Prickly Pear, Yearbook of Abilene Christian University, 2002 Page: 98
303 p. : ill. ; 32 cm.View a full description of this yearbook.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
A A~~~~~~
Treading Water
Motion is a fundamental aspect of the human experience.
Whether rising or falling, surging forward
or dropping back, life revolves around
movement. And perhaps that truth is presented most often
in the arena of sports, where each season brings with it the
chance for teams to alter their position attained during the
previous year.
But for the ACU men's basketball team, the 2001-2002
season was not a year in which the Wildcats moved significantly
up or down in the standings. They were not a worse
team than they'd been the previous year, nor were they a
better team. Instead, the 'Cats simply ended the season
where they had begun it, finishing with a 7-19 record that
was similar to the 6-20 record they'd posted at the conclusion
of the 2000-2001 season. And though the year began
with great expectations for head coach Mike Martin and
his team, by the final game both the coach and his players
found themselves right back where they'd started, continuing
to tread water at the bottom of the Lone Star
Conference barrel. And several months later, Martin found
himself out of a job.
Although the reasons behind ACU's lackluster play
were numerous, a quick glance at the stat sheet proved to
be enlightening. For the season, the Wildcats averaged
only 67.5 points a game, while giving up an average of
81.3 to the opposing teams. And as evidenced by that -14
scoring differential, the 'Cats were simply outplayed by
the majority of the competition at both the offensive and
defensive ends of the court.
Some blame for the Wildcats' poor performance at
both ends of the court could be placed on the injury bug,
which had once again bitten Martin's team hard. In the previous
year senior star Peter Kiganya, who had been a preseason
all-America pick, had suffered a leg injury that
forced him to play in pain virtually the entire season,
severely limiting his effectiveness. And in 2001-2002
ACU's fortunes went from bad to worse as Martin's star
player, freshman center Cole Rutherford, was sidelined for
the season with a broken foot after playing only a handful
of games.
"Cole's injury was a big loss to us," Martin said. "ButDaniel Salmon protects the ball during practice. photo by Brady
Laneeven with Cole gone, we still had chances to win ball
games and we didn't get the job done."
Rutherford had been averaging 12 points and 8.8
rebounds per game, and the loss of his inside presence left
a young team of five sophomores and six freshmen woefully
outmatched in a conference filled with bigger,
stronger, more experienced teams. And just as it had the
previous year, a combination of injury, youth and inexperience
dealt a death blow to any hopes ACU players or fans
had possessed regarding the 'Cats chances of posting a
winning record.
Perhaps the lone bright spot for ACU was the play of
sophomore shooting guard Rodney Lee. Lee had first
made his presence known to the denizens of Moody
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This yearbook can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Yearbook.
Abilene Christian University. Prickly Pear, Yearbook of Abilene Christian University, 2002, yearbook, 2002; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth39886/m1/101/: accessed May 1, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.