Environmental expert named senior planner
January 16, 2012
Richard N. Bollinger
January 19, 2012
Long after the bedtime of most high school students, Vandebilt Catholic junior guard Elijah McGuire sat in his room last Tuesday in deep thought.
“I couldn’t sleep,” McGuire said.
What was on the Terrier guard’s mind wasn’t school work, girls, nor family n the typical teenage drama. It was instead basketball, specifically what had taken place a couple hours before at South Terrebonne.
The Terriers opened district competition on this particular night with a road tilt against South Terrebonne.
Instead of playing with opening game fire, Vandebilt stumbled and sometimes looked disinterested, escaping with just a one-point win.
McGuire had opportunities in the game, but something just didn’t feel right. He just couldn’t pull the trigger like he did last year when he was a First-Team All-District performer, averaging 19.9 points per game.
This was becoming a pattern for McGuire n a trend he said he, his teammates and his coaches all noticed.
“We can see it,” Vandebilt Catholic coach Hank Washington said. “He doesn’t take the same shots anymore. He’s not as aggressive. He doesn’t trust his game the same way he used to.”
No more. McGuire said he’s had enough of being timid. On this night, he decided it was time to return to his old ways on the floor.
That’s exactly what McGuire plans to do the remainder of the season.
That’s music to everyone at Vandebilt’s ears who realize they become a much different team when their guard is firing on all cylinders.
“I came to a point where I told myself, ‘I need to get back to my old self,’” McGuire said. “Me scoring a lot, that’s exactly what coach told me n if I don’t look to score and shoot the ball like I did last year, then we probably won’t win many games. So I just reached that point [last Tuesday] where I decided that I’m going back to the old me.”
“Oh yeah, we need that,” Washington agreed, adding McGuire told the coach of his intentions to rev up his play. “The old Elijah being back n that makes us a different team.”
The reason for McGuire’s hesitation is understandable n injury.
Also a football standout, McGuire’s pigskin season was cut short thanks to both thumb and toe injuries.
Those ailments forced McGuire to miss nearly the entire football season and also the first few weeks of the basketball schedule n a more than two month layoff.
McGuire was cleared to resume exercising in November and cleared to compete Nov. 30.
He played that very day, returning in Vandebilt’s 15-point win against West St. John.
McGuire expected everything to be back to status quo immediately after he got back on the floor.
He had another thing coming n he struggled n a grind that continued for the opening few weeks of his season.
“I thought I was going to just come back during the season normal,” McGuire admits. “Without being tired and everything. I wouldn’t have any rust.
“But all of that changed. It took me a while n a lot longer than I thought it would.”
Washington knew that was coming all along, saying he told McGuire to be patient both on and off the floor as he attempted to return to form.
“His conditioning was where I expected it to be n not good,” Washington said. “But right now, it’s getting there. He’s getting in better shape n in basketball shape.”
In recent weeks, McGuire has also noticed that change, saying the rust is starting to shake away.
That’s why he’s comfortable saying the old Eli is about to return now that he’s got his mind focused on being more aggressive.
“It’s coming,” McGuire said. “It’s almost there.”
“He’s moving better,” Washington admitted. “He’s still not shooting the jump shot like he used to, but he’s moving better. His defense is better. Those are all good signs.”
The biggest reason the Terriers need their junior guard to return to form is simple n depth.
Senior forward Beau Smith is already out for the season for Vandebilt with a knee injury. Senior guard/forward Seth Ward hasn’t been 100 percent due to an ankle injury and junior guard Lionheart Leslie also has been bogged down with nicks and bruises he’s accumulated during the season.
“It almost resembles our football season,” Ward said. “We started off the year with a lot of people injured n a lot of people bruised up. We haven’t had a lot of people at full strength around here all season in any sport.”
Leslie has carried most of the scoring load while the team’s wounds are being licked, regularly scoring 20-plus and sometimes even 30-plus points for Vandebilt.
The Terriers’ opponents have made a habit of clogging the lane to control Leslie’s penetration, which has forced the team’s best shooter, Ward, and also younger players like guards Tanner Whatley and Joseph Cantrelle to step up and make shots.
Sometimes they do and Vandebilt succeeds.
Other times they don’t, like the South Terrebonne game, and it’s a bit more of a grind.
Having McGuire as a true second option would flip the script and take pressure off everyone.
“Eli getting back to that form would take a lot of pressure off Lionheart,” Washington said. “He wouldn’t have to score 35 anymore. Certainly, I wouldn’t mind if he still did, but we need Elijah to get at least 20.
“We need Lionheart to get 25 and Elijah to get 20. That’s sort of the formula we need to be successful.”
Whether Washington gets his wish, that remains to be seen.
But if it does, circle the date Jan. 10.
That’ll be the night it all changed for McGuire.
The night he decided it was time to get back to his old ways n the night he decided it was time to play the way he is used to playing.
“I’m ready to be me,” McGuire said. “I’m ready to do the things I know how to do. I’m going to penetrate, [Leslie’s] going to penetrate and we’re going to put pressure on everyone else like we’re used to doing.
“When we all get to that point where we do what coach tells us and we do what we’re supposed to do and we play the way that we say we’re going to play, but never do …, we’re going to be something special. There will be a point where we’ll all decide to turn this volume up. But it’s time to not talk about it n let’s do it. I’m ready. I’m back. The old Elijah is back.”
