Men's basketball squad stuck at one conference victory

By Brody Rollins     1/29/09 6:00pm

Last Saturday's 78-40 loss against the University of Alabama-Birmingham marked the team's third straight defeat by at least 25 points, and was the second straight game in which a slow start dimmed the Owls' hopes by halftime. During the first seven minutes of play against the Blazers (13-8, 3-3 Conference USA), the Owls (6-14, 1-6 C-USA) were outscored 19-2 en route to a 37-15 halftime deficit.

The Owls' numbers for the half were not pretty. The team shot 22 percent, had two assists compared to 11 turnovers and was outscored off those turnovers 18-2.

UAB guard Paul Velvaney III recorded six steals in the first half alone, indicative of the on-ball pressure implemented by head coach Mike Davis against the Owls.

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The Owls' output for the first half and the game were season lows, a result of turnovers and bad shots taken late in the shot clock.

"[UAB's] defense is predicated on pressure and I thought that got to us early," head coach Ben Braun said. "I thought we did a better job against it later, but it bothered us awfully badly."

Braun did what he could to slow down the Dragons, including switching out all of the starters in favor of the second string. The new lineup held UAB scoreless for a stretch of four and a half minutes and reduced the deficit to 12 before they were replaced.

"We put some guys in who had more of a defensive focus, in my opinion, and they did a good job," Braun said.

In the past weeks coach Braun has emphasized defense constantly, both to the team and press, and players that miss assignments or lack effort on that end of the floor often find themselves relegated to the bench.

The Owls rallied for a short period after halftime, but each run was cut short by turnovers and inconsistent shooting.

Senior guard Rodney Foster led the team in scoring with 13 points, all coming in the second half. Foster is averaging a team-high 10.3 points per game and 3.9 assists.

Even with opposing teams keen on the Owls' trouble with defensive pressure and despairing losses mounting, junior forward Lawrence Ghoram remained optimistic of the team's chances.

"We need to be able to get into our man, handle pressure, and play with more poise," Ghoram said. "We're going to be more aggressive. I think that'll make a big difference and help us in the games coming up."

Statistically, the team shot better earlier in the year compared to now and players have adjusted slowly to their shots not going down.

Last week in their loss to the University of Central Florida, freshman guard Connor Frizzelle penetrated the defense using pump fakes and fast feet. Once other players take notice and are themselves aggressive, it would not be unlikely to see the Owls' numbers go back up, which harkens back to Ghoram's words on staying aggressive.

The team begins a critical portion of their schedule tomorrow at Autry Court against East Carolina University, which comes into the game 2-6 in C-USA, 10-19 overall.

ECU started the year on a tear, winning eight of their first nine games before dropping four straight.

That losing streak ended when the Pirates picked up their first conference victory over visiting Tulane University, whom the Owls nearly knocked off on Wednesday evening at Tudor Fieldhouse. (See www.ricethresher.org for more details on that contest.) ECU's other conference win came against Southern Methodist University last Saturday in Dallas where they pulled away late in the second half for the six-point victory.

ECU's struggles this season have not been due to lack of offense. The Pirates average 74.5 points per game, which ranks fourth in the conference and is over 11 more than the Owls'.

The Pirates have four players averaging 10 points or more per game, including guard Sam Hinnant, who is tallying 15 per contest.

Hinnant and guard James Legan have combined for 366 three-point shots on the year, which is 24 more attempts than all twelve Owls combined.

After ECU, four of the Owls' next five games are against teams with losing records in C-USA, with the toughest test being next Wednesday's game against the University of Houston.

The Owls will need to find their stroke from the outside to stand a chance at picking up any victories. In their past three losses, the guards have combined to shoot just 28.9 percent from the field, not nearly high enough to keep defenders from collapsing down on the post.

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