Chicago State has a new arena that just opened last season, a new league that will begin play next year and a new outlook.
Chicago State has a new arena that just opened last season, a new league that will begin playing next year and a new outlook. "Everybody is pretty excited around here," said second-year coach Benjy Taylor. Taylor has one of the most exciting players in the Chicago area — if not in the country — in 5-foot-8 senior point guard David Holston, who averaged 23 points and five assists during an 11-17 season a year ago. "I wish more people could find out about him. He’s really good. He does a lot of different things. Everybody looks at his scoring…Right now he’s on a mission to win some basketball games," Taylor said. And so are the Cougars. Without a league affiliation since leaving the Mid-Continent Conference in 2006, Chicago State has joined the Great West Conference that will begin playing in men’s basketball in 2009-10. That will certainly ease the scheduling burden that has seen the Cougars pile up the frequent flier miles the last couple years. They played only nine home games last season and have 14 scheduled for the Jones Convocation Center this season. "Even though we travel a little bit this year, we’re not traveling all over the country. That took a lot out of us," Taylor said. "The 14 home games will help. We’re starting to develop an identity. It was hard last year because we were gone so much." John Cantrell, another senior guard who averaged 15.5 points last season, rejoins Holston in the backcourt, and starting forwards Carl Montgomery and Tawrence Walton are also back. The man in the middle could be 6-foot-9, 290-pound Marquis Young when he becomes academically eligible in December, Taylor said. Young has already had stops at Mineral Area College and Ole Miss. Taylor is also expecting contributions from freshmen Davin Anderson and Kabangu Tshinga Kasamba. But Chicago State, which opens on Nov. 14 against St. Xavier at home, will still rely heavily on Holston to run the team. He made 130 3-pointers last season and shot 40 percent from behind the arc. "David is a point guard. Even though he scored a lot, he’s still a point guard. His primary role is to make sure everyone is where they need to be and everyone plays their position," Taylor said. "He sets the table. He averaged 23 because he can score points in bunches. He can have four at the half and end up with 27. It’s not like as soon as he hits the floor, he’s jacking up shots," Taylor added. "He’s a heck of a player. I don’t pigeonhole him. I let him express himself on the floor, and I think he’s been very receptive to that." ______ Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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