THE GOOD NEWS
The best news of all is that help is on its way. The Bulldogs will welcome next season three transfers from major four-year schools, including two much-needed big men -- Magnum Rolle from LSU and Kenny Cooper from Oklahoma State. The other transfer is point guard Jamel White from Nebraska. The trio contributed to practice this season while sitting out under transfer rules. Louisiana Tech loses just one senior -- guard J.J. Marshall, who played only 181 minutes this season.

THE BAD NEWS
Louisiana Tech has a long way to go and will need immediate contributions next season from newcomers. Tech improved its three-point shooting from 30.1 percent in 2006-07 to 33.4 percent this season ... but the team still has a ways to go in that area. The Bulldogs, who averaged a league-low 60.8 points, will need newcomers to support the scoring of guard Kyle Gibson.

KEY RETURNEES
Sophomore guard Kyle Gibson, who at 6-4 was sometimes asked to play inside for the short-handed Bulldogs, led the team in scoring (16.5) and in rebounding (5.0). Junior college transfer guard Jonathan "J.C." Clark averaged 9.5 points and did a decent job from behind the arc (38 of 112, 33.9 percent). Guard Drew Washington and forward Adrian Rogers are other returning starters.

ROSTER REPORT

--PF Keith Smith, who was averaging 8.1 points and 4.7 rebounds in 15 games, was dismissed in halfway through the season for a violation of team rules. He was averaging 20.8 minutes per game. It was a significant loss for a team with little muscle inside.

--G Kyle Gibson was the team's leading three-point shooter, making 39.6 percent of his attempts (65 of 164).

--G Dwayne Lathan, a freshman from Chatham, La., was an offensive spark at times and he started 11 games (coach Kerry Rupp sometimes used a four-guard lineup). Lathan averaged 8.2 points in 21.0 minutes per game.

--F Olu Ashaolu redshirted as a freshman this season. Ashaolu, who could be a big wing (6-7, 220) for Tech, had some big-time offers while in high school and originally committed to Rutgers. He'll be one to watch next season.

--Tech added another transfer big man in March when C Shawn Oliverson started classes. He is a 6-11, 245-pound transfer from Cornell who spent the past two years on a Mormon mission. He will have three years of eligibility remaining.

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