Flames showing improvement on the road

One of the reasons why Liberty struggled to a 7-9 finish in Conference USA play last year is because of the team’s struggles on the road. The Flames were 1-7 away from home in conference games before bowing out in the CUSA Quarterfinals against UTEP on a neutral floor. So far this year it has been a different story for the Flames. Liberty is currently 2-1 in road contests in conference play and 4-1 on the season in road games and 8-2 when factoring in neutral site games.

“I think this group has a belief,” head coach Ritchie McKay said when asked about the road turnaround. “I think some of the guys that went before them had the same belief. Last year we just struggled. We had to play near perfect to win, especially on the road. I don’t think that’s the case this year. If there’s anything that we’ve been disappointed in, it’s been not taking care of home court. The only way to recover from that is to go win on the road. I think our guys are up for the challenge. This is a tough league to win on the road. I think there’s a couple of contributors. Colin Porter is a terrific point guard and we’ve got an older group that’s got some maturity about them. They don’t stay in the muck, if you will. I think they have the ability to flush some of the mistakes and some of what causes your opponents’ runs and get to the other side of it quicker.”

Liberty is in the midst of a three-game road swing, its longest of the season. Coming off the win at FIU, the Flames are looking to continue to play well this week at Kennesaw State and Jacksonville State. It will be a challenge as those two are currently among the group of six teams tied at 5-2 or 4-3 in conference play. The Owls and Gamecocks are also a combined 16-0 on their home floors this season.

“This is why at this league is about,” said McKay. “If you’re gonna have a chance to advance to postseason in this league, you’re going to have to go through the hard. On this road trip, we are going to face some pretty confident groups of people.”

Balance of CUSA

Entering this weekend’s slate of games, CUSA currently has 8 teams within two games of first place. Middle Tennessee, Jacksonville State, and UTEP are all tied for first at 5-2 with Liberty, New Mexico State, and Kennesaw State all tied at 4-3. Louisiana Tech is 4-4 and Western Kentucky is 3-4. The league is currently one of only two conferences in the country that currently has at least eight teams within two games of first place joining the Sun Belt. The SEC has nine teams within 2.5 games of first.

So far this year it seems like just about any team can win on any given night in conference play.Teams have proven they can win on the road. It makes for a very challenging and competitive conference race where it looks like several teams will be in the hunt for the regular season title deep into conference play.

“It is really, really competitive,” McKay said of CUSA. “In leagues that anyone can beat anyone, that’s your lot. You’ve got to be able to go to the next one without being indicted by the outcome of the former. I also think if you are victorious, you can’t think you’ve arrived. There’s got to be an intentionality to be like, ‘Ok, what’s next?’ I heard Pat Kelsey say, ‘The most important day in the history of our program is today.’ I think there’s a lot of wisdom in that. There’s not much you can do about the past. It’s Biblical. We’ve got to gather our manna for the day.”

Zander Yates role increasing

In the last two games, both wins for the Flames, Zander Yates has played double digit minutes as he is seeing his role increase. Liberty has been desperate for another body, particularly at forward, since the injury of Isaiah Ihnen. Yates is stepping into that role recently. It began in the win against New Mexico State. Yates played 11 minutes and knocked down two three-pointers while being a physical presence in the paint on the defensive end. He carried that over into Saturday’s win at FIU, playing 10 minutes while knocking down another three pointer. His presence gives McKay another option off the bench and can help the load carried by Owen Aquino and Zach Cleveland.

“Zander and I, we went t though some frustrations with each other that he navigated terrifically well,” said McKay. “He embraced what I was asking of him. Because of that, he’s being entrusted with more opportunity. I’m really pleased with what he’s done. He and Gabriel (McKay) have morphed into these roles where, ‘Hey, we’re going to star in t hese if that’s what the team needs. Whether you need us for 10 seconds or 10 minutes, we’re going to serve in that capacity.'”

Maughmer struggling with his shot

Liberty guard Jayvon Maughmer has struggled with his three-point shot in recent games. Over the past four games, Maughmer is just 1 of 10 from three. His scoring is down to just 5.6 points per game in the last three. This comes on the heels of four straight games where he scored in double figures to open conference play. The 6’6″ transfer from Cedarville has seen his three-point shooting dip to 30.2% on the season.

“Offense comes and goes,” McKay said of Maughmer’s struggles. “You just have those nights, even Darius McGhee had a night or two. He will get out of it. He’s really good. The great thing about him is he won’t let missed shots or whatever shooting percentage affect what he does on the other end or the little things he can do when he’s having an off night. He has this ability to compartmentalize bad shooting nights and not let it affect who he is as a person or player, that’s called maturity. He’s trusted by the staff, his teammates. He and Taelon (Peter) have been instrumental in the season that we’re having.”