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Tuesday, November 14, 2000

Isles battle for victory over Flight
Hicks, Atsbeha power A&M-CC to 87-78 win
By Mark Zuckerman
Caller-Times

Michelle Christenson/Caller-Times

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s Pathe Diene dunks Monday during the Islanders’ exhibition victory over Houston Flight.

The NCAA announced this summer it would crack down on physical play in college basketball and instruct officials to call more fouls. The crew working Monday night's exhibition game at Memorial Coliseum apparently got the message, maybe too well.
   A whopping 44 fouls were called, many to the chagrin of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi coach Ronnie Arrow in the Islanders' 87-78 win over Houston Flight.
   The whistle-happy refs, who called 10 A&M-Corpus Christi fouls in the first 10 minutes of the second half, gave the Flight a chance to to make a close game out of what was turning into a rout. The Islanders held an 18-point lead early in the second half that was whittled down to 1 on a steady barrage of Flight free throws.

Michelle Christenson/Caller-Times

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s Arunas Drasutis looks for his shot during the Islanders’ 87-78 exhibition victory over Houston Flight on Monday.

   "That was too tight," said Arrow, whose team was whistled 10 times in the first 10 minutes of the second half. "We got a big lead and then started sleepwalking. Some guys just didn't show up ready tonight, and I don't know why."
   Michael Hicks led A&M-Corpus Christi with 27 points and 12 rebounds, though the senior forward played only 20 minutes due to foul trouble. He picked up his second foul early in the first half and sat on the bench until the break. And he was whistled for his fourth foul with 14:25 to play and didn't return for eight minutes.
   In a roundabout way, the Islanders were interested in seeing how they performed without their top player on the floor.
   "We're a team," said junior Sennai Atsbeha, who came off the bench to post a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. "Mike Hicks is a great player, but we're not called the Mike Hickses. We're A&M-Corpus Christi. One player doesn't make the team."
   The Islanders withstood the Flight's rally, letting the semi-pro team from Houston get within 1 point on several occasions without surrendering their lead. Lee Denmon kept the offense running with 20 points on 7-for-10 shooting from 2-point range.
   "We have to take care of the ball and play like Mike's not out there," Denmon said. "He may not be with us sometimes."
   With Hicks on the floor, A&M-Corpus Christi jumped out to an early lead, doubling up the Flight at one point, 36-18. Then the whistles started filling up the coliseum. Eight straight free throws by the Flight (which finished the game 26 of 32 from the line) kept things close and sent the Islanders to the locker room with a 44-26 lead.
   The Flight continued to chip away at the lead in the second half, though not with some players local fans (and A&M-Corpus Christi) expected to be in uniform. Several ex-NBA players were scheduled to appear Monday, but the only one who showed up was former Rockets and University of Louisville forward Rodney McCray, who still didn't make it into the game.
   Instead the Flight relied on the inside play of DeRon Rutledge (22 points), the outside shooting of Dwayne Rogers (21 points, 5 3-pointers) and the rebounding of Tracy Ware (19 boards).
   But A&M-Corpus Christi managed to keep control of the game behind a pair of Atsbeha 3-pointers and 12-of-15 free-throw shooting down the stretch.
   With the Islanders' season opener Friday night against Sul Ross State, Arrow is anxious to see if his players are ready.
   "We'll see; ready or not, it's here," he said. "We've learned a lot. Now it's time to toss it up in real game situations."


Staff writer Mark Zuckerman can be reached at 886-3747 or by e-mail at zuckermanm@caller.com

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