NCDS: Randy Peele, Head Coach - Winthrop
By: Randy Peele, Head Coach - Winthrop
After a rigorous non-conference schedule that has included games
against Clemson, Cincinnati, Charlotte and North Carolina State, we
are now preparing to jump back into conference play this
weekend. After 12 games, we now have a real good idea of what
we need to do in order to compete for our league title-continue to
work hard defensively, improve our shooting percentage and play
stronger inside with the ball. We hang our hat on our
defensive toughness and we know that in order to win, we will have
to perform on the defensive end and continue to grind it out on the
offensive end.
Getting back into Big South play gives our team a new challenge and
a new focus. We have already played two league games in
December and went 1-1, including a tough 2-point loss in overtime
to preseason favorite and defending champion Radford. The
thing I hope we see is how much our tough string of games over the
past two weeks will help us in the conference. We will find
out quickly, as we face Coastal Carolina on Saturday (Jan. 2).
Coastal, which is coached by Cliff Ellis, has been the surprise
of the league thus far as they have started out with a 12-2 record
and are tied for the early conference lead with a 2-0 record.
While the people who make the preseason predictions didn't give
Coastal many kudos, I knew they would be a force in our league
because of the talent that Coach Ellis has assembled. We will
be challenged to slow Joseph Harris, one of the most active
players in the conference both scoring and rebounding wise, and
South Carolina transfer Chad Gray who is a big time scorer. I
believe both of these guys are worth of player of the year
accolades.
If we continue to play the kind of defense that I know we are
capable of playing, we can be a factor in the conference
race. I believe our athleticism and size will be keys for us
against many of the teams in our league, but we need to find a way
to score more consistently from the perimeter and finish tough
shots in the paint. We have 17 more games left in the regular
season (including a bracket buster game in late February) so now is
the time for our guys to step up and play the way we know they can.
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