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Pacers win exhibition hoops opener over Southern Wesleyan University
11/5/2009 11:27 PM   0 comments on this story E-mail this story to a friend

The USC Aiken men's basketball team opened its exhibition season Thursday night with a 92-58 win to Southern Wesleyan. It was the first live action of the season for the Pacers, and head coach Vince Alexander left the convocation center pleased with his team's performance.
"We were very good up-tempo. We were good applying pressure and shooting," Alexander said of his team, which shot 42 percent from the field, including an impressive 17-of-31 from 3-point range. "We've got outstanding guards, and we're going to build on them."
This is a new-look Pacers squad, following the departure of several players off last year's team - including two-time Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year Chris Commons. Casey McMasters is one of the few returning players who's seen significant action. The senior forward had a good shooting performance for a game in just the first half against Southern Wesleyan, connecting on seven-of-eight shots and six 3-pointers. McMasters only took one shot in the second half, but he still finished with a game-high 25 points.
"I got some open looks. We had good screens and good passes," McMasters said. "Coach said I need to step up this season."
Alexander recalled his pep talk with McMasters saying, "We've been talking about it since last summer. He's been playing a role; that's over. It's time to step up. He's our most consistent player, and he did a good job knocking shots down tonight."
It was a good showing for the Pacers on offense. They displayed good ball movement and created a lot of open shots. One of the new additions who made an immediate impact was Re'mon Nelson. The freshman guard from Canal Winchester, Ohio came off the bench and nearly had a triple-double in his first game - albeit an exhibition - in a USCA uniform. Nelson finished with 14 points, nine assists and seven rebounds while playing a team-high 27 minutes.
"Our freshmen don't care," Alexander said. "They just come out and play."
Senior guard Mark Brown - who converted a four-point play - was the only other Pacer to score in double figures, finishing with 10 points. USCA junior Rashad Flowers led all players with 16 rebounds on a night when 12 different Pacers saw action.
"We will go deep on our bench and will play 12 guys," said Alexander.
Nathan Wilson led Southern Wesleyan with 15 points.
The only negative to come out of the physical, fast-paced and sometimes sloppy game was USCA's interior defense. Applying a variety of looks, including a full-court press on all inbound plays, the Pacers were burnt on more than one occasion when their big men failed to get down the floor in time.
"We need to get confidence from our big guys," Alexander said. "We're going to add to our outside game, and our inside game will improve. ... We're working the rust out."
The Pacers will play another exhibition at 5 p.m. on Saturday against the College of Charleston at Carolina First Arena.
USCA's regular season opener will be at home against NAIA power Life University at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 18.
Contact Noah Feit at nfeit@aikenstandard.com.


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