Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Berger is the toast of Logan

Just who is Danny Berger and why are the denizens of The Spectrum thisclose to anointing him a season saviour?

First the why.

His totals may be modest: four games, 8.8 points per contest, 52% shooting, 45% from trey land, 8-8 at the foul line, a 9/6 assist-to-turnover ratio.

But a deeper examination shows (working backwards):

* versus Seattle: 29 minutes, 11 points 1-3 from three, seven rebounds, five assists and a pair of steals

* versus Wichita State: 24 minutes, 12 points. 2-3 from long distance

* versus Utah Valley: 18 minutes, 10 points, 2-2 from long range, three rebounds, three assists

* 19 minutes of play with negligible results against Pacific

Actually, what may be even more important is how he has now adapted to Stew Morrill's system. He 'gets' it -- at least to a very positive degree --  and this understanding will only grow larger in time. Obviously, Berger was a work-in-progress earlier in the season when he didn't even get off the bench so notice how quickly he moved forward.

Now the who.

The 6-foot-6 Berger is a late summer LDS mission returnee. He played in 2008-09 as a freshman for Chemeketa Community College in Oregon where he averaged 16.1 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 steals a game.

His father coached so being in that milieu has seemingly aided his grasping of the Morrill Way.

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