The Elon University men’s basketball’s loss to Appalachian State University could be symbolized by a number of things that happened Saturday afternoon in Boone.
Maybe it was the three Phoenix air-balls in a matter of 30 seconds or so in the first half.
Maybe it was the deflation seen on the bench in the last five minutes, where junior forward Brett Ervin’s attempt at a hand-slap with freshman guard Kevin Blake was denied when Blake returned to the bench after being subbed out.
Maybe it was sophomore forward Ryley Beaumont’s brief horse-collar of Mountaineer forward Nathan Healy with less than a minute left while Healy attempted a layup, almost knocking him down. A flagrant foul.
Maybe. On a day where there were many big maybes, probably the sharpest reality came in the Southern Conference standings following the game.
When UNC-Greensboro defeated Western Carolina University in overtime a mere 20 minutes or so following the conclusion of the Elon-App State tilt, the Spartans vaulted the Phoenix into first place in the SoCon’s North Division.
“There’s a lot of parity in the league,” Elon head coach Matt Matheny said. “This is as tight of a race as I’ve ever seen.”
UNCG interim head coach Wes Miller, a former Elon assistant, has led his squad to six straight wins, all in conference, dating back to Davidson College’s 92-63 rout of the Spartans Jan. 5.
“No matter what happens — and that’s off the court or on the floor this year — they just keep fighting,” Miller said after a recent win. “They just keep coming together even more and believing in one another. And that’s what I’m most proud of.”
The Spartans’ streak was aided by four straight games in Greensboro, and they have one more at home against The Citadel Bulldogs Feb. 2.
Meanwhile, the Phoenix has been the description of the word “inconsistent.” After a five-game losing streak came to a halt against The Citadel Jan. 12, a harsh loss to the College of Charleston Cougars by 19 and a home loss to the Samford Bulldogs added to the pain. Elon then managed to pull off two big conference wins against the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga and Western Carolina before the Appalachian State loss.
Matheny gets a chance for his squad to regroup for a few days before playing three games in five days at home. And all three opponents are teams the Phoenix has faced before this season, College of Charleston Feb. 2, The Citadel Feb. 4 and the Mountaineers Feb. 6.
“We’re really, really young and getting better,” Matheny said. “One thing I try to do is not even look at the standings and just try to be as good as I can be. There’s a lot of basketball left.”
Elon will need to make a statement against the Cougars, whose 12-9 overall record is one of the best in the SoCon and 4-6 conference record is the second worst in the South Division. The Phoenix shot just 23.9 percent from the field, were out-rebounded 55-39 and never held the lead.
The Citadel proved to be a weaker opponent for Elon to handle last time they played. Senior guard Drew Spradlin had 21 points against the Bulldogs Jan. 12 and 10 different Phoenix scored.
And then there’s Appalachian State, who thoroughly dismantled the Phoenix Saturday afternoon. The incident with Beaumont at the end of the game pumped up the Mountaineers for the next round in their fight, a bout in which Appalachian State has taken the last seven rounds.
“I’m pretty confident we can go down there (to Elon) and win,” Appalachian State senior guard Omar Carter said. “That incident fueled our fire a little bit.”
This is a crucial three-game stretch for Elon, which is 6-3 at home this season, but only 2-2 against SoCon opponents. This young group will be tested by the pressure of looking up the standings for the first time this season
But if Matheny has his way, the players will not be concerned. The former Davidson assistant credits his old boss, Wildcats’ basketball head coach Bob McKillop, for his approach to the standings.
“He schooled me really well to not look at the standings during the season,” Matheny said. “I don’t even think about it. The one thing that we can control at Elon is to be the best that we can be. If we’re the best that we can be, that gives us a chance to move on and win games.”