Lansing – Part Two – Processing Current Events

Indiana State & College Hoops Current Events

(St. Louis, MO) – This could be one of Greg Lansing’s finest basketball seasons. Despite recent covid and injury setbacks the eleventh year coach at Indiana State is facing these current events with significant talent, coaching continuity and a type of team unity that any coach would covet.

Lansing is 16 wins from tying the all-time coaching wins record set by Duane Klueh. In a covid-shortened season that may be out of reach. The Sycamores won 18 games last season. In Part One of our two-part interview we discussed some the notably talented players on this season’s team. During Part Two we’ll look at a couple of ‘sleepers’ on this year’s team and we dive into ‘current events’.

‘Sleepers’ That Could Be Big Contributors

Ndongo Ndaw and Cobie Barnes are players that other teams may be ignoring right now. That’s why we call them ‘sleepers’ that could contribute. Ndaw is a Butler Community College transfer that can provide physicality to the Sycamore lineup. He averaged just over five points and five rebounds at Butler. Barnes, a highly rated player coming out of Floyd’s Knob, Indiana averaged just nine minutes per game last season.

So why these two?

While Ndaw has been battling some early season injuries, Lansing believes the 6’8 post player can be an important contributor behind starter Tre Williams.

 

 

Barnes racked up multiple honors as a high school star. He starred for a team ranked second in the state and was selected for the 2018 Adidas All-American Camp. While he converted 42 percent of his three-point attempts and made 50 percent of all his shots last season, he was stuck behind Jordan Barnes and others at the guard position.

It looked like that could be the situation this year too, until Kailex Stephens went down with an injury. Lansing says Barnes was (rightly) unhappy with is 2019-20 playing time and spent the offseason working hard to change that scenario this season. Barnes has had some setbacks during preseason practices, but at 6’5, he and others will contribute as the Sycamores ‘play small’.

 

 

Playing a Role in the Coaching Fraternity

Current events have caused the college basketball coaching fraternity to respond. The recent resignation of Gregg Marshall from Wichita State and the tragic passing away of UT Martin’s Anthony Stewart are both sobering events, for wildly different reasons. The coronavirus has complicated every coach’s life and head coaches ended up supporting one another.

Lansing says he has great friends in the coaching business and in the complicated world of wins and losses many remain good friends. During times of need they rally together. While he doesn’t really know people at Martin, former assistant Lou Gudino works at WSU and Lansing has spoken to coach Marshall.

 

 

Current Events & What They Mean About Next Year

ISU’s renovated Hulman Center is due to open this season. The $50 million project is, according to Lansing, beautiful and yet will open to no or virtually no fans. The facility is rumored to be a possible venue for the likely all Indianapolis-based NCAA Tournament.

While the Sycamores had to deal with construction all last season and he’s eager for his team to practice and play in the new jewell of Terre Haute.

 

 

Lansing signed two November recruits. Drew Calderon and Lincoln Hale are both 6’4 wing type of players with impressive high school credentials. Hale is a ‘local product’ that Lansing has known and watched for over five years. Calderon hails from Texas and played AAU ball with current Sycamore Julian Larry.

Lansing describes the players and some of the recruiting process.

 

 

Rule Changes Changing the Landscape

Rule changes will make the 2021-22 season a dramatically different season than any we have witnessed. With new rules relating to players earning money, instant transfer waivers and this year’s players receiving an extra year of eligibility, there is no grid for what the offseason and then the actual games will be like.

Rules related to the players earning money on their ‘name, image and likeness’, while good for the players represents a new layer of complexity for coaches and universities. Lansing says these current events will mandate some additional people being a part of the recruiting process.

 

 

Indiana State was picked fourth in the Valley’s preseason poll. Northern Iowa and Loyola are both ‘receiving votes’ in the national polls and were picked in the league’s top two spots. Two-time defending Arch Madness champion Bradley was picked third.

Lansing is one of those coaches that epitomizes the Valley. During his ten years, four of his teams (including last season) have reached double digits in conference wins. His players graduate and five times his squad has defeated nationally ranked teams. Their schedule is never easy and this season includes Purdue, Saint Louis and Ball State.

During these current events and while we are in the Thanksgiving Season, we are thankful for coaching consistency across the Missouri Valley Conference and at Indiana State.

Do Good