FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern University men's basketball team (8-10, 4-5 SSC) will have a rematch with the Eckerd Tritons (11-8, 4-5 SSC) at home Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. on Radio X 88.5 FM. NSUSharks.com spoke to Gary Tuell prior to the matchup.
Q: When NSU men's hoops wins games far from home, the importance can sometimes get lost. For the casual NSU fan, how crucial was Saturday's 75-61 win at Tampa? A: Road wins are at a premium in this league, so whenever you get one the players have a chance for a happy ride home on the bus and the coaches feel a sense of relief. Beating Tampa was important to us because it gave us a season sweep in the two-game series against them. That may not seem important now, but in terms of seeding for the conference tournament or in terms of winning a tie-breaker against Tampa if it should come down to that, it's nice to have that 2-0 advantage and could be helpful to us in March. Road wins are always more fun than home victories because, as a team, you get to climb on the bus with your teammates and celebrate together, relive the game a little, bask in the good feelings for a time together. It's a positive experience and great for team bonding. Plus, on Saturday, we beat a pretty darn good team that's been playing well, so I know our guys felt good about themselves when it was over and that's a plus.
Q: Chris Page (Jr., Plainfield, Ind.) won SSC Player of the Week for his effort this past week. What do you think the catalyst was behind Page's 21-point first half performance? A: Chris made a visit to Tampa before he signed with us. Is Missouri the "Show Me" state? Chris should be from Missouri instead of Indiana because he's the kind of guy who always wants to "show" others what they missed. He takes Tampa games a little more personally than some other games. But in reality he just came out hot, made some open jumpers and got it going. He scored 21 in the first half which was a huge lift for us.
Q: We were glad to see Harrison Goodrick (So., Sydney, Australia) back on the court, even in limited minutes. Is he close to being 100% again? A: Harrison has been battling a viral infection. It's been going on for a while and his performances the last three or four games reflect that. His numbers are down, most importantly his rebound numbers. It's just a case now of him getting and staying hydrated and regaining his strength. It takes time. He's probably 80 percent. We need to get him back and healthy because he can have an impact on the glass, and he's by far and away the most effective defensive center we have. There are other little things he does when he's healthy that have a huge impact on the game but don't necessarily show up in a box score. I do know when he's healthy and playing well he's one of the best centers in this league. Hopefully he can get a lot of rest this week and get his strength back.
Q: Eckerd and NSU are tied for fourth in the SSC overall. How have the Tritons been since NSU last played them? A: I really haven't had much chance to think about Eckerd or any team other than the next one on the schedule. Eckerd doesn't usually change what they do so we'll study our first game with them and find areas that need to be addressed, find things they did in our first meeting that hurt us. Tommy Ryan does a great coaching job with his teams. They always have a good game plan, come prepared and make nice adjustments to whatever you do. I know they came from 11 or 13 down with less than three minutes to play and beat Florida Tech in their last game. That doesn't happen with an empty suit in the coach's chair. Coach Ryan and his teams will battle you for 40 minutes and he does a great job of figuring things out and giving his teams a chance to win, regardless of the circumstance.
They have had some roller-coaster rides this season, some large scoring swings both ways. Players are so inconsistent at this level. It's hard to ever be comfortable with a big lead or to feel like you are out of it if you fall way behind. You just keep grinding and in the end you usually have a chance. Eckerd, traditionally, has always been one of the great "grind it out" teams in our league. They defend well, rebound well, execute well and they love to attack you in the paint and on the glass. Their big guys are physical and tough and can break your back. Those things never change. When their guards shoot well, they're as good as any team in our league. And with Jerrick Stevenson, E.J. Moody, Kevin Walsh and Keshawn Ingram they have four guards capable of shooting it pretty well. I know they beat Florida Tech and Palm Beach Atlantic in their last two games, and those are two teams we didn't beat. They also had a heck of an effort in a three-point loss to Barry and I'm not sure we could get within three against Barry if we played a hundred times. So Eckerd is more than capable and definitely a team that could get hot and win our tournament in March. They have the pieces.
Q: The Sharks previously lost to Eckerd, 73-70, on a missed game-tying 3-pointer. NSU shot 40 percent from the floor and 33 percent from deep. Would you chalk that up to a poor shooting night or a great performance from Eckerd's defense? A: I have neither the time nor the inclination to go back over the last 11 years and look at our past meetings with Eckerd, but experience tells me that if you didn't shoot it well against them you might want to start by tipping your hat to Eckerd's defense. When we lost to them in the tournament last year I know for sure that fatigue was a huge factor in our inability to score. But more often than not Eckerd will defend you as well as any team you play. They make it hard to score against their big bodies inside and their guards do a very good job of pressuring you on the perimeter. We'll have to have extraordinary ball movement to find open shots against them. It's never easy scoring against Eckerd.
Q: Troy Spears (Fr., Martinsville, Ind.) scored 11 points off the bench against Eckerd, can he exploit any mismatches on Wednesday? A: There are no mismatches that favor us against Eckerd. They are bigger and stronger than us inside and they are more athletic than us on the perimeter. Troy can score. But Troy is most effective when he's playing hard. That may sound trite, but there are two Troy's. The one who is just out on the floor playing at the same pace as everyone else, and the one who is active and pesky and hustling and coming up with some huge effort plays. He has the ability to play at level where a lot of guys never go. We saw a lot more of that from Troy earlier in the year. He may have hit the wall, the way a lot of freshmen do who are playing against quicker, stronger, more athletic teams than they were used to seeing every day in high school. I do know Troy is at his best when his energy level is high and he's flying around doing things most guys can't or won't do. That's the Troy we need down the stretch because he can be a difference-maker.
Q: Overall, what type of performance will the Sharks need to put forth in order to even the score against Eckerd? A: To beat Eckerd we have to focus for 40 minutes on the defensive end, with no lapses in concentration or effort. In our win against Saint Leo last Wednesday I thought we got as close to a 40-minute game out of our defense as any game we played this year. In the win at Tampa Saturday, our defense was very good for 20 minutes and then spotty in the second half. It's that time of the year where you can't get tired, you can't be mentally fatigued, you have to push through walls and give all you have. Anything less will get you beat. We need a supreme effort defensively for 40 minutes, we need to compete in the paint and battle for rebounds, and if we do that we hope we can make enough shots to give ourselves a chance. If you have any lapses or dead periods on defense, they can run away from you in a hurry because they are one of the few teams who can beat you inside and outside. Because of that, we have to bring a lot of energy and effort for the full 40 minutes, but we're capable. We're getting better.
