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Chemistry puts men’s team ‘over the top’

Nancy Morris Cook
Though talent, discipline and a lot of hard work went into making the LSUS Pilots first season successful, according to Head Coach Chad McDowell it was “chemistry that put the team over the top.”

“I could go on all day about the team chemistry these guys have,” McDowell said, “but you just have to be around them daily to know how great it is.”

Gregg Trusty/LSUS News Sophomore Rico Payne (5) takes a jump shot in the lane. Payne was the leading scorer in the GCAC (8th in the nation), was named to the All-Conference Team and was the GCAC’s Newcomer of the Year.

On paper, it didn’t seem possible for the Pilots’ first season to be successful. The NAIA Division I team had the equivalency of just more than one scholarship, not much considering that seven of the nine other teams in the conference had the maximum amount – 11 full scholarships that included tuition, fees, books, room and board.

But McDowell and the LSUS Athletic Department worked hard at recruiting and, according to McDowell, “were able to make the most of the money and got several talented kids who were just looking for a place to play and get a great education.”

No kidding.

Picked to finish 10th – last – in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference by the coaches, the Pilots finished in a tie for fourth place, just one game behind the three-way tie for first. Moreover, the Pilots beat every team in the conference at least once.

With an overall record of 21-12 and 12-6 in conference play, the Pilots far exceeded everyone’s expectations for a first-year program.

Well, everyone’s expectations except McDowell’s and his team’s.

Playing before boisterous crowds, the Pilots were 12-1 at home, losing only to conference foe Xavier University. The Pilots defeated four Top 25 teams and narrowly missed an at-large invitation to the NAIA tournament.

“We had high expectations within the team because we saw each other playing on a daily basis,” said McDowell, who was a Pilots standout in the mid-1990s. “We knew we had a chance to be pretty good.”

“Pretty good” may be the understatement of the year. Rico Payne, leading scorer in the conference and eighth leading scorer in the nation, was selected All-Conference, as well as GCAC Newcomer of the Year.
Shooting guard Derrick Rogers averaged more than 17 points a game, and, according to McDowell, “really should have received all-conference honors, as well.”

McDowell added that junior Justin Collins and freshman Freddy Hughes provided leadership from the point guard positions, while Derrick Sowell finished in the top 10 in the country in offensive rebounds. “He kept the crowd excited,” the inexorable coach commented, “as he would do some kind of incredible dunk when you least expected it.”

McDowell also praised Travis Cash, who he said, “was a leading rebounder and played great defense for us all year long, as did our two post players, Abraham Saxon and Brandon Malveaux, who played extremely strong for us down the stretch.”

The 2004-05 season, McDowell believes, can only get better. “We love our team that’s returning,” he said, “and are just trying to add some post play to help us inside. We had a terrific season and are looking forward to next year.”

(Nancy Morris Cook, a career journalist and former member of the LSUS staff, is a special assistant to Caddo Parish District Court Judge Mike Pitman.)