Wake Forest Athletics
Deacons, Tar Heels Square Off Sunday In Chapel Hill
1/30/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 30, 2003
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#17 Wake Forest (14-2/4-2) at North Carolina (11-8/2-4)
Game #17 / February 2, 2003 Dean E. Smith Center (21,750) Chapel Hill, NC
Tip-Off: 5:47 p.m.
Television: Fox Sports Net. Thom Brennaman (play-by-play) and Mike Gminski (color analysis) call the action. Mike Burks produces.
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 FOREST (wakeforestsports.com). NORTH CAROLINA (tarheelblue.com).
The Records: WAKE FOREST is 14-2 overall and 4-2 in the ACC after an 81-60 win at Clemson Tuesday night. NORTH CAROLINA is 11-8 and 2-4 following an 88-68 loss at Georgia Tech Wednesday.
The Rankings: WAKE FOREST is ranked 17th in the Associated Press poll and 18th in the ESPN/USA Today poll. NORTH CAROLINA is not ranked.
WFU Coach Skip Prosser: Prosser (U.S. Merchant Marine Academy ??72) is 35-15 in his second season at Wake Forest, 200-93 in 10 years overall. Prosser coached one season at Loyola (MD) and seven seasons at Xavier before coming to Wake Forest
North Carolina Coach Matt Doherty: Doherty (North Carolina ??84) is 45-35 in three seasons at his alma mater, 67-51 in four seasons overall.
Series History: North Carolina leads, 146-59. More series information later in this release.
Trivial Note: Wake Forest has seven native North Carolinians on its roster.
The Officials: Announced on game day.
Deacons face another stiff road test Sunday at North Carolina Wake Forest, which helped head coach Skip Prosser earn his 200th career win Tuesday night at Clemson, travels to Chapel Hill Sunday to face North Carolina (5:47 p.m./Fox Sports Net). The 17th-ranked Deacons, 14-2 overall and 4-2 in the ACC, beat Clemson on the road Tuesday night, 81-60. Sophomore Vytas Danelius scored a career-high 21 points and senior All-American candidate Josh Howard had a double-double to lead the Deacons. Wake Forest continues to play without injured starting guard Justin Gray. The freshman broke his jaw Jan. 12 at Duke. North Carolina, 11-8 and 2-4, lost at Georgia Tech Wednesday night, 88-68. Sophomore Jawad Williams scored a career-high 24 points for the Tar Heels, who lost their third straight. North Carolina leads the all-time series, 146-59. Wake Forest won the last two meetings and four out of the last seven. More series information later in this release. Some of Sunday??s storylines: - Wake Forest will find itself as high as tied for first in the ACC standings, or as low as tied for fourth, depending on the outcome of Sunday??s game and other league games this week. - The Deacons will be attempting to beat North Carolina for the third consecutive time -- something Wake Forest has not done since 1971. WFU has not won consecutive games in Chapel Hill since 1981 and 1982. - Both teams are missing one freshman starter -- Wake Forest??s Justin Gray and North Carolina??s Sean May. - The Deacons will be playing the second of three road games in a 13-day span. WFU plays at Marquette Feb. 9.
A quick look at the Deacons
Fielding one of the nation??s youngest rosters -- four freshmen, three sophomores and senior All-American candidate Josh Howard all average at least 15 minutes per game -- the Deacons are 14-2 with wins against then No. 17 Maryland, at No. 23 Wisconsin, at Richmond, Georgia Tech and St. John??s. Statistically, Wake Forest??s biggest strengths have been rebounding and free throw percentage. The Deacons lead the nation in rebound margin (+12.3) and rank 14th nationally in free throw percentage (.755). The Deacons are without freshman guard Justin Gray (10.5 points and 4.0 assists per game) for an undetermined amount of time. Gray suffered a broken jaw against Duke Jan. 12. Howard (18.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game), is one of the most complete players in college basketball. Over his last five games, Howard has averaged 23.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.8 steals per game. Sophomore forward Vytas Danelius (13.4 ppg. and 7.8 rpg.), who has averaged 19.7 points over his last three games, is shooting 57.9 percent from the field. Freshman center Eric Williams, 6-9 and 270 pounds, is averaging 9.9 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Sophomore Taron Downey (10.9 ppg., 3.8 apg.) averaged 16.0 points over his last three games while making eight three-point field goals. Sophomore Jamaal Levy (6.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg.), who has started the last six games, ranks second on the team in blocked shots and third in rebounding. A pair of freshmen reserves -- Trent Strickland (5.9 ppg.) and Chris Ellis (4.3 ppg.) -- have been key to WFU??s success. Senior guard Steve Lepore, who is recovering from a ruptured patella tendon, is easing back into the rotation, and freshman Richard Joyce is a perimeter threat off the bench. Both are seeing additional minutes because of Gray??s injury.
A quick look at the Tar Heels
North Carolina, which has faced one of the nation??s most difficult schedules, is 11-8 overall and 2-4 in the ACC. The Tar Heels own a three-game losing streak after falling at Georgia Tech, 88-68, Wednesday night. Freshman Rashad McCants (19.1 points per game), a leading candidate for ACC rookie of the year, is averaging 22.6 points per game against ranked opponents. Freshman guard Raymond Felton (11.6 ppg., 6.6 apg.) has become more of a scorer recently, scoring in double figures in eight straight games. Sophomore Jawad Williams (13.9 ppg., 6.2 rpg.) is coming off a career-high 24 points at Tech. North Carolina, looking for its 500th ACC victory, is among the ACC leaders in three-point field goals per game (7.5).
More from WFU??s 81-60 win at Clemson Tuesday night
- Taron Downey??s four three-point field goals were the most by a Deacon player this season. - Wake Forest continued its streak of out-rebounding every opponent this season despite Clemson??s 16 offensive rebounds, which were the most by a Deacon opponent this season. - Clemson??s .333 free throw percentage (4-of-12) was the lowest by a WFU opponent this season. - The Deacons beat Clemson for the eighth time in nine attempts. - WFU??s 21-point margin of victory tied for its seventh-largest ever on the road in an ACC game.
Skip Prosser earns 200th career win
Wake Forest head coach Skip Prosser earned his 200th career victory Tuesday night. Prosser, 200-93 in his 10th season of coaching, won his 200th game quicker than all but seven active Division I coaches. Prosser is just the second active coach in the ACC -- joining Virginia??s Pete Gillen -- to win 200 games or more in his first 10 seasons as a Division I head coach. He is just the eighth active coach to earn win No. 200 before coaching in 300 overall games (see chart above). More on Prosser: - Prosser??s career winning percentage (.683) ranks 20th among all active Division I coaches. - Last season, Prosser became just the fourth coach in ACC history to win nine games in his rookie year. - He is four ACC wins shy of becoming the 10th coach to win 17 or more league games in his first two seasons. - Last season Prosser won more games than any first-year Deacon head coach since 1927. - In two seasons at Wake Forest, Prosser has compiled a record of 35-15.
Wake Forest-UNC series history
- North Carolina leads the all-time series, 146-59. - Wake Forest won the previous two meetings, sweeping the regular season series last year. The Deacons beat the Tar Heels, 90-66 in Winston-Salem, and 84-62 in Chapel Hill. That marked the first time WFU has swept the regular season series since 1969-70. - The Deacons have not defeated North Carolina three straight times since sweeping that series in 1969-70 and winning the first meeting in 1970-71. - The Deacons have won four of the last seven meetings. - North Carolina has dominated the series in Chapel Hill, 68-16, including a 15-2 mark in the Dean Smith Center. Last year??s Wake Forest win at the Smith Center was WFU??s first since 1995. - The Deacons and Tar Heels first met during the 1910-11 season. - The Wake Forest-North Carolina series is the fifth-most frequently played series in the ACC (see box at above right). - Last year??s meeting in Chapel Hill (Jan. 5, 2002) marked the first time ever that a ranked Wake Forest team played an unranked Tar Heel team. - Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser is 2-0 all-time against North Carolina. - North Carolina??s Matt Doherty is 2-3 all-time versus Wake Forest. That includes a loss to the Deacons in the 2000 NIT championship game while coaching at Notre Dame.
Deacon-Tar Heel connections
- North Carolina assistant coach Doug Wojcik was the starting point guard on the Wheeling (WV) Central Catholic High School team that was coached by current Wake Forest??s Skip Prosser. That Central Catholic team won the state championship. Prosser later coached Dave Wojcik (Doug??s brother), who went on to serve as an assistant coach with Prosser at Xavier. In the UNC media guide, Doug Wojcik lists Prosser and Paul Evans as the two people who had the greatest influence on his playing career. - Wojcik was an assistant coach at Navy in 1997-98 when the Midshipmen lost at Wake Forest, 67-43. - North Carolina assistant coach Bob MacKinnon served as the head coach at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy -- Skip Prosser??s alma mater -- from 1997-99. - WFU??s Eric Williams was on the same East team in the 2002 McDonald??s High School All-America Game with North Carolina??s Raymond Felton, Sean May and Rashad McCants. - Wake Forest (seven) and North Carolina (six) combine to have 13 players on their rosters from the state of North Carolina. - WFU??s Justin Gray and T.J. Little and UNC??s Phil McLamb all call Charlotte (NC) home. - Former Deacon Rodney Rogers now plays for the New Jersey Nets. Former Tar Heel Mike O??Koren is a Nets assistant coach. - UNC??s Matt Doherty went 7-3 against Wake Forest while playing for the Tar Heels from 1981-84. - Doherty and WFU media relations staffers Dean Buchan, Bill Newton and Mike Vest all previously worked at the University of Kansas.
On this date in WFU basketball history
Wake Forest is 13-4 all-time when playing on the date of February 2nd, including an 8-0 record at home and a 5-4 mark on the road. The Deacs played on Feb. 2 last season, beating Florida State, 89-80 on the road. On Feb. 2, 1984, WFU beat 18th-ranked Georgia Tech, 78-74, in overtime. The Deacons beat 13th-ranked Virginia, 79-77, on Feb. 2, 1980.
Statistical comparison
A statistical comparison between Wake Forest and North Carolina: Category Deacs Heels Record 14-2 11-8 Conference Record 4-2 2-4 Scoring Average 81.6 70.4 Opponent Scoring Average 65.5 68.6 Scoring Margin +16.1 +1.8 Rebound Average 43.9 37.3 Opponent Rebound Average 31.6 38.6 Rebound Margin +12.3 - 1.3 Field Goal Percentage 45.8% 41.7% Defensive Field Goal Percentage 39.5% 41.3% Free Throw Percentage 75.5% 68.3% Three-Point Field Goals Per Game 6.5 7.5 Three-Point Field Goal Percentage 35.1% 33.4% Assists Per Game 15.2 14.6 Turnovers Per Game 15.2 15.1 Blocked Shots Per Game 4.4 4.1 Steals Per Game 7.2 8.3
Deacons remain #17 in Associated Press poll
With with a tough loss at Virginia and a win at home over Florida State last week, Wake Forest stayed put at 17th this week in the Associated Press top 25. The Deacons are in the Associated Press poll for the sixth consecutive week. WFU also remains at 18th in the ESPN/USA Today poll. The Demon Deacons were not ranked in the preseason poll and did not make an appearance in the top 25 until Dec. 23. WFU has been ranked in 20 of 29 weeks under Skip Prosser. In other polls, Wake Forest is ranked as high as 7th nationally in the Sagarin Ratings, 14th by Fox Sports, 16th in The Sporting News power poll, 16th in the RPI ratings and as low as 20th by CBS Sportsline. Three Wake Forest opponents are in the AP poll -- No. 5 Duke, No. 10 Maryland and No. 18 Marquette. NC State and Wisconsin -- both WFU opponents -- are receiving votes in the AP poll and in the ESPN/USA Today poll.
Deacs top nation in rebound margin ..
With two of its top rebounders off of last year??s team gone via graduation, rebounding was a big concern for Skip Prosser heading into 2002-03. So, you might say it??s been a pleasant surprise that Wake Forest leads the nation in rebound margin (+12.3). More on WFU??s rebounding: - The Deacs are the only ACC team with a double-figure rebound margin. - The Deacons have out-rebounded every opponent this season and they have out-rebounded all but one opponent by at least six boards. - WFU??s largest rebound margin in the last 10 seasons was +6.2 in 1997 -- Tim Duncan??s senior year. - The Deacs aren??t exactly a group of giants with no starter taller than 6-9 and their leading rebounder standing 6-6. It helps that 6-2 guards Taron Downey and Justin Gray both average more than three rebounds per game. - WFU??s freshman class is combining to average 15.7 boards per contest. - Two Deacons rank among the top six in the ACC in rebounding -- Josh Howard (8.1 rpg./4th) and Vytas Danelius (7.8 rpg./6th). - Howard, Danelius and Eric Williams all rank in the ACC??s top seven in offensive rebounds.
Game-By-Game Rebounding
Opponent Rebounds Opponent Difference Yale 40 31 +9 Temple 51 36 +15 Wisconsin 37 27 +10 SMU 48 26 +22 SC State 59 31 +28 St. John??s 49 31 +18 N. Carolina A&T 43 33 +10 Bethune-Cookman 44 28 +16 Richmond 38 31 +7 Elon 39 32 +7 Duke 45 31 +14 Maryland 49 36 +13 Georgia Tech 48 38 +10 Virginia 34 32 +2 Florida State 41 30 +11 Clemson 38 32 +6 AVERAGE 43.9 31.6 +12.3
Deacons rank nationally in scoring, scoring margin, free throw shooting
In addition to leading the nation in rebound margin, Wake Forest ranks among the ACC and national leaders in other categories: - Since arriving at Wake Forest last season, Skip Prosser has made the Deacons one of the nation??s highest-scoring teams. Wake Forest ranks 12th nationally in scoring offense (81.6 points per game). Last year, the Deacons finished eighth nationally in scoring. - Wake Forest, which hasn??t led the ACC in scoring since 1980-81, ranks second in the league. - Since Prosser??s arrival, WFU has scored 100 points or more four times. Before his arrival, the Deacons reached 100 points just once in the eight previous seasons. Wake Forest has scored 90 points or more five times this season. - The Deacons rank second in the ACC and seventh nationally in scoring margin, outscoring opponents by an average of 16.1 points per game. The Deacons have not played in a game this year decided by five points or less. - WFU??s scoring margin is the highest in school history. The school record for scoring margin is +12.2 in 1980-81. - The Deacons have led the ACC in scoring margin just once -- in 1995-96. - Wake Forest??s team free throw percentage (.755) leads the ACC and ranks 14th nationally. Wake Forest hasn??t led the ACC in free throw percentage since 1994-95. - The Deacons?? free throw percentage is the fifth-highest in school history and the highest since 1994-95. The school record for free throw percentage in a season is 77.1 percent, set in 1968-69. - Three Deacons ranks among the top seven in the ACC in free throw percentage -- Taron Downey (.883/3rd), Vytas Danelius (.851/6th) and Josh Howard (.827/7th). - Wake Forest ranks eighth nationally in win percentage.
Deacon trends, streaks & notes
- Wake Forest??s 14-2 overall record is its best through 16 games since starting the 1996-97 season 15-1. - The Deacons have not blown a lead this season when leading with 10 minutes remaining. WFU is 14-0 when leading at the 10:00 mark. - Conversely, Wake Forest is 0-2 this season when trailing at the half. - This sounds obvious, but Wake Forest is undefeated (13-0) when it shoots a higher field goal percentage than its opponent. - The Deacons are unbeaten (12-0) when they shoot at least 70 percent from the free throw line. - Wake Forest is undefeated (9-0) when it scores at least 76 points. The Deacs are also unbeaten (12-0) when holding opponents to less than 74 points. - WFU is 4-1 this season when playing on Sunday. The Deacons play this Sunday for the sixth time and will play on Sunday at least three more times. - A Wake Forest victory on Sunday would guarantee the Deacons a winning season. WFU has produced a winning record every season since 1989-90. - Wake Forest enjoyed its most successful January (6-2) since 1997, when the Deacs went 8-1. - The Deacons have opened the month of February with a win just once in the last four years. - Wake Forest will likely play in front of their largest crowd of the year Sunday. The biggest crowd to watch the Deacons this season was 16,624 at Wisconsin on Dec. 4.
Gray out with a broken jaw
Freshman Justin Gray suffered a fractured jaw Jan. 12 at Duke and is out for an undetermined amount of time. Gray underwent surgery Jan. 13. Gray, whose mouth is wired shut, is averaging 10.5 points, 4.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He ranks eighth in the ACC in assists per game (4.0). Among ACC freshmen, Gray ranks sixth in scoring.
Wake Forest 2-1 vs. ranked teams
- Wake Forest is 2-1 this season against nationally-ranked teams including a victory at No. 23 Wisconsin and at home against No. 17 Maryland. The Deacons lost at No. 1 Duke on Jan. 12. - The win at Wisconsin was WFU??s first victory against a ranked team on the road since 1998-99. - The Deacons are one win shy of tying last year??s total of three wins against ranked teams. WFU went 3-10 last season versus ranked clubs.
WFU Wins Vs. Ranked Teams - Last 3 Seasons
Jan. 15, 2003 vs. #17 Maryland W, 81-72 Dec. 4, 2002 at #23 Wisconsin W, 90-80 Feb. 17, 2002 vs. #15 Virginia W, 92-70 Dec. 19, 2001 vs. #19 Marquette W, 65-59 Nov. 21, 2001 vs. #23 Fresno State W, 62-61 Jan. 2, 2001 vs. #8 Virginia W, 96-73 Dec. 7, 2000 vs. #3 Kansas W, 84-53
Prosser has two wins vs. No. 1
Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser is 2-3 all-time against No. 1-ranked teams, including this year??s loss at Duke. Prosser??s Xavier teams beat No. 1 Cincinnati in 1999-00 and in 1996-97. Prosser, Duke??s Mike Krzyzewski and Maryland??s Gary Williams are the only current ACC coaches to own more than one victory against a No. 1-ranked team.
Versatile Josh Howard vying to become WFU??s 11th All-American
Senior All-American candidate Josh Howard, who missed much of preseason drills because of severe shin splints, is enjoying an outstanding senior year. He??s a legitimate candidate to become the 11th player in Wake Forest history to earn All-American honors and the first since Tim Duncan in 1997. Howard is a candidate for the John R. Wooden and Naismith awards and Oscar Robertson trophy, all of which go to the nation??s top player. Without question, Howard is one of the most versatile players in college basketball. The ACC posts 12 individual statistics. He ranks in the top 10 in nine of them.Consider what Howard has achieved in 2002-03: - Over his last five games, Howard has averaged 23.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.8 steals. - Despite being plagued with shin splints, Howard averages 30.6 minutes per game and he has played at least 34 minutes in each of the last six games. - He has twice been named ACC Player of the Week (Dec. 9 and Jan. 20). - He was named national player of the week Jan. 20 by both ESPN.com and Foxsports.com. - In WFU??s 90-80 win at 23rd-ranked Wisconsin, Howard carried the team with a career-high 31 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals. - Versus Georgia Tech Jan. 19, Howard had 30 points and a career-high five blocked shots. - He has five double-doubles on the season, ranking third in the ACC. - At 6-6, he is one of the best offensive rebounders in the country. He ranks third in the ACC in offensive boards and fourth in overall rebounding. - Howard ranks third in the ACC in steals (2.31). - He ranks fourth in the ACC in scoring (18.1 ppg.). - Defensively, he is often asked to defend the opponent??s top scorer. SMU??s Quinton Ross entered the Dec. 15 game averaging 27 points per game, but was held to 3-of-15 shooting by Howard. Howard held Richmond??s leading scorer, Mike Skrocki, to 3-of-13 shooting Jan. 4. He limited Elon??s top scorer, Scottie Rice, to 3-of-11 shooting Jan. 7. - Through 16 games, he has 31 three-pointers. He made 26 three-point field goals all of last season. - Howard ranks fifth in the ACC in blocked shots. - He ranks seventh in the ACC in free throw percentage (.827). - Howard??s three-point field goal percentage (.425) would rank among the ACC leaders, but he is one trey shy from qualifying for the rankings. - He ranks eighth in the ACC in field goal percentage (.462). - Against nationally-ranked teams, Howard averages 22.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 3.0 steals and 1.7 blocked shots per game.
Howard Season-by-Season Season PPG RPG 3FG/G 3PT% FT% Freshman 9.3 4.7 0.3 .286 .583 Sophomore 13.6 5.9 0.6 .391 .685 Junior 13.9 7.7 0.8 .329 .657 Senior 18.1 8.1 1.94 .425 .827
No other player in college basketball matches Howard??s statistics
Some players score more, others rebound more and yet others dish out more assists than Josh Howard. No player in college basketball, however, can match Howard??s overall statistics. He is the only player in the Division I ranks averaging at least 15 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and one blocked shot per game.
Howard closing in on very elite company in the ACC
Senior Josh Howard will leave his name etched throughout the Wake Forest record books: - Only three players in ACC history -- Duke??s Shane Battier, Christian Laettner and Grant Hill -- accumulated 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 200 assists, 200 steals and 100 blocks. Howard is 11 steals away from joining that group (see chart at top of page). - Howard (1,449 points) ranks 17th in Wake Forest career scoring history. He is five points away from passing Jack Williams for 16th place and he is 51 points shy of 1,500 career points. - Howard (709 rebounds) recorded his 700th career rebound and moved into 11th place on WFU??s all-time rebounds list on Jan. 28. He will move into the top 10, passing former teammate Rafael Vidaurreta, with 19 more boards. - Howard leads the team that leads the nation in rebounding. - With 120 career blocked shots, he ranks sixth all-time in the WFU record books. - He is on pace to become just the 10th player in school history to make 100 career three-point field goals. He has 87 currently. - Howard??s 189 career steals ranks fifth in WFU history. He needs seven steals to pass both Danny Young and Skip Brown to take over third place. He needs nine steals to take over 25th place in ACC history. He is 11 pilfers away from 200 for his career. - Howard (17 career double-doubles) ranks sixth in WFU history for career double-doubles. - Howard has played in 112 career games. - With 104 games started, Howard ranks eighth in Wake Forest history. He??ll move into a tie for seventh place when he starts on Sunday.
Howard in WFU??s Biggest Wins
Opponent (Date) Stats Georgia Tech (Jan. 20) 30 pts, 6 reb, 5 bs, 3 ast #17 Maryland (Jan. 15) 23 pts, 8 reb, 4 bs, 3 stl at Richmond (Jan. 4) 21 pts, 9 reb, 3 ast, 5 stl St. John??s (Dec. 21) 14 pts, 11 reb, 3 ast, 4 bs at #23 Wisconsin (Dec. 4) 31 pts, 11 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl
Howard on Defense
Player (School) Stats vs. Howard Quinton Ross (SMU) 3-15 FGs, 1-6 3Pt FGs, 4 TO Mike Skrocki (Richmond) 3-13 FGs, 0-6 3Pt FGs Scottie Rice (Elon) 3-11 FGs, 5 Tos
Danelius relishing blue-collar role
Sophomore forward Vytas Danelius isn??t flashy and he rarely makes SportsCenter highlights on ESPN. But the 6-8 Lithuanian is a big reason that Wake Forest is currently 14-2. Consider: n Over his last three games, Danelius has averaged 19.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game. - He is shooting 85.1 percent from the free throw line, ranking sixth in the ACC. - Danelius ranks second on the team in rebounding. Wake Forest leads the nation in rebound margin. - He ranks sixth in the ACC in rebounds, fourth in offensive rebounds, seventh in defensive boards. - Danelius already has as many double-doubles this season (2) as he did all of last season. - He is shooting 57.9 percent from the field for the season, and 66.7 percent over the last three games. - Danelius has added three-point shooting to his game, making him more difficult to defend. Last season he was 0-for-3 from three-point range. This year he is 11-of-20 (.550) from behind the arc. He has five three-point field goals over his last three games.
Sophomore Taron Downey emerges as a vocal leader for the Deacons
With five seniors gone off of last year??s team, sophomore guard Taron Downey has taken over the role as a vocal leader. That??s a big change for a player who rarely talked last season as a rookie. And Downey is letting his play do his talking as well. - Over his last three games, Downey has averaged 16.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. - With Justin Gray out with an injury, Downey has taken sole responsibility for directing the offense as point guard. He played all 40 minutes in the Jan. 26 win over Florida State -- the first time since Tim Duncan in 1997 that a Deacon player has played every minute of a game. - He ranks third in the ACC in free throw percentage (.883). If the season ended today, Downey would have the highest single-season free throw percentage in WFU history. - He has made 16 consecutive free throws entering Sunday??s game. - He ranks second on the team in three-point field goals made (25). He has seven three-point field goals over his last two games.
Baby Deacs making a huge impact
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. Combined, the freshman class is averaging 33.6 points per game, making it the fourth-highest-scoring group in Wake Forest history (see box at bottom of page). The ??Baby Deacs?? have shown great poise this season, winning on the road at Wisconsin, Clemson and Richmond and holding off St. John??s, Georgia Tech and Maryland at home. Center Eric Williams, Wake??s first McDonald??s All-American since Loren Woods, and point guard Justin Gray, are both starters (until Gray??s recent injury). Swingman Trent Strickland and Chris Ellis are key parts of the rotation. And guard Richard Joyce has shown glimpses of his outstanding potential. Next year??s Deacon team will be even younger. There is just one scholarship junior on this year??s roster and four freshmen come on board in 2003-04. More on this year??s freshman class: - Eric Williams (9.9 ppg. and 5.5 rpg.) has started every game. Among all ACC freshmen, Williams ranks third in rebounding and fifth in scoring. - Justin Gray (10.5 ppg. and 4.0 apg.) started the first 10 games of the season and has missed the last three games with a broken jaw. Among ACC freshmen, he ranks third in assists. - Trent Strickland (5.9 ppg.) is often the first player off the bench. He has emerged as one of WFU??s top defenders. - Chris Ellis (4.3 ppg. and 3.1 rpg.) has been solid off the bench, shooting nearly 48 percent and playing well in the post. - Richard Joyce (3.0 ppg.) is an outstanding perimeter shooter who is trying to work his way into the rotation.
Lepore and Schoetz waited a long time to get back on the court
Senior guard Steve Lepore, who ruptured a patella tendon last March in the ACC Tournament, was finally cleared to play Dec. 15. Lepore played just one minute against SMU and missed his only field goal attempt, but was happy to just be on the court after nearly 10 months of rehabilitating his knee. A former two-year starter at Northwestern, Lepore is averaging 8.5 minutes of action per game. Lepore??s 10 months of sitting out pales in comparison to junior center Dshamal Schoetz. The seven-footer redshirted the 2000-01 season, then suffered a severe knee injury prior to the start of the 2001-02 season and sat out the entire year. Schoetz played in his first regular season game -- his first organized game since high school in 1999-00 -- Dec. 15 against SMU. He played two minutes, grabbed a rebound and recorded a steal.
WFU ranked No. 5 in the NACDA Director??s Cup standings
Through all fall sports, Stanford, an eight-time champion, leads the NACDA Directors' Cup Division I standings and Wake Forest is ranked fifth. Wake Forest enjoyed a remarkable fall. The Deacons won the field hockey NCAA championship -- WFU??s first national title since the men??s golf team in 1986 and the first by a Deacon women??s team. The men??s soccer team was ranked No. 1 nationally and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. The women??s cross country team won the ACC championship and finished ninth in the NCAA championships. The football team finished 7-6 after beating Oregon, 38-17 in the Seattle Bowl. Wake Forest is one of three ACC schools represented in the Director??s Cup top 10.
Wake Forest??s record under Skip
In two seasons under coach Skip Prosser, Wake Forest is: 34-1 when leading with five minutes remaining. The only loss came against Syracuse last season in the Preseason NIT championship game. 30-5 when Wake out-rebounds its opponent. 26-2 when the Deacons have more free throw attempts than their opponent. 24-3 at home. 18-2 when the Deacons shoot 50 percent or better. 19-0 when the opponent scores less than 70 points.
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.
Deacons approach 200
Since the Associated Press began ranking college basketball teams in 1948-49, Wake Forest has been ranked 198 weeks.
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.
