Wolves must sharpen focus to keep wins coming
Wolves coach Joe Kuhn has uttered the phrase “it’s still early in the season” about three dozen times in about four or five different forms.
It’s the typical saying of a team struggling with their identity and, most importantly, with their opponents.
Thing is, the Wolves aren’t struggling with either of those. With nine games in the books, the Wolves are 7-2, with a 27-game home winning streak still intact, and a trio of players in forwards Matt Hund and Darious Randolph and guard Daymeann Stewart that have an innate ability to get the home crowd to a fever pitch.
But more than that, the Wolves are a complete team. Jalen Blackmon, Darius Wells, Paris Garrett, Kylee Beheler, Curtis Harrington, and Larry Moore have combined to give the Wolves an energetic, relentless-when-focused group that can stand to beat anyone on any day.
Alex Parks has also played himself into playing time recently, earning the trust of his coaching staff after strong performance against McHenry College in which he netted a career-high 16 points off the bench.
But perhaps the only issue taking root thus far is that word: Focus.
BEND DON’T BREAK MENTALITY
The Wolves have carried big leads numerous times this season, most recently in Thursday night’s 89-74 win over Morton College. The danger is games like that one, is that the team let two 18 point leads slide into single digits – touching four and five points at different times.
While the team’s collective talent has been able to override those mid-game failings, those kinds of lulls won’t cut it against N4C opponents like Triton, Harper, and Madison. It especially won’t cut it against the top-ranked team in the country, Rock Valley. The same Rock Valley that ended JJC’s 2013-14 season in the Region IV Championship Game.
RANDOLPH A POLARIZING FIGURE
No man on the court stands out more just for his size and make-up than Darious Randolph, the sophomore standout who came to JJC with the hopes of leading the program over that Rock Valley hump.
Before the season, assistant coach Keith Kinzler stated that Randolph was “pretty much our best player. The guy we’ll look to for that go-to basket.” It was hard to see why he wouldn’t think that.
Watch Randolph, and you’ll see a player who gets off the ground and controls his body in the air like no one else on the court. He’s a man out there, for sure.
But after tallying only 13 minutes of game time against Robert Morris University JV, a 92-74 Wolves victory, Kuhn stated that Randolph had been benched for poor shot selection and poor defensive effort.
To steal the coach’s phrase, it’s early in the season. Lulls and breakdowns are to be expected in any program, much less a two-year program. But if the Wolves are going to challenge the likes of Rock Valley for national supremacy, they’ll need Randolph to exhibit leadership and laser-focus. His talent and ability is too superior to be benched.
STEWART A MAJOR SURPRISE
Daymeann Stewart came to JJC unheralded in comparison to signees such as Randolph and Hund. While the team’s frontcourt got a much needed size upgrade, Stewart has solidified the backcourt, giving the Wolves a hard-to-beat triple-threat that could spell disaster for the N4C come January.
Through nine games, Stewart is averaging a tick under 17 ppg on 45% shooting. Sterling production from a backcourt used to being led by the quietly-productive Larry Moore.
CONFERENCE PLAY ON THE HORIZON
The Wolves are averaging 75 ppg as a team, while allowing only 56 ppg, pointing to a team that has made the most of playing against unfamiliar and unprepared opposition. The wins have been impressive, and the statement wins that have occurred, have done so with a mighty crash.
This is a very good basketball team, and the home-court advantage will only grow as the wins pile up. As the fall semester wraps up in just under two weeks, the Wolves will transition from non-conference play, to N4C competition.
Teams will have the tape on the Wolves. They’ll have scouting reports long enough, and film clear enough to be able to discover weaknesses in JJC’s armor. It’ll be up to the Wolves to meet those challenges head on.
The next six games will be the last for non-conference play in the 2013-14 season. Home games are in bold.
Dec. 9 at Olivet Nazarene University JV 7 p.m.
Dec. 13 vs. South Suburban College 3 p.m.
Dec. 17 vs. Lake Michigan College 7 p.m.
Dec. 20 vs. Moraine Valley CC 3 p.m.
Jan. 2 at Fox Valley Technical 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 3 at University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley 4:30 p.m.
Joel served seven years in the U.S. Coast Guard (2005-2012) and wrote sports columns for the Corpus Christi Caller-Times in Texas from April 2009 to October 2014.
