Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, November 28, 1993 TAG: 9311280139
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Moments before Virginia's first exhibition basketball game, Yuri Barnes turned to coach Jeff Jones and indicated he did not want to be introduced as a center.
Sorry about that.
Barnes may consider himself a forward and, at 6 feet 8 and 231 pounds, he fits the description. Terminology won't make a difference, however, when he's asked to contain North Carolina's 7-foot, 275-pound Eric Montross and the other behemoths in the ACC.
"In some leagues, the center position is not that big a deal," Jones said, "[but] when you look at the teams we have to go through to be successful . . . three of the top six or seven centers in the country are in our league."
Ted Jeffries, Virginia's center for the past four years, is the only player who does not return from a lineup that started all 31 games for the Cavaliers (21-10) last season. UVa entertained six prospects who were 6-9 or taller last season, but had only three guards to show for its recruiting efforts.
"When Ted Jeffries first came to the university, not many would have predicted we'd be so concerned about his departure," Jones said. "We may make the decision to play with just forwards, but it is not a lineup without strengths."
Barnes averaged more points and rebounds per 40 minutes played than Jeffries. However, Jeffries was a punishing post defender who fouled out of only seven games in his 129-game college career.
Barnes has committed fouls at a rate of more than 5.5 for every 40 minutes, which could pose a problem, considering UVa's lack of frontcourt depth, but he thinks the statistics may be deceiving.
"Last year was a totally different situation," said Barnes, who did not play more than 20 minutes in the last 16 games. "I felt like I could foul whenever I wanted to. Fouling out was the last thing on my mind."
Most of Barnes' playing time came in relief of power forward Junior Burrough, but, in one of his most memorable performances, he shut down 6-10, 260-pound Sharone Wright for an extended period in UVa's 83-78 victory at Clemson.
"I've definitely got to keep them away from the basket," Barnes said. "If they get two feet away from the basket, there's not much I can do about it. They're not great jump-shooters, especially Montross."
Barnes recently did three repetitions of 275 pounds in the bench press and has been described by Jones as the best athlete on the team.
"We're not asking Yuri to play like a big guy," Jones said. "One of the big things I see is his ability to get up and down the floor. He and Junior should be able to beat opposing big men down the floor and that will be a big plus."
Jones said he likes Barnes' "stroke" but would like for him to speed up the release of his shot.
"Points, or wanting to score points, is not a priority with Yuri," Jones said. "He's a hungry offensive player and seems to fall into points. The problem with Yuri is keeping his concentration - the mental part."
Barnes had almost as many offensive rebounds (53) as Jeffries (61) last season. However, Jeffries was by far the team's best defensive rebounder.
"On offense I'm more mobile than most big men," Barnes said. "Defensive rebounding is tougher because I've got to find my man, box him out and then find the ball. The bigger guys know where I am and can push me around easier."
Jones said he isn't sure the Cavaliers are poor defensive rebounders so much as they are good offensive rebounders.
"If you took Yuri, Junior, Cornel [Parker] and Jason [Williford] and rated all their skills, I think offensive rebounding would be in the top three for all of them," Jones said. "We're probably the best offensive rebounding team in the league."
In a 76-75 victory over the Australian National Team on Monday, Parker and fellow guard Cory Alexander each had five defensive rebounds to lead the team. Burrough and Barnes were limited to Barnes 28 and 25 minutes, respectively, because each had four fouls.
Backup big men Shawn Wilson and Chris Alexander did not distinguish themselves, one reason that Jones said he would install a zone defense before the Cavaliers' opener Monday night against Connecticut in Charlottesville.
UVa, knocked for its early schedule last season, plays host to last year's postseason National Invitation Tournament champion Minnesota in late December and has trips to Nevada-Las Vegas, Old Dominion and Stanford before starting its ACC schedule.
"I felt the criticism last year was undeserved," Jones said. "This year I don't think anybody will be complaining about our schedule."
The Cavaliers, unranked at this time a year ago, got as far as the final 16 in the NCAA Tournament before losing to Cincinnati 71-54 in a game that was even with 10 minutes remaining. This season, Virginia was No. 16 in the preseason poll.
The only losses were Jeffries and sixth man Doug Smith, who made 43 3-pointers in 1992-93. Freshman guard Harold Deane Jr. from Matoaca and Fork Union Military Academy is the player most likely to fill that role.
In some respects it is a young team, with four junior starters and Parker, a senior who had more than 200 rebounds and almost 100 assists last season. Alexander emerged as a scorer (18.8 points) last season, and Jones said he thinks Burrough (14.3) can make similar progress.
"With the number of shots he gets and the type of shots, it would certainly help if Junior could shoot a higher percentage [than 43.8] from the field," Jones said.
Although the players have set a goal of reaching the Final Four, Jones can see the fine line his team walks.
"Our size puts us in a hole," he said, "but there are other teams in the same boat. We aren't on the same level - and I don't mean to draw a parallel with an NBA team - but the Chicago Bulls won a world championship without a distinguished center."
by CNB