By Jim Henry
jhenry@joplinglobe.com
Analyzing his teammate’s game, Missouri Southern’s Chris Scruggs wishes he had Keane Thomann’s strength on the inside.
“Keane scores every time he gets it in the post,” Scruggs said. “What Keane does that I wish I could do, I wish I could get that position. He can get position real deep in the post. People will push me out. I’ll be posting up outside the paint. He can get position right in the paint.”
And, what does Scruggs do that Thomann wishes he could do?
“Jump,” Thomann replied. “And he gets so excited. Sometimes I wish I had some of that emotion.”
It’s only three games into the season, but Thomann and Scruggs have combined to give the Lions an offensive presence in the post.
Thomann, 6-foot-11, 265-pound sophomore, has averaged 8.7 points and 4.0 rebounds in 21 minutes in MSSU’s 3-0 start. He’s shooting 52 percent from the floor.
Scruggs, 6-5, 235 junior, is hitting 43 percent and averaging 6.7 points and 3.7 minutes in 17.7 minutes off the bench.
“Both of them from a skills standpoint are about the same,” Lions head coach Robert Corn said. “Both of them have back-to-the-basket moves. They can both step out and shoot the 12-15 foot jump shot a little bit. Defensively, obviously Keane’s size presents some problems as does Chris’ quickness. Chris is a better jumper and has the capability of maybe blocking a few more shots, and he can guard a little better out on the floor. Keane, with his size, can defend the post a little bit better.
“They’ve both improved from where they were last year, and I think they have room to continue to get better and better. Coach (Patrick) Johnson works with them each and every day.”
Sickness and injury limited Scruggs to 12 games his freshman season. Last year he started 29 games and averaged 3.1 points and 2.7 rebounds in 13.6 minutes. Thomann contributed 3.1 points and 1.9 rebounds in 11.6 minutes last season as a true freshman.
“I think I’m trying to be more aggressive around the basket ... not kick the ball out as much, knowing that I can score,” Thomann said. “I’m playing with more confidence. Last year I tried to focus on defense because I wasn’t quite as confident in my offense, but this year I think it’s going to be pretty good as well.
“I like playing with Chris and Rich (Borries, 6-7, 245 junior who’s plays both center and forward). Having three bigs in there, we can mix it up a lot. Chris is strong. He’s just really aggressive, and he loves the game. I know he loves playing every day.”
Scruggs can’t deny he’s having the time of his life, flashing his infectious smile as a testimony.
“I’m having a great time,” he said. “This is the best time of my life. I wouldn’t rather be anywhere else.
“I’m a lot more confident just because this is my third year of knowing the offense. I’m used to what the coaches want. I understand what they need ... now I’m on the same page with the coaches.
“Keane and I help each other out in practice a lot. It just shows up in a game.”
“Pretty much every year since I’ve been here, we’ve had someone on the inside get us some production,” Corn said. “What that does is it opens things up on the perimeter so much more. If that post guy commands a double team, then you’re going to get a lot better looks on the perimeter.”
