Sports > November 20, 2008

By Martin Rickman | Staff writer

The Demon Deacon basketball team opened its season at home with a bang Nov. 14, dominating N.C. Central to the score of 94-48, and setting a new Joel Coliseum record, beating UNC-Wilmington 120-88 Nov. 19.

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Junior guard L.D. Williams defends an N.C. Central guard Michael Glasker in the Deacs’ 94-48 victory over the Eagles Nov. 14. Williams had two points in the effort. (Margot Lamson/Old Gold & Black)

Using a series of runs and punishing defense held the N.C. Central Eagles to one for their first 23 shots, the Deacs asserted themselves in the first half and owned a 46-22 lead at halftime. Wake Forest scored in bunches, with runs of 6-0, 8-0 and 17-0 in the first half.

N.C. Central was overmatched in both size and speed and was forced to foul a lot early, as the Deacs were in the bonus with just five minutes played in the first half. Wake shot 18-24 from the foul line, good for 75 percent on the day, better than their free throw percentage from last year.

“One of the coaches came over and handed me a stat,” Head Coach Dino Gaudio said. “At the time, (Central) was 1-19 from the field. Boy, if we could ever bottle that up and keep that intensity; that would be outstanding. We came out of the gate really strong, and did a good job of sharing the ball again.”

Wake Forest had 20 assists on 37 made field goals against and most of the unassisted shots were coast to coast drives by players like freshman Al-Farouq Aminu and sophomore James Johnson, who had little trouble against the smaller N.C. Central forwards.

“I thought we pushed the ball well and I thought we did a pretty good job of sharing the ball,” Gaudio said. “We just want to get out and run and fill the lanes. Farouq and James have the green light, if they get the rebounds, they can take it up the floor.”

Johnson and Aminu both had double-doubles, and combined for 39 points. Aminu added three blocks and Johnson had 5 assists, as he played some minutes at the shooting guard position. Aminu shot 9-12 on the day, and looked a lot more comfortable with the basketball than in the exhibition game against Mount Olive.

“Against Mount Olive, I think I was just so anxious to do well,” Aminu said. “I was trying to do everything so perfect. I’m never going to have a perfect game, I just need to play basketball and bond with my teammates and get into the flow.”

The game was filled with highlight dunks, as sophomore Jeff Teague, who had 14 points, six assists, two blocks and three steals, showed his signature slam in the first half. The play of the game came midway through the second half. On the break, junior David Weaver tossed the ball behind his back to senior Harvey Hale, who lofted it to Aminu. This year’s Wake Forest team has swagger and confidence.

The Deacs continued to struggle from behind the arc on the day though, shooting just 18.2 percent. The saving grace was that they only shot 11 three-pointers, something Coach Gaudio was pleased with. He was concerned that the team didn’t go to the paint enough.

“At the end of the game, I showed the guys: three-point shooting, 2-11 and Woods and McFarland, 10-11. I told them, ‘What do you guys think we should do?’” Gaudio said.

Wake Forest continued to get good post play out of junior McFarland and freshman Woods. McFarland only had to play 21 minutes and took just four shots, but he also had four free throws. He added seven rebounds.

Woods looked even more comfortable around the hoop, scoring his 12 on a combination of strong post moves, a nifty hook shot and a smooth jumper. As his offensive skills progress, this, plus his size and his knack for being around the ball, will make him an incredible player.

On Wednesday, Nov. 19, Wake Forest had their hands full against an undersized but talented UNC-Wilmington squad. The Seahawks, averaging over 100 points per game in their two wins against Appalachian State and Troy, came from behind in both games, using a barrage of three-pointers led by point guard Chad Tomko, guard Johnny Wolf and forward Dominique Lacy.

Against the Deacs, Tomko was held in check as he was guarded primarily by Teague and Johnson and he had trouble finding his shot. Wolf and Lacy picked up the slack though, contributing 24 and 20 points respectively.

The game was up-tempo from the start, seeing four Deacons in double figures, and Teague setting a career high with 31. He had to sit for 10 minutes in the first half with foul trouble, but he made up for it with in the second half, when in a stretch of about five minutes he completely took over the game.

“I think the players had fun tonight,” Gaudio said. “But I don’t know if the coaches did.”

Johnson was one off his career high with 25 and he also contributed nine rebounds, four assists, three blocks and three steals.

McFarland also had a quiet 19 points and eight rebounds, while Woods was 4-5 from the field for 11 points and added six rebounds. The Deacs finished with 76 total points in the paint and 41 points off turnovers.

“We’ve gotta let those big dogs eat,” Gaudio said. “We’ve got to keep feeding them the ball.”

The Deacs, who scored the most points as a team since 1955, and the most ever at the Joel will have their next chance against cross-town rival Winston-Salem State. The game is Monday, Nov. 24 at the Joel.