Teams fall without star players Wojcik, Doherty
KERRY SMITH
Sports Editor
Some of Bookstore's top-ranked teams could have used a little help from the men's basketball coaching staff Tuesday.
No. 29 Shocker and No. 30 We've Got Your Wojo, missing their star players Irish head coach Matt Doherty and assistant coach Doug Wojcik, respectively, fell to unranked teams in round of 128 action.
Scrub Scouts, with Pat Mokris, T.J. Durkin, Sam Leonardo, Jason Halverson and Nate Fowler played like anything but scrubs when they gave the No. 29 team a shock of its own with a 21-16 win.
"It was a great game," Fowler said. "We played really good defense and our shots just kept falling."
Doherty, who was unable to suit up for his Shocker team because he was out of town on a recruiting trip, might not have seen his last action in this year's tournament.
"We want to know if Doherty wants to be our ball boy," Durkin said.
The underdogs led by as many as eight in the second half but Shocker tightened up the game, coming to within four at 20-16 before Scrub Scouts nailed a jumper to secure the win.
John Heintz, Mike Zingale, Travis Kline, Ed Wasilewski and Luke Archibald teamed up for Team Trojan to upend We've Got Your Wojo 21-14.
"We played as a team out there," said Heintz. "Everyone came to play and we really hustled. We're in pretty good shape so we still have our legs at the end of the game which helps us a lot."
Team Trojan led the entire second half, letting We've Got Your Wojo come within two points at 16-14 before going on a 5-0 run capped by a steal and a fast break for the winning score.
"We knew we had a chance to win the game," said Heintz. "We thought we'd go pretty far and we're just excited to be in the next round."
No. 21 Manual Steering, with Tony Weaver, Trace Hendrick, Dahx Marrs, Nick Bernel and Mo MacDonald went on cruise control to beat Sons of Achtung and secure its spot in the round of 64.
"We played a tough game, but they played us tough too," said Hendrick.
Sons of Achtung was out-sized under the basket and had trouble containing the No. 21 team's inside game.
Manual Steering is confident as they advance into the next round, but aware of the competition that lies ahead.
"We're looking to advance and feeling good, but there are never any guarantees," said Hendrick.
At the No. 22 spot, Sexual Frustration V lived up to its ranking when it muscled its way past Seeking Employment and into the round of 64 with a 21-14 win.
"This was our most physical game yet," said Sexual Frustration V's Sky Owens. "They played a good game. They came out with a good 2-3 zone on us which was a smart move on their part."
Led by Owens, Sexual Frustration V, with Peter Stuhldreher, Kevin Hardy, Nik Green and Josh Brumm is confident about its chances of staying alive in the coming rounds.
"If you're not confident you might as well not be out here," said Owens.
Unleashed, with Kevin Murphy, Jon Bevilacqua, Pat Maloblocki, Jeff Harms, Ryan Jochum and an injured Tim O'Brien unleashed its tough offense and tight defense on Hung Jury to make its way into the round of 64 with a 21-15 win.
Unleashed lead 11-5 at the half, but Hung Jury kept the game's verdict up in the air, coming to within three in the second half at 16-13.
"They were pretty big and strong so it was a rough game," said Murphy, who lit up the court with nine points. "We feel good - we're pretty quick and we've picked up some size so we're excited to play in the next round."
Bookstore action heats up as the round of 64 begins today on the Stepan courts.
All Sports Stories for Wednesday, April 19, 2000
