Wake Forest Athletics
Deacons Kick Off Hoops Season Wednesday
11/21/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 21, 2002
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
Wake Forest (0-0) vs. Yale (*0-0)
Game #1 / Nov. 27, 2002
Lawrence Joel Coliseum (14,665)
Winston-Salem, NC
Tip-Off: 9:05 p.m.
Television: Fox Sports Net. Mike Hogewood (play-by-play) and Mike Gminski (color analysis) call the action. Ken Neal is the producer.
Radio: The Deacon Radio Network, produced and distributed by ISP. Stan Cotten (play-by-play) and Mark Freidinger (color analysis) call the action. Websites: WAKE (wakeforestsports.com). YALE (yale.edu/athletics).
The Records: WAKE FOREST will be playing its season opener. *YALE is 0-0 heading into Friday's game at Oklahoma State.
The Rankings: WAKE FOREST is not ranked. YALE is not ranked.
WFU Coach Skip Prosser: Prosser (U.S. Merchant Marine Academy '72) is 21-13 in his second season at Wake Forest, 186-91 in 10 years overall as a head coach. Prosser coached one season at Loyola (MD) and seven seasons at Xavier before coming to Wake.
Yale Coach James Jones: Jones (Albany '86) is 38-48 in three years at Yale, three years overall.
Series History: Wake Forest leads, 2-1. More series information on page three.
Trivial Statistic: Wake Forest is 68-28 all-time in season openers, including a current streak of eight consecutive victories.
The Officials: Announced on game day.
Deacons kick off 2002-03 season against talented Yale on Wednesday
Wake Forest, which has appeared in postseason play 12 consecutive years and fielding one of the youngest teams in college basketball, kicks off the 2002-03 season against defending Ivy League co-champion Yale Wednesday night at Lawrence Joel Coliseum (9:05 p.m./Fox Sports Net). The Deacons had mixed results in two preseason exhibition games. Wake looked sharp in a 90-55 win over Gulbene Buki of Latvia on Nov. 14, but the Deacs were sloppy in an 80-75 loss to the EA Sports All-Stars on Dec. 18.
Senior All-American candidate Josh Howard is the lone healthy returnee with more than one year of experience. There are nine freshmen and sophomores on the roster. Guard Steve Lepore, who is rehabilitating from a knee injury, is the only other senior on the roster. Yale, 21-11 a year ago, opens its season Friday night at Oklahoma State. The Bulldogs, who earned a postseason NIT bid last season, return all 12 letterwinners from a team that finished 11-3 in the Ivy League. Four returning Bulldogs averaged scoring in double figures last year. The Yale game is the start of a tough stretch for the Deacons. Wake Forest hosts Temple (Dec. 1) before travelling to Wisconsin (Dec. 4) for the ACC/Big 10 Challenge.
Deacons try to keep streaks alive
Wake Forest has won eight consecutive season openers. The last time the Deacs lost a curtain-raiser was a 70-68 loss at Alaska-Anchorage in the first round of the 1993-94 Great Alaska Shootout. Wake has won 13 straight home openers. Its last home-opening loss came against Richmond (71-64) on Nov. 28, 1988.
A quick look at Yale
Last season Yale won a share of the Ivy League championship (with Princeton and Penn) for the first time since 1963, won more games (21) than any Bulldog team since 1949 and earned its first postseason appearance in more than 40 years, advancing to the second round of the NIT. Junior forward Paul Vitelli (10.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game) was second team All-Ivy and led the league in rebounding last season. A pair of sophomore guards -- Edwin Draughan and Alex Gamboa -- give the Bulldogs an outstanding backcourt. Draughan (11.5 ppg.) led the team in scoring, Gamboa was the Ivy League Rookie of the Year. Senior center T.J. McHugh averaged 10.7 points per game last season and swingman Ime Archibong contributed 9.2 points per contest. Yale begins the season by playing its first four games on the road. The Bulldogs open the year Friday night at Oklahoma State. Following the Wake Forest game, the Bulldogs travel to Penn State (Dec. 1) and Sacred Heart (Dec. 5).
Deacons have mixed results in two exhibition games
Wake Forest was impressive in a 90-55 exhibition win over Latvia's Gulbene Buki on Nov. 14, then looked flat in the Nov. 18 80-75 loss to the EA Sports All-Stars. Senior All-American candidate Josh Howard, however, was a consistent leader in both games. He had 21 points and 13 rebounds against EA Sports and averaged 18 points and 13 rebounds in the two exhibition games combined. Wake's inexperience showed in the Nov. 18 loss to the EA Sports All-Stars, a team that also defeated Penn State, Temple, Kansas State and others. The All-Stars shot a sizzling 52.8 percent against the Deacons. Wake had as many assists (15) as turnovers, and starting guards Justin Gray and Taron Downey combined to make just 5-of-26 field goal attempts. The Deacons shot just 40.0 percent as a team against EA Sports. Wake Forest out-rebounded the All-Stars, 44-31. Following is a look at Wake Forest's two-game cumulative exhibition statistics:
Category WFU Opponents Record 1-1 1-1 Scoring Average 82.5 67.5 Rebound Average 46.5 36.0 Field Goal Percentage 42.3% 41.2% Free Throw Percentage 76.6% 65.5% Three-Point Field Goals Per Game 6.5 9.0 Three-Point Field Goal Percentage 26.5% 34.6% Assists Per Game 17.5 14.0 Turnovers Per Game 13.0 18.5 Blocked Shots Per Game 2.5 2.0 Steals Per Game 7.5 8.5
Howard has 21 points, 13 rebounds in Nov. 18 exhibition loss
Wake Forest dropped its final exhibition game Nov. 18 by an 80-75 score to the EA Sports All-Stars. The Deacons trailed at halftime 47-38 and could not overcome 5-for-27 shooting from three-point range. Conversely, the EA Sports All-Stars made 11-of-21 three-point attempts. Josh Howard posted a double-double with 21 points and 13 rebounds to go with five assists. Overall, the Deacons outrebounded their opponents 44-31 but EA Sports knocked down more than 52 percent of their shots. Fred Vinson led a balanced EA Sports attack with 17 points. Damien Cantrell flirted with a triple-double with 15 points, eight rebounds and seven dimes. For the Deacons, sophomores Vytas Danelius and Taron Downey chipped in 14 points apiece.
Howard shakes off the rust to lead Wake Forest to exhibition victory
Senior All-American candidate Josh Howard has missed much of preseason practice because of severe shin splints. And while his shot was rusty, his team-high 15 points and 13 rebounds helped lead the Deacons to a 90-55 win over Gulbene Buki of Latvia in an exhibition game Nov. 14. Howard did all his damage in just 19 minutes of action. He struggled from the floor (5-of-14), but he had six offensive boards, two assists and two blocked shots. Sophomore Vytas Danelius (13 points, 10 rebounds) recorded a double-double. Freshman Justin Gray started, scored 13 points, dished out six assists and had one turnover in 23 minutes. Sophomore Taron Downey scored 10 points, dished out six assists with zero turnovers and recorded three steals. Wake Forest held Gulbene Buki to 31.8 percent shooting and forced 21 Buki turnovers.
Wake Forest-Yale series history
- Wake Forest leads the all-time series, 2-1.
- The two teams will meet for the first time in more than 30 years (Dec. 21, 1971). - The first meeting was an 85-76 Wake Forest win on Dec. 31, 1958 in the Dixie Classic in Raleigh.
- Wake Forest's other win over Yale was a 92-82 overtime win in the opening round of the 1962 NCAA Tournament in Philadelphia. The Deacons escaped the Bulldogs and went on to their only Final Four appearance.
- Yale won the last meeting, 85-75, on Dec. 21, 1971 in Winston-Salem.
- Wake Forest head coach Skip Prosser has never coached against Yale.
- The Demon Deacons are 9-5 all-time against teams from the Ivy League. The last time Wake Forest played an Ivy league team was a 69-64 loss to Princeton on Dec. 19, 1997 at the Jimmy V Classic in East Rutherford, NJ.
- Wake Forest is 5-2 all-time against teams from Connecticut including a 1-1 record versus UConn and a 2-0 mark against Fairfield. Deacon-Bulldog connections
- Yale has three players on its roster from the state of North Carolina including Greensboro's Ime Archibong, Asheville's Dominick Martin and Fayetteville's Juan Wheat. Archibong, a senior, played at Bishop McGuiness on the high school level. Wheat played at Fayetteville's Seventy-First High School. Martin played at A.C. Reynolds High.
- Bulldog coach James Jones was an assistant coach at Ohio University in 1998 and 1999. During that time, Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser and his current staff worked at Xavier University in Ohio. Also during that time, WFU head football coach Jim Grobe was working at Ohio.
- Yale won its only ACC road game last year, beating Clemson 68-65.
Statistical comparison
A statistical comparison between Wake Forest and Yale, using the 2001-02 final team statistics:
Category WFU Yale Record 21-13 21-11 Conference Record 9-7 11-3 Scoring Average 82.0 74.8 Opponent Scoring Average 77.0 70.5 Scoring Margin +5.0 +4.3 Rebound Average 38.6 39.4 Opponent Rebound Average 35.7 34.5 Rebound Margin +2.9 +4.9 Field Goal Percentage 47.8% 42.8% Defensive Field Goal Percentage 44.2% 42.6% Free Throw Percentage 73.8% 70.1% Three-Point Field Goals Per Game 7.1 7.1 Three-Point Field Goal Percentage 36.6% 34.0% Assists Per Game 16.3 14.3 Turnovers Per Game 14.6 15.3 Blocked Shots Per Game 4.1 2.9 Steals Per Game 6.5 7.2
As many as eight Deacons could make career debut Wednesday night
It's possible that eight Demon Deacons -- five freshmen, two walk-ons and junior Dshamal Schoetz -- could make their career debuts Wednesday night. Last season Taron Downey and Vytas Danelius made their career debuts in the season opener. Downey scored five points in 15 minutes and Danelius had two points in six minutes in Wake's season-opening 79-78 win over UNC-Wilmington. More often than not, freshmen make less than spectacular splashes in their career debuts. Tim Duncan, the 2002 NBA MVP for example, went scoreless in 10 minutes of action in a 70-68 loss to Alaska-Anchorage in 1993-94. Ten years earlier, Muggsy Bogues had four points and four assists in 10 minutes in a 74-59 victory against Furman. One of the most impressive career debuts by a Deacon was by Rodney Rogers in 1990 against Furman. Rogers made 10-of-17 shots, scored 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds in that game. Current senior Josh Howard showed glimpses of his versatility in his career debut back on Nov. 20, 1999. Howard had nine points, five rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal against Campbell.
Yale game the first of four straight on Fox Sports Net or ESPN
Wake Forest will be right at home playing on Fox Sports Net or ESPN this season. Wake's first four games will be televised by one of those networks. The Deacons will play on Fox Net or Fox Sports South eight times this season. Wake Forest has six games scheduled for either ESPN or ESPN2. In addition, the Deacons will play on ABC twice. In part because of the Fox schedule, Wake Forest will play on Sunday nine times in 2002-03.
Baby Deacs are expected to make huge impact
Only time will tell, but the Wake Forest five-man freshman class has a chance to be one of the top overall groups in school history. Eric Williams, 6-9, was Wake's first McDonald's High School All-American since Loren Woods. Justin Gray, 6-2, was considered one of the nation's top guard prospects. Gray is expected to be a starter this season. Williams started WFU's first exhibition game. The most underrated player in the group may be 6-5 Trent Strickland, who averaged 8.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals in Wake's exhibition games. Chris Ellis, 6-8, appears to be a key part of the rotation after seeing significant action in both exhibitions. Richard Joyce, 6-5, was 2-of-4 from three-point range during the exhibition season.
Deacons hoping to get healthier
Because of injuries to both seniors, the most experienced player at many practice sessions this fall has been sophomore Taron Downey, who started 10 games last season. Following is a look at Wake's injuries: - Senior guard Steve Lepore (ruptured patella tendon) has yet to participate full-scale in a practice because of an injury suffered in last season's ACC Tournament. Lepore is slowly beginning to participate in more drills. - Senior forward Josh Howard (severe shin splints) has been day-to-day throughout the preseason. - Freshman center Eric Williams (bruised knee, sprained ankle) missed more than a week of practice because of the knee. He played just nine minutes in the first exhibition game after twisting an ankle. - Freshman Justin Gray (neck strain) missed some practice time with a sore neck.
Senior All-American candidate Josh Howard racks up preseason honors
A preseason injury (severe shin splints) possibly cost senior Josh Howard the honor of ACC Preseason Player of the Year, but he continues to rack up the individual honors anyway. Howard received 20 of 88 votes for ACC Preseason Player of the Year (won by Duke's Chris Duhon). He was named first team Preseason All-ACC. On the national level, Howard is on the preseason list for the John R. Wooden Award and the Naismith Award. Both go to the nation's top college player. He is also on the preseason list of candidates for the CLASS Award, which goes to the nation's top senior player. In addition, Howard has received considerable praise from preseason publications. Athlon ranks him as an honorable mention preseason All-American and the magazine calls Howard the nation's fourth-best "slasher".
Howard's Preseason Honors -1st team All-ACC - 1st team All-ACC (Athlon) - 1st team All-ACC (ACC Handbook) - Wooden Award candidate - Naismith Award candidate - CLASS Award candidate - Honorable mention All-America (Athlon) - ACC Top Defensive Player (Athlon)
Deacons receiving votes in ESPN/USA Today poll
Just like last season, Wake Forest begins the year outside looking in at the national polls. Last year's squad leaped into the top 25 in late November, reached a ranking as high as 14, and remained in the polls for 14 consecutive weeks. The Deacons received 17 votes for the ESPN/USA Today preseason poll, which would rank Wake 38th. Just three Wake Forest opponents -- Duke, Maryland and Marquette -- are ranked in both national polls. However, among the top vote-getters not in the top 25 are Deacon foes Virginia, NC State, Temple, Georgia Tech and St. John's.
Deacons eye 13th consecutive postseason appearance
Wake Forest enters the 2002-03 season having appeared in postseason play 12 consecutive seasons. That's the longest current streak among all teams in the ACC. Maryland, with nine straight postseason appearances, is second. The Deacons earned NCAA Tournament bids every year from 1991 to 1997, then played three straight years in the NIT. In 2000, WFU won the NIT title. Wake went back to the NCAAs in 2001 and 2002.
Skip Prosser will be on ACC/Big 10 teleconference Tuesday
A teleconference for all the head coaches participating in the annual ACC/Big 10 Challenge is set for Tuesday (Nov. 26). The teleconference begins at noon and runs through 1:30 p.m. Wake Forest's Skip Prosser will take his turn at 12:20 p.m. To participate in the teleconference, call the ACC media relations office (336-851-6062) to obtain the phone number. Wake Forest will play Wisconsin Dec. 4 in the Challenge in Madison, WI.
ACC/Big 10 Challenge -- part IV
The ACC/Big 10 Challenge, which originated during the 2000-01 season, has been a good event for Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons are a perfect 3-0, with wins over Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota. The Deacons and Duke are the only teams 3-0 in the event. Michigan State is 2-0 and the Spartans' game last season with Virginia was postponed. Wake's perfect record in the Challenge will be tested this season. The Deacons play at Wisconsin Dec. 4 in their first road game of the season.
On deck for Wake: Temple
Wake Forest will begin the month of December against a familiar non-conference foe -- Temple. The Demon Deacons and Owls will meet for the 20th time when the two teams square off Dec. 1 in Lawrence Joel Coliseum (6:30 p.m./Fox Net). Temple returns seven letterwinners, including senior forward Alex Wesby (11.3 points per game last season), from a team that went 19-15 last year and finished third in the NIT. The Owls lead the all-time series, 10-9. Wake Forest has won the last two meetings.
Taron Downey held hot hand in Nov. 2 intra-squad scrimmage
Sophomore guard Taron Downey poured in 25 points on 10-of-12 shooting, including 5-of-6 from three-point range, to lead all Wake Forest scorers in a closed intra-squad scrimmage at Budd Gymnasium Nov. 2. Downey, who started 10 games as a freshman last season, added four assists and two steals. Rosters of the teams changed throughout the scrimmage, thus no official team score was kept. Sitting out the scrimmage were senior Steve Lepore (recovering from ruptured patella tendon), freshman Eric Williams (bruised knee) and freshman Justin Gray (strained neck). Senior All-American candidate Josh Howard (severe shin splints) played just six minutes, but managed to score 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting. Junior walk-on Alan Williams added 17 points, going 5-of-5 from three-point range. Sophomore forwards Jamaal Levy and Vytas Danelius each added eight points and seven rebounds. Levy led all Deacons with five assists. Freshman Chris Ellis blocked three shots.
The ACC is tops
Since 1985, no conference has performed better in the postseason than the ACC. Since 1988, the ACC has made 17 Final Four appearances while the Big Ten is second with 12 Final Four teams. More on the ACC in the NCAA Tournament: - The ACC has produced the last two NCAA champions (Duke in 2001 and Maryland in 2002). - The ACC is the only league to have at least one team in the Final Four in each of the last six years. - Since 1985, the ACC leads all conferences in NCAA Tournament wins (182), Sweet 16 appearances (51), and Final Four appearances (18). - The ACC has had at least one consensus All-American in each of the past 12 years -- the longest active streak by any league. - An all-time high 154 televised games involving ACC teams are on tap for 2002-03.
Always on Sunday (it seems)
Nine times this season Wake Forest will play on Sunday. In all but one of those games, the Deacons will be playing on Fox Sports Net TV. Conversely, Wake will play on Saturday just five times in 2002-03. The Deacons have Saturdays off between Jan. 5 and March 1.
Athletic families
Senior Steve Lepore's brother, Chris, was an All-American defensive back at Navy... Freshman Chris Ellis' father, Dale, was a standout performer at Tennessee and for many years in the NBA... Freshman Eric Williams' mother (basketball) and father (football) played college athletics at Livingstone College... Alan Williams' father played basketball at Washington & Lee.
