Hoops look: Troy at Western Kentucky
December 31, 2008
BOWLING GREEN DAILY NEWS: NBA mentality pays off for Mendez-Valdez
Since tomorrow’s game at Western Kentucky is at 1 p.m. tip, I figured it was best to get this on here now. (note: because of this, I’ll post the top Troy moments of 2008 tomorrow morning. I’ve got my ideas, but I’ll welcome last-minute suggestions through e-mail or blog)
Troy (5-8, 1-1 Sun Belt) at Western Kentucky (7-4, 1-0), at E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, Ky.
Leading scorers: Troy (G Richard Delk - 14.0 ppg, G Brandon Hazzard - 12.0 ppg); WKU (G A.J. Slaughter - 15.4 ppg, G Orlando Mendez-Valdez - 12.1 ppg, G/F Sergio Kerusch - 10.7 ppg)
Leading rebounders: Troy (C Tom Jervis - 6.4 rpg); WKU (Sergio Kerusch - 7.4 rpg)
Leading assists: Troy (G Mike Vogler - 6.8 apg); WKU (A.J. Slaughter - 3.3 apg)
Both schools lost their last game in the state of Florida, with WKU falling to Florida State 82-69. Mendez-Valdez hit 7-of-9 threes for 25 points. The Hilltoppers did beat Louisville when the Cardinals were ranked No. 3, winning 68-54 behind Slaughter’s 25 points and 17 points and 12 rebounds from forward Steffphon Pettigrew. Troy lost at Jacksonville 86-73 but got a surprise 15 points from forward Mario Telfair off the bench. Vogler’s 6.8 apg leads the Sun Belt by a wide margin. After this, the Trojans play three straight home games.
FROM THE OTHER SIDE: Here’s what WKU beat writer Rob Herbst of the Bowling Green Daily News has to say about how WKU is playing at the moment
The Hilltoppers have been a largely feast-or-famine team. While they’ve picked up an eye-opening win against Louisville and have nice victories against Southern Illinois and Georgia, blowout losses to Murray State and Evansville show the Hilltoppers are beatable. But after opening league play with a win at South Alabama, they’ve shown they’ll likely be a legit league contender again.
It’s a vastly different WKU team than last year’s Sweet 16 team. Former WKU assistant coach Ken McDonald, who was most recently an assistant at Texas under Rick Barnes, has taken over for current South Carolina coach Darrin Horn. And the star power isn’t there as Courtney Lee was a first-round draft pick of the Orlando Magic. But guards A.J. Slaughter and Orlando Mendez-Valdez have been solid and the catalysts to this team. Mendez-Valdez has been especially hot of late - he hit 7-of-9 3-pointers against Florida State on Sunday and has hit 13-of-24 3-pointers over his last three contests.
The Hilltoppers’ biggest vulnerabilities are inside and on the bench. They are very small and will start a lineup of four players no bigger than 6-foot-5 and their bench play has been spotty. WKU isn’t much more than a seven-player team so any major injury could doom the Hilltoppers.
DREW’S PICK: WKU 84, Troy 69
