On Wednesday, November 18th the Eckerd College Men's Basketball team (1-0) finally got the revenge they had been waiting for, beating Palm Beach Atlantic by 30-points, 87-57. In the season opener, the Tritons wanted the win, not only to showcase their talent for the current season but also to prove to PBA they aren't fooling around this year.
“They beat us twice last year; at the buzzer [home] and over at their place by eight. I don't care how many points we won by, the fact that we played hard and the guys saw the direct relationship to how we played, it was a good feeling for them,” said
Tom Ryan, Head Coach.
The Tritons ability to trample over PBA was led by the night's key players, senior
Zaronn Cann and junior
John Harper. Cann is a very talented basketball player, especially offensively. In Wednesday's match-up, he led the Tritons with 21 points on nine of 10 attempts from the field. For Cann, who transferred from a Division I South Florida, he was under a large amount of pressure last year, however, this year he is handling it much better.
Coach Ryan said, “He controls his own destiny. If he can control his emotions he's as good as they get in our league.”
Harper is another tremendous offensive player, especially his shooting skills. Scoring only four points below Cann, Harper made three three-point baskets in the second half. “If he just concentrates on playing defense and rebounding he can shoot the ball and get a lot of points,” said Coach Ryan.
Collectively, the Tritons have made vast improvements from last year's team. This year, the intensity level has improved along with the drive to play harder each game. Now, the team is competing at the level they should.
“The players are understanding what we are expecting on defense and offense and they are able to complete the plays like we want them, too.”
But no team is perfect and the Tritons are no exception. It's known that the team plays a complex offense, which can take some time to get use to. So, with many new players on the roster, the offense will just continue to improve throughout the rest of the season. On the defensive side of the ball, Coach Ryan expressed his desire for the team to become more in sync as far as trusting each other. He said, “When one person is supposed to be denying a pass, he's not doing his job because he's afraid that someone behind him isn't helping.”
Hopefully by Tuesday night the Tritons will be able to gel better as they host Florida Memorial in their second home game of the season. Florida Memorial as Coach Ryan explained is very similar to PBA in the sense that they are very athletic and very quick. The Tritons have been preparing by working on defensive man-to-man principles so they can stay in front of the ball. “We don't want to allow them easy baskets,” said Coach Ryan.
There are a few key players on the Florida Memorial roster that the Tritons need to look out for, Charles Davis, Giorgio Gramegna, and George Gray (if he recovers from his hand injury in time). Gray is arguably their most talented player, while Davis and Gramegna are strong offensive players. The Tritons are going to work hard at pressuring these players if they try to drive to the basket or attempt to create opportunities for Florida Memorial.
Expectations are high in the Tuesday night match-up for the Tritons but if the players play with the same intensity level as they did against PBA and stop on top defensively the Tritons will be successful.
“I feel like every game we play hard defensively and aggressively and rebound the ball, I believe we will have a chance at every game we play,” said Coach Ryan.
Looking onward to Thanksgiving weekend, Eckerd College will host The Eckerd College Thanksgiving Classic at Turley Athletic Complex, November 27th against Puerto Rico – Bayamon and November 28th against Edward Waters (Fla.). These two home games are bittersweet for the Tritons because they are excited about playing at home but will truly miss the Eckerd community who will be on break. “Its weird playing over Thanksgiving when theirs not many fans around,” said Coach Ryan.
Coach Ryan repeatedly expressed the importance of the strong, aggressive defense. If the Tritons are able to slow down both teams offense there is no reason why the Tritons shouldn't go 2-0 on the weekend.
Coach Ryan shared his goals for the Tritons, “I would like to see us control the ball better; cut down our turnover rate and do a better job rebounding and do what we did on Wednesday [against PBA].”
