Monday, February 15, 1999
Duke's Langdon reverses end-of-season breakdown
BY MIKE DeCOURCY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
If only the season did not extend into February and March, Duke guard Trajan Langdon might be working on becoming a three-time All-American.
He has always been at his best in the season's first few months, at his poorest when the games mean most.
In his final six games as a sophomore and junior, Langdon shot a combined 40-of-136 from the field, a .294 percentage. It appeared he might be headed back in that direction this season.
So it was with great relief coach Mike Krzyzewski watched Langdon break from a dreadful slump with three strong games in wins against Georgia Tech, Virginia and Wake Forest. He went 19-of-30 from the field and 10-of-18 from three-point range in those wins.
“I've just got to shoot better,” Langdon said. “It's that simple, really.”
In five games before the breakout against Georgia Tech, Langdon shot 16-of-60 from the field and 9-of-31 on threes. It's possible, though, he has turned his habit of going into late-season slumps into a penchant for mid-season slumps the Blue Devils can better afford.
“I was really pleased against Georgia Tech for him because he basically won the game for us,” Krzyzewski said. “That's all he needs to do, is play. We just talked to him a little bit, watched a little bit of tape with him and told him to go out and be Trajan.
“If he goes 0-for-20 and we lose, then I'll be fine. I want Trajan to always take the next shot. When you feel you have your shot, shoot it. If we lose and you don't hit it, then we've taken our best shot. That's the way everyone feels about it.”
SOFT AS A BRICK: After watching senior center A.J. Bramlett drop layup after layup off the rim in a loss at Washington, Arizona coach Lute Olson expressed disappointment in his team's lack of toughness.
“We've got to bring out the blocking dummies and start knocking guys around,” Olson said. “The way things are in this league, you better be able to take a hit and make the basket.”
In fact, Bramlett wasn't getting hit by the Huskies when he missed those shots, although he may have been looking to see where Washington's 7-1 Todd MacCulloch was standing.
In his next two games, Bramlett made 10-of-19 from the field and power forward Eugene Edgerson was 9-of-11.
Olson exempted freshman forward Michael Wright from the criticism. “Michael Wright, you could hit him with a sledgehammer, and he's still going to make the play.”
BIG ZERO: UCLA freshman Jerome Moiso meant about as much to the Bruins in his three most recent games as his uniform number — 0 — would indicate. He averaged 18 minutes, 24 percent shooting and 2.0 rebounds and, despite his struggles, decided he was worthy of taking the most important shot Thursday night at Stanford. He missed, and UCLA lost.
Moiso, who is from France but played prep school ball in Connecticut last season, has been getting worn down by the physical play in the U.S., even though the Pac-10 is one of the less physical conferences.
He also is bothered by tendinitis in his foot, which affected his mobility and his aggressiveness. “I'm thinking about it too much,” he said, “and that's taking me out of my game.”
In Saturday's loss to California, it also took him out of the lineup. The Bruins are going to need him healthy to make the sort of run in the NCAA Tournament their talent suggests is possible.
PREP TIME: American Airlines wasn't alone in canceling flights this week.
There were more than 100 Division I assistant coaches planning to attend a major prep school tournament in Providence featuring top teams such as Maine Central Insti tute, the Winchendon School of Massachusetts and New Hampton Prep of New Hampshire when they learned the event had not been sanctioned by the NCAA.
Coaches are not permitted to watch unsanctioned events without penalty, so the trips were canceled.
MCI features 6-9 DerMarr Johnson, one of Cincinnati's top remaining targets. Johnson is closer to playing in college after lifting his SAT score to within a few points of qualifying. Johnson is likely to enter the NBA draft if he does not achieve eligibility.
BIG CHANGE: There are some late-season injuries that can ruin a team, as happened last season when New Mexico point guard Royce Olney blew out his knee and missed the NCAA Tournament. But, harsh as it sounds, some injuries can help.
This may be the case with Maryland, a top 10 team that lost senior center Obinna Ekezie to an Achilles injury this week.
The Terps already had taken to starting freshman Lonny Baxter in the middle because of Ekezie's tendency to disappear under pressure and to avoid playing physically when matched against strong players such as Duke's Elton Brand.
In his first three games as a starter, Baxter has averaged 10.3 points and shot 13-of-21 from the field. It's hard to know what he'll do against Brand if given full responsibility, but the Terps may get another chance in the ACC tournament, and he can't do more poorly than Ekezie, who was dominated in both matchups against Duke.
AROUND THE NATION: Who will replace Tom Davis at Iowa has been an interesting debate since the veteran coach announced last spring he would resign at the end of the season. It's all but over, with Southwest Missouri State coach Steve Alford in position to take the job if he wants it. If there are no snags, he does.
• San Diego State's coaching job will be open soon, and Utah's Rick Majerus will be the top candidate. It's unlikely he'll be interested, which could put Rhode Island's Jim Harrick next in line.
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