Mocs anticipating fun for all tonight
By David Uchiyama
Staff Writer
Rachel Robbins hasn’t missed many University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s basketball home games.
But she missed seeing her boyfriend, Zach Ferrell, unexpectedly play in the first half of the Mocs’ last two contests.
“She’ll be back for the Asbury game because I’ll most likely get to play in that game,” said Ferrell, a junior walk-on point guard.
All of the Mocs should see some playing time against the Eagles at 7 p.m. in McKenzie Arena. Asbury is an NAIA Division II program that should put the Mocs in a good mood for the holidays. It’s a game the Mocs are expected not only to win, but to win by a lot.
Before clearing the bench, UTC coach John Shulman would like to see some of the regular reserves get in a groove.
“I want to get some guys in the game that need to be playing,” Shulman said. “We have to get Verice (Cloyd) going. We have to get ‘Q’ (Qavotstaraj Waddell) going, and we have to get Keyron (Sheard) going.”
Ferrell, walk-on Stephen McClellan and redshirt freshman Jeremy Saffore have combined for 49 minutes this season, with 32 of them coming in the season opener against Covenant College, another NAIA Division II squad.
“Seeing them in there is a security blanket because that means we put somebody away,” junior forward Nicchaeus Doaks said. “It’s fun because we get to laugh at them, and I know they laugh at us when we’re on the court.”
Ferrell played out of necessity against the College of Charleston and Elon when starting point guard Kevin Bridgewaters and Sheard found themselves in foul trouble before halftime.
The first-half fouls are a disturbing trend for Shulman.
“We’re committing dumb fouls,” he said. “I want to be aggressive. Sometimes they mistake being aggressive for fouling. Nothing good happens when you foul.”
Ferrell did his job in both conference games, helping UTC get to halftime with a lead and no further foul problems.
“He’s a much better player than last year,” Shulman said. “Zach knows what to do and what I expect and demand.”
Senior Marcus Watts said the Mocs need to remain focused on the task at hand — winning the game — before having fun and watching less experienced teammates take the floor.
“It’s something that would be nice to do,” Watts said. “These types of games you’d like to get everybody in because you don’t know who you’ll need down the stretch. You have injuries and foul trouble, so it would be good for guys like Zach and (Saffore) to get in there and get some experience.”
E-mail David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfreepress.com
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