Richmond-Wake Forest Preview
12/2/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 2, 2011
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Riding high off an exhilarating road win at Nebraska, the Wake Forest men's basketball team returns home for a quick turnaround matchup against Richmond on Saturday, Dec. 3 at the Lawrence Joel Coliseum.
Both Richmond and Wake picked up true road wins for the first time on Wednesday night and will enter with identical 5-2 records. Tip-off is set for 1:00 p.m. and the game will be aired live on ESPN3.com.
The Demon Deacons arrived back on campus from the Great Plains early Thursday morning after a 55-53 triumph in their first-ever meeting with the Cornhuskers. Since their red-eye return, Wake has been busy preparing for Richmond's tricky Princeton schemes.
"That's why we practiced yesterday. We got their minds right on Richmond at 3:30," said head coach Jeff Bzdelik. "You feel good about [the win], but the most important thing is always the next thing you do. We immediately sat them down and gave them a snapshot of Richmond - what to expect and what they'll encounter."
Wake Forest was led on Wednesday by Carson Desrosiers' first career double-double, 13 points from freshman Chase Fischer and a late lay-in by junior guard C.J. Harris to clinch the win. The Deacs also tied a season-low with 10 turnovers and gave up the ball just once in the second half on the way to their first road win since February 6, 2010 at Virginia.
"Not turning the ball over definitely gave us a more efficient game of possession," said Bzdelik. "So we're growing, we just need to keep getting better on a daily basis."
Still, the Demon Deacons haven't had much to fear from the Spiders historically. Going back to the pair's first meeting during the 1920-21 season, the Deacs own a 38-10 series advantage all-time and boast a perfect 10-0 mark at the Joel.
"We want to keep the streak alive and make it 11-0," said sophomore forward Travis McKie. "This whole season, a big goal for us is we just don't want anybody to beat us on our home court."
Wins at the Joel have been impossible to come by for the Spiders. But last winter the Deacs experienced an unfamiliar feeling, losing to their longtime rival for the first time in 20 years. Since that game at the Robins Center, which snapped a 17-game Deacon winning streak in the series, a lot has changed for both sides.
Only four current Wake Forest cagers saw the floor in last season's game and only three will suit up on Saturday. Senior forward Nikita Mescheriakov, sophomore forward Travis McKie and Harris accounted for 33 of Wake's 74 points in the 90-74 setback.
Suspended senior center Ty Walker was the only other current Deac to see the floor in last year's contest, chipping in with five boards and a block.
For the Spiders, change has come in the form of a staggering amount of scoring lost from last year's NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 squad.
Graduated are lineup mainstays Kevin Anderson, Justin Harper and Dan Geriot, who weaved a total of 5,011 career points. Anderson was a two-time A-10 Player of the Year and capped his career as the third Richmond player to eclipse 2,000 points, while Harper will enter his rookie season with the Orlando Magic in December. Geriot has already entered the collegiate coaching ranks as a volunteer assistant at Princeton. Despite the losses, Bzdelik believes they've done a fine job re-loading.
"They have quickness now, they have some small guards that are more athletic," said Bzdelik. "They're driving the ball more, no question. They're more explosive I think."
"We've got to do a great job of being efficient on offense and combining that with defensive balance, and that is going to be a key factor."
Three talented guards have stepped up this year for the Spiders. Freshman Kendall Anthony, an under-sized marksman at 5-foot-8, 140 pounds, has filled some of the scoring vacuum off the bench for Richmond, sporting a points per game average of 14.6 and connecting on .452 percent of his three-point attempts. Junior guard Darien Brothers, a key contributor in Richmond's tournament run less than a year ago, has poured in 11.3 points per while connecting at a .471 clip from beyond the arc. Sophomore Cedrick Lindsay also averages 11 points per game.
Following Saturday's game, Wake Forest will be back on the road for a bus trip over to Triad-rival High Point on Wednesday, Dec. 7. HPU's 1,750-seat Millis Center will be the smallest venue Wake Forest has played in since the 1950's.
Catch-and-Shoot Carson
Sophomore center Carson Desrosiers entered obscure territory in Wednesday's game, hitting on 2-of-4 from three-point range and securing his first career double-double. At seven-feet even, he is the tallest player in Wake Forest history to nail multiple three's in a game.
McKie's the Guy
Travis McKie scored 11 points in the Deacons' big Wednesday win, but the sophomore's 11 points stand as his second lowest output of the season. Head coach Jeff Bdzelik said his star sophomore, along with junior guard C.J. Harris, are going to have to get used to being the focal point of every opposing team's game plan.
"Now that [McKie's] the `known,' all the little details of the game come into play. And I can tell him that in practice, but it's not so-and-so in practice guarding him as compared to the game. You're going to draw the attention the attention of the opposition's best defenders, [McKie] and C.J., now we've got to deal with it."
You take a player like Dwayne Wade or Larry Bird, or whoever it is. I don't think people understand. Reggie Miller, no one worked harder to get the ball than him. They deserve the accolades they get because they had to work with every ounce of energy every night to just get open. It's just a continued process of learning."
Three Points
• Wake Forest is 10-0 all-time at the Joel against Richmond.
• Forward Travis McKie has a little more incentive to play well versus the Spiders as the sophomore is a Richmond, Va. native.
• Richmond lost 5,011 career points from last year's veteran roster, which won the Atlantic 10 Tournament and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 before falling to Kansas, 77-57.
