Men's basketball woes continue, lose to Wittenberg

Last Saturday, Wittenberg University received an early Christmas gift. Coming into Philips gymnasium with an unimpressive 2-1 start to the season, the Tigers left competing for the NCAC lead in every important statistical category. At the end of their 83-53 drubbing, Oberlin was left with little but unanswered questions.

At the end of the first 14 minutes, however, this was not the case. Buoyed by hot shooting and intense defense, the Yeomen found themselves tied with the Tigers at 21. Then, in what is becoming a fatal trend, poor shot selection and foul trouble caught up with the men. Outscored 20-7 over the final six minutes of the first half, Oberlin entered the locker room down 41-28.

This 13 point deficit may not have killed the Yeomen, but their start to the second half might as well have buried them. Continuing the trend from the last two minutes of the first half, Oberlin was held scoreless for the first 5 minutes of the second. Wittenberg stayed hot and the game quickly slipped out of the Yeomen's grasp.

Pulled from the game because of an apparently sub-par effort, point guard senior Jabali Sawicki and forwards sophomores Maurice Elrod and James Knight spent most of the second half on the bench.

Commenting on the second-half lapse, Coach Jim "Satch" Sullinger said, "We play in one of the best conferences in the country and our effort has to reflect that. We need to learn how to play 40 minutes of team basketball. When I see a perfunctory effort on the floor, then the (playing) time belongs to the guys sitting and watching."

Whatever their problems, Oberlin's rebounding continued to shine as their biggest strength. Facing the second-leading rebounding team in the conference, the Yeomen collected 40 boards, playing them to a standstill on the glass. This continues a strange reversal from last year.

Unlike last season, it is their backcourt that appears to be letting the Yeomen down.

On the defensive end, for example, Wittenberg's Jon Stafford hit nine of his 11 shots from the field, including two of three from behind the arc. After nailing his last two free throws, Stafford finished the night shooting 84 percent, and had joined the growing club of opposing guards who enjoy career nights against the Yeomen.

Moreover, the Yeomen find themselves in foul trouble far more frequently than their adversaries. On Saturday, they commited 26 fouls to Wittenberg's eight. After the Tigers went 22 of 30 from the line, the game became increasingly out of reach.

Summing up the game, Sullinger said, "We need to come together as a unit and win. Right now we keep trying the same old things. To get different results, we need to work on new things."

New Year's day is swiftly approaching, a time for starting anew. And if there was ever a team that needed a new start, it is this one. This Saturday their game at Earlham College will offer them an opportunity to do just that.