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‘It’s a marathon, not a sprint’
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
The Vindicator (Youngstown)
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YSU's Devonte Maymon at Beeghly Center on Tuesday evening.
A few days after their first Horizon League tests, the Youngstown State University men’s basketball team gets a week off to focus on final exams.
Hopefully, the Penguins do better in the classroom than they did on the court.
YSU lost back-to-back road games against Milwaukee and Green Bay last week, faltering down the stretch both times.
“This league’s not easy on the road,” YSU coach Jerry Slocum said. “It’s disappointing because I honestly felt, in hindsight, we had a chance to win both those games.”
In Thursday’s game at Green Bay — YSU’s first in league play this season — the Penguins led by eight points in the second half before hitting a cold snap where they missed nine straight shots.
“We had nine good attempts,” said Slocum, whose team eventually lost 76-67. “We didn’t finish the deal.”
Two nights later, the Penguins were within one point of Milwaukee with four minutes left and had the ball. They eventually lost by 15.
“I don’t think our age had anything to do with it,” said Slocum, when asked whether the losses were due to having 10 new players this season. “We’ve got to learn how to finish on the road.”
Things don’t get any easier this weekend, when YSU travels to play Robert Morris, which played in the NCAA tournament last season. After a home game against NAIA member Malone, the Penguins face road games against North Carolina State and Kent State before resuming conference play on Dec. 30.
“This is the toughest stretch we’re going to have all year long,” Slocum said. “We’re gonna have to keep an eye on our improvement more than anything else.
“It’s a marathon race, not a sprint.”
Youngstown State (4-3, 0-2) started the season strong, winning four of its first five and taking Mid-American Conference member Akron to overtime. Just as those games helped the team build confidence, Slocum is hoping the back-to-back road losses help prepare his team for the Horizon League’s level of play.
“This is four out of five years we’ve started conference play on the road,” Slocum said. “I’d like to think it would be an every-other-year thing. It’s tough to start on the road in this league, especially there [in Wisconsin].
“I thought the kids played hard, they played well and we very easily could have come out of Milwaukee with a win if we had finished the deal.”
Senior Vytas Sulskis has been YSU’s most dependable player this season, leading the team with 16.3 points per game. Junior guard Devonte Maymon is second with 13.6 per game, scoring in double figures in every contest, including a career-best 16 against Milwaukee.
Sophomore forward Damian Eargle has also been a big bright spot, recording 20 blocks in the last four games. He leads the Horizon League in blocks with 3.7 per game and is averaging 11 points and six rebounds per game over the last four outings.
“The thing is, he’s just gonna get better,” said Slocum. “He’s been out of basketball for a year [due to NCAA transfer rules] and literally every day I see that guy getting a little bit better.
“I believe he can lead this league in two statistical categories, in blocked shots and rebounds.”
But, like the rest of the Penguins, he’s still learning.
“It’s live, learn, improve,” Slocum said.