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YSU Women seeking home remedy
The Vindicator (Youngstown)
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YSU's Macey Nortey drives past Bucknell's Alyssa Dunn during first half action Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2010.
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Bob Boldon
GAME TIME
Matchup: YSU (2-11, 0-2 Horizon League) vs. Green Bay (13-1, 2-0).
Tipoff: 7:05 p.m. Thursday at Beeghly Center
Radio/TV: WKBN-AM 570, MyYTV (11 p.m. tape delay)
By Jon Moffett
YOUNGSTOWN
It’s been a while since Bob Boldon and the Youngstown State women’s basketball team has been home.
The team last played at the Beeghly Center on Dec. 16 against Akron. Boldon said the return home will hopefully provide his team with a spark.
“It will be nice to get back here,” he said. “It’s always nice to be home, whether it’s at home in your own bed or in your own gym, it’s just nice to be home.”
That spark could break an eight-game losing streak. The Penguins (2-11) haven’t won since they claimed back-to-back victories over Bucknell (Nov. 24) and Ohio (Nov. 27). And things don’t exactly get any easier from here.
The team is now fully engaged in its Horizon League conference schedule. The Penguins dropped their first two conference game against Loyola and UIC and will host No. 21 Green Bay on Jan. 6.
“On our schedule, this is our only chance to play a ranked team at home,” he said. “A lot of mid-major teams don’t get to play ranked teams at home. You only get to play them when you go to their place, and it takes a $10,000 guarantee to do it.
“So it’s exciting for us to have a ranked team come into the Beeghly Center and play on our home floor, where we’ve played well,” he added.
The Phoenix (13-1, 2-0 Horizon League) will be a tall task. The team’s only loss came against Marquette on Dec. 12. They also outscore their opponents by almost 20 points.
“They’re outstanding,” Boldon said. “I mean, they’re fun to watch. They play well and they play very good basketball. It will be exciting to play a team like that and see what we can do with them.”
When asked if he was glad he had a few extra days to prepare for Green Bay, Boldon joked he wished he had an extra year and a half to prepare for them.
“We’re going to do the best that we can, and we’re going to try and take some things away from them,” he said. “But they’re a great team. And we’ll see what we can do with them.”
Boldon said the team has made some visible strides, despite what the record will indicate. One of the biggest changes this year was installing Boldon’s offense. He admitted it is a difficult system to learn. But he added that the girls are starting to understand it more.
One of those elements is the 3-pointer. The Penguins have attempted 368 of the shots, making 88 of them. Their opponents, however, have taken 232 such shots and have made 75 of them.
Junior guard Kenya Middlebrooks is one of the players who is really starting to hone in on the offense. In a Jan. 2 loss at UIC, Middlebroooks tied a school record by making seven three-pointers in the game.