Posts Tagged ‘Kendrick Perry’

Detroit had about three centers, YSU had one (Dan Boudler), and sometimes Damian Eargle who is more of a power forward.  As a result of a serious problem with height, rebounds, especially on the offensive end would be scarce.  The Penguins overcame the size disadvantage but were their own worst enemy at the free throw line again finishing the game 6-14 from stripe as they dropped another close one, this time to Detroit, 73-69.

In the first half, Detroit raced out to a 10-point lead just over five minutes into the game.  YSU would keep cutting into that lead only to see Detroit extend the lead back to at least seven a couple of times.  By the time the buzzard sounded, Detroit held a 41-40 lead.  Eli Holman paced the Titans with nine points and nine rebounds.  Chase Simon and Chris Blake had ten each in the opening half for the visiting Titans.  YSU got 12 points from Blake Allen and eight more from Kendrick Perry.

In the second half, YSU came out smoking and nabbed a 48-43 lead with 15:49 to go.  Vytas Sulskis led the charge for the Penguins with a couple of buckets.  Blake hit a layup to give Detroit back the lead on an 8-0 run at 49-48 with 14:31 left.  Blake Allen gave YSU a one point lead, the eighth lead change in the game, to put the Penguins ahead 58-57 with 11:15 remaining in the contest.  Chris Blake popped his career high (16 points) with 9:27 remaining for Detroit, putting the Titans ahead, 61-58.

YSU was struggling at the free throw line.  With 8:23 left in the game, the Penguins were an awful 3-10 from the charity stripe, points they need to beat the bigger Titans.  Detroit would battle over the next five minutes to maintain the lead and at the 3:56 mark, the Titans still held a 66-64 lead thanks in part to the Penguins lousy free throw shooting and some equally lousy officiating.  YSU had three very questionable calls go against them over he span of two minutes, and the 3,000 + in attendance really let them know.

Trailing 67-64 with 3:09 left in the game, Tre Brewer took a good shot that hit every part of the inside of the rim, but did not go.  Perry then hit a pair of free throws to cut Detroit’s lead to 68-66.  Perry’s second three of the game came with 18.4 seconds remaining and cut Detroit’s lead to one point at 70-69. Nick Minnerath was fouled to shoot a pair of free throws with 15.5 seconds to go and he made the second to make it 71-69.  Perry tried to hoist a three, but was unsuccessful.  YSU fouled Blake and the rest is academic.

YSU was lead by Allen and Sulskis with 15 points each.  The Penguins dropped to 7-12 on the season, and 1-7 in the league.  With the exception of Butler and Valpo, YSU has been in every league game until the end.  Having seen each Horizon League team with the completion of this game, no one will be writing off YSU as an easy win in the second half.

Detroit got 20 points from Chris Blake, his career-high.  Simon also contributed 14 points for the Titans.  With the win, Detroit improved to 11-10 and 5-4 in the Horizon.

Youngstown State goes West to Illinois for games against UIC and Loyola this week.

After the game, Coach Slocum talked about the woes that hamper his squad.  “We just aren’t good enough yet to win those close games.  It is very disappointing to work so hard all of the time and not reap the reward of winning.  This was a very tough match up for us because of the size difference, but I thought we did a great job battling and working hard.”

In a must-win game for both teams, Youngstown State needed a win to prove that it belonged in a conference.  Wright State, coming off of a 69-63 win over Butler, needed a win to prove superior in the same conference.  When it was over,  YSU (7-11, 1-7) was winning for a majority of the game, at times by as many as ten, but the team competing for a championship came out on top on this night, 66-62.

“We turned the ball over and we didn’t make shots”, was pretty much all Coach Jerry Slocum had to say after this game.

The Penguins came out fired up scoring the first five points.  Wright State would answer and take a 6-5 lead.  The rest of the opening half was nip-and-tuck and the Penguins forged ahead for a 28-24 halftime lead.  Ashen Ward hit a couple of threes and a couple of twos for ten first half points to lead YSU.  Wright State got eight from N’Gai Evans and seven from Vaughn Duggins.

In the first half, Damian Eargle blocked a shot to become the second player in Youngstown State history to record 50 blocks or more in a single season.  Eargle finished the game with xx points and xx blocked shots.  Eargle joins Ricky Tunstill in the blocked shots hierarchy at YSU.

The beginning of the second half looked like the start of the first half.  YSU opened up with a 5-0 run to open a 33-24 lead.  Wright State took a timeout and then unleashed AJ Pacher.  Pacher hit a couple of threes to keep Wright State close.  At the 13:23 mark of the second half, the Raiders pulled within one at 41-40 until Vytas Sulskis nailed a three to make it 44-40.  Devonte Maymon then tacked on another three to make it 47-40 with 11:32 remaining.

Sulskis commented on the disappointment of this loss afterwards.  “We didn’t finish.  Four points over the final six minutes is ridiculous and we know we are better than that.”

YSU pushed the lead all the way to nine points with 8:15 left in the game at 53-44.  Every time Wright State would score a bucket or two, YSU was able to respond.  Tre Brewer had previously scored six points in three separate games, hit his ninth point, a free throw, to help the Penguins to a ten point lead at 58-48, biggest lead for either team in the game.  Wright State would chop that lead in half, and with 5:39 left in the game, YSU was ahead 58-53.

The Penguins lead was carved to just one point at 60-59 with just under three minutes left in the game.  Sulskis hit a runner down the lane to increase the advantage to three points.  Troy Tabler kissed one off of the glass to give Wright State their first lead of the second half at 63-62 with 1:11 left.  Eargle missed both free throw attempts after being fouled to keep the Raiders in front.  The Penguins then had a couple of wild looks that they could not convert.  A pair of Tabler free throws put Wright State up three, 65-62 with just 26.2 seconds remaining.

Youngstown State got a good all-around effort from Ward.  The junior from Cleveland finished this game with 12 points and battled for six rebounds.  Eargle played a great defensive game and increased his Horizon League lead in the blocked shot category with six swats and Devonte Maymon chipped in twelve more.

Wright State got 10 points from Evans, and another 10 from Duggins.  Pacher finished the game with three successful long-distance rainbows.

Youngstown State University was coming off of a tough road trip.  The Penguins traveled to Valpo and Butler and lost both games, one a blowout and the other a nail-biter to the NCAA runner-up Bulldogs.  The cure for that kind of hangover came in the form of a tiny little-known school called Wilberforce.  The Bulldogs came to Youngstown struggling, and giving up boat loads of points in their losses. Youngstown State had little trouble and coasted to an 86-51 win.

In the first half, Youngstown State, not used to having any kind of size advantage, enjoyed playing the role of “big” for a change.  Usually the Penguins are outsized in the paint.  Damian Eargle, who leads the Horizon League with 2.9 blocks/game had a pair of rejections in the first two minutes.  In fact, YSU enjoyed 12 first half offensive rebounds.  The Penguins held a comfortable, but not overly-impressive, 39-26 lead at the intermission.  Eargle lead the way with 11 points in the half.  Devonte Maymon also had nine points.

By the 10-minute mark of the second half, YSU enjoyed an advantage of superior athleticism and a 65-34 lead.  This was when the game should have went to a continuous clock, like a pee-wee football game that gets out of control.  Wilberforce had cut the lead to twelve in the second half, but got no closer.

So was it the kind of game YSU needed at this stage of the season?  Absolutely.  From a “gather your senses and build some confidence”, standpoint, it was the kind of matchup to let Youngstown State know that they can dominate someone.  However, the intensity surely was absent, especially in the first half.  Cleveland State rolls in on Saturday and this public service announcement win will be better verified at about 10 P.M. Saturday.

Eargle (above) sat out much of the second half and finished the game with 16 points and nine boards.  Maymon knocked in 15, and Kendrick Perry had a double-double with 13 points and ten rebounds.  The Penguins finished the game with every player scoring except Tre Brewer.  Youngstown State finished the contest with a 61-39 rebounding edge.  The school record for rebounds in a game is 62.

For Wilberforce, I suppose the opportunity to play a Division-I program is a thrill.  Tough night for the little school.  Darius Foster paced the Bulldogs with 15 points and six rebounds.

After the game, Jerry Slocum talked about the win.  “We worked on sharing the ball.  I think our guys have been doing a really good job on the glass, even this past road trip where we lost a couple of games.”

Kendrick Perry talked about the wide-open feeling.  “It was different tonight.  Because we run a motion offense, we got a lot of good looks.”

Youngstown State traveled West on I-76 looking for perhaps their biggest answer as to how good they could be against a quality team like Akron.  The Penguins fought really hard and looked good.  Brett McClanahan hit a 3-pointer as he was falling backwards at the end of regulation to force overtime.  McClanahan’s three came after two missed three attempts as YSU held a three point lead with just seconds left.  In overtime, the Zips got the bounces and the calls enabling them to walk away with a hard-fought 91-84 win over the much-improved Penguins team.

Vytas Sulskis poured in 20 points but missed most of the end of regulation and some of the overtime with a banged-up knee.  “I will be okay'” said Sulskis after the game, “I hyperextended it [knee] when I fell, but I am fine.”  Devonte Maymon and Ashen Ward each had 14 points, and Kendrick Perry chipped in eleven for Youngstown State.

“This hurts”, said Maymon.  “That is some really bad luck we had out there tonigfht for them to get off three three-point shots in the last ten seconds.  One rebound away.”  Maymon and Ward drilled key buckets to put YSU ahead in regulation.

I can tell the YSU Basketball Universe that this isn’t last years team.  This is a scrappy bunch who move the ball and function as a unit. They could win 20 games this season, easily.  They are that good and are still getting better.

Dan Boudler also had a career-best night with nine points and five rebounds and Sheldon Brogden added a career-high nine for the Guins.

Maymon’s three put the Penguins ahead 77-74 with 27 seconds left.  Needing a three to tie, the Zips started firing.  First Daryl Roberts missed, offensive rebound by Zeke Marshall who kicked it back outside the arc to Steve McNees who also fired a three and missed. Marshall snagged another offensive board and found McClanahan just outside the right part of the circle in front of the Akron bench. McClanahan barely got the shot off on time and the backboard turned red and time just froze.  When the sphere hit the twine, the Zips faithful at James A. Rhodes Arena blew the roof off.

During the overtime, Akron scored the first five points to go ahead 87-82 and never looked back.

The Penguins (2-1) return home on Wednesday and will play somewhere in the neighborhood of 7:30.  The girls welcome Bucknell before the Men’s game at Beeghly Center.

Youngstown State University (1-0) showed flashes of just how good they could be.  Buffalo (1-0) was coming off of an 18 win season and have been a force in the MAC over the past couple of seasons.  This game was played with a lot of new bodies on both rosters and seemingly the team that committed the most mistakes would probably lose.  Youngstown State did a great job down the stretch converting free throws and maximizing opportunities on their way to 2-0 for the first time since 2004, posting a 64-53 win.

The first half was a strong one for Youngstown State.  Buffalo raced out to an early 10-2 lead, but YSU scored the next 13 points unanswered showing an array of weaponry that Coach Slocum has envisioned in his “potential meter“.  Vytas Sulskis hit a three forcing Buffalo to use a timeout and capping the 13-0 Penguins run.

YSU had a 12 point lead with 4:30 left in the first half before Buffalo cut into the Penguins lead and only trailed by three points at the intermission.  Devonte Maymon had ten first half points to lead Youngstown State.  Sulskis chipped in with eight, and newcomer Tre Brewer added six.  Buffalo was paced by Jawaan Alston and his seven points and four rebounds.  At the half, the Penguins looked impressive and held a 32-29 lead.

YSU maintained a three point lead throughout the first part of the second half.  With 11:57 left in the contest, the Penguins were ahead by the count of 42-39.  Buffalo was really struggling from the free throw line connecting on only nine of 23 to this point in the game. Youngstown State’s kryptonite was the 14 turnovers committed.

With 7:31 left in the game, Youngstown State had a 46-43 lead.  Neither team could capitalize on the other’s struggles.  Javon McCrea hit a lay-up to cut the lead to one and Buffalo had a chance to take the lead but turned the ball over.  Ashen Ward capitalized on the Penguins next possession by hitting a bucket while being fouled and converting the free throw to give YSU a 49-45 lead with just over six minutes to play.

One thing the Penguins did extremely well in this game was rebound.  Dan Boudler grabbed one on offense with 4:41 left in the game and tipped it back in.  On the Bulls next possession, Kendrick Perry created a steal and drove the length of the court to give YSU their biggest lead of the second half at 53-45.  Alston kept his Bulls in it with a basket to cut the lead to 53-49 with 3:19 remaining.  Ward hit a three with 2:00 left in the game to increase the Penguin lead to 58-49.

YSU was led by Maymon who knocked in 13 points.  Eargle and Brewer gathered 24 rebounds for YSU.  Buffalo was paced by Alston and Barnett who poured in eleven points each in falling to 1-1 on the young season.

A festive Jerry Slocum addressed the media after the game.  “Anytime you can win a game when you shoot under 40%, you did a good job battling. This is as good of a team win as we have had in a very long time around here.  Damian [Eargle] and Trey [Brewer] really stepped up getting some big rebounds for us down the stretch, that is what wins games.”

Junior Ashen Ward, who had a career-high 13 points, echoed the sentiments of the coach.  “Winning is fun, and we are having fun because we are winning.  Everything is easier when you are winning, practices are fun.  Guys are buying in and things are working well so far this year.”

The Youngstown State University has undergone a major transformation.  Between graduation and the departing transfers, there were only a few familiar faces with any experience.  One face that hasn’t changed is that of Jerry Slocum.  Slocum pretty much had to rebuild the team from the ground up.  Vytas Sulskis, Ashen Ward, and Dan Boudler were really the only guys who returned with game experience from last season.

YSU parlayed some new chemistry with some clutch free throw shooting down the stretch to get to 1-0 and defeating Samford at The Beeghly Center by the score of 64-61.

Samford University stopped in for a visit Friday night in the opener for both teams.  The pace was flat for both teams in the early going and by halftime, the score would be tied five times and there was one lead change.  Basically, Youngstown State had the lead for the first half of the first half.  Samford took the reigns and held on through halftime. Vytas Sulskis looked good for the Penguins in the first half. Nearly all other Penguins looked inconsistent and sluggish.

As a team, the Penguins were really struggling, throwing up 17 three point shots in the first half and only connecting on two.

At the 15:20 mark of the second half, YSU held a 34-31 lead.  Sulskis and Devonte Mayman had nine points apiece for the Penguins to this point.  Kendrick Perry hit a three to give the Penguins the lead at 37-34.  On their next possession, DuShawn Brooks buried a three to increase the lead to 40-34 with 12:15 remaining.

Jeffrey Merritt did his best to keep Samford in the game.  Merritt gathered an offensive rebound and hit a shot while being fouled to cut the lead to three.  Maymon hit a drive falling while being fouled and somehow connected to put the Penguins ahead, 51-42 with 6:06 left in the game.

Samford’s Josh Davis buried a three-pointer with 3:34 left in the game cutting YSU’s lead to just three points at 56-53. Next trip down the floor, Merritt drove the middle, drew a foul, and got his shot to fall.  From there, Brooks took over for YSU, first tipping in a missed shot and then nailing a three with 1:47 left in the game to put the Penguins ahead 61-57.

Merritt buried a three with 11.7 seconds left in the game cutting the YSU lead to just one point at 61-60.  Merritt was high-scorer for the Bulldogs with 19 points, and he also grabbed 11 rebounds.

Sulskis was intentionally fouled with 9.8 seconds left and hit both free throws to increase the YSU lead to 63-60.

DuShawn Brooks was impressive in his Penguins debut, scoring 20 points and grabbing six boards.  Devonte Maymon was also tough knocking down 15.  Sulskis finished the game with 13 points and ten boards for his third career double-double.

After the game, a cheery Coach Jerry Slocum addressed what effected his team early.  “I don’t know if it was so much being sluggish as it was emotional.  We were really jacked-up tonight and once things calmed down we were better at knocking down our shots.”

Sulskis shared the sentiment of Slocum.  “Last season we would have hung our heads and would not have responded.  This year is much different we are more like a family and stayed together, pulled through when it counted most.”

YSU gets back into action on Tuesday with another home game, welcoming in Buffalo.  Tipoff is 7:05.

The YSU Men’s Basketball Team is doing it’s best to bolster the confidence of the women’s program.  Having lost five to graduation, the Penguins are now without four underclassmen who were expected to be big pieces in the 2010-11 puzzle. 

Juniors Vance Cooksey and Tom Parks and freshmen Eddie D’Haiti and Lamar McKnight have informed the program that they will not return next season.  No explanations were given as to why the foursome have walked away.

Cooksey and D’Haiti both played adequately this season.  Cooksey started 10 games, but more  importantly, would have been the sparkplug next season.  D’Haiti was more of a physical work in progress.  He played, but very sparingly, and admitted himself that he needed to get stronger to compete at this level.

Parks broke his ankle in December in a snow-related accident and missed all but 11 games.  McKnight redshirted and did not play at all.

This leaves six players, ala YSU Women circa 2010, and that experiment did not yield any wins.  Ashen Ward, Vytas Sulskis, and Dan Boudler are the only three carryovers with any true playing experience for Youngstown State.  Andy Timko (above) appeared in three games, and Sheldon Brogdon and Damian Eargle never saw the court this season.  Fletcher Larson and Kendrick Perry are incoming recruits who have committed.  Aaron Anderson is another potential recruit who is close to signing with the Penguins.

Coach Jerry Slocum has not talked on the matters as of yet.

*** Thanks to Letsgoguins.com for updating a mistake that I printed.  Aaron Anderson signed with North Dakota, not YSU.