Pokes basketball team begins practices

Posted 10/5/21

The Wyoming Cowboys men’s basketball team officially opened the season on Thursday with the first practice of the season. When the team convened at the Arena-Auditorium last week, the Pokes …

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Pokes basketball team begins practices

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The Wyoming Cowboys men’s basketball team officially opened the season on Thursday with the first practice of the season. When the team convened at the Arena-Auditorium last week, the Pokes returned nine players from last season’s team with that group being joined by six newcomers.

The University of Wyoming welcomes back 68% of their scoring from last season. The Pokes also welcome back 80% of rebounds from last season’s squad that went 14-11 overall.

The Cowboys feature four returners who averaged over nine points per game. Hunter Maldonado leads the way, averaging 12.5 points per game last season. Graham Ike added 11.2 points per game playing in 12 contests in the final stretch of the season.

Xavier DuSell, who ranked sixth amongst freshmen in the nation with 57 3-pointers added 9.7 points per game. Kenny Foster added 9.1 points per game while missing time with an injury.

The Pokes also bring back Drake Jeffries, who ranked second on the team in 3-pointers with 52 on the season, as he added 7.4 points per game. Veteran Hunter Thompson added seven points per game and 3.8 rebounds, while hitting 39 3-pointers. Jeremiah Oden had a strong first season and then a great summer, UW basketball officials say. He added four points per game in 23 contests with 11 starts.

Eoin Nelson missed nearly all of conference play but added 3.1 points and 3.1 rebounds. John Grigsby appeared in three games off the bench for the Pokes.

The group of returners for the Pokes is strong, according to the team. Of the nine players, seven of those players started at least four games. That group played at least 14 minutes per game creating a veteran group in UW head coach Jeff Linder’s second season.

The Pokes were the fifth-youngest team in the nation in 2020-21. But Wyoming still led the conference in scoring and 3-pointers. The group of nine Cowboys returning combined for 194 threes last season. That group also shot 36% from behind the arc.

“Because of our lack of bodies last season, we were not able to do a lot of things we normally do in a practice setting,” Linder said. “Over the practices we had in the fall and summer the reps we got five-on-five really made up for lost time last season. The growth we made in practice over the last few months will really pay off on the defensive end of the floor.”

As for Maldonado, he said he’s glad to have such a large group of players back for the 2021-22 campaign.

“It really helps with the tempo of practice with guys not having to learn so much of the system,” he said. “We are coming in knowing what to do and get our habits right with that making practice look like a real game.”

The Pokes open the season at the Arena-Auditorium in Laramie on Wednesday, Nov. 10, when they’ll face the University of Detroit Mercy. Another home match against the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff follows on Sunday, Nov. 14.

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