The Indiana All-Stars, comprised of UE signee Blake Simmons on the boys’ side and Dakota Weatherford for the girls’ team, play as part of a doubleheader tonight against their Kentucky counterparts at Freedom Hall in Louisville.
I’ll be at both games — the girls play at 4:30 p.m. and the boys will follow around 6:30 p.m. — updating the future Aces’ results. Refresh periodically or follow on Twitter (@ECP_Lintner).
Indiana All-Star Blake Simmons, left, drives on a likely future All-Star in Bosse’s JaQuan Lyle last season. Photo by Daniel Patmore/C&P
Blake Simmons always spent time around his father’s UE men’s basketball program, but Marty Simmons seemingly made it a point never to directly recruit his son.
Assistant coaches spoke to Blake, then attending Castle High School, after workouts and shootarounds. They developed a relationship with the sharpshooting forward as coaches do with other recruits. And they maintained it, enough that Blake knew he wanted to play for the Aces.
He just needed a scholarship offer first.
“We were riding to one of my AAU tournaments, and my dad kind of laid it out for me, saying, ‘We’re going to offer you a scholarship’ and all that,” Blake said. “He explained that it’s going to be tough for us because of the situation we’re in — father and son. He said, ‘I’m going to be on you harder than others,’ and I understood that because after talking to Doug (McDermott at Creighton), I knew about it.”
That conversation came in May of 2012. Blake committed to UE on the spot, becoming the first player in what’s ended up a five-player incoming recruiting class this year.
“It was emotional, you know?” Marty said. “For all of us, because certainly my wife has done a terrific job of raising Blake and being a part of any success he’s had. Really, our entire family has given him great support throughout his career. When he did actually make the decision, it was emotional — all good feelings. It was a special day. I think we’re all really excited about the opportunity.”
The decision was easy much because of a run-in the Simmons’ father-son combo had with coach Greg McDermott and player Doug McDermott of Creighton at the Final Four in New Orleans.
Doug recently announced, following a Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year and All-American season, that he’ll return to play his senior season with the Bluejays.
“We ran into them there and they gave us some advice — kind of what they do — and talking to Doug was really neat hearing his side of the story,” Blake said. ”Really, they just said that when you’re in between the lines and on the court, it’s all business. You can’t take that home with you. Once you’re at home, you’ve got to be father and son. You’ve got to leave all the coach and player on the court. They can’t overlap.”
So far, that’s been the case.
Blake is already on campus this summer, where he calls Marty “Coach” instead of “Dad.”
“He told me I really deserved (the scholarship), which meant a lot to me,” Blake said. “A lot of people might say, ‘Oh, he’s just the coach’s son.’ But hearing that I deserved it from him really meant a lot.”
This week, Blake is playing with the prestigious Indiana All-Stars. The team played twice against the Indiana Junior All-Stars this week and has games Friday against Kentucky at Freedom Hall and Saturday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
North Carolina coach Roy Williams makes a practice of playing “homecoming games” for each of his recruits, which brought Washington native Tyler Zeller and the Tar Heels to Roberts Stadium for a December 2010 game against UE.
It could be just a coincidence, or we’re seeing a bit of the same for the Aces and their two incoming freshmen from Ohio, Duane Gibson and Tyler Ptacek.
A report from the Athens Messenger says UE will play at Ohio, a Mid-American Conference member, next season. It will be the third Aces road game in the state along with bouts against Miami and Xavier.
The Messenger’s report didn’t cite a date or time for the game, and it’s not known if UE will get a return contest at the Ford Center.
Ohio made the Sweet 16 in 2012 under former coach John Groce, now at Illinois, and in Jim Christian’s first season in charge went 24-9, won the MAC’s regular-season title and played in the National Invitation Tournament.
The Bobcats lose each of their top three scorers heading into this year.
Gibson and Ptacek both hail from the Cleveland area, about three and a half hours from Athens, Ohio. They’re the first players recruited out of Ohio to play for Simmons at UE.
Xavier released its non-conference men’s basketball schedule on Tuesday, and a matchup against UE is included on the 2013-2014 slate.
The Aces and Musketeers will meet on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati, an on-campus arena.
Xavier is coached by former two-year Aces player Chris Mack, who transferred from coach Jim Crews’ team to finish his career as a Musketeer. Under Mack and former coach Sean Miller, Xavier has made seven straight NCAA tournament appearances.
The Musketeers are among the teams transitioning this season to the new Big East Conference, along with former Missouri Valley Conference rival Creighton.
There’s no word yet on whether this year’s game will be a one-off or series between UE and Xavier.
UE coach Marty Simmons typically plays scheduling close to the vest. Other confirmed non-conference games for next season are at Indiana and Miami (Ohio) as well as Butler’s trip to the Ford Center. It’s also expected that the Aces play a BracketBusters return game, either against Western Illinois or Wright State — maybe both.
Additionally, UE is required by the MVC to participate in an exempt tournament like the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic played last year.
UE released last season’s men’s basketball schedule on Aug. 30. Rather than disclose the non-conference portion separately, the Aces’ athletic department announced the whole slate at once.
Colt Ryan
UPDATE: See below for more information on Ryan’s new team and league.
ORIGINAL: Former UE hoops star Colt Ryan has signed his first professional contact with Brussels Basketball.
Located in Belgium, the club formerly known as Excelsion Brussels will play next season under its new name in the 10-team Ethias League, considered the nation’s top-level basketball association.
Ryan’s contract details were not disclosed in the announcement, which Brussels Basketball coach Serge Crevecoeur made at a press conference Thursday night.
The Aces’ all-time leading scorer, who averaged 20.1 points per game last season while leading UE to a 21-15 record, previously showed off in front of scouts at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament in April. Ryan also trained in Florida and Evansville leading up to the signing.
“I know he was in town here this past week doing some workouts in the gym, and he looked terrific,” said Aces coach Marty Simmons. “Physically, he just looked like he was really in great shape. I didn’t know anything about this (until today), but if it is true, I’m certainly excited for him.
“There’s not anybody that’s more deserving of the opportunity. That guy busted his butt and worked extremely hard for the opportunity to play professional basketball, so to see that come to fruition is pretty neat.”
(I haven’t yet been able to reach Ryan for comment.)
Ryan is the fourth former UE player on a professional roster, joining Denver Holmes and Shy Ely (Switzerland) as well as Kenny Harris (Israel).
Nine of 13 players on Brussels’ roster next season are from Belgium. Other former NCAA players on the team are Nebraska’s Brandon Ubel, Santa Clara’s Stephen Ross and Hawaii’s Ahmet Gueye.
A young Brussels team — nine players are under 25 years old, including Ryan — starts its 2013-2014 season on Oct. 6.
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I reached out to Stoffel Castelein, who runs the Belgian Youth Basketball (@BelgianYouthBB) Twitter account, for more information on just what Ryan’s getting into.
—The Ethias League is Belgium’s professional league, he said. It formerly had eight teams, but Ryan’s Brussels Basketball club is one of two expansion members for next season.
—It’s considered mid-level competition on the European scale. Said Castelein: “Not one of the best like Spain or Italy but very good with talented American players and Belgians.” Chris Copeland, now with the New York Knicks, used to play in Belgium.
—Brussels will play its games at Sportcomplex Neder Over Heembeek, a local multipurpose facility. “That’s a nice but rather small gym,” Castelein said. “For high-profile games they’ll move to another bigger gym in Brussels.”
UE coach Marty Simmons has a lot on his plate with four seniors leaving. Recruiting the class of 2014 isn’t one of them. Photo by Denny Simmons/C&P
UE coach Marty Simmons enters next season with a full roster, no seniors and no reason to recruit the class of 2014.
“That will be new,” said the men’s basketball coach, who by signing five high school seniors filled his 13-scholarship allotment. “I’m sure we’ll watch some guys play in the next class. Things happen, and that’s just kind of the world we live in.”
UE’s coaching staff will concentrate instead on the class of 2015, which means current rising high school juniors. The Aces are on track to graduate Ryan Sawvell, Jaylon Moore, Jordan Nelson and Rokas Cesnulevicius before the 2015-2016 season, opening up four scholarships.
“Obviously our main focus will be with the following class with the guys who will be graduating in our junior class,” Simmons said. “We’ll try to get a real jump start in building relationships with guys in that class.”
UE’s only reported class of 2015 scholarship offer so far went to Josh Speidel, a forward from Columbus North High School.
Too early to talk redshirts
Tyler Ptacek, a late spring signee and former UNC Wilmington commit, raised some eyebrows when the Padua (Ohio) Christian High School guard said, “I didn’t want to go into Wilmington or any other college not knowing if my coach was going to be there all five years.”
Simmons said Wednesday he hasn’t actually talked with Ptacek yet about redshirting.
“I think I’ve told you my philosophy on that is pretty much that we have to evaluate them first,” the coach said. “You watch them in high school, but now that you’ve got them in your environment there’s a lot that can go into redshirting — depth at a position, if you’ve got a guy who lacks some physical strength, obviously injury — but ultimately from my standpoint, it’s the player’s decision.”
David Howard, a forward, went through that process last year and decided to redshirt in November.
“He was dedicated to all the time and effort outside of regular practice, and he’s made considerable improvements to his body and just I think his overall confidence and knowledge of our system,” Simmons said.
Ryan working out in front of pro scouts
Most outgoing seniors will wait until after the June 27 NBA Draft to sign professional contracts, waiting to see whether there’s a chance to land on an NBA roster or spot in the summer league.
Maybe you can count Colt Ryan among those players.
“Colt’s in town,” Simmons said. “He’s working out here and looks great. You’ll probably have to talk to him, but I think he’s got some workouts set up with some NBA teams. That’s his next step.”
I haven’t been able to reach Ryan for an update but hope to do so today.
Simmons said he hasn’t had much contact with Troy Taylor and Ned Cox, both guys who tweet often about continuing their basketball workouts.
As for the Aces’ other senior last season, Lewis Jones, Simmons said the Memphis native is ready to put his sociology degree to work.
“Lewis is actually looking to relocate in Evansville right now and get in the workforce here in the community,” Simmons said. “I think just community involvement and working with kids — he’s got a real passion for that.”
Schedule still a work in progress
Aces coaches are still working to complete their non-conference schedule. Games at Indiana and Miami (Ohio), as well as one against Butler at the Ford Center are confirmed. UE, like all Missouri Valley Conference members, is required to also play in a regular-season exempt tournament. The Aces are still finalizing that deal, and Simmons declined to comment on specifics at this point.
Marty Simmons
Today starts what UE men’s basketball Marty Simmons calls “the biggest summer that we’ve had here.”
That’s in Simmons’ six seasons as Aces coach.
He’ll have a full roster next season — including five incoming freshmen and a slew of juniors — but former players Colt Ryan, Ned Cox, Troy Taylor and Lewis Jones have graduated.
“We lost some guys that obviously made big impacts on last season, but we feel like we have a great nucleus of guys coming back that do have some experience and then a freshman class that really adds to it,” Simmons said. “The exciting thing to me is, I think we’ve got a bunch of guys that like basketball, like each other and like to work. If we can maintain that attitude and continue to have that, this team’s going to grow and continue to improve. They should be fun to watch.”
The Aces began eight weeks of summer drills — what the NCAA allows, with two hours a week coming via coaches’ instruction — that will blend the new talent with returnees.
Freshmen Blake Simmons and Duane Gibson are on campus. Guards Jaylon Brown and Tyler Ptacek are expected for the second summer session, which begins mid-June. And Christian Benzon may not arrive until the fall, as he’ll be visiting family at home in Denmark.
UE coaches waited a couple weeks into summer classes to start the two-month grind knowing there would be some late arrivals.
“We’ll have the opportunity to work with everybody,” Simmons said. “It’s great to have this chance to build relationships and terminology and just certain things within our system. It really helps and gives these guys a jump start on what’s to be expected when they get back here in the fall.”
Simmons said coaches planned to drill players in two groups this week — bigs and guards separately. Those practices could then evolve into five-on-five situations.
“They’ve been doing some strength training and agility workouts,” Simmons said. “I think they’ve been playing some pick-up. Guys have been coming in and doing skill work on their own, individually, and then along with that they’re going to class.
“It’s been pretty exciting for me just to see, because you’re limited on what you can organize, how the guys are getting in here and doing things on their own to get better.”
This year is the second the NCAA approved coaches to work directly with players over the summer.
Tyler Ptacek
This time last month, Tyler Ptacek was signed with UNC Wilmington but growing uncomfortable with the situation. The Seakhawks experienced turnover on their coaching staff before the 3-point specialist from Padua Christian (Ohio) High School received a release from his letter of intent and a week later verbally committed to UE.
Aces coach Marty Simmons formally announced Ptacek’s signing with UE today. He’s one of five incoming freshmen, and his decision was influenced by another future Ace.
Ptacek on his decision to break his commitment to UNC Wilmington and play for UE: “Me and my dad were talking about de-committing and releasing. And that morning – I don’t know which day it was, but I was at school – I checked my phone and had a bunch of missed calls from coaches. I saw Evansville on there. One of my close buddies, Duane Gibson, who I played AAU with (on the Ohio Basketball Club) and am real close with, is committed there so it interested me to get to know what Evansville is all about. That’s one of the main reasons I wanted to go down there – to play with Duane.”
Why not go to UNC Wilmington? “I kind of felt uncomfortable with the whole situation because the guy who recruited me and was really texting me during the whole process was Jamie Kachmarik – he was my main guy – got fired. There was another guy on my visit…that made me feel uncomfortable. I didn’t want to go into Wilmington or any other college not knowing if my coach was going to be there all five years, because that’s the main reason I was there – or committed there.”
Ptacek visited UE on May 14 and made a quick decision. “I knew there was going to be a stop to the recruiting period, so I just got down there as fast as I could and talked to coach (Carson) Harris,” he said. “I talked to him on the phone one time, and me and my dad got down there on a Tuesday. After the drive home, me and my dad and my grandfather all talked about it because they’re both big keys in helping me decide where to go. We decided that would be the best fit for me.”
Ptacek posted results of a shooting drill Tuesday in which he made 672 of 820 3-pointers. “I’ve always been known as a shooter,” he said. “Everyone around my area knows me as a shooter, and I just try to keep that through repetition. Me and my dad have different kind of competitions to see who can get up the most shots in a certain period of time, so that’s what we’re doing before I get to college. I’ve already got up around 3,000 shots in the last three days. Every single day, Monday through Sunday, I’ll be in the gym getting at least 500 shots. It’s all about repetition.”
So if Gibson, the Villa Angela-St. Joseph’s guard, could affect Ptacek’s college decision, how good is Gibson? “I really didn’t know who Duane was,” Ptacek said. “I don’t know if he even played AAU until last year, and everyone kind of overlooked him. Me and my dad both said he’s going to be legit. Once he started playing AAU, he did exactly what we thought. I’d say he’s the top point guard in Ohio, honestly. He’s the most underrated player. I kept saying it to all the coaches at Evansville – they got a steal with him because he’s a true pass-first guy who can score if he needs to. He’s a smart player and always does the right thing. On my AAU team, he was the guy who always found me and got me 90 percent of my shots. That’s why, when we were doing rotations and stuff in AAU, we always played together because it worked so well.”
Finally, UE signees Blake Simmons and Jaylon Brown are set to suit up for the same team.
It’s not yet the Aces, though.
After facing off in last month’s North-South All-Star Classic in Terre Haute, Castle High School’s Simmons and Fishers High School’s Brown will both play for the “Hickory Huskers” boys team at the June 7 Hoosiers’ Reunion All-Star Classic at Knightstown High School.
That’s Knightstown, movie home to “Hoosiers.”
Simmons and Brown will be joined by UE women’s signees Dakota Weatherford (Hamilton Heights High School) and Kenzie Gustin (Pendleton Heights High School) — also teammates — who kick off the doubleheader with the girls’ game at 6 p.m. The boys follow at 8 p.m.
In all, there are eight girls playing in the game who will also tour with the Indiana All-Stars as they play their Kentucky counterparts, including Weatherford. There are 10 boys from the All-Stars participating, among them Simmons.
Both Weatherford and Simmons were junior all-stars before their bids to the senior squads.
A friend of UE commit Christian Benzon tweeted this picture of the guard signing his binding letter of intent to the Aces’ coaching staff.
Christian Benzon tweeted Tuesday night, “It feels right being a future part of UE!”
The 6-foot-4 guard out of The Rock School in Gainesville, Fla. — a third-year Danish exchange student — then discussed with me how he ended up becoming one of two commitments secured by Aces men’s basketball coaches during the spring signing period.
UE wasn’t among your original list of interested schools. How did the coaching staff find you? “They saw me at an exposure event here (in Florida) a month ago. I was at this event and they called me. I looked up the University of Evansville and found it interesting. I was talking to the coaches, and it sounded really exciting.”
What exactly was exciting about it? “The thing that really caught me was that it’s such a small school, but they still compete at a high level. I thought that was really big. You can go there and get a great education. You can work with the teachers, and at the same time you can compete with big schools like Wichita State and Drake.”
What kind of player are you? “I would say I feel comfortable playing anywhere from one through three on the court.”
Did you get to meet your future teammates on your campus visit over the weekend? “I got to meet most of them. I didn’t meet the freshmen, but I met the other guys. They seem like good guys with great character — a bunch of sweet, good guys.”
How did you end up in the United States? “I was playing at a tournament with my Danish high school over here, and I got to talk to a head coach in Gainesville. Basically, from that point on we worked on me trying to get over here and play.”
How often do you get to go home? “The last time I was home was in July. I get home at least once a year, hopefully.”
How out of the ordinary is that for Danish players? “It’s a commitment, and I know lots of people who are doing it too. If you want to pursue what you really want to do, you’ve got to make some sacrifices. That’s one of them.”
Do you know when you’ll be on campus, and what do you want to work on this summer? “I don’t know yet, but this summer I’m hopefully going to work on my ball handling, my shooting and my physicality, I’d think.”
Tyler Ptacek
Back on Oct. 29, 2012, UE’s men’s basketball staff landed two verbal commitments in one day from high school seniors.
Aces coaches did it again Tuesday when Tyler Ptacek, a 6-foot-2 guard at Padua Franciscan (Ohio) High School and former UNC Wilmington signee, added his pledge following one earlier in the day from The Rock (Fla.) School guard Christian Benzon.
Ptacek tweeted the news just after 9 p.m. to round out what will be a five-player incoming recruiting class for UE once he and Benzon sign binding letters of intent. Both players made their decision with the NCAA’s signing period, which ends Wednesday, winding down.
Ptacek received a release from UNC Wilmington a week ago and immediately showed interest in UE as well as NCAA tournament Cinderella Florida Gulf Coast. He’s from the Cleveland suburbs not far from UE signee Duane Gibson out of Villa Angela-St. Joseph High School.
Other Aces signees include Fishers High School guard Jaylon Brown and Castle High School forward Blake Simmons, son of coach Marty Simmons.
Known for his shooting abilities, Ptacek averaged 19.2 points per game as a senior at Padua while becoming the school’s career scoring leader. Rivals.com and ESPN both rank him as a two-star prospect.
Officially committed to the University of Evansville.
— ▲†▲†▲ (@Mister_1017) May 15, 2013
Me & Boo gun make sum noise as the backcourt, putting on for the Cleveland area!
— ▲†▲†▲ (@Mister_1017) May 15, 2013
Christian Benzon
Following an official visit to UE over the weekend, combo guard Christian Benzon committed to Aces coaches this morning and will sign a binding letter of intent upon his return to The Rock School in Gainesville, Fla.
Benzon’s high school coach, Justin Harden, confirmed news that his third-year Danish exchange student will attend UE.
“He’s a really hard worker,” Harden said. “Not a great shooter, but he works extremely hard at it and all the things he needs to do to become a better player. He has a good basketball IQ — has grown a lot since he’s gotten here and become a lot tougher adapting to the American brand of basketball.”
Harden said that at 6-foot-4 and 195 pounds, Benzon is a slasher-type guard who excels in the open floor using techniques such as the Euro step, where a player picks up his dribble and moves in two different directions before taking a shot.
Benzon led The Rock in scoring as a junior but accepted a more defensive-minded role as a senior, averaging about 10 points per game on a team that played a nine-man rotation.
Schools such as South Alabama, Stetson and Florida Gulf Coast offered the two-star prospect by ESPN.com scholarships early in his recruitment. As the NCAA’s signing period wound down (it ends Wednesday), interest waned.
“Not many people were jumping at the opportunity to do it,” Harden said. “He’s been under-recruited, I guess. I don’t know how else to say it. I think he could have gone to a high-major school and had a lot of success. He’ll have immediate success at a place like Evansville. A lot of schools passed up on the opportunity to get him, and he’s going to make them pay for that.”
Benzon has a 3.7 grade-point average, lists his favorite school subject as math and served as team captain at The Rock, a private Christian school, during his junior and senior seasons.
Upon receipt of Benzon’s letter of intent, UE will have a four-player incoming recruiting class. Fishers (Ind.) High School guard Jaylon Brown, Villa Angela-St. Joseph’s (Ohio) guard Duane Gibson and Castle High School forward Blake Simmons, son of coach Marty Simmons, each signed in November.
Benzon in the news:
Dec. 15, 2011: A to Z with Christian Benzon (Gainesville.com)
Sept. 30, 2012: Dodge Florida Shootout report (sourcehoops.com)
Nov. 21, 2012: Sports Xpress recruiting Xclusive (ihigh.com)
May 1, 2013: Florida Independent all-state teams (FloridaHoops.com)
