How one unsung returnee can make a big difference for Fresno State basketball fortunes
Fresno State got a little bit of everything last season from Anthony Holland, who played beyond his years as a freshman.
He had the highest offensive rating on the team despite averaging just 4.1 points per game and made the right play far more times than not, at both ends of the floor. But on a team with three seniors and a high-impact freshman classmate in the 7-foot Orlando Robinson taking a high percentage of the Bulldogs’ shots, Holland got barely three a game and didn’t actively pursue them. He’d swing the ball to the other side or get it inside, sometimes taking a look but ultimately passing up a shot or two along the way.
In the first of two games last season against San Jose State, though, coach Justin Hutson and the Bulldogs got a quick peek at what Holland could be this season, the next and the season after that.
In that January game, Holland put up a season-high seven shots, all from the 3-point line. Four went down, and he emerged from that 38 minutes on the floor with a greater understanding where those shots were and confidence in taking them when they’re there.
“It was certainly a self battle, just telling myself to be aggressive and when I see daylight, to just shoot it,” Holland said. “That’s when I said, ‘OK, I see it. I feel it. It’s not that hard to do. It gave me a confidence boost and now that I know I can do it, it’s not that hard. It wasn’t that hard to do in the first place, but now it’s easier.”
Comparing development to Sam Bittner
It also opens up a fascinating sophomore season for Holland and the Bulldogs, who will be looking for more of everything from the sophomore forward beginning Wednesday afternoon in the season-opener while aiming to be more efficient at the offensive end with a more dynamic and mature lineup on the floor.
Fresno State last season was ranked 10th in the Mountain West Conference in scoring, ninth in field goal percentage, 10th in assists and eighth in assist/turnover ratio last season.
Hutson compared the process with Holland to that of Sam Bittner, the Bulldogs’ former small-ball four. He was a reluctant shooter early in his career, but by his senior season in 2018-19 Bittner had developed into one of the most valuable players on a team that went 23-9 and finished third in the Mountain West Conference.
“He’ll still be that glue guy and the guy that does a lot of things right, but we also want him to learn how to be more aggressive on both ends,” Hutson said. “He’ll still rebound and he’ll still defend. He’ll knock down open shots. But I think the more he plays and the more comfortable he gets, I think the more aggressive he’ll be.”
When Hollanand got shots last season, the results were good. He was one of the Bulldogs’ best shooters at the 3-point line – 38.8%, second on the team. In Mountain West play he got four or more shots in a game seven times, and the Bulldogs went 5-2 in those games.
Long-distance preparation
Over the summer, when the Bulldogs were stuck off campus due to COVID-19, there were a lot of phone calls, Zoom meetings and film sessions between the Bulldogs’ staff and Holland to reinforce that. Definitely, part of the process, Hutson said.
Holland got a chance to see the spots where he could be a little more aggressive with the basketball, whether taking a shot or a shot fake to get into the paint and find an open shooter.
“It’s understanding how to make those plays aggressively, to step in and shoot shots, get to the basket,” associate head coach Tarvish Felton said. “His role is evolving in our program. Last year he was trying to figure out how to be on the floor and he did a good job with that, and now we need him to not only be on the floor, but to make more winning plays and effect winning even more.”
It has taken some doing, developing a different mindset, said Holland, who spent the summer working on his shot, outside in a park when gyms were closed due to the coronavirus and inside when they were open.
Fresno State roster
But Fresno State will benefit with an older Robinson, an older Holland.
The Bulldogs, who struggled with turnovers and were overly reliant on the 3-point shot a year ago (49.1% of their shots came from the 3-point line, the seventh highest percentage in the nation) are more talented with the addition of graduate transfer point guard Devin Gage and transfers Isaiah Hill, Deon Stroud and Kyle Harding.
Jordan Campbell also returns in the backcourt. The Bulldogs recruited a strong freshman class with guard Destin Whitaker, wing Leo Colimerio and 7-foot-1 center Braxton Meah.
Hutson and his staff still are working through how all of the pieces fit together, after getting a late start to practice and two coronavirus quarantines.
They have three games in the first six days of the season to work through some answers. But a more aggressive Holland will find the floor, making the heady plays that stood out last season with an extra pass, rebounding the basketball, defending multiple positions, turning the 50-50 ball into more of a 70-30 proposition.
And, taking an open shot when it’s there.
“I think the more that he plays and the more experience he has the more he’s going to do,” Hutson said. “We worked my first year to try to expand what Sam did and through the course of the year Sam got more and more aggressive with what he did and we’re expecting that from Anthony this year, to be more aggressive in what he’s doing.”
Bulldogs open against NAIA William Jessup
Season-opener: 3 p.m. Wednesday vs. NAIA Wiilliam Jessup at the Save Mart Center (no fans allowed)
TV: MYTV53 (broadcast), Mountain West Network (online)
Radio: 940 AM ESPN
Coming up for Bulldogs: Friday at Pacific; Monday vs. UC Riverside
Fresno State women’s basketball: Friday vs. West Virginia and Saturday vs. Lamar, both 1 p.m. in Las Vegas
This story was originally published November 25, 2020 at 5:00 AM.