THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 4, 1995 TAG: 9502040428
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
Old Dominion can depend on a consistent performance from Petey Sessoms every night in an aspect of the game that is becoming his specialty: defense.
Sessoms? Defense?
That's right. The 6-foot-7 senior forward, known for offensive production throughout his career, suddenly is a defensive stopper.
Sessoms is ODU's career leader in 3-point field goals made. He recently moved ahead of Dave Twardzik into sixth place on the Monarchs' career scoring list with 1,705 points. He has a chance to finish third behind only Ronnie Valentine (2,204) and Leo Anthony (2,181).
But lately, Sessoms' defense has been as big a story as his offense. It will be a focal point today when the first-place Monarchs play at James Madison (4 p.m., HTS) in their toughest Colonial Athletic Association road test.
In their last meeting, Sessoms held Madison's CAA-leading scorer Louis Rowe to a season-low 11 points. Sessoms also has done a job on a number of the league's other top offensive threats, including William and Mary's Kurt Small and Richmond's Kass Weaver (both held to 15 points, below their average).
``The thing that gets all the ink and the praise is all the points you score,'' ODU coach Jeff Capel said. ``But Petey's done a real good job playing defensively the last couple of weeks.''
Sessoms said he began focusing on defense when Capel started to subtly tell him it was time to work on that aspect of his game.
``It was just little sarcasm and stuff like that,'' Sessoms said. ``I started to take it seriously, and the last couple of games that's been my main point of emphasis. That's something I knew I needed to start doing to become a complete player.''
Sessoms has done plenty toward that end this season. He's second in the league not only in scoring (22.5 points per game), but also in rebounding (8.6). He has also worked diligently to develop his penetration move, and he's having his best season averages for assists (1.8), blocked shots (1.4) and steals (1.25).
ANOTHER VIEW: American coach Chris Knoche on the defense played by ODU in its victory over James Madison 10 days ago at Scope:
``I thought the defensive effort they had was far and away the best defensive effort I've seen of any conference team this year,'' Knoche said.
``They really acted like they were on a mission and they had something to prove in that game.
``Obviously they were very, very well prepared. I think that was just a superlative effort from a team that, more and more, is believing in itself every day.''
American helped ODU Wednesday, upsetting the Dukes and creating a buffer between the Monarchs (7-0 league) and second-place JMU and UNC Wilmington (both 5-2).
``We're trying to find ourselves,'' Dukes coach Lefty Driesell said. ``A lot of it boils down to offensive control and taking bad shots. We get a big lead and people start going one-on-one out on their own.''
SNOW JOB: History says the Monarchs can look forward to a tough time today in Harrisonburg, where they haven't won since the 1988-89 season.
The Dukes have won 18 consecutive league games at home. Through the last six seasons, they are 36-2 against CAA foes in the Convocation Center.
``(JMU) has perhaps the best home-court situation in our league,'' George Mason coach Paul Westhead said. ``The fans are right there, they're behind their team and they have everything going for them.''
One thing ODU may have going for it today is the weather. Forecasts call for anywhere from 6 to 18 inches of snow to be dumped on Harrisonburg from Friday night to Saturday afternoon, which could curtail the crowd.
``I've never won there and it would be a great way to go out,'' Sessoms said. ``It's a real tough place to play, probably one of the toughest places to play on our schedule.''
NOT SHARP: George Mason forward Mike Sharp, a sophomore from Western Branch who started last season, has played in two games this season because of two separate knee surgeries.
Sharp returned to practice for the first time in more than a month this week, but Westhead isn't sure when or if he'll play again this season.
TIP-INS: Detroit Piston center Mark West, a former Monarch, will return to Petersburg High Feb. 9 when his high school jersey will be retired at a banquet. He was an all-Group AAA pick in 1979 and was drafted in 1983. ... Injured ODU center Odell Hodge will have the same honor bestowed upon him the following week by Laurel Park High in Martinsville, Va. ... ODU point guards Brion Dunlap and Duffy Samuels are tied for third in steals in CAA games only with 1.9 per game. ... Richmond's losing streak has reached nine games. by CNB