Men hope to end losing streak at home to Butler

The Penguins have not played since Saturday's loss to Cleveland State.
By PETE MOLLICA
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- Youngstown State men's basketball coach Jerry Slocum has had a full week of practice to get his team back on the right track.
But even Slocum feels that a week is a long time to be sitting on a disappointing defeat.
The Penguins, who dropped a 63-50 contest to Cleveland State last Saturday night, will play host to Butler Saturday at 7:05 p.m. at Beeghly Center.
YSU (5-11, 2-4 Horizon League) has lost three straight, including two straight at home during this four-game home-stand.
Butler (9-7, 2-2 Horizon) is 9-1 this season when it holds the opposition under 70 points. YSU is averaging 70.6 points a game this season.
"We've spent the week working on some things that needed to be worked out, but it's a long time to be sitting on a loss," Slocum said.
Shooting accuracy is off
Slocum has been working hard on the team's overall shooting, which was at a season-low 34.7 percent in the loss to Cleveland State.
"The game looks a lot worse when you can't shoot the basketball," Slocum said. "And we also need to do a better job rebounding at the defensive end of the floor."
Cleveland State had 15 offensive rebounds in the first half against the Penguins last Saturday.
"We have a great challenge ahead of us these next two games," Slocum said.
The Penguins have never beaten the Bulldogs since joining the Horizon League in 2001-02, losing nine straight times.
"You don't feel good about yourself when you don't shoot the ball well," he added.
"We are still just a basketball team trying to get better each and every day, which has been my goal from the time I took over this program," Slocum added.
Humphrey is leader
The Penguins are led by 6-4 junior guard Quin Humphrey, who is averaging 20 points per contest. Last Saturday Humphrey had his 15-game streak of scoring in double figures snapped when he was held to just nine points by the Vikings.
Junior 6-4 guard Keston Roberts is averaging 15.6 points and senior Domonique Crawford is averaging 10.3 points off the bench. Those three combined for just 9-of-26 shooting from the field against the Vikings. YSU was also 1 of 11 from 3-point range.
Butler is one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the league, averaging eight per contest. The Bulldogs are third in the nation in turnovers, committing just 9.9 per contest.
The Bulldogs have four players averaging in double figures, led by Brandon Polk with a 15.9 mark. A.J. Graves has a 13.4 average, Brandon Crone an 11.2 mark and Bruce Horan a 10.2 mark.
Butler is averaging just 69.1 points per contest, but is only giving up 60 points a game.
Youngstown State will conclude its home-stand on Jan. 26 when it hosts UW-Milwaukee in a 7:05 tip-off at Beeghly Center.
mollica@vindy.com