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1/27/06

Basketball

GlenOak displays its fortitude

Loss of 7-foot-1 Koufos hurts but summer work helps Eagles stand tall

By David Lee Morgan Jr.

Beacon Journal sportswriter

PLAIN TOWNSHIP - The idea of high school basketball teams staying together to play in the offseason has been popular for some time.
The theory is that if a team wants to be successful in winter months, then summer workouts are important.
One byproduct of players staying together is team chemistry -- and that was apparent when GlenOak defeated Perry 51-50 last Friday.
The Golden Eagles did it without 7-foot-1 junior forward Kosta Koufos, who had broken his foot the day before the game.
Koufos, who is being recruited by college programs such as Ohio State, Maryland, Connecticut, Louisville, North Carolina and others, had been averaging 24.6 points and 13.5 rebounds.
Perry came into the game featuring its own outstanding post player in 6-11 sophomore Kenny Frease, who scored 23 points.
In Koufos' absence (he was on the bench with his crutches right next to him), GlenOak needed its starters -- Errick McCollum, Mark Quinn, Nate West, Mark Moore and Brian Powell -- to pull together.
The Golden Eagles also needed bench players such as Jon Miller, Zach Kager, Dan Wagner, Stephen Mueller and C.J. McCollum to step up.
Their effort pushed GlenOak's record to 9-3, 5-1 in the Federal League behind Canton McKinley (11-2, 6-0).
Some people might have thought that it wasn't possible without Koufos.
``Not to be cocky or anything, but when Kosta hurt his foot and we found out the day of the game that he wasn't going to play, we weren't nervous or anything,'' said senior guard Errick McCollum, who scored a career-high 27 points, including the game-winning shot with 4.5 seconds remaining.
``This summer, we went to a team camp at Ohio State,'' McCollum said. ``Kosta was at the Nike All-American camp so we played without him. We played some of the top teams in the state, and we played well. So ever since then, we had a lot of confidence because we showed we could play without Kosta if we had to.''
The summer team camps help build confidence, because on many occasions, teams have a chance to play quality competition.
For instance, a quality Division III school that plays in a conference and has limited open dates for nonconference games during the season can go to a summer team camp and play quality Division I or II schools.
Or a Division I team such as GlenOak would have the opportunity to play other top Division I schools from different parts of the state.
The Golden Eagles played eight games during the OSU camp. They won five in a row and reached the championship game against Dayton Dunbar.
``Even now, we'd like to have Kosta with us, but we can't moan and groan,'' Greynolds added. ``It just gives other guys the opportunity to step up.''
As for Koufos, he visited a doctor Wednesday afternoon with his mother for another assessment of his injury.
``We're going to take the conservative approach,'' said Koufos, who is most likely out for the season. ``I don't want to try to rush anything. It's not worth it. And I'm not letting it get me down.''