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| Dec. 2, 2004 | ||||||
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Strong defense lifts ASU over James Madison, 78-69 Appalachian State’s offense has already seen a dramatic improvement this season, but it was the defense that preserved a win Monday against James Madison. Appalachian applied a full-court press for most of the game and obviously frustrated the James Madison squad in its 78-69 win at Holmes Convocation Center. The defensive effort was led by sophomore D.J. Thompson, who had three steals and forced James Madison point guard Jomo Belfor to commit seven turnovers. Belfor was also held to three points. He averaged 10.5 coming into the game. “I knew that I frustrated him because I saw him throw his headband,” Thompson said. “After I saw that, I figured that I was in his head a little bit.” Appalachian also set the tone early by running the fast break on offense and causing three turnovers in the first four minutes. “They really attacked us and they came at us right from the start,” James Madison head coach Dean Keener said. “The pace of the game rattled us a little bit.”
Keener also said the Mountaineers were a more physical team, so he tried to stop the ball from coming into the paint. When the Dukes’ began packing the low-post with defenders, Appalachian was able to hit open three-point shots. ASU went 11-of-27 from three-point range for the gain; Noah Brown went 3-for-5 beyond the arc and Chris McFarland went 3-for-4. McFarland said that all of the open shots started by forcing turnovers on the press. “It really caused a lot of problems for them,” McFarland said. After nursing a 38-33 halftime lead, Appalachian opened the second half on a 10-2 run to take a 48-35 lead. ASU continued to apply full court pressure, and eventually took a 64-46 lead with nine minutes left in the game. The Dukes’ were able to cut the final deficit to nine points against ASU’s second string in the final six minutes. Daniel Freeman led the Dukes’ in scoring with 18 points and was one of four James Madison players in double figures. “We had too many ups and downs,” Freeman said of his team’s loss. “We had a six-minute stretch where we played hard, tough-nosed defense but then we came back and had some turnovers.” Dukes’ guard Ray Barbosa added 13 points on the game. “They played hard. They’re a real aggressive team and they just out-worked us,” Barbosa said. McFarland led the Mountaineer scorers with 20 points. He also had five blocks. Brown scored 16 points, Herbert Jones scored 10 and Thompson added 10 points and a career-high eight assists. Appalachian finished 4-7 at home last season, but is 3-0 this year. The Mountaineers will go on the road next to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks today. Mountaineers grill Phoenix in 76-50 victory The Appalachian women’s basketball team dominated in their first conference game of the season against Elon University. The Mountaineers practiced precise passing and strong defense to seal their 76-50 victory. Appalachian won the tip-off in the beginning and maintained control of the pace for the rest of the game. “We knew they had a young team and a lot of nerves so we set the tone and tempo early. We had them rattled and I’m not sure if they ever gained their composure after that,” Lindsay Smith said. Smith is in good standing to break the ASU career three-point field goal record this season and made 3-of-4 from the three point line against Elon. Other contributions to the team’s victory were senior Jessica Jank, who had two steals and four blocked shots, and freshman Whitney Tossie, who had five steals and 12 total points. “I know when I can get the ball,” Tossie said. “If I miss it I know my teammates got my back. On the court we just come together.” The Mountaineers were up 38-27 at the half and forced 20 Elon turnovers. Appalachian did not let up on the intensity during the last few minutes although they were up by a significant amount. “It was a total team effort,” Smith said. “It didn’t seem like we were 11 points up.” After the powerful first half, the Mountaineers came out and increased the intensity. “The second half we played solid defensively,” ASU head coach Adrienne Shuler said. “We wanted to get after them and help them make freshman mistakes. We wanted to push them out on the floor a little bit and if they shoot in the lane they’re getting blocked shots.” Appalachian’s strategy paid off as many errors were made from the Elon team due to inexperience in college play. With the majority of the team being freshmen, including three starters, each game must be viewed as a learning experience. “Every situation is an opportunity to teach,” Elon head coach Brenda Paul said. “Appalachian was intense, we weren’t. We got pushed around. ASU changed defenses and we did not respond.” “Every game is a must win. We’re trying to get to the top of the league,” Shuler said. “We want to get established early in the conference.” Several minor injuries have already begun to plague the Mountaineers. Near the end of the second half, sophomore Jaime Bennett sprained an ankle, but is expected to return for the next game. Bennett started against Elon in place of Jank, who suffered a previous injury to her left shoulder during the Clemson game. Jank did come in later to play a total of 24 minutes. Appalachian plays again today at Coastal Carolina University. Fowlkes makes finals in national award Appalachian State University wide receiver DaVon Fowlkes was selected as one of the three finalists for the 18th-annual Walter Payton Award. The Walter Payton Award is given to the top offensive player in Division I-AA. Fowlkes is joined by two quarterbacks, Lang Campbell from William & Mary and Dustin Long from Sam Houston State. The award will be presented Dec. 16 at the I-AA College Football Awards held in Chattanooga, Tenn. Fowlkes earned a finalist spot based on a senior season that saw him break numerous school and Southern Conference record. Known primarily as a threat on punt returns coming into the season, Fowlkes asserted himself as a star wide receiver. He caught 103 passes for 1,618 yards. He also had 2,313 all-purpose yards. He led the nation in all three of those categories. He also caught 14 touchdowns on the year, which was a school record. Fowlkes also set a Southern Conference single-game receiving record by amassing 280 yards against Elon Nov. 6. He also caught 17 passes in that game, another school record. Only one other wide receiver has ever won the award. Brian Finerran, who currently plays for the Atlanta Falcons, won the award in 1997 when he attended Villanova. Voting for the Payton Award was conducted by nearly 100 media members two weeks ago. The top three vote-getters are invited to attend the presentation of the award. Junior quarterback Richie Williams was on the Sports Network Payton Watch list for the majority of the year. Appalachian State was the only school in the nation to have two candidates for the award. The Southern Conference has had two Payton Award winners. Adrian Peterson, a running back for Georgia Southern, won the award in 1999 and was later drafted by the Chicago Bears. Furman back Louis Ivory won the award the next year.
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© 2004 ASU Student Publications
