Dinos Hoops News Editor - Wayne Thomas

Shooting Camps From a Pro

Sun, 13 May 2012 09:28:24 -0600

Love Brings Passion for Helping Players Improve

Every year Dinos shooting coach Dave Love revamps the clinics he runs across the country to add new teaching points and new drills. Coach Love will be offering his newest clinic at the UofC Red Gym on May 27th from 1:30pm to 4:30pm. This clinic is open to all basketball players, boys and girls, 11 years old or older for a price of $49.95. In this clinic Coach Love will take the participants through their entire body and show the habits needed to shoot effectively. Participants will also learn simple drills that they can do on their own to improve their technique. Stories will also be shared about some of the NBA players that Coach Love has worked with and the habits those players worked to improve. To sign up for this clinic you can visit Coach Love’s website www.theloveofthegame.com or simply click this LINK. Space will be limited so sign up early.

Coach Love will also be offering his first summer camp at the UofC this summer. This weekend long camp will coincide with the Dinos Battle at the Border tournament, and participants will receive passes to the games of this tournament. This one-of-a-kind clinic will use repetition, drills and classroom time to educate young players about proper shooting technique, plus some drills they can use to improve their habits. With Dino players and coaches acting as assistant coach campers will go through shooting technique, drills and game situations to learn how to shoot the ball like a pro.  Dave Love leads this intensive two day shooting clinic for experienced basketball players ages 12 and over. Coach Love has been the University of Calgary shooting coach for seven seasons and has run shooting clinics across Canada for 10 years. In addition Coach Love has been a shooting consultant for the Phoenix Suns and the Oklahoma City Thunder, working with NBA players like Grant Hill, Louis Amundson, Ryan Reid and DeShawn Stevenson. To sign up for this summer camp on August 11th and 12th from 2pm-9pm (ages 12+, tournament pass included) visit the UofC Summer Camp page HERE.

Lastly, the Dinos coaching staff is excited to offer a small number of intern positions for the upcoming season. The duties of this volunteer experience will include assisting the coaching staff before and during practice with player workouts. The successful applicants will be expected to be available 2-3 times a week between the hours of 2pm and 6pm on a consistent basis. Understanding will be given to other work schedules, but some measure of consistency will be needed in order to build successful relationships. If you have interest in developing your coaching resume please contact Shooting Coach Dave Love at dave.love@theloveofthegame.com.

Notes ...

• Best of luck to another of the Bekkering basketball family, Janelle, in the final 16as she tries out for a spot on Canada’s National Team, which is attempting to qualify for the London Olympics in a FIBA World Qualifier in Turkey in late June. Janelle, the youngest of the talented off-spring to play high level ‘ball, completed her degree at Gonzaga (Spokane), then played pro this year, firstly in Spain, then in The Netherlands at Lekdetec (very near her 2 brothers, Ross and Henry, in Nijmegen).

• Some real activity in coaching ranks across the CIS, with the U of A’s Greg Francis returning to Ontario (going to Waterloo), where he has family and basketball roots, after just 3 years in Edmonton. Peter Guarasci, and assistant with Francis, has just recently been hired as the new Head man at UBC-Okanagan, so it won’t be him for the Bears. Matt Skinn, of course, is getting down to business in his new post as the Head Men’s Coach at his alma mater, Cape Breton, after a successful head coaching debut with 4 seasons with the Women’s team at St. FX. UC sources tell us they are close to a decision on their new Women’s Coach to replace Shawnee Harle, who resigned this spring after 18 seasons with the Lady Dinos.

• Isaiah James, a 6-7 U.S. import forward, who was a standout in his single season (2010-11) at Brandon, averaging 6 rebounds, 8 points, and 1.8 blocks, will return to the Bobcat fold this fall to play for Coach Gil Cheung. Other teams very active in recruiting successes announced include Thompson Rivers, Fraser Valley, and Trinity Western. The Calgary Dinos are still waiting on a couple of key signings before they are able to finalize any additions beyond rookies Dallas Karch, 6-7, (Henry Wisewood, Calgary) , Chestermere (AB) guard Jasdeep Gill, a 6-6 ‘facilitator’, according to Coach Vanhooren, and Matt Lighterwood, a 6-7 power forward from Vancouver.

• In other Dinos news, the Athletic Department is gearing up for a big fund-raising and tribute dinner to be held in honour of long-time Sports Information Director, Jack Neumann, who is officially retiring this summer. Neumann, one of the CIS’ most respected SID’s and a man who truly bled Dinos blood for many many years, will be missed on campus, and the event should attract a big gathering from across the sports spectrum at UC. Great work on the ‘Jack’ cartoon, and we’ll have much more on this later. Tickets are now on sale for $150 each or $1,200 per table of eight. For more information on the event, to purchase tickets, or to donate to the Jack Neumann Sports Information Endowment, please visit www.goDINOS.com/Jack.

Cape Breton Signs Skinn as New Coach

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 07:48:06 -0600

Former Dinos Assistant Moves ‘Back Home’

Matt Skinn spent 5 years as a player at Cape Breton University , and he’s returning to the Sydney, NS campus as the new Head Coach of the Capers, as announced today by CBU Athletic Director, John Ryan. Skinn, who was an Academic All-Canadian at CBU, has been the Head Coach of the Women’s program at rival St. FX for the past 4 seasons, and, before that, was an Assistant Coach with the University of Calgary Dinos, under Coach Dan Vanhooren for 4 years, while completing a Master’s degree in Sport Science.

At St. FX, Skinn brought competitiveness to a program that had previously struggled, and his AUS record over the 4 years was 51-29 (57%). The X-Women went to the CIS Nationals in 2010-11 for only the 2nd time in the program’s history. At the prospect of returning to Cape Breton, Skinn said, “ I’m thrilled to go back to coach at the school where I was so proud to play. I intend to put the same kind of pride and enthusiasm into my coaching.” He replaces Interim Coach Thom Gillespie, who took over just as the 2011-12 season was about to start. Gillespie guided CBU to an 11-9 record in AUS play, and an eventual 1st round playoff exit at the hands of St. FX.

Speaking of his time in Antigonish, Skinn said, “I really enjoyed my 4 years with St. FX, and I’m very thankful for the opportunity offered to me by (Athletic Director) Leo MacPherson, who took me on in my first head coaching role. I know it’s going to feel different when we go to X for the first time next fall.” “I’m also grateful for the chance I got as an Assistant with the Dinos. Dan Vanhooren gave me lots of responsibility, and I learned a lot in my time with UC.” The 1st order of business will be to “ensure we complete our recruiting and get an outstanding class for this fall”, said Skinn.

Correction on Dave Smart - British B-Ball article

Sorry , we got a bad link to the Monday story on Carleton Ravens’ Coach Dave Smart’s appointment as coach of the Under 20 Men’s Team for British Basketball beginning this summer. Here is the correct link - Smart Signs With British Basketball

Smart was announced as the new head man for this key development squad by Britain’s basketball governing body on the weekend, and the groundwork for this intriguing move was done by University of Calgary Athletic Director Ron Wuotila in his role as GB’s High Performance Manager .

Wuotila now has secured the talents of Canadian University Basketball’s 2 most successful CIS Men’s coaches for Britain’s basketball program, with Victoria’s Ken Shields set to continue his work with the British Women’s Team as they prepare for the London 2012 Olympics.

Notes ...

• The Nanaimo Daily News reports the appointment of former UVic and SFU player, Matt Kuzminski, as the new Head Coach of the Vancouver Island Univ. Mariners of the B.C. Colleges League. VIU has made entreaties to Canada West in the last couple of years, as they look to step up to the CIS ranks.

• Former Dino star, and UVic Coach Ken Shields, who is now an Assistant for the British Senior Women’s National Team, is in Calgary for meetings with Dinos Coach Dan Vanhooren. Coach Vanhooren said, “ I’m looking forward to chatting with Ken about our program. He has such a tremendous record, and a depth of knowledge, not only at the CIS level, but also with the International game, and we’re lucky to get the chance to consult with him.

Wuotila Nabs Smart for British Basketball

Mon, 9 Apr 2012 08:07:57 -0600

Dave Smart To Coach GB Under 20s

Dave Smart, who, as Head Coach of the Carleton Ravens, has fashioned the dominant dynasty in CIS Basketball over the past 15 years, will coach the Under 20 Men’s Team for British Basketball beginning this summer.

Smart was announced as the new head man for this key development squad by Britain’s basketball governing body on the weekend, and the groundwork for this intriguing move was done by University of Calgary Athletic Director Ron Wuotila in his role as GB’s High Performance Manager . Smart Signs With British Basketball

Wuotila now has secured the talents of Canadian University Basketball’s 2 most successful Men’s coaches for Britain’s basketball program, with Victoria’s Ken Shields set to continue his work with the British Women’s Team as they prepare for the London 2012 Olympics.

Cougars Wait For Recruit Signings

Mount Royal Cougars Head Coach Marc Dobell, fresh off a silver medal performance with his team at the CCAA Nationals in March, is now concentrating on building a roster to compete in Canada West starting in the fall.

MRU loses a trio of 5th year starters to graduation; Steve Trinidad, Kevin Ollivierre, and Trent Offereins were all impact players, and will have to be replaced. “We will have as many as 8 players returning”, said Dobell, “ and we are looking at 4 recruits who have caught our eye at our ID Camp.” One of these is from the U.S. Junior College system, and will have 2 years of eligibility left. The other 3 are Alberta prospects, and the Coach suggested he hoped to sign all 4 over the next couple of weeks.

<<< Nick Loewen, 6-7 forward, will be a key 5th year returnee as MRU embarks on their Canada West journey.

We have no sure-fire recruit names as of yet, but attendees for the Camp included Jordan Jensen-Whyte, the Western Canada HS grad, and brother of former UBC T-Birds all-star, Josh Whyte. Jordan, a 6-5 guard, attended the Rock Basketball Academy in Toronto this past winter.

One player going into his 5th year is forward Nick Loewen, 6-7, Winnipeg, who was an all-star at the Nationals, and will have to be a leader on next year’s squad. The Cougars will be playing in the Pacific Division with established schools like UVic, UBC, Fraser Valley, and Trinity Western along with relative newcomers Thompson Rivers and UBC-O, plus their fellow 1st year starters, UNBC.

MRU will play NCAA schools Montana State and Wyoming this August as will the UC Dinos. The 2 schools will also co-operate in hosting an 8 team pre-season tournament in October.

Notes -

• UBC will have at least as big a turnover of players as the UC Dinos this off-season, with no fewer than 5 players graduating ( Nathan Yu, Doug Plumb, Balraj Bains, Graham Bath, and Kamar Burke). Coach Kevin Hanson will try and re-charge the T-Birds roster with some significant new talent, while continuing to develop returnees like Malcolm Williams, Nakai Luyken, David Wagner, and Geoff Pippus, all of whom were 1st year players last season. T-Birds Overhaul Line-up (The Province - Howard Tsumura).

• Our best wishes to outgoing Calgary Dinos Women’s Head Coach, Shawnee Harle, whose resignation was announced last week. Harle was an extremely hard-working coach, who, along with her #1 Assistant, Claire Mitton, guided the Women’s Dinos to the national semi- final in March, as UC hosted a very successful Women’s CIS National Championship Tournament. In 18 years with UC, Harle, a former UVic player and Assistant Coach, produced consistently competitive teams, and led the Dinos to the 2001 Canada West title. She was named Canada West coach of the year in 1996, 2000, and 2008, and her UC teams won a CIS silver medal in 2000 and a bronze medal in 2001. Coach Harle posted a record of 222-150 (.597) in Canada West as the Dinos bench boss.

Signings and Hopefuls of Spring

Wed, 4 Apr 2012 16:43:43 -0600

The Calgary Dinos will be a new look basketball team for the 2012 -2013 season. The Dinos graduated four players this spring including high scoring and rebounding forwards, Tyler Fidler and Boris Bakovic. The other 2 grads, Dustin Reding and Keenan Milburn, both had integral parts in the playing rotation.

We got a chance to preview some of the new faces likely to don the red and white for the coming year, and there is room for optimism judging by the level of talent. Coach Dan Vanhooren will be making some tough decisions over the next week or so, and we thought it reasonable that we give him some help in that task. Following is a list of players who would look very good in Dinos colours: We will start with the obvious returnees including point guard Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson, shooting guard Andrew McGuinnis, and Josh Owen - Thomas, a combo guard. We would add import Daryus Sconiers, a lefty shooting guard out of Los Angeles, with speed and a nice shooting touch..

At forward the Dinos will look to 6-7 Matt Letkeman and 6-10 Josh Wolfram as returnees and certainly add Aniclay Mbayi, a 6-6 Montréal product who has had some NCAA experience. The other obvious addition from this year’s redshirt group is Thijin Moses, a 6-8 graduate of St. Mary's High School here in Calgary, who saw some action south of the border as well. Another Montrealer who appears to have the ability to help up front is Yaan Charles, a 6- 7 wide-body, with some nice inside moves.

Coach Vanhooren appears to be all set with his high school signees including Calgary’s Dallas Karch and Chestermere’s Jasdeep Gill. The 3rd prep player is Matt Lighterwood from Vancouver, a 6-7 wing man who has impressive credentials as a rugged forward.

Left to decide will be the additional members of the roster, some of whom will include returnees from last year and new players who showed well at ID Camp. We will have to be patient and wait for the coaching staff to make those decisions, and we can expect them over the next several weeks.

Dinos Athletes to Help Rwanda

UC Dinos basketball players Matt Letkeman (left) and Dustin Reding (right) will join a team of University of Calgary student athletes who are traveling to Rwanda in May to work with HOPEthiopia / Rwanda, a not-for-profit organization based in Calgary. Besides Matt and Dustin, the UC athletes are Lindsay Doland, Women’s Volleyball, Doctor Cassama and Greg Frost, Football, Esther Graff, Women’s Basketball, and Cory Meeuwisse, Men’s Volleyball.

'Phase One of HOPEthiopia/Rwanda’s mission is to foster the educational, physical, social, emotional, and spiritual growth of orphaned and homeless youth/young adults of Rwanda by coming alongside local NGOs to support their efforts, as they serve with very limited resources.'

The Dinos athletes will be running sports events and basketball camps for the benefit of local youth, and they will also be working on several construction projects to serve the widows and orphans of the area. The UC work team will be in Rwanda for a two-week period and are currently trying to raise funds to make this project a success.

If you wish to donate, the best way is on-line - Give Online through CanadaHelps.org http://www.canadahelps.org/ ␣ Enter Hopethiopia in the charity name ␣ Select Hopethiopia/Rwanda Missions Projects 2012 in the funds designation box ␣ If you wish to support a specific athlete type their name in the optional message box.

For more information you can contact - Matt Letkeman: letkeman__23@hotmail.com, (587) 999 8022, and Dustin Reding: rusty_dusty@hotmail.com, (403) 466 6058. Or you can reach Glenda Dubenski: Co-founder of HOPEthiopia, gdubienski@gmail.com, (403) 827 5537

Notes -
• UFV has signed a number of recruits already, including Ravjot Dhaliwal of the Tamanawis Wildcats, a 6-7 forward who played for former Dinos star, Surinder Grewal - stories from the vancouver Sun and the Surrey Leader - http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Cascades+sign+recruit/6371520/story.html http://www.surreyleader.com/sports/144388025.html
• The UNBC Timberwolves (Prince George) will join the MRU Cougars as additions to the Pacific Division of Canada West in the fall. One of the most difficult things about these 2 schools being travel partners is that teams cannot fly directly to and from Prince George and Calgary. Both Westjet and Air Canada go through vancouver, and Central Mountain Air is via Edmonton and Ft. St. John. Not ideal. This story in the Prince George Citizen talks about their program - UNBC Prepares for Canada West.
• Ryerson University is preparing to move into the old Maple Leaf Gardens, with the Mattamy Athletic Centre at the Gardens scheduled for opening this Nov.-Dec. Facilities will include an NHL sized ice rink, seating for 2,796, a Multi-purpose court, 1,000+ seats, a Fitness centre, with studios and a high-performance gym, the Ryerson Rams athletics store, and various retail outlets.
• Former Western Canada HS star, Jordan Jensen-Whyte was on the roster for the Rock Academy, playing in the National Prep School Championship Tournament in Toronto in March. No word on where he may land in the fall, either in the U.S., where many of the prep kids hope to go, or at a CIS school, like his older brother Josh Whyte, who starred at UBC.
• The Saskatchewan Huskies announced the signing of a top BC product, Trevor Severinski of the Fraser Valley champion Pitt Meadows marauders should help coach Barry Rawlyk and his Huskies. U of S signing
• The Huskies appear to be losing guard Jamelle Barrett to the pro ranks. Our on- the - ball research department spotted Barrett’s name on a client list for a pro agency, listing the high-scoring point man as available for pro play. http://slansportsmanagement.com/jamelle-barrett

Dinos I.D. Camp ‘Full of Promise’

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 11:24:26 -0600

The Calgary Dinos embark on a new era in their recent history with this weekend’s ID Camp; no Tyler Fidler for the 1st time in 5 years, no Dustin Reding, Keenan Milburn, or Boris Bakovic. These 4 departing seniors leave a big gap in the playing roster, with all 4 having figured prominently last season and in years previous for all but Boris. “The future is full of promise for our team”, said Dinos Head Coach , Dan Vanhooren. “We have a large amount of interest from local kids and some strong players from other provinces and other countries.”

Vanhooren is counting on a couple of red-shirt forwards with a great deal of experience to step in and help next fall. Thijin Moses, a 6-8 former St. Mary’s HS (Calgary) star, played at a couple of stops in NCAA competition, and has been working on his academic eligibility as well as practicing with the team this past season. “Thijin is a dynamic player”, says Coach Vanhooren. “He is extremely talented, can shoot, rebound, and he passes extremely well. He knows the game, and can make those around him better with his floor skills.” Aniclay Mbayi, a 6-6 post from Montreal, also played south of the border, and Vanhooren describes him as “a real physical factor in the paint. He will make us very tough inside, and he has a nice shooting touchalong with his other talents.”

Point man Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson (Winnipeg), a driving force in the Dinos dramatic playoff drive this past season, will be going into his 3rd year, while Matt Letkeman (Abbotsford, B.C.), a 6-7 post, who sat out most of 2011-12 with a blood virus, has been on the mend recently. Letkeman was the 2010-11 Canada West Rookie of the Year, and he will be a 2nd year player, after having his petition to ‘get his year back’ approved by the CIS. Others who were in the playing rotation include Andrew McGuinness (N. Vancouver, B.C.), a 6-3, 4th year guard, Josh Owen-Thomas (Adelaide, S. Australia), who started regularly as a 1st year in the 2nd half of the season, and Josh Wolfram (Kamloops, B.C.), a 6-10 post, who will enter his 3rd year, with high hopes for an increased role next fall.

<<< Josh Owen-Thomas is one of three returning starters for the Dinos for 2012-13

Nebojsa Kuljic, a 6-5 wing going into his 3rd year from Calgary’s Western Canada HS saw limited action this past 2 seasons, as did other potential returnees including Patrick Walker (Airdrie), 3rd year, 6-8 post, Daan Wiersum (Groningen, The Netherlands) , 6-7 wing, Youri Annisovets (Toronto), 6-6 post, and Trevor Debolt (Sir Winston Churchill, Calgary), who would be entering his 5th year.

2 other Calgary high school products are eager to move from the red-shirt practice roster to the regular playing roster; Strahinja Kucinar is a 6-6 wing man, also from Western Canada HS, and Matteo Bellusci, a 6-1 guard from Webber Academy. They will be in tough, as Coach Vanhooren says he will be taking a look at a large number of new faces in this Camp.

Friday’s session gets underway at 6 pm, and there will be 2 workouts on Saturday, with spectators welcome.

Cougars Finish With a Flourish at College Nationals

The Mount Royal Cougars made their last season in the Canadian Colleges one to remember, with a 2nd place finish in the CCAA Nationals, which were played in Truro, NS on March 15-17. The Cougars, who won the Alberta Colleges Championship, lost 88-73 to Mohawk College (Hamilton, ON) in the final after an opening round win over #7 seed, Mount Saint Vincent Univ. (Halifax, NS)
81-70, and a semi-final thriller over Collège Ahuntsic (Montreal, QC) by a count of 90-86.

<<< Steve Trinidad (5th year guard, Calgary), who along with Nick Loewen (4th year forward, Winnipeg) was named to the 1st All-Star team for the Championship Tournament, scored 28 points and led with 10 rebounds in the semi-final win. Unfortunately, Trinidad was hampered by an ankle injury suffered in the 1st half of the final, and his effectiveness was reduced in the last 20 minutes. In that final game, Trinidad scored 18, while Lowen had 17 points and 7 rebounds, while 5th year post man Kevin Ollivierre scored 12 and had a game-high 12 boards.

Coach Marc Dobell has to be congratulated for a terrific coaching job, with a team that didn’t always appear like they would be competing for trophies in March. The former Cougars and UC Dinos player has had consistent success, both at NAIT, where he won a CCAA crown in his 1st head coaching spot at the college level, then another with Mount Royal, where he has been the head man for 8 seasons.

MRU, of course, will join Canada West in 2012-13, and Coach Dobell suggests, “ Lots of work lies ahead for Cougar Basketball as we will now work to build our program with the vision of competing at the same level within the CIS.”

Notes -
1. • The Alberta Golden Bears graduating star guard, Daniel Ferguson, has big plans both academically and in pro basketball as is detailed in this story in The Edmonton Examiner . 
1. • The CIS coach with the best winning percentage in the past 13 seasons ? Dave Smart of the CIS champions, Carleton Ravens, not surprisingly. Other long-time coaches in the top 5 include Steve Konchalski of St. FX, Kevin Hanson of UBC, Don Horwood, U of A, retired, and Joe Raso, McMaster, also now retired. Fans can check out all the coaching records on a new web-link from Martin Timmerman of Waterloo University at the ultra-informative CIS Hoops.ca 
1. • That coaching record, and all the CIS and OUA titles for Coach Smart may well be the reason that he is the top paid coach in the country at a cool $160,000. (We get this through Dave Wells, our L.A. correspondent, who was digging into the public records of Ontario public employees. (Talk about working the corners, Wellsie! ) 
2. • The first recruit signed by Scott Clark at TRU in Kamloops is a young man who didn’t play a game at his high school this past season. 6’9” forward Ken Monture of Terrace, BC. has been going to school this year at Walnut Grove Secondary in Langley, BC. But due to a ruling by BC High School Sports, was unable to play with that school this season. Walnut Grove lost in the recent B.C. Boys AAA final to Terry Fox HS of Burnaby. “He is 245 pounds and he is very skilled,” said Clark. “ He is quite light on his feet. He is going to be a freshman but we are now able to put together some building blocks for the future. With the twins (6’10” Ivan and Blaz Bozinovich) and Kenny, we have the makings of a reasonable inside game.” The WolfPack announced their second recruit yesterday ; Tre Haslom of Marysville, Wash., is a 6-foot-4 wing from Olympic Community College Rangers. 