Photo by: Mary Lewandowski
Roundtree's 29-Point Effort Leads CMU To Exhibition Win
10/30/2018 11:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Chippewas pick up where they left off at the line
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – New look, same ol' Shawn Roundtree Jr.
Roundtree scored 21 of his game-high 29 points in the second half on Tuesday as the Central Michigan men's basketball team posted an 89-84 exhibition victory over Davenport at McGuirk Arena.
Roundtree, a senior guard and one of three returning starters to the CMU lineup, eschewed his signature glasses in favor of contact lenses. He said it was the first time he had played a game without eyewear since the sixth grade.
Roundtree said he opted to make the change after the Chippewas' intrasquad scrimmage.
"I woke up the next morning with a scratch on my face," he said. "I was done with that. I decided to try contacts. So far it's been working for me."
Roundtree made four of his seven 3-point attempts en route to a 10-for-18 shooting night. He also had five assists.
"My teammates instill great confidence in me to continue to shoot the ball," he said. "I'm just trying to do whatever we needed to win. If that means me scoring and trying to make plays for other people that's what I'm going to do."
Roundtree's performance was something to which CMU coach Keno Davis and Chippewa fans have become accustomed to.
"He'll do what you need," Davis said. "If he needs to run the offense and go get 10, 12 assists he'll do that. If he needs to score like we needed him to score tonight, he can do that."
HOW IT HAPPENED
Not unexpectedly in a season-opening exhibition game, the Division II Panthers played inspired basketball and gave the Chippewas all they could handle.
Davenport led, 82-80, with under 4 minutes to play. The Chippewas scored seven of the game's final nine points to seize the lead and then hold the Panthers at bay.
LEADERS
Rob Montgomery, a 6-foot-6 junior transfer from Indian Hills (Iowa) Community College, added 15 points for the Chippewas, while junior forward David DiLeo finished with 14 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
Another newcomer to CMU, Dallas Morgan, made three of his seven 3-point attempts for nine points. The left-handed Morgan is a junior guard who transferred to CMU from Moberly Area (Mo.) Community College.
Dyllon Hudson-Emory led the Panthers with 26 points on 9-of-16 shooting.
NO AUSTIN, NO PROBLEM
Guard Larry Austin Jr., a graduate transfer from Vanderbilt who is expected to start alongside Roundtree in the Chippewa backcourt, did not play because of a minor injury.
"Had this been a game that counted he'd tell you he was good enough to be out on that court," Davis said. "This time of the year we'd love to have him out there. When you're dealing with injuries in the preseason you have to make sure to be cautious and don't have a setback.
"His decision not to play was supported by me, and in two to three days I expect him to be back not only on the court, but at full strength, and he changes the game."
COACH'S TAKE
Among the many positives in Davis' view was the Chippewas' offensive aggressiveness, which gave CMU ample opportunities at the free throw line. The Chippewas made 28 of their 32 free throw attempts (87.5 percent).
CMU ranked second in the nation last season when it made 80.6 percent of its charity tosses.
"I felt coming in we could be one of the top teams in getting to the free throw line," Davis said. "For statistics and analytics wise, that's one of your highest percentages, getting to the basket, getting to the free throw line. Late in games there aren't many field goals, but a lot of fouls and strong plays that win games."
GOOD COMPETITION
Davis said the Chippewas could not have asked for a better exhibition opponent than what he called a "well-coached" Davenport squad.
"You knew it was big for them to come out here, and they played extremely hard," Davis said.
Said DiLeo: "You're not looking to play your best basketball in November, you're looking to play it in March. We brought in six new guys this year, so just being able to get them out there, get the lights on, get the jerseys on, kind of get them in the flow … I think that's the main thing that these exhibition games do, get the new guys in the flow of things and just kind of get some kinks out."
FAMILIARITY
Davenport features several ties to CMU basketball. Panther assistant coach Robbie Harman was a CMU standout from 2007-10 and later served as an assistant under Davis for a time at CMU.
The Panthers also feature former Chippewa guard Janeau Joubert, a redshirt junior who scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds in Tuesday's game. Davenport guard Avery Hudson is the brother of CMU women's basketball star guard Presley Hudson. Avery Hudson started Tuesday's game and dished out a game-high eight assists in 24 minutes.
NEXT
CMU plays host to Concordia in its season-opener on Tuesday, Nov. 6 (7 p.m.) at McGuirk.
Roundtree scored 21 of his game-high 29 points in the second half on Tuesday as the Central Michigan men's basketball team posted an 89-84 exhibition victory over Davenport at McGuirk Arena.
Roundtree, a senior guard and one of three returning starters to the CMU lineup, eschewed his signature glasses in favor of contact lenses. He said it was the first time he had played a game without eyewear since the sixth grade.
Roundtree said he opted to make the change after the Chippewas' intrasquad scrimmage.
"I woke up the next morning with a scratch on my face," he said. "I was done with that. I decided to try contacts. So far it's been working for me."
Roundtree made four of his seven 3-point attempts en route to a 10-for-18 shooting night. He also had five assists.
"My teammates instill great confidence in me to continue to shoot the ball," he said. "I'm just trying to do whatever we needed to win. If that means me scoring and trying to make plays for other people that's what I'm going to do."
Roundtree's performance was something to which CMU coach Keno Davis and Chippewa fans have become accustomed to.
"He'll do what you need," Davis said. "If he needs to run the offense and go get 10, 12 assists he'll do that. If he needs to score like we needed him to score tonight, he can do that."
HOW IT HAPPENED
Not unexpectedly in a season-opening exhibition game, the Division II Panthers played inspired basketball and gave the Chippewas all they could handle.
Davenport led, 82-80, with under 4 minutes to play. The Chippewas scored seven of the game's final nine points to seize the lead and then hold the Panthers at bay.
LEADERS
Rob Montgomery, a 6-foot-6 junior transfer from Indian Hills (Iowa) Community College, added 15 points for the Chippewas, while junior forward David DiLeo finished with 14 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
Another newcomer to CMU, Dallas Morgan, made three of his seven 3-point attempts for nine points. The left-handed Morgan is a junior guard who transferred to CMU from Moberly Area (Mo.) Community College.
Dyllon Hudson-Emory led the Panthers with 26 points on 9-of-16 shooting.
NO AUSTIN, NO PROBLEM
Guard Larry Austin Jr., a graduate transfer from Vanderbilt who is expected to start alongside Roundtree in the Chippewa backcourt, did not play because of a minor injury.
"Had this been a game that counted he'd tell you he was good enough to be out on that court," Davis said. "This time of the year we'd love to have him out there. When you're dealing with injuries in the preseason you have to make sure to be cautious and don't have a setback.
"His decision not to play was supported by me, and in two to three days I expect him to be back not only on the court, but at full strength, and he changes the game."
COACH'S TAKE
Among the many positives in Davis' view was the Chippewas' offensive aggressiveness, which gave CMU ample opportunities at the free throw line. The Chippewas made 28 of their 32 free throw attempts (87.5 percent).
CMU ranked second in the nation last season when it made 80.6 percent of its charity tosses.
"I felt coming in we could be one of the top teams in getting to the free throw line," Davis said. "For statistics and analytics wise, that's one of your highest percentages, getting to the basket, getting to the free throw line. Late in games there aren't many field goals, but a lot of fouls and strong plays that win games."
GOOD COMPETITION
Davis said the Chippewas could not have asked for a better exhibition opponent than what he called a "well-coached" Davenport squad.
"You knew it was big for them to come out here, and they played extremely hard," Davis said.
Said DiLeo: "You're not looking to play your best basketball in November, you're looking to play it in March. We brought in six new guys this year, so just being able to get them out there, get the lights on, get the jerseys on, kind of get them in the flow … I think that's the main thing that these exhibition games do, get the new guys in the flow of things and just kind of get some kinks out."
FAMILIARITY
Davenport features several ties to CMU basketball. Panther assistant coach Robbie Harman was a CMU standout from 2007-10 and later served as an assistant under Davis for a time at CMU.
The Panthers also feature former Chippewa guard Janeau Joubert, a redshirt junior who scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds in Tuesday's game. Davenport guard Avery Hudson is the brother of CMU women's basketball star guard Presley Hudson. Avery Hudson started Tuesday's game and dished out a game-high eight assists in 24 minutes.
NEXT
CMU plays host to Concordia in its season-opener on Tuesday, Nov. 6 (7 p.m.) at McGuirk.
Players Mentioned
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