Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 28, 1991 TAG: 9102280097
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOHN SMALLWOOD SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LEXINGTON LENGTH: Long
While as a team VMI's performances have ranged from brilliant to abysmal, Fittz, for the most part, has been chipping in his 17.7 points and 7.1 rebounds each game.
"He's been our best player all year," said VMI coach Joe Cantafio. "There's no question about it. We've been able to count on him every game."
When fifth-seeded VMI (10-17) plays fourth-seeded Appalachian State (14-13) at 2:38 p.m. Friday at the Asheville (N.C.) Civic Center in the opening round of the Southern Conference Tournament, Fittz may have to be more than just his usual self if the Keydets want to extend a one-day appearance into a weekend stay.
"We've come a long way," said Fittz, who was selected to the All-Southern Conference second team. "We knew this year would take a lot of building. Now we're finally finding the chemistry. We're tired of being mediocre. This could be our last game, and we're going to play it like it is."
The Keydets lost both regular-season games against the Mountaineers.
"That doesn't matter now," said Fittz, who scored 42 points with 18 rebounds in the two games. "We don't feel like we played well in either game against them. Still as bad as we played, we were in each game against them. We're going to be very confident going into this game."
The question is which Keydets team will show up.
If it's the one that beat Richmond, Furman and Marshall, VMI has a chance. But if it's the one that got pushed around and gave up a Cameron Hall-record 56 rebounds in losing to Appalachian State 83-70 last Saturday, the Keydets will be back in Lexington before midnight.
"We have been up and down," said Fittz. "Sometimes you go into a game thinking you're ready, but it just doesn't come. It can get really frustrating when you know you're not playing well, and you can't change it.
"Confidence is a big key for this game. Everybody knows that if we play well, we can beat Appalachian State. This is what tournaments are all about. They give teams like us another chance."
Like many of the players at VMI, Fittz, who played at Tunstall, wasn't heavily recruited out of high school. When he signed with the Keydets, he was a 6-foot-6, 190-pound project Cantafio thought could develop into a post player.
The transformation came quickly.
After playing 86 minutes and scoring 23 points as a freshman, Fittz emerged as a sophomore. His minutes went up to 787, and his average went from 1.1 to 10.7 points per game. His rebounds went from a total of 22 as a freshman to 122 as a sophomore.
"He's had a tremendous career," said Cantafio. "He was a real skinny kid when he got here but worked really hard to improve his body and his game."
Things seemed like they would only continue to get better for Fittz as he started his junior season by averaging 13 points and eight rebounds through the first four games, but an injury to his lower back limited his effectiveness for the remainder of the year.
He appeared in 27 of 29 games but played 200 less minutes than as a sophomore. His scoring averaged dropped nearly three points.
"It was very disappointing," Fittz said. "But it also made me work harder for this season. It made me feel like I had something to prove to people. I had to rebuild my confidence to show that I could play on the Division I level."
Fittz, who needs 12 points to reach 1,000 for his career, started this year by scoring 20 points and taking 10 rebounds against Virginia Tech. He scored in double figures in the Keydets' first 12 games before being held to nine against Western Carolina.
This season, he has scored 10 or more points in 24 of 27 games, including 11 games of 20 or more points. He also has a team-high 184 rebounds.
One of the primary reasons for Fittz's increased offensive production is that he has extended his game away from the basket. An inside scorer throughout his career, Fittz has joined VMI's "bomb squad" that has set a school record for 3-point shots made (176) and attempted (525) this season.
"It was all inside," said Fittz, who has made 22 of 73 attempts from 3-point range this season. "This was the first time I've ever shot the 3-pointer. Coach told me he wanted me to shoot it. It has expanded my game to be able to go inside and outside."
Cantafio said, "I'd seen him do it every day in practice. I didn't tell him he couldn't shoot it last year. It's just with his back problem his range was limited. We knew if he stayed healthy he was going to be a good player for us this year. You don't have too many 6-7 guys who can shoot."
Fittz, now at 6-7 1/2 and 223 pounds, also has stepped into his role as team leader, on and off the court.
When teammate Erek Perry's mother died earlier in the season, Fittz was there for him.
"I understood where he was coming from," said Fittz. "My mom died when I was a freshman. I was able to tell him that it's going to hurt. By being able to relate to him, I think it helped him through a hard time."
\ The winner of the VMI-Appalachian State game will play top-seeded Furman (20-7) at 1:08 p.m. on Saturday.
The Paladins finished in a three-way tie for first but got the top seeding on a tie-breaker. Furman received a bye into the semifinals because Marshall, which is on NCAA probation, is ineligible for the tournament.
"That could be to our advantage if we get by Appalachian," said Fittz. "We've beaten Furman already, and we'll be in the flow of playing."
In other first-round games Friday night, second-seeded East Tennessee State (25-4) plays seventh-seeded The Citadel (6-21) at 7:38 p.m., and third-seeded Tennessee-Chattanooga (18-9) faces sixth-seeded Western Carolina (11-16) at 9:38.
The winners of those two games will play at 3:38 p.m. on Saturday.
The Southern Conference championship game is scheduled for 7:38 p.m. on Sunday.
Keywords:
PROFILE
by CNB