St. Mary’s men top McNeese State
Fans at McKeon Pavilion on Wednesday night could have started thinking about what this St. Mary’s team might become after the Gaels waxed McNeese State 87-65 in the season opener.
Head coach Randy Bennett and his staff already have to fight the urge to ponder what this St. Mary’s team might have been.
That’s because the Gaels will have to do without redshirt freshman guard Kristers Zoriks for the season and senior center Aaron Menzies for at least the nonconference schedule.
Menzies, a 7-foot-3 graduate transfer from Manchester, England, via Seattle University, recently had hand surgery.
Zoriks, who’s from Latvia, underwent surgery Wednesday for a torn ACL in his left knee. He was injured in a recent scrimmage against Stanford. It’s his second ACL tear in that knee.
“It’s a tough one for us. He would have been our other starting guard,” Bennett said. “I’m just more concerned for him. It’s tough.”
Swingman Tanner Krebs is now the starter at the “2” guard. Junior Jordan Ford, who started at the “2” last season, is the Gaels’ main man at the point this season.
Ford was both flashy and efficient Wednesday. His clever drives through the lane helped him score a team-high 23 points on 9-for-14 shooting. Ford also had five assists and no turnovers in 34 minutes.
“You leave him out there long enough, he’s going to get some stuff done,” Bennett said of Ford. “He’s going to get some (points in) transition, he’ll get to the foul line. He’s a really good offensive player.”
Said Ford: “It feels natural to me to play (the point) and make plays. I have a great group of guys around me that I can dish to.”
Ford can dish to Malik Fitts, a sophomore forward who sat out last season after transferring from South Florida. Fitts put together a doubledouble with 19 points and 12 rebounds.
Fitts admitted to jitters in his first game with the Gaels.
“For sure, I was nervous a little bit when I first got out there,” he said. “I couldn’t really sleep last night.”
Fitts and his teammates probably could sleep well Wednesday night after they went 32-for-60 (53.3 percent) from the floor, including 19-for-33 (57.6 percent) in the second half.
Redshirt sophomore Tommy Kuhse, who had four points and four assists, and Alex Mudronja, a freshman from Australia, figure to get more playing time with Zoriks out.
Even with the injuries, Bennett believes his team can thrive.
“I think we have a high ceiling for improvement,” he said.