11/25/2001 - Men's Basketball
Navy Men's Basketball Plays Host To Ohio Monday

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Going For Two In A Row

After snapping its two-game losing streak Saturday with a 71-53 victory over rival academy Air Force, Navy will look to make it two wins in a row Monday night when it plays host to Ohio. The Midshipmen will play the second contest of a two-game home stand amidst one of the toughest stretches this season. Navy, who opened its season on the road for its first-two games, plays seven of its first-10 outings on the road.

The Countdown Begins, DeVoe Just 10 Wins Away From 500

With an 18-point triumph over Air Force Saturday afternoon in Annapolis, Navy head coach Don DeVoe claimed his 490th-career victory, and ranks 61st on the NCAA's all-time win list. He is just four wins behind retired coaches Jack Friel, Calvin Luther and Everett Shelton in 58th. Meanwhile, DeVoe chases active head coaches Nolan Richardson (Arkansas) and Rollie Massimino (Cleveland State) who have 497 and 495 wins apiece, respectively.

Mids At A Glance

Navy's inside-outside game came together Saturday to lead the Mids to their first victory of the year, a 71-53 win over Air Force. Four Mids posted double-digit scoring efforts, including Navy's leading scorer through three games Jehiel Lewis. Lewis did not miss a bucket en route to his team-high tying 13 points. Leading rebounded Francis Ebong pulled down seven caroms against Air Force, boosting his season average to 6.7 per game. Jamie Nero continues to be a spark off the bench, making seven triples in the last two games combined.

Nonleague Ledger

Navy, who posted back-to-back double-digit win marks in nonconference games in 1998-99 and 1999-2000, was two wins shy last season (8-8) of making it three years in a row.

Navy has posted a 66-62 (.516) mark against non-Patriot League opponents under Don DeVoe. Though in his first season he guided Navy to a 3-9 nonleague mark, he has since led it to eight or more nonconference wins in four of the last six seasons (including the current season). In 1998-99, Navy's 11-3 record versus opponents other than the six (now seven with this year's addition of American) Patriot League schools, marked the first time DeVoe had topped the double-digit win mark while at Navy.

Navy's Year-By-Year Nonconference Record Under DeVoe

Year W L Pct.

1992-93 3 9 .250

1993-94 5 8 .385

1994-95 8 4 .667

1995-96 6 8 .429

1996-97 8 7 .533

1997-98 6 9 .667

1998-99 11 3 .786

1999-00 10 4 .714

2000-01 8 8 .500

2001-02 1 2 .333

Overall 66 62 .516

The 70-Point Barrier

Since the 1994-95 season, Navy is 84-12 (.875) when it scores at least 70 points in a game and 29-46 (.347) when it doesn't score 70-plus points in a contest. Last season, it was 18-3 when it eclipsed the 70-point barrier. Navy is 1-1 this season when hitting that marker.

Gettin' It Done At The Line

Traditionally, Navy has been a poor free throw shooting team. But this year's team has made good on its trips to the charity stripe in its first-three contests. The Mids are hitting 80.7 percent (46-of-57) of their free throws. Last year, Navy shot 64.9 percent from the charity stripe, making 70 percent of its free tosses in just 12 of the 31 games and shot below 60 percent in nine outings. This season, the Mids have shot better than 80 percent twice (Rice and Air Force).

Getting To The Line Another Story

While Navy has been successful at the charity stripe, getting there has been a struggle. Navy has made just 57 trips to the free throw line, while its opponents have made 101 trips - that's 44 more opportunities by Navy's opponents in just three games.

Going into the Air Force contest, Navy had been rewarded with just 36 trips to the line. Both SMU and Rice nearly made that many attempts each in their games with Navy. Rice earned 42 free throw attempts, while SMU went to the line 35 times.

Double Your Success

For the first time this season, four Navy players scored in double digits in a single game. Francis Ebong (13), Jehiel Lewis (13), Kyle Barker (11) and Jason Jeanpierre (11) all produced double figures in the scoring column in the Mids' win over Air Force.

Last year, at least four Navy players scored in double figures in a single game 12 times. The Mids posted an 11-1 record with their lone loss a 77-67 setback to Holy Cross in Annapolis (F14).

O-fer...Short Lived

Ironically, for the third-consecutive year, Navy has started the season 0-2. Not to worry, however, the Mids were able to turn the previous seasons into positives, earning trips to back-to-back Patriot League Tournament title games.

In 1999, Navy dropped games versus Rice (70-64 OT), Wake Forest (90-55) and Richmond (58-52) before defeating Air Force, 93-78. Last season, the Mids were tripped up at Texas in the first round of the Preseason NIT (79-65) and at home against Rice (69-51).

True to form, Navy broke its winless streak Saturday with a 71-53 win over Air Force.

Nero's Three-Point Display Continues

Navy senior forward Jamie Nero continued his hot three-point shooting against Air Force (2-2), as he has now hit seven triples in the last two games and is 7-for-9 for the season.

He came off the bench at SMU to give the Mids a much-needed scoring boost. Nero nailed five three-pointers and added a two-pointer for a career-high 17 points. At least three of his five treys were from NBA range, including one where he was nearly out of bounds. He was 4-for-4 from long range at halftime and hit one more before missing on his final attempts late in the second half. Nero's previous career high was five points against Holy Cross in 2000.

Finding The Right Fit

With the loss of arguably all five of its starters from a year ago, Navy head coach Don DeVoe has been searching for the right starting lineup. He has yet to use the same lineup this season, however, junior center Francis Ebong and junior guard Jason Jeanpierre have been mainstays. Below are the three lineups Navy has used to date.

Gm. 1 Charles, Barker, Ebong, Jeanpierre, Shepard

Gm. 2 J. Lewis, Moore, Ebong, Jeanpierre, Shepard

Gm. 3 McCreary, Moore, Ebong, Jeanpierre, Charles

Injury Report

Junior forward Scott Long will not dress for Monday's contest against Ohio, missing all four games this season. Long has been nursing a bad back for the last few months. His practice time has been limited to non-contact drills, but he is on track to return to the bench for Navy's trip to Hawai'i D20-22 for the Yahoo! Sports Invitational.

A Balanced Offense

There has been a different leading scorer in every Navy game this season. While last year Navy had Chris Williams to depend on, this season the Mids' offense may be more diverse and more difficult to defend. Listed below are the high scorers for each game this season.

Rice Barker-13

SMU Nero-17

Air Force Ebong, J. Lewis-13

Young Blood

Though a junior, forward/center Mitch Moore had seen action in just three games prior to the 2001-02 season. After a career-high 13-point, five-board effort in the opener at Rice, Moore has earned starting position in the last two games. He is averaging eight points and three boards a game.

Another young face is sophomore Jeff Charles. The Meade High School grad played sparingly in six contests a year ago, but made his starting debut against Rice. He dumped in a career-high nine points on a 4-for-5 display and added three rebounds. While not particularly a flashy kind of player, he's the blue collar guy. Against Air Force, he dealt out a team-high four assists and swatted a career-high four shots.

From Bench To Starting Lineup

Last year's bench was described by Don DeVoe as "the best scoring bench he had fielded at Navy." The bench out-scored the Bucknell bench, 31-3, last year in Lewisburg, while the Mids' bench posted 58 of the 95 points at Army in a come-from-behind victory.

Last season, the Navy bench averaged 35.7 points per game and accounted for 47.3 percent of the team's scoring. With the loss of arguably five starters, Navy's bench has turned into its starting lineup this winter. Top bench producers from last season include Navy's second and third-leading scorers, Jehiel Lewis and Kyle Barker, respectively. Lewis averaged 8.6 points and outing, while Barker tossed in 8.2 points per game.

Deep Bench

Navy has traditionally had one of the deepest benches in the Patriot League. This year looks to be no different, as DeVoe played 13 members of his squad against Rice in the opener and went 14 deep at SMU.

Experience Yes, Starting Experience No

Coming into the season, five players had earned at least one starting nod in their careers. Four of those five players started just six or fewer games, while Demond Shepard owned the most starts on the team with all 18 coming last season. The others with starting experience are Scott Long (6 gm), Francis Ebong (4 gm), Jason Jeanpierre (2 gm) and Jehiel Lewis (2 gm).

Rookie Rumblings

Don DeVoe brought four freshmen along to Texas for Navy's opening weekend and played all four in at least one game. Taj Mathews and Laramie Mergerson saw action on both contests, while Rob Paul and Marcell Cummings earned minutes against SMU.

Mathews is ranked sixth in the league in three-point field goal percentage, hitting two of his four triples in the opening weekend.

Never Give In

Both Navy and Rice earned a valuable lesson in both teams' opener - don't stop playing until time has run out. Down 14 points with 50 seconds remaining in the game, Navy made an electrifying run, scoring 11 points in 29 seconds. Within three points with 21 seconds to go, Mids Kyle Barker and Jamie Nero both had shots to knot the game, but neither would fall.

Over the last 50 seconds, Navy forced back-to-back turnovers with 40 and 36 seconds left, respectively, and another with 26 seconds to go. Among the mix, Rice missed three free throws.

Road Warriors

Navy will play seven of its first-10 contests on the road, including four of the first six. The Mids opened the season a week ago in the state of Texas, playing Rice and SMU. While Navy played Air Force at home Saturday and plays host to Ohio Monday night, it returns to the road to face The Citadel (N29) and Davidson (D1) in the Carolinas.

After a two-week break for exams, Navy will return to the hardwood at home against longtime foe Gettysburg D17. Following a 7:30 p.m. game against the Bullets, Navy will get little rest as it leaves the Academy at 4:30 a.m. the next morning to catch a flight to Hawai'i for the Yahoo! Sports Invitational D20-22.

From Road Warriors To Road Woes

Over the last four years (including the current season), the Mids have posted a sluggish 22-19 (.537) record on the road versus a 39-7 (.848) mark at home. Last season, Navy recorded an 8-9 record in games played away from Alumni Hall. The Mids are 0-2 on the road this season.

Navy In Season Openers

The Midshipmen began the season on the road for the fourth time in the last five years. In those five years, Navy has won just one opener - a 78-61 victory over Rice in Annapolis in 1998. The last time Navy won an opener on the road was N28, 1987. Former head coach Pete Herrmann guided Navy to a 95-75 triumph over Mount St. Mary's

Season Openers Under DeVoe

1992-93 @St. Bonaventure L 83-74

1993-94 Air Force W 77-63

1994-95 @Air Force L 85-76

1995-96 Air Force W 89-87

1996-97 Coast Guard W 84-51

1997-98 @Wake Forest L 67-43

1998-99 Rice W 78-61

1999-00 @Rice L 70-64 OT

2000-01 @Texas L 79-65

2001-02 @Rice L 75-72

Mids Going For Ninth-Consecutive Winning Season

With its 82-80 victory over Army (F17) last season, Navy clinched its eighth-consecutive winning season - all under the direction of Don DeVoe. It marks the longest winning streak since 1943-57 when the Midshipmen rolled to 14-consecutive winning seasons. John Wilson and Ben Carnevale led Navy to an overall mark of 187-88 (.680) during those 14 seasons. Meanwhile, under the current winning streak, the Mids are 153-81 (.654).

Mids Picked To Finish Second In Patriot League

Navy has been picked to finish second in the league according to the 2001-02 Preseason Patriot League Poll, voted on by the league's coaches and sports information directors.

The Mids, who finished second in the league last year, fell in behind reigning Patriot League Champion Holy Cross, who grabbed 10 of the 16 first-place votes. Following Navy in third place was Colgate, while Lehigh stole two first-place votes and was picked to finish fourth. Bucknell slid in at fifth, while Patriot League newcomer American has been slated to come in sixth after posting a 3-13 record in the CAA a year ago. Meanwhile, Lafayette and Army round out the poll.

Patriot League Preseason Poll

2001 2001

Rk Team Pts Record PL Record

1. Holy Cross (10) 94 22-8 10-2

2. Navy (3) 76 19-12 9-3

3. Colgate (1) 69 13-15 6-6

4. Lehigh (2) 60 13-16 6-6

5. Bucknell 51 14-15 4-8

6. American 49 7-20 3-13 (CAA)

7. Lafayette 30 12-16 4-8

8. Army 19 9-19 3-9

(#) - first-place votes

Number Changes

Three Navy players switched numbers for the 2001-02 season. Senior Jamie Nero took No. 44, while Quintrell McCreary is now 22 and Jeff Charles is wearing 24.

Spanning The Country

Navy's recruiting efforts over the last few years have taken the Mids' coaches from coast to coast. Of the 18 players listed on the current varsity roster, 12 different states are represented - California (2), Georgia (1), Illinois (1), Louisiana (1), Maryland (1), Michigan (1), Nebraska (1), New York (3), Ohio (1), Texas (3), Virginia (2), Washington (1).