1

WHAT'SINSIDE

2 Pregame Primer6 The Bears are Back After a season full of hard-earned lessons and a long offseason Northern Colorado Basketball is ready for a return to form.

8 Meet the New Guys In junior transfer Derrick Barden and prep standouts Cody McDavis and Greg Tucker, Bears coach B.J. Hill has added to an already stocked cupboard.

24 Home of the Bears Welcome to Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion, where Northern Colorado is nearly 100 games over .500 since 1974 and a tough venue to play in for all opponents who enter.

HOT READS

3 Today’s scorecard4 Bears vs. Cowboys History11 UNC President Kay Norton12 AD Jay Hinrichs14 Head coach B.J. Hill16 Bears coaching staff22 Meet the Bears27 UNC Hall of Fame29 UNC Roundball Club30 ‘History of Madness’31 Bears Record Book48 ‘At the Buzzer’

DEPARTMENTS

‘GAMEDAY’ CREDITSPUBLISHING NOTES

Bears Gameday is the official 2012-13 Northern Colorado Men’s Basketball program.

Bears Gameday is published by the Northern Colorado Athletics’ Creative Services office and is managed by Scott Ward, director. Assistance provided by Zach Bond of Athletics Communications. Domestic logistics provided by Sarah Ward.

PHOTOGRAPHYPhotography provided by Paul Dorweiler (Paul Dorweiler

Photography), Eric Bellamy, Barry Lapoint, Woody Myers (University Relations) and Dean Popejoy.

PRINTINGBears Gameday is updated and will be available five times

throughout the 2012-13 season. Printing is performed by AlphaGraphics. Special thanks to Matt Brunner, Jeanette Errett and Ivree Monroe of AlphaGraphics.

SPECIAL NOTEPurchase price for Bears Gameday is $5 and all proceeds

benefit Northern Colorado Basketball. To advertise in this monthly in-season publication contact Ray Vasquez at 970-351-1162 (ray.vasquez@unco.edu) or Menan Bergman at 970-347-7977 (menan.bergman@unco.edu).

ERIC BELLAMYNORTHERN COLORADO

2

GAME 3: WYOMING

PREGAME PRIMERWYOMING (MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE) n NORTHERN COLORADO (BIG SKY CONFERENCE)

62.7 Points per game 72.4 56.2 Opponent points per game 71.2 29.3 Rebounds per game 34.3 -1.1 Rebounding margin 5.0 44.8 FG percentage 48.1 41.0 Opponent FG percentage 48.8 32.7 3-point pct. 44.4 30.6 Opponent 3-point pct. 45.3 73.9 FT pct. 69.9 11.3 Assists per game 12.5 11.8 Turnovers per game 16.3 3.2 Blocks per game 2.4 6.9 Steals per game 5.5

THE LAST TIMETHEY MET

COWBOYS STATS COMPARISON (2011-12) BEARS

‘COWBOYS RETURN THE FAVOR WITH RUNAWAY HOME WIN’

LARAMIE, Wyo. -- Northern Colorado Basketball shot out to a 7-0 run against Wyoming on Tuesday night, Nov. 15, 2011, calling to mind the Bears’ incredible 31-4 start the year before against the Cowboys in Greeley that ended up a 67-53 Northern Colorado win.

That’s about all from the game that resembled last year’s victory, however.

Wyoming quickly erased the Bears’ lead, took com-mand of the game by halftime and cruised to a 75-56 win at Arena-Auditorium, dropping Northern Colorado to 0-2 in a season for the first time since 2008.

Sophomore Paul Garnica finished with a career-high 18 points—his second straight career-best scoring performance to start the season—and freshman Tim Huskisson put in 10 points with a 5-for-5 effort from the free-throw line.

Connor Osborne had nine points and eight rebounds, helping the Bears win the rebounding battle 30-28.

Also, Northern Colorado, after gifting Wyoming (2-0) with 14 turnovers in the first half, had just three after halftime and played right with the Cowboys for the second 20 minutes.

The Bears just dug themselves too big of a hole before the break.

“We’re young and struggling to find ourselves right now,” Northern Colorado coach B.J. Hill said. “We’re going to be good—we’re going to be fine, we’ve got a lot of talent—but it’s going to have to start at practice and carry over into games.”

And following a Garnica layup at 11:23 in the first half, the Bears didn’t score from the field again for a 12-minute stretch, spanning the remainder of the first half and just into the second.

Osborne ended that drought with a tip in at 19:39 in the second half, and Garnica’s old-fashioned three-point play on the Bears’ next possession pulled them within 32-19 and appeared to be the beginning of a comeback run.

It wasn’t, as Wyoming squelched the mini-rally and closed out the game for its first 2-0 start since 2008.

F LEONARD WASHINGTON F DERRICK BARDEN

3

HEAD COACH: B.J. HILL ASSISTANTS: RY MARTIN, LOGAN BEAN, WILL HENSLEY

HEAD COACH: LARRY SHYATT ASSOCIATE HEAD COACH: SCOTT DUNCAN ASSISTANTS: ALLEN EDWARDS, JEREMY SHYATT

NORTHERN COLORADO BEARS

WYOMING COWBOYS

POINTS

POINTS

REBOUNDS

REBOUNDS

FOULS

FOULS

James Davis Jr., 6-1, 170, RS-Fr, GSan Lorenzo, Calif. (Arroyo HS)0

Leonard Washington, Sr., 6-7, 230, FLake Charles, La. (Southern California)0

Derrick Barden, Jr., 6-5, 215, FDetroit, Mich. (Denby HS / Odessa JC)1

Derrious Gilmore, Sr., 5-10, 170, GBaltimore, Md. (Jones County (Miss.) College)1

Xzaivier James, Jr., 5-11, 175, GGreeley, Colo. (Greeley Central HS)

Riley Grabau, So, 6-2, 170, GBoulder, Colo. (Boulder HS)

2

2

Paul Garnica, Jr., 6-0, 160, GSan Antonio, Texas (Robert E. Lee HS)3

Aaron Tyser, RS-Fr., 6-4, 200, GBuffalo, Wyo. (Sheridan (Wyo.) College)3

Tevin Svihovec, RS-So., 6-2, 190, GKingwood, Texas (Kingwood HS)5

Derek Cook Jr., So., 6-9, 210, FWashington, D.C. (Cloud County (Kan.) Community College)11

Cody McDavis, Fr., 6-8, 200, FPhoenix, Ariz. (Pinnacle HS)10

Jack Bentz, So., 6-1, 175, GChagrin Falls, Ohio (University School)13

Tate Unruh, RS-Jr., 6-4, 175, GBranson, Mo. (Branson HS)15

Josh Adams, Fr., 6-2, 175, GParker, Colo. (Chaparral HS)14

Brendan Keane, So., 6-9, 235, FOakland, Calif. (St. Joseph’s Notre Dame HS)21

Nathan Sobey, Jr., 6-4, 185, GWarrnambool, Australia (Cochise College (Ariz.))20

Tim Huskisson, So., 6-5, 190, FWillard, Mo. (Willard HS)22

Austin Haldorson, Fr., 6-9, 190, FHighlands Ranch, Colo. (Highlands Ranch HS)21

Emmanuel Addo, RS-Jr., 6-7, 220, F/CToronto, Ontario (Northfield (Minn.) HS)24

Larry Nance Jr., So., 6-8, 210, FAkron, Ohio (Revere HS)22

Bryce Douvier, So., 6-6, 215, FSedgwick, Kan. (Sedgwick HS)25

Jason McManamen, Fr., 6-5, 180, GTorrington, Wyo. (Torrington HS)23

Greg Tucker, Fr., 6-2, 190, GCharleston, Mo. (Charleston HS)30

Luke Martinez, Sr., 6-4, 190, GBismarck, N.D. (Willison (N.D.) State College)25

Dylan Elias, RS-Fr., 6-1, 175, GSan Angelo, Texas (William H. Taft HS)32

Charles Hankerson Jr., Jr., 6-5, 220, ,GMiami, Fla. (Alabama)32

Connor Osborne, RS-Jr., 6-9, 270, CLittleton, Colo. (Columbine HS)34

Matt Sellers, So., 6-10, 250, CChamplin Park, Minn. (Western Wyoming Communi43

4

GAME 3: WYOMING

INSIDE THE SERIESWYOMING 51, NORTHERN COLORADO 19 IN GREELEY: WYOMING 23-11

‘BEARS DOWN POKES FOR FIRST TIME IN 73 YEARS’

GREELEY -- Northern Colorado held Wyoming without a field goal for more than eight minutes Tuesday night, Nov. 16, 2010, in building a big lead and then held on for a 67-53 victory at Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion -- its first win against the Cowboys since 1937.

Senior Devon Beitzel scored seven of his game-high 20 points in a crucial final stretch that helped Northern Colorado build back its advantage after Wyoming had shaved what was once a 27-point Bears lead down to eight midway through the second half.

Senior Chris Kaba backed Beitzel with 15 points and eight rebounds, and sophomore Elliott Lloyd chipped in 11 points and a career-high seven boards for the Bears.

The win was Northern Colorado's first against the Cowboys in Greeley since Jan. 10, 1936.

"I'm really, really proud of the guys in that locker room,” Northern Colorado coach B.J. Hill said. “We came into today after two of the best practices we've had since the season started, and we came out focused and with energy.”

Wyoming's first field goal didn't come until the 11:58 mark in the first half, on a tip-in from Djibril Thiam, but by that point the Bears had already scored 20. Freshman Paul Garnica later got a steal and a lay-up in transition to put Northern Colorado ahead 31-4 with nearly nine minutes left in the first half.

The Cowboys finished the first half on a 19-10 run and then scored the first five points of the second half to pull within 16 at 41-25. Later, a pair of free throws from Adam Waddell closed that gap to 52-44 with 8:19 left.

Lloyd hit a pair of 3-pointers over the next few minutes for the Bears, though, and then Beitzel splashed home a pair of free throws, a 3-pointer, and two more free throws on Northern Colorado's next three possessions to ice the game.

YEAR OPPONENT RESULT1908-09 Wyoming W, 31-261911-12 at Wyoming L, 49-311911-12 Wyoming L, 27-261912-13 at Wyoming L, 38-121913-14 at Wyoming L, 37-141913-14 Wyoming W, 18-171916-17 Wyoming W, 27-131916-17 at Wyoming L, 47-201917-18 at Wyoming L, 27-231918-19 Wyoming W, 21-141918-19 Wyoming L, 18-121918-19 Wyoming L, 17-101918-19 Wyoming L, 37-191919-20 at Wyoming L, 46-251919-20 Wyoming L, 38-271921-22 at Wyoming W, 22-141921-22 Wyoming L, 29-201923-34 at Wyoming W, 21-141923-24 at Wyoming W, 33-151924-25 Wyoming* W, 24-101924-25 Wyoming* W, 22-17 1925-26 at Wyoming* W, 22-181925-26 Wyoming* W, 27-231926-27 Wyoming* W, 29-281926-27 at Wyoming* L, 37-261927-28 Wyoming* L, 28-261927-28 Wyoming* L, 32-301927-28 at Wyoming* L, 39-281928-29 at Wyoming* W, 29-27 (2OT)1928-29 Wyoming* L, 57-311929-30 at Wyoming* L, 51-251929-30 Wyoming* L, 24-221930-31 Wyoming* W, 34-271930-31 at Wyoming* L, 42-381931-32 Wyoming* L, 37-271931-32 at Wyoming* L, 37-27

YEAR OPPONENT RESULT1932-33 at Wyoming* L, 43-241932-33 Wyoming* W, 38-231932-33 vs. Wyoming# L, 44-341933-34 Wyoming* L, 38-171933-34 at Wyoming* L, 42-271934-35 at Wyoming* W, 27-191934-35 Wyoming* L, 31-241935-36 Wyoming* W, 43-331935-36 at Wyoming* L, 32-311936-37 at Wyoming* W, 20-191936-37 Wyoming* L, 47-301940-41 at Wyoming L, 57-251940-41 Wyoming L, 56-441941-42 Wyoming L, 50-291944-45 at Wyoming L, 54-251944-45 Wyoming L, 50-251947-48 Wyoming L, 63-301947-48 at Wyoming L, 57-401951-52 at Wyoming L, 74-621951-52 Wyoming L, 72-441952-53 Wyoming L, 56-461953-54 Wyoming L, 72-531971-72 at Wyoming L, 86-641972-73 at Wyoming L, 82-671973-74 at Wyoming L, 83-741975-76 Wyoming L, 90-681976-77 at Wyoming L, 80-581985-86 at Wyoming L, 83-641995-96 at Wyoming L, 92-632005-06 at Wyoming L, 83-702009-10 vs. Wyoming@ L, 76-702010-11 Wyoming W, 67-532011-12 at Wyoming L, 75-56

* - Rocky Mountain Faculty game# - RMC East. Div. Playoff (Denver, Colo.)

@ - In Casper, Wyo.

5

6

FROM THE COVER

N ovember could not be a better time for a sports fan. With the NFL and college football rolling toward their

peak and the NBA season underway there are plenty of events to watch either on TV or in the stands. November also marks the start of college basketball season, and if you’re a Northern Colorado fan that means another chance to get reacquainted with one of the most exciting teams in the nation.

The Bears come into this season full of expe-rience after last year saw a young squad with just one senior take some lumps a year after the Bears’ Big Sky championship. A majority of the players were learning new roles and experienc-ing collegiate basketball for the first time.

The result, as might have been expected, was mixed as Northern Colorado finished the season with a 9-19 record and a 5-11 mark in the Big Sky.

There were plenty of times when the Bears showed their youth last year—they finished with the Big Sky’s highest turnover margin (-4.14) and lowest assist-to-turnover ratio (0.77)—but there were also plenty of flashes of brilliance that displayed just how much potential this young squad has.

For starters, coach B.J. Hill’s precocious Bears

finished as the top 3-point shooting team in the nation (44.4 percent), coming in ahead of sec-ond-place Indiana (43.1 percent), which began this season as the nation’s top-ranked team. And as can be expected from a team that shoots the ball so lethally from long range, Northern Colorado was one of the highest scoring teams in the land last year, too. Its 72.4 points per game ranked Northern Colorado fourth in the Big Sky and 68th in the country.

The high-octane offense is powered by the Bears’ continued emphasis on pushing the ball in transition at all times. Head coach B.J. Hill, now entering his third season at the helm of the program, values a fast-paced game and knows he has plenty of depth to play at a fever-pitch.

The Bears return almost 80 percent of their scoring from last season, and while they didn’t have anybody average more than 12 points per game, they return four players who notched at

least nine points per game last season. Tate Unruh (11.3 points per game), Tevin

Svihovec (10.8), Emmanuel Addo (9.6) and Paul Garnica (9.3) all return in 2012 after productive years in brand new roles last year.

Last season there was definitely an adjustment period for Northern Colorado players and fans as Hill’s players got used to playing big minutes at the NCAA Division I level. Unruh, a redshirt junior and last season’s leading scorer, said he feels like he and his teammates are much more comfortable in their roles this season.

“It helps that there isn’t as much of a learning curve for as many people this year,” Unruh says. “With everything we did this summer—[getting to go] to Australia—we were able to jump into it, and we feel pretty good with where we’re at.

“We’re just trying to utilize all of our weapons, and we’ll take what [opponents] give us. If our threes are falling, then we’ll keep shooting them. The reason we got so many good threes last year was because we played from the inside out, and if we keep doing that this year, it will be similar.”

After averaging more than 11 points per game last season, Unruh (Branson, Mo.) has cemented

By ZACH BONDNORTHERN COLORADO

ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS

CONTINUES ON PG 42

8

2012 NEWCOMERS

Our approach is hands on – whether in the classroom or in the field. It’s about building curiosity and gaining knowledge, then applying what we learn to all aspects of life. Our style of learning stimulates the mind, awakens our creativity and opens our eyes to the possibilities. It’s what drives our students, faculty and alumni to engage in the community and around the globe, doing work that matters and enriching the lives of those around them. We are bringing education to life.

A UNC education is lively at its core.

Exceptional characters developed here.Aisha JacksonJUNIOR MUSICAL THEATRE STUDENT

By ZACH BOND & SCOTT WARDNorthern Colorado Athletics Communications

N orthern Colorado coach B.J. Hill officially added three dynamic players to his second recruiting

class last spring when he welcomed in junior college-transfer Derrick Barden and Phoenix high school-standout Cody McDavis.

Both exciting additions signed National Letters of Intent and came to Greeley and Northern Colorado this summer.

They joined guard Greg Tucker, a two-time all-state selection from Missouri who agreed to join Hill's program last November.

"I think we've filled a lot of needs with these three," Hill said. "Greg is a real versatile guard, who's really efficient and has a great knack for scoring the ball. I think his athleticism is going to enable him to play right away at this level.

"And in Cody, you've got a guy with an ex-tremely high IQ, who brings a lot of talent and a lot of skill – he's been extremely well coached.

"In Derrick, you've got a guy who, I think, can be an instant impact. His JUCO experience and his versatility are really going to allow him the opportunity to see minutes right away. His rebounding and how he's been coached at the junior college level are things that we looked at and things that were really attractive to us. He brings a ton of accolades and, hopefully, those can transfer to this level."

Barden, a 6-foot-5, 215-pound wing from Detroit, Mich., will have two years to play at Northern Colorado after starring the past two seasons at Odessa (Texas) College. During his

In junior transfer Derrick Barden, and prep standouts Cody McDavis and Greg Tucker, coach B.J. Hill adds to an already stocked cupboard

CONTINUES ON PG 47

time with the Wranglers, he became one of the top junior college players in the country and one of the most celebrated members of a program known for producing winning basketball players.

McDavis, a 6-foot-8, 200-pound forward from Phoenix, Ariz., has the requisite athleticism,

length and skill to become a dominant player in the Big Sky Conference.

He averaged nearly a double-double at Pin-nacle and will guarantee a "Phoenix flavor" for Northern Colorado Basketball for the next four

Our approach is hands on – whether in the classroom or in the field. It’s about building curiosity and gaining knowledge, then applying what we learn to all aspects of life. Our style of learning stimulates the mind, awakens our creativity and opens our eyes to the possibilities. It’s what drives our students, faculty and alumni to engage in the community and around the globe, doing work that matters and enriching the lives of those around them. We are bringing education to life.

A UNC education is lively at its core.

Exceptional characters developed here.Aisha JacksonJUNIOR MUSICAL THEATRE STUDENT

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Hired: July 2012Family: Husband (Tom), five children, three grandchildren

KAY NORTON

the first and only business college in the country to earn the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

Also, during her presidency Northern Colorado’s Department of Athletics moved to Division I of the NCAA, and the Univer-sity Symphony Orchestra and Jazz band have both repeatedly been honored as the best in the nation.

A native of Oklahoma and graduate of Wellesley College and the University of Denver College of Law, President Norton says her college experience taught her how to think and question. She values the personal relationships and individualized experiences she gained, both inside and outside the classroom, and she says she is proud that Northern Colorado offers its students that same kind of personal experience.

“We are not a mega-school,” Norton said during her 2008 State of the University Address. “We are a place that makes education personal.”

Before coming to UNC, Norton practiced law for more than 20 years, in both gov-ernment and private business settings. She was appointed to the UNC Board of Trustees in 1995 and served as vice chair of the Board until 1998, when she joined the university’s staff as Vice President for University Affairs, General Counsel and Secretary to the Board of Trustees.

In 2002, Norton was appointed Northern Colorado’s first female president. She serves on the board of the American Asso-ciation of State Colleges and Universities, the AASCU Commission on Presidential Leadership and Global Competitiveness, the Systems Transformation Subcommit-tee of the Governor’s P-20 Council, and the boards of directors for StarTek Inc., Upstate Colorado Economic Development, the Greeley Downtown Development Authority, Getsmart Schools and the International Student Exchange Program. She is also a member of the University of Denver Issues Panel on immigration.

K ay Norton is the 12th president in the history of the University of Northern Colorado, and she has

lived in Greeley for more than three decades. She is a vocal advocate for public higher education and for building strong and sus-tainable university-community relationships. During her tenure as President, the university has received the prestigious Christa McAuliffe Award for Excellence in Teacher Preparation, and Monfort College of Business became

UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT n WELLESLEY COLLEGE; DENVER COLLEGE OF LAW

12

ADMINISTRATION

Luis RamirezMarket President 970-346-6971luis.ramirez@bbvacompass.com

Jeff JohnsonVice President970-346-6975Jeff.johnson@bbvacompass.com

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Hired: Aug. 23, 2004Family: Wife (Julie) and son (Jared)Alma mater: Kansas

JAY HINRICHSand indoor track and field programs for men and women, while securing membership for the Bears in the Big Sky Conference and other con-ferences for non-Big Sky sports. He has also led two facility renovation and expansion projects totaling $31 million.

Athletic and academic facility upgrades and renovations have been a staple under Hinrichs. Included in a 2005 student-fee funded $16 million facility expansion and renovation project were seating and scoreboard improvements to Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion, the recon-struction of historic Jackson Stadium and the addition of a state-of-the-art Field House for the baseball and women’s soccer programs, and the renovation of Butler-Hancock Sports Complex -- including new tennis courts, a field house, new lighted synthetic and natural-grass practice and intramural sports fields, the construction of a new indoor climate controlled Practice Center for men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball and a new east side Plaza Concourse and 2,500 seat expansion for Nottingham Field.

A $15 million project was then completed on Butler-Hancock Athletics Center in August 2010, expanding and improving the Home of the Bears into one of the best student-athlete facilities in the Big Sky. Included were significant upgrades to academic areas, a new and four-times larger strength and conditioning center, the new Dan Libera Athletic Training Center, 16 new team rooms and the first Northern Colorado Athletics Hall of Fame and Sports Museum.

The athletic exploits of the Northern Colorado student-athletes under Hinrichs are small when compared to their academic accomplishments. Northern Colorado has led the Big Sky Confer-ence in graduation rates each of the last four seasons, and women’s basketball, volleyball, swimming & diving and the men’s golf teams were recently honored by their respective national coaching organizations for team GPAs.

Challenged with growing the Department of Athletics’ budget to match its new standing in NCAA Division I, Hinrichs has grown the Bears’ annual budget to more than nine million

dollars. To that end, Northern Colorado Athletics fundraising has also undergone an expansion under Hinrichs -- it now includes components to Major Gifts, Special Events, sport-specific gifts, endowments, capital gifts to improve and maintain athletic facilities for the demands of tomorrow and the Blue and Gold annual fund.

Head coaching hires and multi-year retention packages under Hinrichs’ watch have included Lyndsey (Benson) Oates, who has led the Bears Volleyball to four Big Sky Championships in three seasons; B.J. Hill, who led the men’s basketball program to its first-ever NCAA Tournament in 2011; Jaime White, who led the women’s basketball program to its first-ever Big Sky Championship in 2011; and former softball coach Mark Montgomery, who, in his first year at Northern Colorado, was honored as 2011 Co-PCSC Coach of the Year.

Before coming to Greeley, Hinrichs worked at the University of Kansas and, before that, served 18 years in three senior-management positions for the Kansas City Royals, including Director of Stadium Operations, Assistant General Manager and Vice President for Ballpark Operations and Development.

Hinrichs has served as a board of directors mem-ber and Chairman of the Board of the Kansas and Western Missouri affiliate of the National Kidney Foundation and as a Board member of the Kansas City Corporate Challenge. He was also on the advisory board of Imaging Solutions Company in Wichita, Kansas, prior to his move to Northern Colorado, and he recently completed his third term on the Board of Directors of the United Way of Weld County and has been appointed to the organization’s Executive Council and was recently named to the NCAA Academic Cabinet.

Hinrichs earned a bachelor’s degree in personnel administration and psychology from the University of Kansas in 1980 before earning a master’s in business administration from KU in 1983.

He is married to the former Julie Miller of Cedar Falls, Iowa, and their son Jared is 14 and attends Greeley Northridge High School.

I n eight years as the Director of Athletics at the University of Northern Colorado, Jay Hinrichs has reshaped the historic and tradition-rich

profile and advanced the Department of Intercol-legiate Athletics into NCAA Division I membership for all 19 sport programs and athletic-support departments while instilling a Championship Culture at Northern Colorado and an eye for the future of the Bears.

Hinrichs was named the Director of Athletics on August 23, 2004. Since his hiring, Hinrichs has directed the NCAA reclassification and certification process to Division I, added the men’s cross country

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14

COACHING STAFF

Hired: April 19, 2010Age: 39Hometown: Cedar Falls, IowaFamily: Wife, Eliza; son, Nathan; daughter, AlanaTwitter: @coachbjhillWeb site: coachbjhill.com

COACHING EXPERIENCEYear Position School1997-98 Assistant coach North Iowa Area CC1998-99 Assistant coach Independence CC1999-00 Assistant coach South Dakota State2000-05 Assistant coach Coffeyville CC2005-06 Assistant coach Indian Hills CC2006-08 Assistant coach Northern Colorado2008-10 Assoc. head coach Northern Colorado2010-pres. Head coach Northern Colorado

B.J. HILL

B .J. Hill is entering his third season at the helm of the Northern Colorado men’s basketball program. After

guiding the Bears to their first Division NCAA Tournament in his first year as head coach and spending last season molding a promising, excit-ing group of young players into potential Big Sky stars, there is plenty of excitement surrounding Hill’s third season.

Already, Hill has coached four All-Big Sky per-formers while serving as the Bears’ head coach and coached five others while on the Northern Colorado coaching staff.

Hill and the rest off his staff will undoubtedly hope a few new players continue that pattern of All-Big Sky performances as the Bears head into 2012 with plenty of experience as just one big-time contributor (Mike Proctor) from last year’s squad isn’t back.

There’s also plenty of talent coming back as, behind Hill’s coaching, last season’s Bears put up the best three-point shooting percentage (44.4) in the nation -- ahead of traditional powers like Indiana (second at 43.1%) and Creighton (third at 42.4%).

The Bears’ three-point shooting prowess was led by sophomores Paul Garnica (48.5%) and Tate Unruh (46.2%), who first and second, re-spectively, in the Big Sky in three-point shooting percentage.

In Hill’s second year, the Bears finished with a 9-19 (5-11 Big Sky) mark but saw continued im-provement surrounding a team filled with young players. Aside from one senior (Mike Proctor) all of Hill’s contributing players at the end of last season were either freshmen or sophomores.

Hill, who served as Northern Colorado’s associate head men’s basketball coach during the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons and was a top Bears assistant for two years before that, was named Northern Colorado’s 18th head basketball coach on April 19, 2010.

In his first year on the job, Hill led North-ern Colorado to its first Big Sky Conference regular-season and postseason titles and its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

The Bears drew a No. 15 seed in the 2011 March Madness and faced second-seeded San Diego State in the tournament’s second round in Tucson, Ariz. Northern Colorado hung with the Aztecs into the second half before falling 68-50 at McKale Center.

Hill was honored as the 2011 Big Sky Confer-ence Coach of the Year and landed on numerous national coaching postseason award lists. His 21-11 mark in his first year at the helm was the most first-year wins of any of the previous 17 Northern Colorado head basketball coaches.

In Hill’s four years as a Bears assistant, Northern Colorado men’s basketball improved from a team that finished dead last in 2007 in the final NCAA RPI report to a team in 2010 that won 25 games (25-8) and set the school record for most victories in a single season.

Northern Colorado qualified for its first NCAA Division I postseason berth in 2009 (Big Sky Conference Tournament quarterfinals) before advancing in 2010 to the Big Sky Conference semifinals and then making an appearance in the quarterfinals of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT).

In Hill, who came to the Bears after a successful assistant coaching career at various stops in South Dakota, Kansas and Iowa, Northern Colorado secured a tireless recruiter, a passionate basketball man and a great ambassador for the University of Northern Colorado community.

With Hill’s promotion, Northern Colorado athletics affirmed its commitment to building a successful NCAA Division I basketball program that matches the level of the University of Northern Colorado’s academics and carrying on a tradition of winning on the court and in the classroom.

“We all think that continuity in a sports program is paramount to its success,” Northern Colorado athletic director Jay Hinrichs said short-ly after Hill’s introduction. “It was critical that we follow through with our multiyear succession plan to ensure stability throughout our men’s basketball program and not miss a beat in the development of our student-athletes.”

HEAD COACH n THIRD SEASON n GRAND VIEW (1996), S. DAKOTA ST. (2001)

15

Hill, 36, replaced Tad Boyle, now the head coach at Colorado.

“This is an unbelievable opportunity,” Hill said. “I want to thank Jay Hinrichs, President (Kay) Norton and everybody involved who believed in me. I also want to thank Tad Boyle. I’m extremely excited, and I’m looking forward to the opportunity to carry on what Coach (Boyle) started and carrying it on to the next level.

“I’m not going to be much different as the head coach as I have been as an assistant these past four years. I’m going to demand that our players play hard and try to get better every day. That’s all I know how to do. It’s worked so far, and I know it’s going to continue to work. We’re going to continue to strive to bring in the high-character and high-talent student-athletes that this program has been able to get in the past and will in the future, and that’s going to help us keep this basketball program going and take it to new levels.”

Prior to coming to Greeley, Hill worked as an assis-tant at Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa, Iowa, where he worked alongside coach Jeff Kidder and with former Bears standouts Jabril Banks and Robert Palacios.

Hill helped the Warriors to a 25-6 overall record and second-place finish in the Iowa Conference in 2006. Indian Hills was ranked as high as No. 3 nationally during the season and won seven more games than the previous year’s squad.

Before his time at Indian Hills, Hill coached five seasons at Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College, working with head coach Jay Herkelman. In Hill’s tenure, the Red Ravens won five consecutive Jayhawk East Conference titles and three straight Region VI championships and had a combined record of 146-33 (.816 winning percentage) and advanced to the 2002 NJCAA National Champion-ship game.

Hill spent the 1999-2000 season at South Dakota

State University, where he helped the Jackrabbits to the NCAA Division II national tournament and a 21-9 overall record. SDSU finished second place in the North Central Conference that season and played a game against Northern Colorado in Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion.

Hill was an assistant coach at Independence Com-munity College during the 1998-99 season, helping the team to a 22-10 record and second-place finish in the Jayhawk East Conference.

He started coaching during the 1997-98 season at North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) in Mason City, Iowa, where he was a standout player in the early 90s.

A native of Cedar Falls, Iowa, Hill played basketball at NIACC and at Grand View College in Des Moines, Iowa. He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Grand View in 1996 and his master’s degree in athletic administration from South Dakota State in 2001.

NORTHERN COLORADO’S ‘FIRST FAMILY OF BASKETBALL’

16

COACHING STAFF

RY MARTIN

WILL HENSLEY

LOGAN BEAN

Ryan Martin joined the Northern Colorado coaching staff in May 2010. He came to Greeley with an im-pressive resume after holding various assistant coaching positions in the Midwest. He most recently had

spent two years as a graduate assistant at UMKC after finishing up a standout playing career at Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College and later at Wichita State, where he was a member of the Shockers’ 2006 NCAA

Tournament Sweet 16 team. Martin played for Bears coach B.J. Hill from 2003 to 2005, when Hill was an assistant coach at Coffeyville. After just one season with the Bears he was selected in summer 2011 to

attend the prestigious Villa 6 Consortium, a one-of-a-kind career-development opportunity for the best and brightest of the emerging stars on the collegiate basketball landscape. Martin joined UMKC after

spending the 2007-08 season as an assistant coach at Coffeyville, where he helped lead the Ravens to a 24-9 overall record that year in southern Kansas, while assisting with practices and game-day coaching.

Will Hensley was hired as Northern Colorado’s director of men’s basketball operations in June 2012 and was promoted to assistant coach in November 2012. He previously was an assistant coach at Northern Arizona, which posted a 19-13 record in Hensley’s second season in 2010-11 and advanced to the Col-

legeInsider.com Tournament. In Flagstaff Hensley coached Shane Johannsen to an All-Big Sky honorable mention selection in 2010-11 after Johannsen finished with the best field-goal percentage in the nation

at 72.7 percent (ESPN.com). Hensley was a student assistant for three seasons at NAU after playing two seasons for the Lumberjacks before his playing career was shortened by injury. Hensley, who has worked myriad summer camps across the country, including camps at NAU, UCLA, Baylor, Texas A&M and for Five

Star Basketball, graduated from NAU with a degree in history and education in May 2009. He is married to the former Megan Wyatt, who played volleyball at NAU and is also a graduate of the school.

Logan Bean was promoted to assistant coach at Northern Colorado in June 2011 after he spent the previous season as the Bears’ director of operations, helping Northern Colorado to the 2010 Big Sky

regular-season and postseason championships as well as an apperance in the NCAA Tournament. Bean came to Greeley after spending the previous two seasons as a graduate assistant for coach Buzz Williams

and the Marquette Golden Eagles. Prior to that, Bean spent five years as a student manager for Nebraska‘s men’s basketball program, serving the final two years as head manager for former huskers coach Doc

Sadler. Bean has been to six NCAA Division I postseasons and has worked with and coached 11 profes-sional basketball players, including NBA First Round draft picks Jimmy Butler (Chicago Bulls) and Lazar

Hayward (Minnesota Timberwolves) and NBA player Wes Matthews. Bean graduated from Nebraska in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in communications studies and with a minor in sociology.

ASSISTANT COACH n THIRD SEASON n WICHITA STATE (2007)

ASSISTANT COACH n FIRST SEASON n NORTHERN ARIZONA (2009)

ASSISTANT COACH n THIRD SEASON n NEBRASKA (2008)

17

ANTHONY URRUTIA

ZACH MARGOLIS

RAWLEY KLINGSMITH

MENAN BERGMAN

Anthony Urrutia B.J. Hill’s program as a team manager prior to the 2010-11 season, and he was promoted to graduate assistant manager in summer 2011. Urrutia came to Northern Colorado after spending some time as a player at Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College, where he was team captain, and at Colorado Christian in Denver. Before that, Urrutia lettered three times in basketball at Monarch (Colo.) High and was honored as an all-conference and All-Boulder County player. Urrutia, from Lafayette, Colo., earned his communication degree in 2011 from Northern Colorado with a minor in sociology.

Zach Margolis joined the University of Northern Colorado Sports Performance staff in August 2011. He assists in the strength and conditioning of all the Bears’ student-athletes and works directly with men’s and women’s basketball. Margolis joined the Bears from the University of Texas, where he served as the graduate assistant strength coach the previous two years. He worked with the Longhorn football and volleyball teams throughout the season, and both teams advanced to the national title game. Prior to Texas, Margolis spent two seasons on staff at his alma mater, Northern Arizona.

Rawley Klingsmith joined the Northern Colorado Sports Medicine staff in 2004 and in January 2012 was promoted to Assistant Athletic Director for Human Performance - Head Athletic Trainer. Klingsmith serves as head men’s basketball athletic trainer in addition to assisting with all of Northern Colorado’s 19 intercollegiate sports, assisting with student athletic training instruction and coordinating physician/doctor involvement. Klingsmith graduated from the University of Northern Colorado in May of 2000 with a bachelor of arts degree in kinesiology/athletic training and then earned his master’s at Oregon in 2002.

Menan Bergman took over director duties of Northern Colorado Basketball’s Roundball Club during sum-mer 2012. The Roundball Club is vital to the success of the Bears, and Bergman’s addition is another step in the Bears’ transformation into a top-notch NCAA Division I program. Bergman, who’s lived in Greeley for 15 years and is a Colorado native, joined B.J. Hill’s program after previously working as a golf professional at Pelican Lakes, Highland Hills and City Park Nine golf courses. He graduated from Northern Colorado in 2000 with a degree in kinesiology and is married to Dianna Bergman.

GRADUATE ASSISTANT MANAGER n NORTHERN COLORADO (2011)

SPORTS PERFORMANCE n NORTHERN ARIZONA (2008); TEXAS (2011)

ATHLETIC TRAININGn NORTHERN COLORADO (2000); OREGON 2002

DIRECTOR OF ROUNDBALL CLUB n N. COLORADO (2000)

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1 2 3JAMES DAVIS JR.RS-Fr., Guard l 6-1, 170San Lorenzo, Calif.

TEVIN SVIHOVECRS-So., Guard l 6-2, 190Kingwood, Texas

EMMANUEL ADDORS-Jr., Forward l 6-7, 220Toronto, Ontario, Canada

DERRICK BARDENJr., Forward l 6-5, 215Detroit, Mich.

CODY McDAVISFr., Forward l 6-8, 200Phoenix, Ariz.

BRYCE DOUVIERSo., Forward l 6-6, 215Sedgwick, Kan.

XZAIVIER JAMESJr., Guard l 5-11, 175Greeley, Colo.

TATE UNRUHRS-Jr., Guard l 6-4, 175Branson, Mo.

GREG TUCKERFr., Guard l 6-2, 190Charleston, Mo.

PAUL GARNICAJr., Guard l 6-0, 160San Antonio, Texas

BRENDAN KEANESo., Forward l 6-9, 235Oakland, Calif.

DYLAN ELIASRS-Fr., Guard l 6-1, 175San Angelo, Texas

TIM HUSKISSONSo., Forward l 6-5, 190Willard, Mo.

CONNOR OSBORNERS-Jr., Center l 6-9, 270Littleton, Colo.

24

HOME OF THE BEARS

BUTLER-HANCOCKSPORTS PAVILION

NORTHERN COLORADO IS 281-185 HERE SINCE IT OPENED IN 1974

O n behalf of Northern Colorado Athletics and Director of Athletics Jay Hinrichs, welcome to

the “Home of the Bears.” Named for longtime Northern Colorado coaches

Pete Butler and John Hancock, Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion first opened as “Butler-Hancock Hall” on Feb. 4, 1975. The building’s name was changed to “Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion” during the 2004-05 school year and remains home for Northern Colorado’s men’s and women’s basketball programs, as well as its volleyball and wrestling teams.

The building has undergone impressive renova-tions during the last decade, including in 2006, when, as part of a $16 million dollar student-fee referendum, Butler-Hancock received a much needed makeover. New chairback seats were installed throughout, a new sound system and

message and scoreboard center were added, as were renovated restrooms, an on-site ticket center and improved entry points.

Butler-Hancock’s official seating capacity was originally 4,500, but the renovations in 2006-07 brought that down to 2,992, creating a much more intimate feeling for spectators.

Northern Colorado Men’s Basketball has expe-rienced a pretty sizeable homecourt advantage inside Butler-Hancock’s brick walls and are well over .500 at home since it opened in 1975.

That home winning tradition has continued since 2007, when the Bears began playing at the NCAA Division I level, too. After struggling in its inaugural season at Division I, Northern Colorado has strung together five winning seasons at home in the last six years, including two years ago, when the Bears finished 14-0 for just the third undefeat-

ed season in school history. The biggest “names” to play in Butler-Hancock

Sports Pavilion in the last decade include Oregon State (2006), San Diego State (2008) and New Mexico State (2011).

Butler-Hancock has been the site of numer-ous memorable events in its history, including the 2011 Big Sky Conference Men’s Basketball Championship, which was won by the Bears and broadcast nationally on Altitude (semifinal) and ESPN2 (final).

Butler-Hancock, the host of myriad NCAA regional tournaments, was also the site of the 1992, 1996 and 2001 NCAA Division II National Wrestling Championships, and in summer 2002, Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion hosted a men’s Olympic volleyball exhibition match between the United States and Korean national teams.

State Farm, Bloomington, IL1001058

Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.®

From one winning teamto another. We are alllooking forward toanother great season. GoBears!!

Larson Ins Agcy IncMark Larson, Agent4895 W 10th StreetGreeley, CO 80634Bus: 970-356-8700

Give it your best shot.

GoodLuckUNCBears

27

CLASS OF 1994L.C. Pete Butler - Coach/Administrator (1940-73) Rosemary Fri - Coach/Administrator (1963-05) Leonard Groom - Wrestling (1967-69)John Hancock - Coach/Administrator (1925-66) Tom Petroff - Baseball Coach (1971-85)Lou Piel - Softball/Basketball (1976-80) Greg Riddoch - Baseball (1965-67)Greeley Timothy - Multisports (1922-25)

CLASS OF 1995Tom Backus - Football/Wrestling (1934-39)Bob Blasi - Football Coach (1966-84)Elmo Cromer - Football/Basketball/Baseball/Track (1930s) Bob DeMeo - Baseball (1970-74)Barb Eaton - Tennis (1980-82)Jack LaBonde - Wrestling Coach (1966-80) Dan Libera - Athletic Trainer (1971-97)Len Lordino - Wrestling (1958-62)Dick Monfort - ContributorTony Rossi - Gymnastics Coach/Trainer (1949-83)

CLASS OF 1996Frank Carbajal - Baseball/Basketball (1958-61)Joe Drew - Football (1966-69) Sandra Elliott - Tennis (1983-86) Jack Flasche - Wrestling (1961-64) Mike Higgins - Basketball (1985-89) Don Meyer - Baseball/Basketball (1964-67) Buck Rollins - Football Coach (1967-85) George Sage - Baseball/Basketball (52-55);

Basketball Coach (63-69) Linda Witt - Swimming/Track/Basketball/Softball/Field

Hockey (1975-78) John Zurbrigen - Football (1969-71)/Contributor

CLASS OF 1997Lark Birdsong - Volleyball/Basketball/Tennis/Track

(1968-72)Don Govoni - Wrestling (1950-52) Roy Hardin - Football (1933-35)John Koehler - Baseball (1959-61) Dave Stalls - Football (1973-76)Carla Stearns - Volleyball/Softball/Basketball (1978-83)Bill Thomas - Track & Field (1979-83) Dr. James Wheeler - Team Physician (1958-93)

CLASS OF 1998Tom Benich - Track & Field Coach (1963-86)Merle Ogle - Tennis/Basketball (1927-30)Dr. Aaron Parkhurst - Team Physician (1971-99)Gloria Rodriguez - Softball/Basketball Coach (1969-77)Teresa Stratman - Swimming (1989-93)1978 Softball Team

CLASS OF 1999Duane Banks - Baseball/Basketball (1958-64)Mike Bennett - Track & Field (1989-92)Joe Klune - Wrestling (1942-43, 45-57)Judy McCreery-Chamberlin - Track (1978-80)Dean Schott - Gymnastics (1980-83)Mike Tomasini - FootballWrestling/Track (1964-67)1969 Football Team

CLASS OF 2000Dana (Cash) Ausec - Volleyball (1990-93)Jan Breckenridge - Softball (1976-79)Carolyxn Cody - Gymnastics Coach (1967-81)Kevin Jelden - Football (1979-83)Vic Nottingham - Tennis (1948-52)/ContributorFrank Slack - Multi-sports (1936-39)1968-69 Wrestling Team

CLASS OF 2001Kristy Jordan - Volleyball (1977-80) Robert Reed - Football/Basketball/Baseball (1936-40) Joe Strain - Baseball (1973-76)Joe Tennessen - Contributor Larry Wagner - Wrestling (1968-71)1983 Women’s Tennis Team

CLASS OF 2002Jim Alexander - Wrestling (1965-67)Linda Delk - Volleyball (1976-2002)Ben Dreith - Baseball/Basketball/Football (1946-50)Venus Jennings - Basketball/Softball (1975-78)Deb Ponis - Volleyball/Tennis (1993-97)Frank Wainright - Football (1987-90)1955 Baseball Team

CLASS OF 2003Stanley Benson - Swimming (1971-75)R.W. Eaks - Golf/Basketball (1971-75)Dr. Betty Everett - Women’s Athletics (1951-81)Lisa Jacobsen Loptien - Soccer (1985-88)J. Michael (Mike) Thompson - Track & Field (1986-90)1949 Baseball Team1993 Volleyball Team

CLASS OF 2004Tom Beck - Football (1993-96)Dennis Colson - Basketball/Track & Field/Baseball

(1963-68)Gerry Dattilio - Football (1972-75)Alexis Gardner - Softball (1976-79)Terry (Wenzinger) Goldwater - Women’s Swimming

(1990-94)Mike Rogers - Wrestling (1967-69)1974 Baseball Team

CLASS OF 2005Sharon Akiyama - Gymnastics (1973-76)Ernie Andrade - Baseball (1960-62)Derek Chaney - Basketball (1990-94)Don Cumley - Football/Track & Field/Billiards (1939-

41 & 46-48)Theo Holland - Basketball/Track & Field (1957-61)Corte McGuffey - Football (1996-99)Kim Schiemenz - Volleyball/Track & Field (1995-00)1978-79 Men’s Golf Team1981 Volleyball Team

CLASS OF 2006Irv Brown - Basketball/Baseball/Contributor (B.A. 1957)Joe Glenn - Football Coach (1987-99)Shelley (Lindstrom) Johnson - Basketball (1988-92)Dave Keller, Baseball/Basketball (1979-82)

Jim Lochner - Baseball (1959-62)Tatjana (Smith) Sanders - Volleyball (1993-95)Nancy (Weber) Sylvester -Track & Field (1994-97)1996 Football Team

CLASS OF 2007Karl Dodge - Track & Field (1988-93)Ed Dyer - Baseball (1961-64)Billy Holmes - Football (1994-97)Jim Lord - ContributorMandy Nilsen - Soccer (1998-01)Stormie Wells - Volleyball (1992-95)1997 Football Team

CLASS OF 2008-09Fritz Brennecke - Football/Baseball (1934-35)Jules Doubenmier - Faculty/Staff (1925-61)Pat Haggerty - Baseball/Basketball (1951)Gary Harper - Baseball (1961-63)Dr. Robert Heiny - Faculty/Staff (1967-present)Jim Hruska - Basketball (1956-60)Joe Lindahl - Faculty/Staff (1954-82)Rick Petri - Golf (1976-79)Jeff Potts - Golf (1977-81)*Aaron Smith - Football (1994-98)Andrea Wallace - Tennis (1991-94)Trish Williamson - Basketball (1987-91)1965-66 Men’s Basketball Team1992 Women’s Tennis Team

CLASS OF 2010Joe Bonacquista - Baseball (1962-64)Erin Deffenbaugh - Volleyball (2000-04)Jim Fallis - Director of Athletics (1993-04)Scott Gates - Wrestling (1988-92)Dirk Johnson - Football (1994-97)Lester Kroeger - Wrestling (1951-57)Loren Snyder - Football (1983-86)Melissa (Borell) Vaughn - Basketball (1999-03)Harry Wise - Baseball/Basketball/Football (1945-51)1963-64 Wrestling

CLASS OF 2011Jim Crider - Wrestling (1961-65)Reed Doughty - Football (2002-05)Vincent Jackson - Football/Basketball (2001-04)Joyce Jordahl - Volleyball (1996-99)Sabra Maas - Swimming & Diving (1993-96)Jay Valentine - Track & Field (1985-89)1952, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962

Baseball Teams

CLASS OF 2012Tom Barbour - SID/Contributor (1977-present)Teale (Goble) Hemphill - Basketball/Volleyball

(1999-02)Sharon Hoffman - Basketball/Softball (1971-75)Mike Leberknight - Wrestling (1989-93)Vance Lechman - Football (1986-89)*Bob Oliver - AD/Contributor (1982-92)1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981 Softball Teams * - Elected but not inducted

UNC HALL OF FAMELOCATED ON THE NORTHEAST SIDE OF BUTLER-HANCOCK ATHLETICS CENTER

THE NORTHERN COLORADO HALL OF

FAME BEGAN IN 1994, WITH EIGHT

INDIVIDUALS COMPRISING THE

INAUGURAL CLASS. NOW, IN ITS 20TH

YEAR, THE HALL HAS GROWN TO INCLUDE

128 INDIVIDUALS AND 30 TEAMS.

NOMINATIONS FOR INCLUSION IN THE UNC HALL OF FAME ARE ALWAYS ACCEPTED. FORMS ARE AVAILABLE AT

UNCBEARS.COM

MIKE HIGGINS

DON MEYER

29

AnonymousSteve and Teresa BakerTom and Kim Barbour

Byron and Chris BatemanMike and Judy Bond

Matt and Sonja BrucklacherMichael and Lindsey Bustamante

Dale and Julie ButcherJohn and Susan Cowart

MJ CrespinJosh and Karen Elliott

Dick and Anne FarrRandy and Roxanne FrancisTravis and Jennifer Gillmore

Bob HeinyJerry and Sandra Helgeson

Jay and Kelli HelzerRyan and Jessica Hicks

Brett and Julie HillEd and Rene Holloway

Steve Hoskins

Jeff and Michelle Johnson Keith and Debbie Johnson

Jeff and Susan KincaidCraig and Melanie Kingman

Lee and Karen KorinsSteve and Megan LaforestMark and Maureen Larson

Matt and Leona LarsonDoug and Julie Leafgren

Martin and Vicki LindJim and Janet ListenDan and Nancy Maus

Jamie MayDave and Heather McCleave

Mark and Nancy MeilahnKellen Miles and Alisha Dart

Robbie and Brook MinerDick MonfortBob Murphy

Randy and Chris MoserBud and Jessica Noffsinger

Tom and Kay NortonVic and Eddye Nottingham

Mike OakesJerry and Mary Jo Osborne

Norm and Katie PeercyAaron Prior

Luis and Shuree RamirezJohn and Angela SchmidtKipp and Michelle Sheets

Mike and Lori ShoopAndy and Angela SlaughterMike and Virginia Slaughter

Todd and Stacy SvihovecDon and Bettie StoneMike and Jill Trotter

Rob UehranPatrick and Nicole VarneyRandy and Nicole Watkins

Dan WheelerBruce and Laura White

John and Kathy Zurbrigen

In our short time at the NCAA Division I level our program has experienced a great deal of success, including championships on the court and tremendous accomplish-ments in the classroom. That success is attributed to the combined efforts of a committed program, University, and community toward our foundational goals which

remain:

n Recruit and graduate student-athletes who maintain a high level of character and represent you and the University Northern Colorado in the highest standards.n Winning Big Sky Conference championships

We need YOU to help us reach these goals year after year. By joining the Roundball Club you will be investing in a program on the rise and helping to improve the lives of our student-athletes . We look forward to the challenges that come with added success, but we need your support to keep this

program climing to even greater heights. For information on joining the team contact Menan Bergman at menan.bergman@unco.eduCOACH B.J. HILL

30

CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY

Northern Colorado Basketball, under the direction of Northern Colorado Hall of Fame coach George Sage, was one of the nation’s most successful NCAA Division II programs between 1963 and 1966. The Bears’ 1963-64 team (right) finished 18-8 and advanced to the NCAA

Southwest Regional in Beaumont, Texas. It featured Wellington Webb, who became Denver’s first African-American mayor in 1991 and served the city for three terms.

Northern Colorado’s 1988-89 team is considered one of the best squads in school history. It garnered numerous school records and finished the year with a No. 11 ranking in the final

NCAA Division II national poll. Toby Moser (31) and Mike Higgins (55) both played for the Bears that season and are found throughout the Northern Colorado Record book.

After serving as a Northern Colorado assistant for four seasons, coach B.J. Hill was handed the Bears’ head coaching reigns in April 2010 and took Northern Colorado and its fans on a memorable ride. The Bears, featuring Honorable Mention All-American Devon Beitzel (32), ended the year with a

remarkable 10-1 run and advanced to the Big Sky Conference Championship before earning a spot in their first NCAA Division I Tournament field.

31

1,000 POINT CLUB1. Mike Higgins (1985-89) 2,1122. Chuck Knostman (1981-85) 1,6643. Devon Beitzel (2006-11) 1,5684. Derek Chaney (1990-94) 1,4915. Sean Taibi (2004-08) 1,3636. Jim Hruska (1956-60) 1,3307. John McFarland (1994-97) 1,3268. Will Figures (2006-10) 1,2879. Henry Clausen (1966-69) 1,23510. Lovell Hooks (1971-75) 1,22811. Sean Nolen (2000-2005) 1,22612. Kirk Archibeque (2003-08) 1,17313. Dennis Colson (1965-68) 1,17114. Dwight Montgomery (1975-80) 1,07415. Antwine Williams (1996-98) 1,07216. R.W. Eaks (1971-75) 1,06217. Toby Moser (1986-90) 1,06018. Kevin Knudson (1998-03) 1,004* Emmanuel Addo 471

REBOUNDS1. Mike Higgins (1985-89) 9592. Robert Skinner (1976-80) 7673. Jim Hruska (1956-60) 7544. Toby Moser (1986-90) 6695. Mike Proctor (2008-12) 6586. Tom Kummer (1971-75) 6487. Robert Ruffin (1959-62) 6178. Kirk Archibeque (2003-08) 6109. Daryl Brumlee (1965-68) 59410. Henry Clausen (1966-69) 589* Emmanuel Addo 217

ASSISTS1. Sean Nolen (2000-05) 4272. Derek Chaney (1990-94) 3843. Matt Kline (2003-07) 3374. John Olander (1988-92) 3275. Carlos Martinez (1996-00) 3136. Troy Graefe (1983-85) 2997. Knute Peterson (1982-85) 2738. Scott Watson (1986-90) 2519. Will Figures (2006-10) 23110. Brian Simmons (1986-88) 222* Paul Garnica 116

BLOCKS1. Mike Higgins (1985-89) 3022. Ryan Adle (1996-99) 1583. Dave Mellick (1989-92) 1464. Jason Jacob (1993-97) 785. Dennis Jenkins (1984-85) 696. Todd Lane (1990-93) 667. Terrance Williams (1991-93) 608. David Britt (1997-99) 599. Kirk Archibeque (2003-08) 5310. Mike Proctor (2008-12) 53* Connor Osborne 30

STEALS1. Knute Peterson (1981-85) 1602. Devon Beitzel (2006-11) 1513. Antwine Williams (1996-98) 1344. Mike Higgins (1985-89) 131 Sean Nolen (2000-2005) 1316. Derek Chaney (1990-94) 1307. Erik Olson (2002-06) 1238. Tedd Sabus (1984-88) 1139. Kevin Knudson (1998-03) 10710. Carlos Martinez (1996-00) 106* Paul Garnica 64

FIELD GOALS MADE1. Mike Higgins (1985-89) 7872. Chuck Knotsman (1981-85) 6953. Robert Skinner (1976-80) 5394. John McFarland (1994-97) 5375. Lovell Hooks (1871-75) 5156. Henry Clausen (1966-69) 5137. Devon Beitzel (2006-11) 4998. Dwight Montgomery (1975-80) 4959. Derek Chaney (1990-94) 47910. Sean Taibi (2004-08) 407* Emmanuel Addo 166

3-POINTERS MADE1. Sean Taibi (2004-08) 2572. Devon Beitzel (2006-11) 2353. Sean Nolen (2000-05) 1894. Kevin Knudson (1998-03) 1885. Marvin Jones (1994-97) 1726. Derek Chaney (1990-94) 1637. Will Figures (2006-10) 1548. Carlos Martinez (1996-00) 1479. Brad Schick (1995-98) 13110. John Olander (1988-92) 130* Tate Unruh 75

FREE THROWS MADE1. Mike Higgins (1985-89) 5352. Jim Hruska (1956-60) 4203. Will Figures (2006-10) 3854. Derek Chaney (1990-94) 3705. Devon Beitzel (2006-11) 3356. Dennis Colson (1965-68) 3097. Sean Nolen (200-2005) 2958. Chuck Knostman (1981-85) 2749. Kirk Archibeque (2003-08) 27310. Knute Peterson (1981-85) 271* Emmanuel Addo 119

GAMES PLAYED1. Neal Kingman (2006-11) 1292. Chris Kaba (2006-11) 121 Will Figures (2006-10) 1214. Taylor Montgomery (2007-11) 1205. Mike Proctor 1186. Devon Beitzel (2006-11) 115 John Olander (1988-92) 1158. Mike Higgins (1985-89) 114 Matt Kline (2003-07) 114 Sean Nolen (200-05) 114* Emmanuel Addo/Paul Garnica 60

NCAA Division I players (entire careers) in bold* - denotes active leader

CAREER RECORDSA GLANCE AT SOME OF THE BEST PLAYERS IN NORTHERN COLORADO HISTORY

32

CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY

GAME RECORDSSOME OF THE BEST SINGLE-GAME EFFORTS IN THE BEARS’ DIVISION I HISTORYPOINTS SCORED1. 34 Svihovec, Tevin Cal Poly 2/18/122. 33 Figures, Will at Weber State 2/13/103. 32 Beitzel, Devon Sac. State 03/02/11 32 Beitzel, Devon No. Arizona 12/29/085. 31 Beitzel, Devon at Montana St. 02/10/116. 30 Svihovec, Tevin at Idaho State 1/26/127. 29 Beitzel, Devon at Weber State 01/29/11 29 Beitzel, Devon at Colo. St. 12/20/10 29 Birden, Dwayne E. Washington 1/04/07 29 Figures, Will at Montana St. 2/21/07

FIELD GOALS1. 12 Beitzel, Devon at San Jose St. 12/20/082. 11 Beitzel, Devon Sac. State 03/02/11 11 Beitzel, Devon No. Arizona 12/29/08 11 Birden, Dwayne E. Washington 1/04/07 11 Figures, Will at Montana St. 2/21/07 11 Svihovec, Tevin at Idaho State 1/26/12 11 Svihovec, Tevin Cal Poly 2/18/128. 10 Archibeque, Kirk at E. Washington 1/20/07

10 Beitzel, Devon at Colo. St. 12/20/10 10 Taibi, Sean Northern Arizona 1/11/07 10 Unruh, Tate at Marquette 12/17/11

3-POINTERS1. 7 Figures, Will at Montana St. 2/21/07 7 Taibi, Sean Denver 12/10/063. 6 10 players

FREE THROWS1. 16 Beitzel, Devon at Idaho St. 02/28/112. 15 Beitzel, Devon vs Southern 12/23/083. 14 Beitzel, Devon E. Washington 02/03/11 14 Beitzel, Devon Montana 03/09/115. 12 Beitzel, Devon at Denver 12/18/10 12 Figures, Will at North Dakota 11/27/097. 11 Beitzel, Devon at Montana St. 03/01/08 11 Figures, Will No. Arizona 2/7/109. 10 15 players

REBOUNDS1. 17 Proctor, Mike at No. Arizona 1/30/122. 14 Palacios, Robert Colo. State 12/01/073. 13 Montgomery, Taylor J. & Wales 11/27/07

13 Proctor, Mike No. Arizona 12/31/11 13 Proctor, Mike Montana St. 2/11/126. 12 Mason, Jefferson Portland St. 02/20/08 12 Montgomery, Taylor vs San Diego St. 03/17/11

12 Montgomery, Taylor at Denver 12/18/10

12 Palacios, Robert Montana St. 01/24/08 12 Proctor, Mike at Creighton 12/13/08

ASSISTS1. 8 Garnica, Paul Jo. &Wales 12/3/11 8 Kline, Matt Denver 12/10/06 8 Lloyd, Elliott at New Mexico St. 02/19/11 8 Lloyd, Elliott Sacramento St. 03/02/11 8 Pngtkpls, T at Portland St. 01/18/07 8 Pngtkpls, T at Sacramento St. 1/31/077. 7 Lloyd, Elliott at Marquette 12/17/11 7 Pena, John No. Arizona 12/29/08 7 Pngtkpls, T No. Arizona 1/11/07 7 Pngtkpls, T Portland St. 1/6/07 7 Svihovec, Tevin at E.Washington 2/15/12

STEALS1. 7 Palacios, Robert Jo. &Wales 11/27/072. 5 Beitzel, Devon vs Wyoming 12/12/09 5 Bonner, Yahosh vs Southern Utah 11/15/09 5 Montgomery, Taylor Tabor College 11/12/10

5 Mason, Jefferson at Montana 2/24/07 5 Pena, John No. Arizona 12/29/087. 4 13 players

BLOCKS1. 4 Proctor, Mike No. Arizona 2/7/102. 3 Archibeque, Kirk Sac. State 12/30/06 3 Archibeque, Kirk at Montana 2/24/07 3 Kaba, Chris at Idaho St. 2/28/11 3 Osborne, Connor New Mexico St. 11/12/11 3 Osborne, Connor Jo. & Wales 12/3/11 3 Osborne, Connor Jo. & Wales 2/23/10 3 Proctor, Mike Montana St. 1/31/109. 2 52 players

POINTS SCORED (TEAM)1. 127 Southwest 11/10/122. 105 Texas State 11/29/083. 104 vs VMI 11/09/074. 101 vs McNeese State 11/13/095. 98 Johnson & Wales 12/3/116. 95 Louisiana Monroe 12/16/097. 94 at Idaho State 1/26/128. 93 Tabor College 11/12/10 93 San Jose State 12/21/0910. 91 Sacramento State 01/13/08 91 at Montana State 03/01/08 91 UC-Colorado Springs 11/17/06

3-POINTERS (TEAM)1. 18 San Jose State 12/21/092. 16 at Eastern Washington 01/17/083. 14 UC-Colorado Springs 11/17/064. 13 Northern Arizona 01/31/08 13 at UNI 11/20/116. 12 Sacramento State 01/13/08 12 at Portland State 02/19/09 12 at Illinois 12/12/109. 11 14 times

FREE THROWS (TEAM)1. 35 at Montana State 03/01/082. 32 Northern Arizona 03/08/11 32 Texas State 11/29/084. 31 vs VMI 11/09/07 31 vs Southern 12/23/086. 29 at Idaho State 02/28/11 29 Montana State 1/31/10 29 at Denver 12/18/109. 28 Eastern Washington 02/03/11 28 Weber State 1/7/10

MOST ASSISTS (TEAM)1. 33 Southwest 11/10/122. 24 vs VMI 11/09/073. 22 Johnson & Wales 2/23/104. 21 vs McNeese State 11/13/09 21 UC-Colorado Springs 11/17/066. 20 Five times

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FROM THE COVER

his reputation as one of the purest shooters not only in the Big Sky, but also in the country. He finished last year as the Big Sky’s second-leading 3-point shooter (46.2 percent) and he also shot 48.1 percent from the field.

He also was a near-lock at the free-throw stripe, missing just one freebie all season on his way to a 97.4 percent season from the stripe.

That’s all led to the 6-4 guard, one of Missouri’s best prep shooters ever, earning mention earlier this month as one of the nation’s top-50 shooters by CBS Sports.

The only player ahead of Unruh last year when it came to three-point shooting was Garnica, a 6-foot guard out of San Antonio, Texas, who led the Big Sky with 48.5 percent shooting from behind the arc.

Any team with aspirations as big as Northern Colorado’s need an impact player who can come off the bench and provide a spark. With his quick release, fast first step and unlimited confidence Garnica looks like the part.

“I think going into last year, both Tate and Paul knew they could really shoot it, and they thought that was how they could help our team,” Northern Colorado coach B.J. Hill says, “and I think they’re both understanding now that there are so many other ways they can impact the game. They both need to do a great job of taking care of the basketball defending and helping us rebound.

“It’s obvious that they can shoot—they both can score and are very talented on the offensive end—but they are kind of a microcosm of our whole team. They need to lead that transforma-tion of a bunch of guys that think they can just outscore teams to a bunch of guys that want to make defense and rebounding their identity.”

The other important cog within the Bears’ three-headed monster at the guard position is Svihovec. The Kingwood, Texas, native is coming off a 2011-12 redshirt-freshman campaign that was nothing short of spectacular. He finished as the team’s second-leading scorer and scored a Northern Colorado NCAA Division I-record 34 points in a February victory against Cal Poly.

Svihovec was a true-freshman two seasons ago, during the Bears’ magical 2010-11 run, and Hill has said previously that if not for a preseason foot injury Svihovec would have been a key

bench player that season.He definitely showed why last year as he

compiled a campaign on par with any first-year player in the country.

On the outside the Bears will also have sopho-more Tim Huskisson along the wing as another reliable scoring option. One of the best athletes in the Big Sky, Huskisson (Willard, Mo.) worked nonstop this offseason on his 3-point shooting and he saw immediate dividends with a 4-for-4 effort from behind the arc in the Bears’ 127-81 victory against Southwest earlier this month.

Of course, all of these potential fireworks from deep wouldn’t be possible without the help of an inside game that opponents respected.

Fortunately for Hill and the rest of his staff, the Bears look to have that issue handled too, with redshirt-juniors Connor Osborne and Emmanuel Addo returning to the paint this year and joining up with junior-college transfer Derrick Barden, who figures to be a starter all season.

“Without the big men’s presence, it’s hard for us to even get those looks from outside,” Hill says. “We get and make a lot of threes because our big guys are good enough to draw a second defender, and they’re very unselfish. I think all of our big guys are guys that will draw a second defender. When they get the ball one-on-one in the post, I don’t think it’s going to be one-on-one for very long.”

Osborne, a 6-10 center from Littleton’s Colum-bine High School, averaged 7.6 points per game last season and is the Bears’ leading returning rebounder (4.6). Addo comes into the season as the Bears’ active leader in several career catego-ries, including points scored, total rebounds and free throws made.

Addo averaged 9.6 points and 2.7 rebounds per game coming off the bench last season and might be in that role again this year because of Barden, a 6-5 forward from Detroit by way of Odessa Junior College, where he spent two years terrorizing opponents with relentless play and hard-nose rebounding.

Barden was just the second player in Odessa history to score more than 1,000 career points and grab more than 500 rebounds. The only oth-er player to do that at Odessa was Larry Johnson, who went on to win a national championship at

CONTINUES FROM PG 6

REDSHIRT-JUNIOR CONNOR OSBORNE

43

UNLV in 1990 and became the No. 1 overall pick in the 1991 NBA Draft.

He averaged 20 points and 12 rebounds per game last season in Texas and finished 11th in the country in scoring and fourth in rebounding. Northern Colorado was one of the top rebound-ing teams in the country this season, and Barden will help replace the void left by graduated-se-nior Mike Proctor’s departure.

For all that, though, if the Bears are to take the next step toward their goal of a second Big Sky title, their defense will have to be much improved in 2012-13. Last season the Bears were last in the conference in scoring defense after allowing opponents 75 points per game.

“Most of these guys are in their second year in our system, and I think there is a better understanding of what they need to do every time down in our half-court defense for us to be successful,” Hill says. “It’s really just doing their job and being disciplined—not gambling, not wavering mentally to where they get out of po-sition, and just being disciplined both physically and mentally. For us to be successful that’s going to have to happen.”

“Our talking is the main thing that needs to get better because that puts you in position,” Garnica says. “If you’re in position, you’re not going to give up layups. If you’re not talking—not in position—you’re going to give up layups. It just starts off with practice, going hard every day.”

It’s clear there is plenty of reason to get excited about this year’s squad, but the biggest reason for optimism is this: with all the talent returning on Hill’s roster there’s not one senior in the program.

With so much leadership and production coming from younger players it’s hard not to daydream a little and think back to the 2009-10 season, when Northern Colorado ripped through its schedule and finished with a school-record 25-8 finish. There were two seniors on that roster (Yahosh Bonner and Will Figures), but the Bears counted heavily on a quartet of juniors that would later lead the program to its first NCAA Tournament berth a year later.

Whether or not this year’s team can achieve the lofty heights of its predecessors remains to be seen but the expectations are there.

Despite finishing tied for seventh in the Big Sky Conference last year the Bears were picked to

finish third in this year’s preseason coaches poll. That speaks to the Bears’ talent, but it also is a reminder to how thing could have turned out differently for the Bears last season.

Northern Colorado lost four Big Sky games last year by five points or fewer, including suffering a 99-94 double-overtime loss at Idaho State. Teams with as much inexperience as Northern Colorado had last season will sometimes strug-gle to do the little things necessary to win some close games, but college coaches often say the best thing about young, raw players is that they eventually become experienced players. And with so much of the roster returning this year, the Bears are likely to come away victorious in some of those close games.

If the Bears’ season-opener against Southwest is any indication as to the growth and maturity of this team, it looks like Northern Colorado fans are in for a fun year.

The Bears offense put together a record-setting day against the Mustangs, scoring the most points (127) by a Northern Colorado squad since the Bears joined NCAA Division I and the sec-ond-most points in any game in school history.

That’s a good start to a season, regardless of the strength of the opponent, but the Bears know things will get much tougher from here on out. Their home game against Wyoming on Nov. 21 is just one of three Northern Colorado home games before the calendar turns to 2013.

“It’s tough,” Hill says. “We are going to be on the road, and it should build team togetherness. That’s a positive you can take away from it. But I don’t know if I’ve been a part of a team that fac-es a bigger mental challenge than what they’re about to embark on.

“It’s a good thing because, to me, playing on the road is all about [building] mental toughness and what a greater test than the one that is right in front of us to help us for further down the road toward the end of the season.”

With so much firepower at their disposal and so much opportunity for success this sea-son—most consider the Big Sky Conference a wide-open race in 2012-13—it seems that Hill’s squad and the fans that follow it are in for an exciting ride this year. Points will be aplenty for the Bears, and Hill and his program hope wins follow suit. REDSHIRT-SOPHOMORE TEVIN SVIHOVEC

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47

North Colorado Sportsmedicine at North Colorado Medical Center offers comprehensive diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation care for injured athletes of all ages and skill levels. The staff at North Colorado Sportsmedicine also offer injury prevention and performance enhancement training using the Frappier Acceleration Sports Training program, designed to make athletes faster and stronger while reducing the risk of injury. This performance enhancement program features state-of-the-art motion analysis software used to improve skills.

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four years, after Mike Proctor (Desert Vista) graduates from Northern Colorado last May.

"We wanted to maintain a presence down there (in Phoenix), if we could," Hill said. "I think Cody is going to be a heck of a player and represent us well in that area. He's a player and a person who has a lot of respect amongst the high school coaches down there, so it's going to definitely help us.

McDavis finished his high school career last spring averaging around 13 points and nine rebounds per game, and he helped lead Pinnacle to more than 30 wins and a deep run in Arizona’s 2012 high school state playoffs.

Barden is just the second player in Odessa College history to score more than 1,000 career points and grab more than 500 rebounds. The only other to put up those kinds of numbers at Odessa was Larry Johnson, who went on to win a national title at UNLV in 1990 and become the top overall pick in the 1991 NBA Draft.

In his second year with the Wranglers, Barden averaged 20 points and 12 rebounds per game and finished 11th in the country in scoring and fourth in rebounding. Northern Colorado was one of the top rebounding teams in the country last season, and Barden will help replace the void left by Proctor's departure (6.8 RPG).

Barden will bring plenty of tenacity to the offensive glass for the Bears after leading the nation in offensive rebounds at Odessa (5.0 RPG), and, as a freshman, leading the National Junior College Athletic Association with 12.1 rebounds per game.

His outstanding numbers brought Barden plenty of national accolades. He was named to last year's NJCAA All-America Third Team, and he was twice honored as the NJCAA National Player of the Week and earned a spot on the prestigious All-Region 5 First Team.

"He plays with a high motor," Hill said, "and he has to because he's been a guy who's been forced to work inside for his high school and junior college career to this point. But he's done well to this point. He's one of the top rebounders in the country the last two years, at the junior college level.

"He's proven he can play inside and he can do some things away from the basket, too. He's able to shoot the ball, his athleticism allows him to get by defenders and cause a second defender to rotate to him. I'm excited about his versatility. With what we do offensively and the motion [offense] we try to run, I think he can be a handful for people."

McDavis possesses a formidable post game and can step out knock down a jumper, too. Perhaps his best quality though is his ability to finish strong at and above the rim.

His explosiveness and determination will prove valuable for the Bears, and Hill says McDavis' game might remind Northern Colorado Basket-ball fans of former star Taylor Montgomery.

McDavis, who graduated last spring with a nearly flawless grade-point average (3.8), chose the Bears over offers from UC Davis, UC Riverside and Cal State Northridge, among others.

"We'll see when they all get here," Hill said last summer. "We'll see how much of an impact they'll be able to make for this program. I learned a long time ago that I'm not very good at fortune telling with that kind of thing, but the biggest thing is mental maturity and their ability to play at the speed of the game at this level.

"[Their] impact will be up to them. I have high expectations for them, and I'm pleased with this class, both in the talent level and with the type of character we want to build this program on."

Tucker committed to Hill and Northern Col-orado earlier in the recruiting season, and Hill compares him to current Bears redshirt-fresh-man Tevin Svihovec and past All-Big Sky First Teamer Will Figures.

Hill, working off a tip from a friend who used to coach in the Big Sky, first started recruiting Tucker during a trip to St. Louis in July but didn't get to watch him play much because of a hurt ankle.

A subsequent trip to Missouri, though, resulted in the beginning of a great relationship. Hill said he liked what he saw from Tucker on the court but really got interested after sitting down with him for a one-on-conversation.

"I sat down with him for about an hour and a half and liked him even more," Hill said. "Then I

went to his house and met his mom and loved the family and what they were about and thought he would fit in perfectly with what we're trying to do. I think he's a great addition to our program.

"He's a strong, athletic kid, who I think can bring a lot to us. We lost Mike [Proctor], but we're still pretty deep in our frontcourt, so we decided to go with another guard in this class. We'll just have to get a big in next year's class."

Tucker led Charleston last spring to its 11th Missouri state championship and scored 27 points in the title game against Hogan Prep. He averaged more than 20 points and about four rebounds per game for the Blue Jays and helped them to a 31-2 finish this season.

He was rewarded with all-league, all-district and all-state honors, giving him two All-Mis-souri picks, after he earned a Class 3 First Team selection in 2011 season as a junior and joined current Northern Colorado sophomore Tim Huskisson, who was a 2011 MBCA Class 4 First Team selection for Willard High School.

Toss in redshirt-freshman Tate Unruh (Branson, Mo.), and the Bears will suit up three players next season who prepped in the Show-Me State.

"I don't know what is," Hill said, "it's kind of become a weird deal. Southern Missouri all of a sudden has become a hotbed for us. All three are great kids -- they have great character -- and are really good players. They are all great addi-tions to what we're trying to get done here."

CONTINUES FROM PG 8 "[Their] impact will be up to them. I have high expectations for them,

and I'm pleased with this class, both in the

talent level and with the type of character we want to build this program on."

48

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