Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, November 13, 1994 TAG: 9411230010
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Much was expected of Jeff Jones' first full recruiting class as the Virginia men's basketball coach, and the yield after three years has not been unimpressive. The Cavaliers have gone one step further each year - from an NIT championship in 1992, to an NCAA Tournament bid in 1993, to a second-round NCAA game in 1994.
``This is the final chapter for our class,'' said Cory Alexander, who has returned from a season-ending ankle injury to become the Cavaliers' acknowledged leader. ``If we can get to the Final Four or win an ACC championship, then I feel what I came here to do has been accomplished.
``When we came here, we wanted to leave our mark, me and the four other guys with me. The biggest thing we've done is brought Virginia back to where it's a national power.''
The Cavaliers haven't won an ACC Tournament championship since 1976. They haven't finished first during the regular season since 1981, not counting ties in 1982-83. They haven't been to the Final Four since 1984. They haven't won as many as two NCAA Tournament games since 1989.
Jones won't be happy if the Cavaliers fail to improve on the 20 victories UVa has averaged in his first four seasons, but he is careful not to look too far ahead.
``I would like to think seriously that we can compete for the [ACC] title,'' Jones said, ``but to talk about it is difficult for me. The way we're approaching it, we'd like to put ourselves in position to win four tournaments: the Preseason NIT, the ACC regular season, the ACC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament. To do that, you can't be good just some of the time.''
Maybe that's the reason Jones was so disturbed Wednesday night after the Cavaliers defeated the Polish National Team 93-73. Virginia had led by as many as 27 points in the first half, when the poor Poles hardly could get the ball across midcourt.
``That was not a matter of the opponent being overmatched and us playing bad basketball and getting away with it,'' Jones said. ``We played very good basketball in the first half. It wasn't just a matter of us making shots.
``All I could do [before the second half] was to challenge our guys to see if they had the discipline, the mental toughness, the consistency, the intensity ... all those things. And, we proved we don't. We're affected too much by outside circumstances [like] the score.''
Jones is trying to guard against a repeat of last season's opening game, when the Cavaliers were brimming with confidence before they were embarrassed by Connecticut, 77-36, at University Hall. That was the game in which Alexander was helped from the floor with a broken ankle, his season over after less than 11 minutes.
``The first month of practice was almost a wasted month,'' Jones said. ``The things we really zeroed in on [were] getting the ball in Cory Alexander's hands all the time and giving a different defensive look. We spent a lot of time on full-court and three-quarter-court defenses. As soon as Cory went down, that all changed.''
A new emphasis on full-court defense was evident Wednesday night, when UVa opened in a 2-1-2 zone press and took a 21-5 lead in less than seven minutes. Alexander seldom has looked quicker and he definitely is stronger, as evidenced by his 275-pound bench press.
All of the returning players appear to be in peak condition, most notably Junior Burrough. The 6-foot-8 power forward is down to 239 pounds from a career-high 251, and has lowered his body fat to 7 percent, down from 10 to 11.
``Nobody will beat us because they're in better shape than we are,'' said Burrough, the Cavaliers' top returning scorer. ``We really worked hard in preseason, the hardest we've ever worked. This guy [new strength coach Eric Fears] has been a factor.''
The Cavaliers will not be at a loss for motivation Wednesday, when they meet Old Dominion at 7:30 p.m. in the first round of the Preseason NIT. UVa co-captain Cornel Parker was booed in pregame introductions last season before the Monarchs defeated UVa 76-69 in Norfolk, Parker's hometown.
Parker was the only senior who averaged more than 5.2 minutes per game last season for Virginia, which overcame a 3-3 start and reached the ACC championship game with two freshman starters. UVa defeated New Mexico 57-54 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to eventual West Region champion Arizona 71-58.
It was not a team without flaws, however. The Cavaliers (18-13) shot 38.7 percent from the field for the season and trailed in the second half in 10 of their victories. In four of those games, they trailed by 10 points or more.
Part of UVa's problem was the absence of a frontcourt scorer to compliment Burrough, who frequently was double- and triple-teamed and shot 40.5 percent from the floor. Burrough actually played center during the ACC Tournament.
``Junior won't play the five-spot [center],'' Jones said. ``Other than Chris Alexander and Chase Metheney, nobody will play the five-spot.
``Somebody will be introduced there. Somebody will be matched defensively against the other team's center, but we don't want those other guys to play like centers. We don't want them to think like centers. If those other guys stand around and start playing like they're 6-10 and 260 pounds, that's to our opponents' advantage.''
Jones, who started the same lineup for all 31 games in 1992-93, has insisted his starting lineup this year will be situational. That has been the case in the preseason, when 1993-94 starters Yuri Barnes and Jason Williford have not started, Williford because of an ankle injury and Barnes because Chris Alexander has outplayed him in practice.
Freshman Curtis Staples started against the Poles, when Robinson had a virus, and it appears likely the Cavaliers will use nine players extensively. UVa has 10 scholarship players, including Metheney, a 7-4, 221-pound freshman who may not receive double-figure minutes but will not be redshirted.
``Over six months of basketball, egos do come into play,'' Cory Alexander said. ``You're on TV all the time and everyone wants to start, but everyone also wants to play in the Final Four. If you're playing 20 minutes a game and we get to the Final Four, I think people should be content.''
Concluded Jones: ``I don't know any player who's worth anything who doesn't want to go out in style. These guys have paid the price. We all know, on paper, that things have a way of getting distorted, but this is the season we've been pointing toward.''
Scouting report
COACH: Jeff Jones, 34, 80-48 in four seasons at Virginia, 80-48 overall.
LAST SEASON: 18-13, tied for fourth in the ACC (8-8), advanced to second round of NCAAs.
RETURNING STARTERS: Cory Alexander, 6-foot-1, jr. (18.8 ppg, 144 assists in 1992-93); Yuri Barnes, 6-8, sr. (8.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg); Junior Burrough, 6-8, sr. (15.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg); Harold Deane, 6-1, so. (12.3 ppg, 86 assists); Jason Williford, 6-6, sr. (9.8 ppg, 6.1 rpg).
TOP NEWCOMERS: Norman Nolan, 6-8, fr.; Curtis Staples, 6-3, fr.
PLAYER TO WATCH: Chris Alexander, a 6-9 redshirt junior, made his pitch for a starting job when he had seven points and 15 rebounds in the Cavaliers' 99-85 exhibition victory over Court Authority. Alexander has not grabbed more than seven rebounds in a college game that counts.
STRENGTHS: Virginia has a reputation for unyielding half-court defense and this year has the quickness to press full-court. The Cavaliers have dangerous 3-point shooters in Alexander, Deane and Staples, who made 161 3-pointers last year at Oak Hill Academy.
WEAKNESSES: UVa's 38.7 field-goal percentage last season was the lowest by an ACC team in more than 30 seasons; the Cavaliers shot 50 or better in only one game. ... Virginia still has the same lack of height in its principal rotation that North Carolina exploited in the ACC championship game.
OUTLOOK: The Cavaliers were picked fourth in the ACC, but several preseason publications have Virginia ranked among the top 10 teams in the country. On paper, this is Virginia's most promising team in the last decade, with the potential to contend for an ACC regular-season or tournament title and win several games in the NCAA Tournament.
by CNB