Wright State dilemma: Coddle fatigue or challenge the fight

Wright State finds itself in the middle of a tough stretch, which in turns leaves coach Scott Nagy with a tough decision.

Saturday’s 74-68 double-overtime win at Cleveland State had Nagy second guessing the practice plan he’s been using with the regular season grinding to its conclusion.

“We were so soft in the first half offensively that it leaked into everything, our free throws and loose balls, and I blame myself,” Nagy said. “In terms of practices, I’m trying to keep them fresh. But clearly we haven’t gone hard enough. So there’s some things that I’ve got to get turned around.”

The Raiders were well aware of what awaited them at Cleveland State. The Vikings are arguably the most physical team in the Horizon League and have been for much of Gary Waters’ 11 seasons.

But WSU did not respond to the physical challenge it faced in the first half, falling behind by as many as 12 while getting out-rebounded 20-12.

“They beat us up, and we were just weak,” Nagy said. “We were as soft as could be. Everything about us was soft. We were getting killed on the glass at halftime.”

WSU responded in the second half to force overtime, and the Raiders took control of the game early in the second overtime to escape with a win.

But while that game is behind them, the toughness piece is creates a dilemma for Nagy.

That’s because WSU will play its third game in six days Tuesday night at Northern Kentucky, so the natural tendency would be to keep things on the lighter side in practice. But it was just two weeks ago when NKU came to the Nutter Center and beat WSU in a physical fashion similar to what CSU threw at the Raiders on Sunday.

Following that 83-79 setback against the Norse – the team’s only loss in their last six games – the Raiders were critical of their effort and physicality.

“They out-toughed us,” junior guard Justin Mitchell said after the Feb. 4 loss. “That’s all it was. They beat us on the boards, and that just showed they wanted it more than us.”

There should be plenty of want-to from both teams Tuesday night.

The WSU win coupled with an NKU loss at Youngstown State moved the Raiders into third place, one game ahead of the Norse.

Whichever team loses likely will be out of the running for one of the coveted top two seeds at next month’s HL tournament in Detroit.

The Raiders are tied with Green Bay for third place, one game back of second-place Oakland and two behind first-place Valparaiso. WSU will play host to the Crusaders on Friday before wrapping the regular season Sunday at home against Illinois-Chicago.

About the Author