Showing signs of his potential
MU’s Gold is starting to realize his talent
Marquette men’s basketball coach Shaka Smart has picked up on a different energy at Fiserv Forum when 6-foot-11 freshman Ben Gold checks into a game.
“Benny Gold, I like how the crowd reacts to him,” Smart said. “It’s awesome. They clearly like him, which, how can you not? But, right now, he doesn’t know how good he can be.”
Yes, the New Zealand native has tantalizing physical tools with good length and textbook shooting form. That’s why Golden Eagles fans are at the edge of their seats waiting for him to put it all together.
There are signs that the game is slowing down for Gold. Smart said the freshman had his best defensive performance in his 19 minutes against Butler last Saturday. Then there was a 10-point outburst in the first half against Connecticut, one of MU’s few bright spots in an 87-72 loss on Tuesday in Hartford.
Gold wants to keep building on that success. He gets his next opportunity when the 10th-ranked Golden Eagles (19-6, 11-3 Big East) face Georgetown (619, 1-13) on Saturday in Washington.
“I just continue to work,” Gold said. “It’s been hard because you want to see the success early on. Obviously it hasn’t fully happened for me yet.
“I’ve been getting extra work every day with all the coaches. Working on my shot. Working on my finishing. I just feel like gradually it’s going to keep on going.”
Gold adds to freshman highlights against UConn’s Donovan Clingan and Adama Sanogo
There’s a continuously updated video of highlights that Smart and his staff send to Gold after every game so the freshman can see his improvement.
“As much as anything,” Smart said. “It’s about knowing you can do it and having a level of confidence and belief in yourself when you go in the game.
“Sometimes as a freshman, there is a feeling that the game is above you. And I’m not talking about him specifically, but I’m talking about a lot of freshmen out there in certain moments, in certain games. Particularly when you go on the road.”
In a hostile environment against the Huskies’ mammoth front line of Adama Sanogo and Donovan Clingan, Gold provided a couple moments that surely will be edited into that highlight reel.
The threat of Gold’s jumper caused Clingan to close out hard on the MU big