From Tribune/Vindy
Defense dominates
YSU stays perfect at Beeghly
YSU SPORTS
DEC 19, 2019
JOHN VARGO
Sports Reporter
jvargo@tribtoday.com
Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes — Michael Akuchie, right, of Youngstown State shoots a 3-pointer over Brenton Mills of Binghamton on Wednesday in the first half of the Penguins’ 73-55 victory at the Beeghly Center.
YOUNGSTOWN — Naz Bohannon felt pressure squeezing around him as Binghamton’s post players tried to bump and maneuver the Youngstown State 6-foot-6 junior forward out of their way.
Bohannon was having nothing of the sort in the first 20 minutes against players at least 2 inches taller than the Lorain native.
He’s seen it before, two players coming at him in practices. Spin moves and staying durable. That’s how Bohannon survived and advanced.
The Penguins did a little more than that in Wednesday’s 73-55 win over Binghamton to push YSU’s record at the Beeghly Center to 6-0. It’s the first time the Penguins (7-5) have went 6-0 at home in the non-conference schedule since the 2010-11 season.
The winning ways help YSU heading into Horizon League play later this month.
Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes — Devin Morgan, right, of Youngstown State drives into the paint against Binghamton’s Brenton Mills during the second half of YSU’s 73-55 win over the Bearcats. The Penguins host West Virginia at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Covelli Centre.
“You build it with home games,” Penguins coach Jerrod Calhoun said. “There’s been a lot coaches looking for a magic formula, but I really believe if you don’t have home games at our level you’re really at a disadvantage for conference play. The confidence factor for our guys is high.”
YSU led by 21 points early in the second half as the Penguins’ defensive pressure kept mounting on the Bearcats (5-6). It slowly began subsiding as the final 20 minutes rolled along.
Calhoun talked about his team learning to play with a lead, and Wednesday was a good teaching moment. Bohannon heard Calhoun’s words during the a time out. The YSU junior sat in Calhoun’s chair and looked at his teammates.
“I told the guys, ‘Let’s go,’ “ said Bohannon, who had a career-high 19 points. ” ‘We have to get interested in playing defense again. Defense is why we win games. If we play defense, we can get out and run and have fun.’ “
YSU is one of the better defensive teams in the Horizon League, holding teams to 68 a game coming into Wednesday’s game.
The Penguins’ lead dwindled down to 12 at 59-47 with 7:49 left. The inside of the Beeghly Center was as quiet.
Calhoun noticed the team’s energy levels were low in the second half, a stark contrast to the 22 points Binghamton was held to in the first 20 minutes.
Things like that cannot happen Saturday when YSU host No. 25 West Virginia at the Covelli Centre, starting at 1 p.m.
“We have to refocus and understand we’re playing a team on Saturday at 1 o’clock that is not going to take any possessions off,” Calhoun said. “They are going to compete on every possession. They’re going to make it difficult on all the possessions. We’re going to have to match that and more.
“In this game, that played a little bit of a factor.”
Jelani Simmons’ windmill dunk with about 3 minutes remaining revitalized the Penguins the rest of the way. Michael Akuchie added 10 points.
Bohannon said he missed Simmons on an earlier trip down the court.
“Before I called it, I saw him out the side,” Bohannon said. “It’s going to him. When he jumped, I felt all the adrenaline rushing. I told him after the game, you would’ve thought I dunked it.”
The nearly 2,000 inside the Beeghly Center started to get back into the flow of the contest.
“You hear a huge eruption when Jelani Simmons dunked the basketball,” Calhoun said. “I tried to explain to Jamir (Thomas) on the bench. It’s got to be an and-one dunk. You’ve got to get above the rim. You’ve got to dunk the ball. You’ve got to get the crowd into it. That’s what we’re trying to establish.”
YSU has established itself as one of the Horizon League’s best defensive teams, only trailing Oakland and Northern Kentucky.
YSU held Binghamton’s Sam Sessoms, who had 40 points in the Bearcats’ previous game and averaged 20, to seven. Pierre Sarr led with 20 points, while George Tinsley added 13.
Even YSU seasoned fans like Trumbull County native Bob Camardo mentioned to Calhoun that the 50 points the Penguins held Southeast Missouri State in the previous game was impressive.
“(He) made a comment that the SEMO game is one of the better performances he’s seen in a while defensively,” Calhoun said. “I shared that with our team. I think fans appreciate teams who really like to play defense. Our guys have bought into it.”
Wednesday was another example.
