View from the East
Friday, January 6, 2012
By Al Myatt |
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UCF, Jordan
the Younger get Pirates' attention
By
Al Myatt
©2012 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
East Carolina basketball
coach Jeff Lebo said he didn't make any New Year's resolutions.
"I'm just trying to survive day
to day," he said with a chuckle Thursday morning.
The focus has to be short term a
lot of the time in athletics. Lebo arrived home around 1:45 a.m.
Thursday after a charter flight got into the Greenville airport
following a 78-76
loss at Southern Miss in
ECU's Conference USA opener on Wednesday night.
The Pirates had a 3 p.m.
practice Thursday to address some areas such as offensive rebounding
following the loss to the Golden Eagles. The focus will shift today to
preparation for a 5 p.m. league game Saturday at home with Central
Florida.
The Golden Knights feature
6-foot-3 junior guard Marcus Jordan, a chip off his Airness, Michael
Jordan. The younger Jordan leads an 11-3 team with a 17.5 scoring
average. UCF started league play with a 60-53 home win Wednesday over
Tulane.
The Knights won't have coach
Donnie Jones directing the team against the Pirates. Jones is sitting
out the first three C-USA games due to the university's self-imposed
penalty following an NCAA investigation.
Assistant coach Shawn Finney is
guiding UCF in Jones' absence.
Good effort at Southern Miss
One of the most encouraging
aspects of the Pirate program since Lebo took charge last season has
been improved performance away from home. ECU wiped out a double-digit
deficit in the second half in Hattiesburg to have an opportunity to
overtake the Golden Eagles (14-2) down the stretch. The Pirates didn't
win but they made a game of it.
"We did a lot of nice things in
the game," said the Pirates coach. "We shot the ball very well. ... We
executed our offense. We made foul shots."
ECU dropped 27 of 51 field goal
attempts at USM, 52.9 percent. The Pirates were 7 of 16 behind the arc
for 43.8 percent. At the line ECU was 15 for 16, 93.8 percent. Senior
power forward Darrius Morrow made 7 of 12 shots from the floor and all
nine of his free throws for 23 points. Miguel Paul was 7 for 14 from the
field and sank 2 of 3 free throws for 19 points. Maurice Kemp had 14
points and six rebounds for the Pirates.
" ... We had some turnovers that
hurt us," Lebo said. "We had 17 turnovers in the game. They turn you
over and I was worried coming into the game because of the way they play
with their quickness and speed. Maybe besides the one spot (where ECU
has jet-like Miguel Paul), they're faster than us in every other spot —
and off the bench.
"Offensively, we did enough to
have a chance to win. The big thing with them coming into the game was
that we had to keep them off the foul line. They're excellent when they
get to the foul line and they get there. They're an excellent offensive
rebounding team. That was the area where they hurt everybody. The free
throws and the offensive rebounding was where they hurt us also. That's
where they won the game."
Southern Miss made 21 of 28 free
throws and had 15 offensive rebounds to five for the Pirates.
ECU didn't play perfect down the
stretch but the Pirates gave themselves a chance. The Golden Eagles had
two key offensive rebounds off of missed free throws in the final 15
seconds.
"We were right where we needed
to be, on the road against a good team," Lebo said. "We just weren't
able to pull it out. You look back and there are so many plays that
could make a difference from the beginning of the game until the end."
Sampson wearing thumb brace
Lebo said that sophomore forward
Robert Sampson will probably have to wear a brace on his left hand for
the remainder of the season.
"You can imagine what that's
like on your shooting hand," said the ECU coach. "That affects his
ability to shoot it, his ability to catch it and his ability to pass it.
The brace keeps him from moving it. It's very difficult for him because
of that. He can still play defense. His energy and rebounding are
important for us."
Early '80s deja vu
Saturday's matchup could provide
some early 1980s deja vu — the Virginia vs. North Carolina variety —
with one of Ralph Sampson's sons matching up against one of Michael
Jordan's offspring.
Marcus Jordan is just one
challenge ECU will face Saturday.
"They've got a terrific player
in Jordan," Lebo said. "He can flat-out score the ball in a variety of
ways. They've got A.J. Rompza (5-9 senior guard) back now. He's been
out. He's played in the last two games. He makes them a different team.
They've got great size. They are big. They can play 6-8, 6-9 at the
small forward position and go 6-9, 6-9 across the back. They've got some
depth. They've got some athleticism.
"Rebounding the ball will be
crucial for us and being able to defend Jordan on the perimeter. He is
terrific. Off a ball screen, he gets to the foul line. He's the guy that
you've got to do the job on."
E-mail Al Myatt
PAGE UPDATED
01/06/12 06:39 PM.
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