THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, December 17, 1995 TAG: 9512170203
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C16 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KEVIN DOEPP, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines
Jeff McLean always knew what he could do on a basketball court. He was just waiting for the chance to prove his worth.
And when the time came for the 6-foot-4 junior forward at Christopher Newport to put up or shut up, he made people take notice.
McLean, a Booker T. Washington graduate, was the tournament MVP at the Wild Goose Classic, hosted by Washington College of Maryland last weekend, and helped the Captains to their second tournament championship of the season.
In the championship game McLean poured in a career-high 29 points on 14-of-16 shooting from the field. In addition to being named tournament MVP, McLean was selected as the Dixie Conference men's basketball player of the week.
For the week he averaged 23.5 points and seven rebounds and shot 78 percent (22 of 28) from the floor.
``This was my first individual award that I have ever won,'' McLean said of being named tournament MVP. ``I told my teammates that. It was tremendous for me, and I am still enjoying it.''
The road to the top was not so easy for McLean. He was always seen as a role player, even going back to his days with the Bookers.
In his first two years with the Captains he was a reserve. He had a couple of good games, scoring 16 points against Salisbury State his sophomore year and 11 in a big win over Greensboro College his freshman year. But something didn't seem right to McLean. And after those first two years he decided he needed a year off.
``I thought that my sophomore year would be like this year - I thought it would be the biggest year for me,'' he said. ``But it wasn't, so I decided to sit out and hit the weights and improve my game.''
And so far, the move has worked out. McLean is averaging 16.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. He is also averaging 28 minutes a game.
McLean's mark of 69 percent from the floor is good for 11th-best in the country. His 14-of-16 shooting performance in that championship game is fifth in the nation in single-game field-goal shooting percentage.
McLean also attributes his good year to the fact that the Captains have a good nucleus this season. They don't have just one or two guys who can get it done. The talent is spread out.
``This is the first time that I feel like I am on a solid team,'' McLean said. ``I am just loving it this year.''
OLD DOMINION UPDATE: Lady Monarchs basketball player Sarah Willyerd entered the weekend leading the nation in field-goal percentage. The 5-9 senior guard from Flint, Mich., was 9 of 14 from 3-point range. In addition, the Lady Monarchs as a team ranked first in the nation from 3-point range at 21 for 44; junior center Clarisse Machanguana ranked 14th in steals with 4.3 per game, and senior guard Shonda DeBerry ranked 13th in 3-point field-goal percentage at .545. . . . Tzipora Obziler, the Lady Monarchs' top tennis women's player, is listed as No. 1 in the Rolex Collegiate Rankings. Obziler, a freshman from Tel Aviv, Israel, did not make the preseason rankings. The rankings are based on the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's points-per-match formula. As of Dec. 11, Obziler received a score of 8.47 in the per-match formula. She ousted Stanford's Katie Schlukebir, who received a score of 8.40. The next rankings will come out on March 5.
VIRGINIA WESLEYAN UPDATE: The men's soccer team has placed three players on the 1995 NSCAA/Umbro Division III All-American team. Gary DePalma, a sophomore midfielder from Pittsburgh, who had 13 goals and eight assists on the season, was named to the first team. Goalkeeper Scott Morgenroth and striker Evan Whitson were named to the second team. Morgenroth, a junior from Chester, N.J., had a 0.34 goals-against average. Whitson, a junior from Beacon, N.Y., was the team's leading scorer with 16 goals and nine assists. Placing three players on the All-American teams is a first for any team at Virginia Wesleyan. . . . Heading into the weekend, the men's basketball team (5-1, 3-0 in the ODAC) was ranked third in the South region. James MacLeod (16.5 points per game) and Indian River graduate Percy Slight (16.0) are the top two scorers for the Marlins. . . . The Lady Marlins (2-3, 1-2) are led by Lila Lillefloren (Green Run), who averaged 13.8 points per game heading into the weekend. She also averaged 10.4 rebounds per game, good for third in the ODAC. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
After taking a year off to gain strength and skill, CNU's Jeff
McLean is making people take notice.
by CNB