Dec. 5, 2008
Lobo Basketball
What: Lobos vs. Southern Miss
When: 4:05 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 6)
Where: University Arena – The Pit
TV: The Mtn (Comcast 276; DirecTV 616)
Radio: 770 KKOB-AM
Online: GameTracker; Live Broadcast Via All Access on GoLobos.com
By Richard Stevens — Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
The sense of urgency that so often fires up good teams when they realize they are about to lose a basketball game is something Lobos Coach Steve Alford says his team needs to bring to another court, too.
It’s called the practice court.
Alford said he and his staff are putting more pressure on the Lobos in practice to do the things necessary to improve and win more games. He also is hoping his Lobos have a sense of urgency about the need to learn such things. UNM is 3-4 on the season and ride a two-game losing streak into The Pit for Saturday’s 4:05 p.m. visit from Southern Mississippi (4-2).
“You have to appreciate what losing is before you fully understand what winning is,” said Alford.
What the young and old Lobos on Alford’s 2008-09 team have learned the hard way is that if you don’t push yourself in practice to reach a better level of basketball, that level probably won’t come on game day either.
Alford says the intensity and the expectations in practice has been geared up a notch. He said the UNM staff is looking to “see who wants to make the shot, who wants to make the play. Who can make the defensive stops. What group of guys to put on the floor to do that.”
What Alford hopes his Lobos have discovered through losing is the importance of embracing the practice court as a vehicle to learn the things that lead to winning. For Alford, the wish list is a simple line of fundamentals including defense, rebounding, and honoring good shot selection.
But he also is looking for toughness, chemistry, effort, teamwork and leadership. Lobo senior Tony Danridge said he has heard Alford’s call to lead and Danridge is willing to “embrace” the responsibility. “If I have to be vocal, then I`m going to be vocal. If that`s what I have to do, that`s what I`m going to do,” he said.
Of course, there is something else Danridge needs to do to help his team: Make a few more shots, take a few more shots. The senior’s scoring average took a hit at the Cancun Challenge when he scored five points in two games on 1-of-8 shooting from the floor.
“I’m not worried,” said Danridge. Said Alford: “I think Tony is going to be fine. It’s just about finding his rhythm.”
Danridge’s rhythm usually is best when he is using his strong body to drive defenders out of the space in which he plans to do a stop-and-pop jumper. Lately, Danridge hasn’t driven with as much physical conviction and has turned a scoring opportunity into a pass.
The last two games dropped Danridge’s scoring average to 10.9 and junior Roman Martinez paces the team at 11 points per game. The Lobos’ balance is OK with Daniel Faris at 10.4, Chad Toppert and Phillip McDonald at 9.9 and Dairese Gary at 9.6. But the Lobos could use a go-to guy and Danridge might be the best choice.
Alford’s choice as a defensive stopper is every Lobo on the court, every Lobo on the team. Alford said his defensive philosophy — extended, in-your-face pressure –will have to suffer a slight setback while his Lobos adjust to the fundamental physical and mental needs of such a defense.
“I thought we could be a team that could pressure and extend things,” said Alford, “But that was probably the wrong thing because we’ve gotten beat a lot off the dribble. Our defense has not been very solid, very fundamental.
“We’ve had to change some things from a coaching standpoint in how we’re going to play. We’re athletic, I think down the road we might be able to do that (extend defense), but we’re not ready to extend and get after people. We have to condense the floor a little bit and keep people in front of us.”
The Lobos’ schedule doesn’t have any soft spots from Southern Miss to UNM’s Mountain West opener at UNLV on Jan. 3. UNM goes to San Diego, has Pit games with Ole Miss and Oral Roberts, visits Texas Tech and then has the home-and-home series with New Mexico State prior to the UNLV trip.
The Southern Miss Golden Eagles are not a tall team as the four-guard lineup goes 6-8, 6-6, 6-3, 6-2 and 6-foot. But the Eagles are quick and they know exactly who their go-to players is: 6-2 junior Jeremy Wise, who is averaging 23.2 points and was a freshman All-American in 2006-07.
UNM Notes: Tim Neverett and Blaine Fowler will call the action on The Mtn. Scott Galetti and Scott Didrickson will be on KKOB-AM. … UNM’s Steve Alford is looking to avoid his first three-game losing streak at UNM. … Southern Miss’s last three games have been decided by four points or fewer and two went into overtime. … Youth tickets are just $5 for ages 2 through 18. Fans bringing a toy to The Pit’s ticket office can purchase a ticket for only $5. … UNM student-athletes will help distribute the toys to local kids next Monday (Dec. 8) night from 6-7:30 p.m. on the 2nd floor of the Tow Diehm Facility.
Editor’s note: Richard Stevens is a former Associate Sports Editor and sports columnist for The Albuquerque Tribune. You can reach him at rstevens50@comcast.net. Previous articles are available at The Richard Stevens Corner