SportsLine.com report
March 16, 2000

Round 1: Cold-shooting Eagles buried, 74-50

The Eagles jumped to a 6-2 lead, but then it was all Oklahoma, as Winthrop's season ended in the first round of the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row -- this time a 74-50 rout in Tucson, Ariz.

Last year, Winthrop lost to Auburn in the first round, 80-41.

Against third-seeded Oklahoma, the Eagles made just 15 of 56 shots, and were never able to mount much of a charge. Greg Lewis scored 21 points and had nine rebounds for Winthrop.

"I thought our guards would match up a little better," Winthrop coach Gregg Marshall said after starting guards Tyson Waterman and Roger Toxey were a combined 1-for-16 from the floor.

"They played shirt-to-shirt, smothering defense," Marshall said. "Give Oklahoma a lot of credit."

How They Got There

Winthrop became the first team to earn the Big South Conference automatic bid two years in a row when the Eagles beat host UNC Asheville in the conference tournament final.

The Eagles started the season picked No. 2 in the preseason poll, and that's exactly where they finished, posting an 11-3 BSC mark, and earning a first-round bye in the BSC Tournament.

Gregg Marshall's team began the Big South Conference season with a road loss to conference favorite Radford. The Eagles bounced back two days later with a hard-fought road victory at Liberty. The team's other two conference losses were at UNC Asheville and Coastal Carolina.

Winthrop, which lost to Auburn 80-41 in the South Regional at Indianapolis last year, opened the conference tournament with a 90-65 win over Charleston Southern, then avenged the loss at Asheville with the 75-62 win at the Asheville Civic Center.

Starting Lineup

• PG Tyson Waterman (5-11, 185, Sr.): How Waterman goes is how Winthrop will go in the tournament. Waterman has become the premier point guard in the conference, but can still come up with big scoring games. He averaged 12.9 points and handed out 146 assists.
• SG Roger Toxey (6-3, 185, Jr.): The only statistic Toxey leads the Eagles in is floor burns. Toxey is Winthrop's defensive stopper, but can score -- 22 points against Liberty -- if needed. But according to coach Gregg Marshall, it's the little things that Toxey does that makes the Eagles soar.
• C Eyo Effiong(6-9, 245, So.): Without a doubt, Effiong was the most improved player in the Big South Conference. He averaged 8.1 points and a team-high 6.7 rebounds. He's also a clutch free-throw shooter, hitting 10 of 10 in the tournament championship victory.
• PF Juontonio Pinckney (6-6, 220, 235.): It's likely that Pinckney will be the only four-year walkon starter in the NCAA Tournament. He's a tenacious rebounder, who gives up three-to-six inches every time he takes the court.
• SF Greg Lewis (6-6, 210, Jr.): Lewis, who transferred to Winthrop from Howard, was an impact player from the first day he arrived on campus. He's one of the most athletic players in the conference and was a first-team all-Big South selection. He averaged 15.5 points and 6.6 rebounds. He scored 18 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in the win over UNC Asheville and was named the BSC Tournament's MVP.

Keys to Success

Winthrop's No. 1 key is getting good play from senior point guard Tyson Waterman. During his first two seasons in Rock Hill, S.C., Waterman was called upon to do everything.

Winthrop had no scoring threat. When Marshall took over as coach, his first priority was putting Waterman in a position where he could run the team. His individual numbers dropped, but Winthrop's wins picked up. Waterman can still score and will light a defense up from the outside.

But with junior college transfer Greg Lewis and sophomore Eyo Effiong inside, and Robbie Waldrop bombing away from the outside, Waterman runs the show and led the conference in assists.

Winthrop has lived and died with the 3-pointer this year. The inside players are solid, but not dominating.

The Eagles will more than likely be at a size disadvantage against whoever they play. Marshall prefers an inside-out game. But when the chips are down, the Eagles look to Waldrop, Waterman, Roger Toxey, Derrick Knox and Adrian Stockman to go deep.

The Coach

There were a few chuckles when Gregg Marshall took over at Winthrop and said the goal of his team starting at that moment was "To be playing in March with a chance to advance."

Few believed that the first-year coach, who was best known as a recruiter for John Kresse at College of Charleston, could lead the Eagles to the NCAA Tournament in his first year.

The energetic and demanding Marshall inherited a team that had not had a winning season since 1989-90. Winthrop had lost in the first-round of the BSC Tournament six straight years.

But with the "New Marshall in Town," Winthrop put together its first 20-game winning season since 1985-86. Marshall has now backed that up with another 20-win season and another trip to the NCAA Tournament. Marshall's success, 41-15, has made him one of the hottest young coaches in the country.

The Bench

Marshall isn't afraid to go five deep, no matter what the situation is. Robbie Waldrop, who could start on any other team in the conference, is the Eagles' 3-point specialist. Adrian Stockman is a solid answer to Waterman at point guard, while Derrick Knox and Eric Fisher bring instant energy to the team.

Offense

Winthrop likes to play an inside-out game, but more times than not ends up relying on perimeter shooting. The Eagles have a lot of scoring weapons, which makes them hard to defend. Marshall would like to see more points from the four and five positions in the tournament.

Defense

The Eagles are solid defensively. They make up for a lack of height inside with very good help defense.