PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland — The University of Maryland Eastern Shore had eight of its 15 scheduled nonconference games at home to start the season giving them a favorable schedule coming off a year away from the court due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
With just two of those eight remaining at home and five total games before the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference schedule starts, Hawks coach Fred Batchelor knows it's time for his team to start getting into form.
Standing between The Shore (4-5) and a .500 record is the University of North Carolina Greensboro in a 2 p.m. matchup on Dec. 11, as part of a men's and women's doubleheader.
"They are a talented team, but they are struggling a bit right now and have lost their last five games, but pretty much all of them have been close," Batchelor said. "I think they are trying to find their way a bit. They have started nine different lineups.
"This is a good opportunity for us because they haven't found their niche yet. They have pieces though and good size. I told our kids there isn't one of them that would have bypassed UNCG to come here, so you can't take that team for granted. They have talent"
The Spartans (3-6) are a young team compared to the one the Hawks faced in Greensboro two years ago.
"Two freshmen are starting for them right now and one of them (Isys Grady, 12.3 ppg.) is leading them in scoring," Batchelor said.
If the Hawks can make a respectable percentage of their free throws, avoid the slow start that has plagued them at times this season and the turnovers that can put a team in a hole, Batchelor expects the battle on the glass to be key.
"We are going to have to rebound like we did at La Salle," Batchelor said. "We are not super big, and we don't have one dominant rebounder, so we have to team rebound. Everybody has to be focused in and disciplined in regard to block-out assignments, fight inside and clean up the glass.
"At the end of the day I think we need to be the tougher team. The tougher team is going to win."
NOTES FROM THE NEST:
During the game at La Salle, Amanda Carney (Old Bridge, New Jersey) passed Octavia Thompson (2001-05) to move up to No. 8 on the all-time 3-pointers made list with 114. After a rough start to the season from behind the arc, Carney has made seven of her last 17 (41%).
Over the last five games, senior Taylor Clayborne (Upper Marlboro, Maryland) leads the Hawks in scoring with 8.8 per game.
UNCG head coach Trina Patterson spent one season as head coach for the Hawks (1999-00) and coached the team to a 9-19 record overall and 7-11 in the MEAC.
