Time was running out on his senior season when Eric Evans found himself on the bench with a frequency he had never known at Duquesne.
The Dukes had lost three games in a row, and Evans was in a slump. and there was no sugar-coated way to put it.
He was missing shots, at worst going 1 for 14 over a stretch, and coach Ron Everhart was limiting his minutes.
"I think he knows what message I was trying to send to him when I was taking him out of games early," Everhart said.
He needs Evans.
He needs his senior class of two -- Evans and B.J. Monteiro -- to be among his best players on the court. That includes today when the Dukes play host to Saint Louis at noon to close the regular season. Duquesne can finish as the No. 8 or No. 9 seed for the Atlantic 10 playoffs next week, depending on the outcome of multiple games.
He has needed it all season.
Last Saturday night, after a long bus ride home from George Washington -- and a third consecutive loss -- Everhart met with the pair in his office along with Sean Johnson.
In the quiet building, they hashed out some things.
"One of the things we talked about is how dependent I am as a coach on these two guys as seniors to give us great effort every night. And we really are," said Everhart. "Quite frankly, you go back and look at our season, when these guys have played well we've played well. It's just the way it is.
"It was almost like we were playing with the weight of the world on our shoulders. I told them let's just go out and relax and play basketball.
"You make a mistake the heck with it. Fight through it, get it back the next possession. Just don't make it a selfish one. Make it a team mistake. I thought that changed our attitude."
A win at Charlotte followed Wednesday as Monteiro and Evans led the way with 21 and 17 points. Johnson added 14.
Evans opened with a 3-pointer, and his confidence was back.
"He didn't exactly tell me. I saw it coming. I was in a slump. Everybody was making shots, I'm not going to be selfish. My teammates were making shots," said Evans. "I was in the gym working on my 3-point shot a lot. I think I made my first 3-pointer at Charlotte, and that gave me some confidence back."
The meeting was an important one, said Monteiro, for everyone to be heard and understood a little better.
"Ultimately, I think coach got to see where our head was. I just basically told him I don't care what happens, I just want to win. If I don't play well, take me out," said Monteiro. "Those guys felt the same way. We just want to win."
Monteiro and Evans, once part of freshman class of eight, are the last two standing from that class.
They've been a part of a slow and steady turnaround at Duquesne, where winning seasons have punctuated four of the past five years.
"A lot of times, people think the grass is greener somewhere else," said Monteiro. "We just focused in and toughed it out. It just kind of happened for us. We went with the flow, and things turned out good for us."
Both players joined the1,000-point club this season, and Evans surpassed 300 assists while picking up five at Charlotte. He is the 10th Duquesne player to have 1,000 points and 300 assists, with his current totals at1,028 and 304.
"I feel real good going into my last game here. I'm going to miss this place a lot," said Evans, with a smile.
--post-gazette.com
The Dukes had lost three games in a row, and Evans was in a slump. and there was no sugar-coated way to put it.
He was missing shots, at worst going 1 for 14 over a stretch, and coach Ron Everhart was limiting his minutes.
"I think he knows what message I was trying to send to him when I was taking him out of games early," Everhart said.
He needs Evans.
He needs his senior class of two -- Evans and B.J. Monteiro -- to be among his best players on the court. That includes today when the Dukes play host to Saint Louis at noon to close the regular season. Duquesne can finish as the No. 8 or No. 9 seed for the Atlantic 10 playoffs next week, depending on the outcome of multiple games.
He has needed it all season.
Last Saturday night, after a long bus ride home from George Washington -- and a third consecutive loss -- Everhart met with the pair in his office along with Sean Johnson.
In the quiet building, they hashed out some things.
"One of the things we talked about is how dependent I am as a coach on these two guys as seniors to give us great effort every night. And we really are," said Everhart. "Quite frankly, you go back and look at our season, when these guys have played well we've played well. It's just the way it is.
"It was almost like we were playing with the weight of the world on our shoulders. I told them let's just go out and relax and play basketball.
"You make a mistake the heck with it. Fight through it, get it back the next possession. Just don't make it a selfish one. Make it a team mistake. I thought that changed our attitude."
A win at Charlotte followed Wednesday as Monteiro and Evans led the way with 21 and 17 points. Johnson added 14.
Evans opened with a 3-pointer, and his confidence was back.
"He didn't exactly tell me. I saw it coming. I was in a slump. Everybody was making shots, I'm not going to be selfish. My teammates were making shots," said Evans. "I was in the gym working on my 3-point shot a lot. I think I made my first 3-pointer at Charlotte, and that gave me some confidence back."
The meeting was an important one, said Monteiro, for everyone to be heard and understood a little better.
"Ultimately, I think coach got to see where our head was. I just basically told him I don't care what happens, I just want to win. If I don't play well, take me out," said Monteiro. "Those guys felt the same way. We just want to win."
Monteiro and Evans, once part of freshman class of eight, are the last two standing from that class.
They've been a part of a slow and steady turnaround at Duquesne, where winning seasons have punctuated four of the past five years.
"A lot of times, people think the grass is greener somewhere else," said Monteiro. "We just focused in and toughed it out. It just kind of happened for us. We went with the flow, and things turned out good for us."
Both players joined the1,000-point club this season, and Evans surpassed 300 assists while picking up five at Charlotte. He is the 10th Duquesne player to have 1,000 points and 300 assists, with his current totals at1,028 and 304.
"I feel real good going into my last game here. I'm going to miss this place a lot," said Evans, with a smile.
--post-gazette.com
