Jays 64, Chattanooga 69
When Nate Funk went down with a season-ending injury last week, he took nearly 25 points and 10 boards a game with him. You don't replace that overnight, even on a Jays team that has plenty of other talent. Conventional wisdom would say you need a few games to settle in after losing a player of that magnitude, to both figure out who the new go-to guy (or guys) will be, and for the team as a whole to gain familiarity in their new roles.
That said, last night's game was a killer. Funk or no Funk, there is no way a team with NCAA-tourney aspirations should lose to a team winless against Division I opponents this season. That can't happen. The fact that it did does not speak well for the next few games, I'm afraid. Until someone else steps up and takes the leadership role on this team, it will be a struggle.
Leadership shows up many places on the court, but where it was most evident last night was in the last four minutes. When you're ahead 3 on the road coming out of the under-four timeout, your leader steps up, hits a couple of big shots to put the game away -- or at least keep pace with the other team -- and lead you to victory. Leaderless, the Jays scored 2 points in those last four minutes -- and those came on a virtually uncontested layup with 10 seconds left, the game already out of reach.
It seems hard to believe that just one week ago, the Jays were looking good to be the favorites in the Valley, after Northern Iowa's stinker in Ames. Now the Jays are looking to right themselves before too many games slip away and torpedo their season.
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Last night on the road against the Chattanooga Mocs, an NCAA Tourney team rebuilding this year, I felt the Jays needed to come out and try to figure out their new roles, and hopefully be able to steal a game in the process. If they'd shot well, played good defense and still lost, I would be very concerned and discouraged about the rest of the season. But they didn't do those things, and you know that under Altman's coaching, they will. The key for me, at least, will be this Sunday. Its their first home game without Funk. Its against in-state rival Nebraska. Can they play well enough to win? Are they capable of doing the things it will take to win without Funk? I think they do, and they can, but whether the players believe that or not -- and whether they play like they think they can -- will be something I'll be very curious to see.
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A team with Johnny Mathies, Anthony Tolliver, Josh Dotzler and Dane Watts should be talented enough to win 20 games. Those four guys are as talented a foursome as any team in the Valley except for Northern Iowa. I have all the confidence in the world that by the conference season, Coach Altman will have them playing as such. The key to this treacherous stretch -- Nebraska, Xavier, Norfolk State -- is to go 2-1 and head into Valley play no less than 5-3.
While that's not terribly awesome, a non-conference resume that includes wins over Dayton, Nebraska and Xavier is not to shabby. Lets get it done, boys.
Funk ain't runnin' onto that court. The sooner you get over that, stop whining about losing the best player on the team, and start doing those things you can to win -- play defense, rebound, etc -- the less risk you have of a shoe barreling in your direction from section 113. Someone step up. That means you, Johnny.
Tomorrow: Is it possible to be a Jays fan in basketball and a fan of another school in football?
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