Sports and Rants with Brett and Pants : Athletic Freshmen: Newkirk and Demery

We have seen the Hawks go against top and sub-par Atlantic 10 competition. No matter who the opponent is, they have been out-played. The Hawks would fall to an early deficit, and then attempt a meaningless comeback. The team is forced to try to find their identity while attempting to comeback. Shavar Newkirk and James Demery are two freshmen that Hawk fans are seeing develop throughout this season.

There is not much of a point in giving Chris Wilson additional senior minutes. Freshman point guard, Shavar Newkirk should be slowly gaining minutes each game in order to prepare Newkirk to start next season. If Newkirk improves each game, he should be starting by the end of the season. Maybe Chris Wilson will be on the bench to start the game, similar to Tay Jones. Number 1 for the Hawks is a tremendous team player. He has the second most steals for the Hawks with 12, behind DeAndre Bembry’s 26. Just like the team, Newkirk’s main issue is finding ways to score. He is too small to play under the rim. Newkirk made his first 3-point shot against George Washington and is now 1 for 15 behind the arc. The freshmen point could become an effective scorer if he develops a jump shot from within the paint.

Unlike Shavar, James Demery is a starter. Being a wing guard, Demery has a similar role on the court as DeAndre Bembry. It appears that at times Coach Martelli has taken James Demery out of the game because of Demery committing typical freshmen mistakes. Demery can be the most explosive player during a game. He attacks the basket with ease. As he gets the feel for college basketball, James will gain confidence. Hawk fans have seen him struggle from under the basket. As he develops, he will be able to play under the rim better. James Demery’s first 3 pointer brought the Hawks into overtime against LIU.

Both Shavar Newkirk and James Demery seem to be enjoying being Hawks. They were part of the past incoming athletic freshmen class. Martelli wants to build his team around athletic players that want to be Hawks. Coach should let Newkirk and Demery play through all of their mistakes. The team will only improve, when they do. Benching potential future Hawk stars will not benefit the team. Martelli has to learn to allow the players to play through their mistakes, especially Newkirk and Demery. These two athletic freshmen will not learn how to shoot on the bench.

The Fordham Rams will come to Hagan Arena on Wednesday. The Hawks and the Rams hope to get their first win in the Atlantic 10. St. Joe’s will not have an easy win this season. It is too early to call the season a wash. The team has talent; they just need to find ways to score.

- Pants