Dec. 23, 2015
SAN DIEGO -
By Mick McGrane, @GoAztecs Senior Writer
(@MickOnTheMesa)
Steve Fisher knows full well the fabric from which freshmen are cut. For reference, see Fab Five, University of Michigan, 1991-92.
As a rule, they are unbridled and overindulgent, seldom failing to leap before they look and all too happy to toss caution to the wind.
And yet 13 games into a campaign that Tuesday night saw San Diego State's men's basketball team lose consecutive contests for the first time since February 2013, a streak of in 94 games tied for the longest streak in the nation, its freshmen stepping to the fore. Freshmen diving for loose balls and pushing tempo. Freshmen who Tuesday night stared the No. 2 team in the country square in the face and refused to flinch, the same approach they took in facing the media in the postgame press conference.
Freshmen who combined for 30 points in a 70-57 loss to a Kansas team whose only loss was to No. 1 Michigan State on Nov. 17.
"Our guys don't treat us like freshmen," said redshirt freshman forward Zylan Cheatham, who led the Aztecs in scoring for the second straight game with 12 points while adding eight rebounds and four assists. "Everyone treats each other as equals. There's none of that, ‘You (freshmen) are below us because you're younger.' I feel like it's just a part of our team chemistry that's developing. It's partially developed, but it's still going to take some time with us stepping into the roles of guys who play a lot of minutes and become starters.
"I feel like other guys can maybe learn something from us as we're learning at the same time. I think us being freshmen can impact and benefit the whole team."
Given that the Aztecs have lost three home games this season after going 109-10 at Viejas Arena since Nov. 22, 2008, Cheatham's logic is difficult to debate.
Freshman point guard Jeremy Hemsley (10 points) reached double figures in scoring for a team-best 11th time this season, while freshman guard Ben Perez (eight points), who has scored 32 points in the team's last four games, contributed multiple three-pointers for the fifth time this season and the third time in the last four contests.
"Zylan and I talk a lot, and neither of us feels like freshmen," Hemsley said. "That whole freshman thing doesn't affect us. Being a freshman doesn't mean you can't play with older guys. You can still dominate the game in many different ways. Being freshmen doesn't really matter to us. We just do what we have to do on the court. It's not like we're trying to be the "it" guys on the team. We're just trying to make plays to help the team win."
Plays that Fisher understands can be hasty and ill-advised. Plays that define a freshman. Plays that also give insight to a wealth of talent and a future rife with reward.
"Guys like (Cheatham and Hemsley) learn and they grow because they care," Fisher said. "Sometimes they try too hard. But things like that I know we can control. I'd rather have them play like that than have to get in someone's ear and say, ‘You have to go harder.' "
"If you're out there --- and I don't care how much is on your plate --- you have to perform," Fisher continued. "They're talented young freshmen, but they're also young freshmen who are going through these things for the first time against other talented players. It's growth and it's learning.
"We need to have the sophomores, juniors and seniors help nurture them, even if (the freshmen) are playing more minutes and taking more shots. We need to have them help (the freshmen) through some of those rough patches."
Assuming these freshmen even recognize rough patches. Kansas, which built a 16-point advantage in the first half and led 39-27 at the break, found itself on its heels after senior Winston Shepard and Cheatham each made a pair of free throws to cut it to 43-39 with 14:56 left.
SDSU had a chance to pull within a basket, but Hemsley, who has scored in double figures in four straight games, missed a layup following a steal and Shepard missed a put-back dunk off the rebound.
"We aren't scared of anyone," Hemsley said. "No one on this team was raised to ever be afraid of anyone on the basketball court. It was a confidence booster. But it comes down to making more plays."
Spoken, of course, like a true freshman.
"From every game, you've got to take something from it," said Cheatham, who sat out last season with a broken foot. "I think we're a tougher team than we think. If we put more runs together, you wonder what we might look like.
"I still think we're just scratching the surface. We saw tonight what a winning team (Kansas) can do. We also saw what we can do against a team like that. We showed a lot of bright spots. Of course, we're not happy because we lost, but at the same time you have to look at those bright spots and look at the way we cut that lead down, all of us playing together, all of us talking and playing defense. And then you ask yourself, ‘Why can't we do that for 40 minutes?' When we learn how to do that for 40 minutes we're going to be a tough team to beat. We've just got to keep developing."
A freshmen class that can score 30 of its team's 57 points against the No. 2 team in the nation would appear to be well on its way.