In the following weeks, The Post will analyze the Ohio men’s basketball roster and their potential impact in 2016-17.
This week, The Post will look at freshman guard Rodney Culver:
Ohio coach Saul Phillips wants Culver to be one thing: a shutdown defender. And knowing the Bobcats personnel, they'll need it.
Ohio ranked near the bottom in points allowed (74.8) during Mid-American Conference play last year and were often harassed by opposing pick-and-rolls.
The Bobcats ranked 249th in opponent points per game, ranking behind schools like Bethune-Cookman (201) and Presbyterian (204).
Insert Culver — an energetic wing defender who has played physical perimeter defense against Ohio’s Jaaron Simmons and Jordan Dartis during the preseason.
“I told Rodney from the get-go, he doesn’t have to score the ball once this year. Just shut people down and disrupt,” Phillips said. “He’s wired that way anyway."
Forward Kenny Kaminski echoed Phillips’ sentiment, calling Culver an “extreme-level athlete.“
“I’ve been around many extreme athletes; he’s definitely one of them,” Kaminski said. “There are very few guys that can step into a D-I gym and compete the way he does.”
In terms of lineups, Phillips has yet to announce his bench setup for the season. Phillips can’t be blamed for waiting it out. Coaches use the preseason to see who plays well with who and who still needs some more development.
But Culver was already running with the "white" team during Monday’s practice — along with veteran players Dartis, Wadly Mompremier and Khari Harley — a hint that Culver could see plenty of playing time in his first year.
Plus, Phillips has proven he isn’t afraid to lean on young, developmental players, with Dartis and Block playing solid minutes (15-plus) per game as freshmen.
“We need to get Rodney to know where he needs to be so he can just go full speed on defense,” Phillips said. “On offense, we need to slow him down a little bit. He gets so down on himself when he misses a shot, I told him, ‘You’re gonna take 10 jillion shots in this gym. Some are gonna go in, some are gonna go out. I shouldn’t be able to tell if it went in or out by hearing you.”
Sure, he may be hard on himself, but during Monday's practice, Culver didn’t look like a freshman. He stole the ball from Simmons and Dartis on quick, reactionary steals before cruising to the other end of the court and slam dunking.
It’s a scene that we may see again and again for quite some time.
