YSU seeks to hold onto top spot
Penguins visit Purdue Fort Wayne on Friday
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YOUNGSTOWN -- With six games left in the regular season, the path to a Horizon League regular season title is clear for Youngstown State.
Challenging, but clear.
Following Green Bay's stunning upset of Milwaukee on Monday night, the Penguins (19-6, 11-3 Horizon League) find themselves in sole possession of first place as the home stretch begins.
But, a treacherous road trip awaits as YSU pays Purdue Fort Wayne a visit Friday night (7 p.m., ESPN+, 570 AM WKBN).
Senior guard Garrett Covington says the team is aware of the bigger picture, but still remains focused on taking things one day and game at a time.
"I think it's important to pay attention to what's happening throughout the league, but you treat every game the same," Covington said. "You can't get too caught up and worried about all that, but at the same time, you kind of have to have knowledge about what's going on with other teams in the league and just understand the position that you're in and how crucial wins are."
A win over the Mastodons (15-10, 7-7 Horizon League) certainly falls in the crucial category, but won't be an easy one to come by.
Recent series history hasn't been kind to YSU, as the Penguins enter the matchup on a three-game skid against PFW. But, the Mastodons have hit a slump since the New Year, alternating wins and losses. Purdue Fort Wayne lost its last matchup, an 85-52 drubbing by Detroit Mercy.
"They've got a lot of guys that have won, and won at a high level," said YSU coach Jerrod Calhoun. "I think they've gone through a little bit of a slump recently, but they're as good as anybody in the league. It's a hard place to play."
Indeed, YSU remains winless in Fort Wayne and sits 0-3 all-time. If the Penguins are to reverse their fortunes, it begins with slowing down all-league guard Jarred Godfrey, who averages 16.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.
Bobby Planutis, a transfer from St. Bonaventure, follows at 10.8 points per game, and Damian Chong Qui scored 9.8 per game. Chong Qui scored 24 points on YSU back on Dec. 31, 2022, the second-highest total of his 2022-23 campaign.
As a team, PFW averages 9.1 made 3-pointers per game, the second-highest mark in the Horizon League, and shoots 34.6 percent from downtown, the third-highest mark.
That will present a challenge for YSU's defense, which has continued to improve this season.
"The last four games, it's been our defense," Calhoun said. "We went from seventh to third in the conference in points per possession on defense. That's a major jump; I'm proud of our effort defensively. Now you're going on the road, you have to ramp it up even more. We've made great strides on that end, and if we can continue to do that, we're going to be a tough out."
He added that YSU met with the analytics company it works with, HD Intelligence, and found that its seen the biggest jump in transition defense and in forcing teams to take twos instead of threes.
"We had a problem with that early in the year," Calhoun said. "So if you get back in transition, you set your defense, you don't let them make a three, you make them shoot a two and you box out, you've got a good defense. ... That's really what we've done, and that's why we've made a great stride. The last four games have been phenomenal."
Also encouraging for the Penguins is that guard Shemar Rathan-Mayes will return to action this week. He hasn't played since YSU's first matchup with Purdue Fort Wayne due to an MCL sprain he suffered during practice.
That figures to be a welcome addition as the Penguins gear up for their stretch run toward the Horizon League Tournament.
"It's about controlling your own destiny and continuing to develop daily habits to get better each day. That's really what this thing's about," Calhoun said. "Ultimately, we got together in the summer, we laid out a plan, and the guys have done a great job of executing that plan. ... We have three weeks of basketball left in the regular season. We know where we're at. We know what it would mean for our university. We know what it would mean for our guys' legacy -- something that hasn't been done. You certainly talk about that at the beginning of the year, but we won't spend a whole lot of time (now). They know what's at stake."
jwhetzel@tribtoday.com