dexter is a guy that leads by example, and he works very hard. He takes charge on the floor and is constantly hustling in every aspect of the game. He hasn't been as productive offensively as I thought he would; however, the other aspects of his game have been great. I'm very pleased with him," said Schuberth.
Johnathan Chatman (Chicago, IL/Sheridan College) returns to the Broncs after only appearing in 13 games with six starts. In his short time with the Broncs last season, Chatman averaged 8.3 points and 2.5 rebounds per game and ranked second on the team in three-point attempts with 78.
"Johnathan is a young man that wasn't on the team when I took over last spring, but we're giving him a chance. Johnathan is a great shooter, and when he has his feet set and he takes his time, he's as great a shooter as anyone in the country. He needs to understand what's a good shot and what's an average shot. When he takes good shots they're going in, when he takes average shots he's usually missing them," commented Schuberth.
Freshmen guards, and local Valley standouts Ben Smith (Pharr, TX/ PSJA North) and Steve Silva (Mission, TX/Sharyland H.S.) still have a lot of growing to do, but will look to vie for playing time on a Broncs team that looks to its' guards to set the pace in their up-tempo style.
Smith red-shirted last season, but is looking to compete for playing time as he's become accustomed to Division I basketball.
"I didn't really know much about Ben in the spring because he had a nagging shoulder injury. He's a little bit more limited than some of our other guys, but he has a good knowledge of the game. Ben has been a surprise defensively because he knows how to play, and with great positioning, he is able to defend players that are maybe quicker and faster than he is. I think he can vie for some minutes, but again he's young and has a lot of upperclassmen in front of him," added Schuberth.
Silva was a highly-decorated student-athlete coming out of Sharyland High School where he earned first team All-District 30-5A honors during his senior campaign.
"Steve is a wonderful young man and has the desire to work hard, but he's young and inexperienced. Physically he's not there yet, but he'll be a great addition to our program before he graduates," said Schuberth.
Forwards
Alex Robinson (San Antonio, TX/Clark H.S.) is perhaps one of the most interesting players on the Broncs' roster as he can work both as a guard and a forward. His strength inside combined with his ability to step outside and shoot is an asset that will be utilized more this season.
"Alex has been a guy who's done a great job in conditioning, weight room and improving his individual talent. He's accepting the fact that he's needed more as an inside player rather than a perimeter player and has had a great attitude about it. I think Alex is one of those guys that is better than he thinks he is. He can do more things, we just have to instill his confidence and he just needs to relax and play," added Schuberth.
Zach Trader (LaPorte, TX/LaPorte H.S.) returns for his third season with the Broncs after appearing in all 31 games as a sophomore. Trader was one of the most improved Broncs last season as he set career-highs in 18 different statistical categories while leading the squad in rebounding on four separate occasions.
"Zach is a left-handed young man that can really make things happen on both ends. He's got experience and energy. I think sometimes Zach forces some things instead of just letting them come to him, but he's a guy that you know what you're going to get on both ends. He's got a good basketball IQ, and we're expecting great things out of him," said Schuberth.
One of the most outstanding additions to the rosters this season is Julius Allgood (Marion, AL/Southern Union State C.C.), who comes to the Broncs after earning National Junior College All-American honors while at Southern Union State Community College. Allgood led the Bison in scoring by averaging 16.0 points per game to go along with a team-high 9.1 rebounds per game during his sophomore season.
In his freshman year with the Bison, Allgood was an All-Region XXII and first team All-Southern League Region XXII award recipient, and garnered All-Alabama Community College Conference laurels while being named to the Region XXII All-Tournament Team.
"Julius is really a great young man, and has tremendous athletic ability. He has a great body for the physical nature that comes with playing on the inside, and that is something that we really need from him this season. His skills are very raw right now, but he works very hard, and I think that he is going to have a great season for us," Schuberth added.
Local product Ryan Buck (Harlingen, TX/ Harlingen South H.S.) saw playing time in eight games as a sophomore last season.
"Ryan is solid, and he gives the same consistent effort day-in and day-out. He's a total team player, and he makes our team better in practice everyday. I hope that he's a guy who can push the other players and vie for some playing time this year," added Schuberth.
Center
Senior Colin Lien (Waterloo, IA/Southeastern C.C.) worked hard to improve his game this off-season as he traveled with the Sports Reach Basketball Team that competed against some of the best players in China. He's coming off of a junior campaign in which he was second on the team in scoring and recorded three double-doubles.
An honorable mention All-Independent selection as a junior, Lien led the team in rebounds with 121, and led the team in the same category ten different times throughout the season.
"Colin has made unbelievable strides. He had a great year last year, but he has improved so much since the spring. He works hard, and he can shoot the ball. Last year, I think his weakness was his ability to score around the basket. He can now not only make face-up jumpers, but can score with guys hanging on him around the basket," said Schuberth.
Kano Edwards (Bridgeport, CT/Western Nebraska C.C.) returns for his second season with the Broncs, and is coming off a year in which he appeared in all 31 games with the squad. Edwards averaged 9.3 points and 4.0 rebounds per game and led the team in blocked shots.
"Kano is a guy that played a lot of minutes last year. His strength is shooting the face-up jumper as a post player. He's a good shot blocker, but we need him to be more determined on the defensive and offensive boards as well as being a more physical guy down low," added Schuberth.
One of the newest Broncs is freshman Jacob Trader (LaPorte, TX/LaPorte H.S.). In his first season with the LaPorte High School basketball program, Trader guided the Bulldogs to a 25-8 record and a district runner-up finish during his senior campaign, and was selected as the Most Improved Player in District 23-5A that season.
"Jacob hasn't had a lot of basketball experience. He's a great young man, but he needs to get stronger to improve. I think down the road we'll see some positive things from Jake," said Schuberth.
Overall
New to the men's basketball program this season is the program's affiliation with the United Basketball Conference. The Broncs will join IPFW, South Dakota State, North Dakota State, New Jersey Institute of Technology and Utah Valley State to form the UBC, which will offer a home-and-away series with each program.
"I love our conference, we have 10 conference games. We're going to treat it like it's the Big-12, Big-10 or ACC. We're going to try to win it, but there are also some very good basketball teams. North Dakota State started four freshmen and went to Wisconsin and won last year so we have a lot of challenges ahead of us," commented Schuberth.
The Broncs face a tough schedule this season as they will play two Big-10 teams as well as teams out of the Colonial Conference, Atlantic-10 and Conference-USA.
"If you look at our schedule, it's super-competitive. I try to point out to people that while you may not see a team like a North Carolina on our schedule, we are still playing Tulsa, Air Force and SMU with all of them on the road. I expect the UTPA Fieldhouse to be a very difficult place to come in and get a win," added Schuberth.
The University of Texas-Pan American men's basketball team has undergone a major face-lift in the coaching department and will look to build a winning tradition with a winning attitude as they open up their season with four returning starters and some key additions that can hopefully turn the program around.
"I expect for our guys to be prepared and do the best they can. I'm not worried about wins and losses, but I'm stressing improving as a basketball team and becoming competitive. If we do those things then I think the wins will take care of themselves," said Schuberth.
Schuberth and his staff won't be teaching history class this season, but they hope the young men on the squad will learn from the mistakes of their past and take care of the present task at hand.
UTPA Sports Information
