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On the road (again) to start league play
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
Youngstown State junior point guard Blake Allen leads the Horizon League in 3-pointers per game (3.2) and is probably last in the league in rotations per 3-pointer (approximately 0.2).
He shoots the ball like a man trying to land a raw egg on a pillow, a release he said he developed when he was younger out of necessity.
“I was always a shorter guy and I had to kind of shoot it high,” said Allen, who now stands 6-foot-1. “I’m actually trying to work on that and get a little more rotation.
“I’m never going to be a guy who has a perfect rotation but I’ll get it as good as I possibly can.”
Allen is kind of a metaphor for YSU’s basketball team. Undersized. Overlooked. Developed an outside shot to create offense. Maximizing ability in order to win games.
So far, it’s been a winning formula.
Allen scored a career-high 25 points in last week’s loss to Penn State and is averaging 13.8 points (second-best on the team) for the Penguins (4-1), who need one more win to match their best start since 2000.
“Blake has kind of been a consistent guy for us,” Penguins coach Jerry Slocum said. “What you put in, you take out. That kid is always in the gym. He’s the epitome of a guy who makes a commitment.”
Slocum spent more than five hours breaking down film on Sunday and heard a ball bouncing in the gym.
“It’s Blake,” Slocum said. “He’s getting some shots up on a Sunday.”
Slocum needs Allen to continue his strong play as his Penguins open Horizon League play on Thursday at Detroit, then play at Wright State on Saturday.
It’s the third straight year YSU will play its first two conference games on the road.
“To put it mildly, it’s disappointing,” Slocum said of the schedule.
The Penguins have won two of their three games on the road this season — a good step since they entered the year on a 23-game losing streak — and are coming off a 60-59 road win over St. Francis (Pa.) in which they held the Red Flash scoreless over the final two minutes.
“Defensively, I thought we made good strides at the end of the game,” Slocum said. “Obviously, we’ve played a lot of close games and those are the kinds of things that get you ready.”
YSU will face a Detroit team that was picked to finish second in the preseason poll and boasts the preseason player of the year in guard Ray McCollum.
But the Titans (3-4) are coming off a 22-point loss at Akron and will be without preseason first-teamer Eli Holman (a senior center who is on “indefinite leave” and has yet to play this season) and senior forward Nick Minnerath (who suffered a season-ending knee injury against Bowling Green on Nov. 22).
“This is a very, very good basketball team,” Slocum said of the Titans. “I think they’re trying to find their identity a little bit.
“They’ve lost some firepower but they’re still very capable.”