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Posted Jan. 6, 2005

Picking up where they left off

There is a crowded waiting list as you move higher and higher up the D3hoops.com Top 25 poll, of teams trying to slip through into the spotlight of national prominence, while others try to keep their place in line.

Such explains the status of 11-0 Virginia Wesleyan, which is presently ranked No. 14, but should move up in due time if it maintains the lofty level of play it showed down the stretch last year and so far this season.

“I’m curious to see how many wins it will take,” said Marlins junior point guard and captain Marques Fitch, with a laugh when the subject of advancing in the poll is mentioned.

Not that being ranked No. 14 is anything to scoff at. Virginia Wesleyan is very pleased with its progress, following a 20-win season in 2003-04 as the runners-up to Hampden-Sydney in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Tournament.

The Marlins picked up an early overtime win against Lebanon Valley and a confidence-boosting 15-point triumph at Hampden-Sydney in the first two weeks of the season. Since then, they have been dominant, with five of their next six wins coming by 20 points or more. Virginia Wesleyan does a lot of things very well, specifically shooting the 3-pointer at better than 45%, and forcing upwards of 20 turnovers per game. Sophomore forward Brandon Adair, last year’s ODAC Rookie of the Year is the scoring leader on a team that has four players averaging double figures.

“The guys are playing with a lot of confidence,” said coach David Macedo. “But the talent is nothing without the team chemistry,” Macedo said.

Macedo and his players both cited that chemistry as the primary reason for the Marlins success. It isn’t just that the players have a good rapport with each other. It’s that they have built up trust amongst the nine to ten players that hit the floor each night.

“Everyone can go hard knowing that the same intensity will be there when the starters come off the floor,” said Fitch, who ranks third on the team in scoring at 12 points per game. “I feel like we’ve outworked teams since I’ve been here. Now it’s starting to show.”

VWC added a key recruit to its seven returnees this offseason in freshman shooting guard Ton Ton Balenga. A native of the Congo, who also lived in Ottawa, and Seattle before moving to Newport News, Va., to attend high school, Balenga is averaging 13 points per game and is shooting 50% from 3-point range (29-for-58). This was a big addition in that Balenga (left) could have returned to the West Coast to play Division I or Division II, but chose to go where he would feel comfortable. He has not had any trouble fitting in, as his teammates have frequently found him for open looks at the basket.

“The most significant thing for us has been our point guard play — Marques and Thomas (Sumpter, who leads the team in assists),” Balenga said. “They can do anything on the court. That makes our jobs a lot easier.”

Macedo’s job hasn’t been as difficult this season and he has been very pleased with the guidance of his more experienced players, such as Fitch. Case in point was against Hampden Sydney, when after being held without a basket in the first 20 minutes, Fitch helped put the game away with 17 points over 18 minutes.

“I see my role as being like Coach Macedo out on the court,” Fitch said. “The guys look for me to lead them. Coach has been one of our hidden keys. He lets the point guards call the plays and I think the main reason we’ve gotten a lot of steals is because he’s prepared us to know the other team’s plays so well.”

So at this point, the Marlins are right there, along the fine line separating the very good from the elite, waiting for their call, knowing that they are ready for it.

“We’re knocking at the door,” Macedo said. “We just haven’t walked through.”

HOME AGAIN: The road back to the basketball court at Ramapo has been a long one for 22-year-old Rashawn Wilson, but the most harrowing experiences are over, and Wilson hopes he is a better person as a result.

Wilson initially enrolled at Ramapo in September 2000. He was highly recruited as one of the top 20 high school seniors in New Jersey out of Dickinson High in Jersey City, but didn’t qualify academically to play Division I basketball and chose the Division III route. Things went well on the basketball court, but off the court there were academic and personal issues, and he chose to leave school.

“He wasn’t ready for college,” said Ramapo coach Chuck McBreen.

In April 2003, after two years out of school and with a young son, Kyelle, Wilson decided to straighten out his life by joining the Army. He was stationed in Fort Jackson, South Carolina from December 2003 to February 2004, spent the next three months in at Camp Casey in Tongduchon, South Korea, than was shipped to Iraq as part of the 1st 503 Infantry. He was in Iraq from April to August as an admin specialist, handling primarily secretarial duties.

“You’re a soldier at all times though,” Wilson said. “Your job was to stay alive. It was just like what you saw on television. Wartime is harsh.”

Wilson did go on patrol in certain instances, and one day in August, in Fallujah, Iraq, his unit found itself in a situation where it couldn’t see in front of him. He heard a pop, and though he didn’t realize it immediately, he had been shot in the thigh. Fortunately, the wound was not threatening for the long term. Wilson was taken to a military hospital, treated, and flown home with an honorable discharge.

“I realized that life is short and you have to take advantage of it,” said Wilson, who is still hesitant to go into detail about his wartime experience “That’s why I came to school — to make things better for my son.”

So Wilson contacted McBreen, who arranged for a meeting with the athletic director, the school provost, and vice presidents, at which Wilson asked for a second chance to pursue his degree. It was granted.

Wilson, a criminal justice major, who lives with his son, now 3, and his mom, Cynthia in Jersey City, has aspirations of becoming a policeman or parole officer. He returned to the basketball court, after a four-year absence, at the Cactus Jam and averaged a double-double in his first three games. He followed that with 30 points and 10 rebounds in a win over Alvernia At 6-8, 230 pounds (2 inches taller and 40 pounds heavier than in 2000), McBreen thinks he has a chance to be a very, very good player because of his skills in the post and passing ability for a big man.

The NJAC has been home to many comeback stories for players getting through difficult circumstances. Some have worked out well. Others have not. Wilson’s has just begun.

“I want to see how far he’s come,” McBreen said. “I want to see how he’s adjusted. Going into the Army was definitely a huge step in making things right, both for himself and his child.”

BACK ON POINT: Two point guards who we expected we wouldn’t see again this season have rejoined their respective teams and could be major keys to their success. Gabe Perez is back with the Rochester men’s team after leaving the school during the fall semester to settle some personal issues, while Michigan transfer Lauren Andrews has decided to indeed play basketball at Trinity, after some hesitancy following her soccer season at the school.

Both made immediate impacts. Perez had 10 points and nine assists in Tuesday night’s win over Rochester Institute of Technology. Andrews is averaging 5.8 points, 5.0 assists, and 2.5 steals through her first four games for Trinity.

ATTENTION GRABBERS
The Sewanee women’s team entered Wednesday in the midst of a nine-game road swing, but the way the Tigers are playing, that doesn’t bother them too much. After Wednesday’s win at Maryville (Tenn.), Sewanee has a team-record 10-game win streak, including league wins over Hendrix and Rhodes. The program has made significant strides in Dickie McCarthy’s second season, after starting 0-5 and finishing 12-14 a season ago. The team that beat Sewanee, John Carroll, won at No. 3 Capital on Wednesday night.

Amherst is in the midst of one of the most difficult stretches that any team in the country could have at this stage of the season — with road games against No. 13 Williams, a Wesleyan team that has won seven in a row and No. 21 Trinity (Conn.), following Monday’s 22-point loss New Jersey. It will be interesting to see how the Lord Jeffs handle things long-term with point guard Ray Corrigan out for the season with a torn Achilles’ tendon. Freshman Andrew Olson (5.0 points, 3.3 assists) will man the point for a team that relies heavily on good passing from everyone (72% of their field goals have come via an assist).

Franklin and Marshall got a big win over Gwynedd Mercy on Tuesday night that may have more value as a confidence booster in that the Diplomats were able to beat a Top 25 team without forward Bobby Lynch (14.2 points per game), who is out with a knee injury and was awaiting the results of an MRI exam.

The CCIW hasn’t had much luck in sending a women's team deep into the NCAA Tournament the last few seasons, but the league has positioned itself quite nicely for one of its own to get a Pool C slot this season. CCIW teams went 38-13 in regional, non-conference games (the top six teams were a combined 35-5), which bodes well for the mathematics of the process, such as determining strength of schedule. Teams to watch in that regard are Wheaton, Elmhurst, North Central, Carthage and Millikin. The one team we left off that list, Illinois Wesleyan, had the most impressive winter break of anyone in that league — nearly upending NYU and easily topping much-improved Baruch.

Notes for Around the Nation are compiled with the help of sports information directors across the country. If you have suggestions or information for this column, please send it to mark@d3hoops.com.

2008-09 columns
Feb. 20: York (Pa.), no cliche
Feb. 13: St. Thomas writing history
Feb. 6: George Fox on hunt
Jan. 30: Brother, brother
Jan. 23: Growing a program
Jan. 16: Dudek's rare feat
Jan. 9: Ravin' about Anderson
Dec. 18: Chicago marooned at 0-9
Dec. 12: De Luca back on track
Dec. 4: Ithaca surprises
Nov. 21: Augie gets some delp
Nov. 13: Is repeat possible?

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