ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, January 14, 1996 TAG: 9601150054
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: Jack Bogaczyk
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK
Curtis Staples admits he plays basketball with ``a shooter's conscience.''
That does not mean, however, that Virginia's sophomore shooting guard should always fire when he sees the white of the 3-point shooting arc on the floor at University Hall.
Staples did something Saturday he last accomplished 24 games ago for the Cavaliers. The Roanoke native shot 50 percent in UVa's 77-66 triumph over Duke.
At halftime, with Virginia shooting 59 percent and Duke still leading, Staples' shooting line was a modest 1-for-3. Most players averaging 12.4 points would have been troubled by that.
``Really, it was the most relaxed I've been in a game this season,'' Staples said.
The player who led the ACC with 103 3-point goals last season listened to coach Jeff Jones and his assistants before the Devils' visit.
What they told him, however, wasn't anything he wasn't already feeling or telling himself.
``The word that describes how I've been is `frustrated,''' Staples said. ``Every night we'd play, and every night I'd go back to my room down about it. I just kept telling myself, `It's gonna change ... it's gonna change.'''
It did, because Staples did. If he truly was becoming a mad bomber, mostly he was shooting himself in the foot.
``I was really up against the wall for a while, and it was starting to affect the other things I could do for this team,'' he said after his 5-for-10, 15-point day. ``I didn't force it, and my defense got better, too.
``I don't want to be one-dimensional. People know I'm a shooter, and people know I'm capable of shooting well. But I wasn't shooting well, so I had to do something else.''
Duke's defense wasn't any different from that of other ACC teams that have played the Cavaliers (7-5 overall, 2-2 conference). The Blue Devils tried to limit the penetration of Harold Deane and chased Staples.
And when Duke caught him, he often gave it up. Many times, he didn't even look at the hoop before doing so. With five minutes left, he even drove for a basket to give UVa a 63-62 lead.
Then, with 4:24 to play, his 3-pointer from the right corner gave the Cavaliers the lead for good, 66-64. Duke (9-6, 0-4) already was sinking toward the ACC cellar by then.
If the Virginia coaches were looking for reasons to stick with the struggling Staples, it wasn't the 17-for-65 marksmanship in five games since Christmas, including 11-of-48 from beyond the arc.
It was because Staples had continued - with the exception of a second-half head-hanging in Wednesday's loss at Clemson - to play aggressive defense and offer some ball-handling relief for the tireless Deane.
``I think the frequency of the shots, if the shots aren't going,'' answered Jones when asked what brought about Staples' new-found conservatism with the ball. ``Shooting 15 or 16 times probably is not advisable, after a certain length of time.
``You want him to look at the basket, but you want him doing it without necessarily seeking out offense. Curtis needs to do other things to help the team.
``I think some of those shots he has taken in some games were frustration shots, and he knew it, but sometimes that's hard. Today, Curtis controlled the urge. He was 1-for-3 at halftime, and the truth is, I didn't look at what he was. But I knew he had a good first half.''
Jones said he thought Staples forced only one shot in his 31 minutes. The last time Staples hit at least 50 percent of his shots and took as few as he did Saturday was 11 months ago on the same floor in a 5-for-9, 19-point day against the Blue Devils, also in a victory.
That sort of accuracy isn't important only to Staples. Virginia shot 50 percent (.510) for the first time this season, becoming the last ACC team to reach that figure in a game.
How significant is the number? Entering Saturday's play, ACC teams were 34-1 when they shot .500 or better, the only loss by Duke, which on a .559 day still fell at Michigan.
``I don't think the coaches mind me taking 15 shots a game, as long as I'm selective,'' Staples said. ``In the past games, if I'd shoot with two to three bad looks, then I'd be looking at a 1-for-6 or 1-for-7 half. Then, I'd start worrying.
``I have been shooting better the last couple of days in practice. I'm shooting the same I always did; my shot's been the same for years.
``You wouldn't believe the advice I've been getting from people. I know they're all trying to help, but ... I heard from someone I was double-pumping.
``Someone said, `You're not following through.' I know. I don't follow through anyway. I never have.''
With the Cavaliers facing North Carolina at home Wednesday before going to Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and Connecticut in the next two weeks, Staples' consistency on a team shy of offensive weapons is a necessity.
And it isn't so much about whether Staples has found his shot or not. It's that he isn't looking for it so often.
LENGTH: Medium: 94 linesby CNB