Fishburne postgrad basketball opens with 125-87 win over Rio Grande
A 19-4 run to close out the first half gave Fishburne separation, and the Caissons coasted from there in posting a 125-87 victory over Rio Grande in the postgraduate team’s season opener Friday night in Waynesboro, Va.
After bolting to a 30-15 lead midway through the first half, Rio Grande closed to within nine at 47-38 with three minutes left in the first half. An and-one by Stanley Christian (6’7”, 200, Norfolk, Va.) pushed the lead back to double digits, and a three from the right corner by John Whitaker (6’6”, 175, Oakton, Va.) made it 53-38.
Another Whitaker three and a conventional three-point play by University of Washington commit Devenir Duruisseau (6’9”, 240, Palmdale, Calif.) highlighted the run.
“We played well in transition. We were able to go pretty deep with a lot of our guys getting a lot of minutes. Defensively, we’ve got to do a much better job,” said first-year assistant coach Donte Hill, a 2013 graduate of Old Dominion University who started his college career at Clemson.
It’s been a big week for the Caissons with several players making their college decisions. Duruisseau committed to Washington and coach Lorenzo Romar in the Pac-12. The Huskies were 17-15 in 2013-2014, but Romar had them in the NIT semifinals in 2011-2012 and the second round of the NCAA Tournament a year earlier.
Coming down from that big personal news, Duruisseau, a tough back-to-the-basket offensive force, said it was good to get the first game of the PG season under his belt.
“We did well as a team. We just have some things to work on, and I have some things personally to work on, to get better. This is our first game, and everybody is still trying to figure out how we will work together as a unit. We’re getting there. We need to make some adjustments defensively, but we’re getting there,” Duruisseau said.
Ahmad Frost (6’1”, 180, Cincinnati, Ohio) announced this week that he is headed to Maryland-Eastern Shore. Friday night, the focus was getting up to speed on the court with his new FMS teammates.
“We came out with a lot of energy. We played fast and got some stops on the defensive end. We were able to get into a flow,” said Frost, who is looking forward to developing his point-guard play this year under Fishburne coach Ed Huckaby, a former college assistant and D1 college point guard as a player.
“I’ve learned a lot from Coach Huck. He’s taught me to be a real vocal leader and more of a true point guard,” Frost said.
– Column by Chris Graham
