Lamar giving its fans reason to smile ... for now

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Lamar giving its fans reason to smile ... for now

Steve Roccaforte needs glasses to see what's happening on the court, and he needs a ladder to look most of his players in the eye.

In fact, to Roccaforte's chagrin, some of his student managers might have a longer wingspan than he does.

So yes, Roccaforte might, indeed, have a rip-roaring Little Man Complex.

It's the trait that compels him to lose his voice, fidget with displeasure and pump his fists with joy as his Cardinals execute a play to Roccaforte's satisfaction.

In other words, the first-year coach is nothing, if not emotional.

Yet, on Dec. 6, when Lamar dropped its third straight road game at Rice - a game that had to make even die-hard fans wonder if this season was already lost - Roccaforte hardly looked someone at the end of his rope.

"Did the Astros sign anybody today?" he asked with a grin, just moments after LU dropped an 83-71 decision to the Owls.

"I'd feel better if they didn't re-sign Andy Pettitte."

(At least that call went his way.)

A week later, the Cardinals produced their signature victory, outlasting Brigham Young 86-77 in overtime at the Montagne Center, providing what may be a turning point in this young basketball season. But that night, amid all the happy faces, Roccaforte didn't open his postgame statement with glowing comments.

Instead, baseball was on the man's 41-year-old brain.

"I thought that was a bad trade," Roccaforte said, referring to the Houston Astros' deal with the Colorado Rockies earlier that day. "I like Willy Taveras; he's young and he has a lot of speed."

It seems that Roccaforte, the Port Arthur native who played baseball and basketball at Thomas Jefferson, takes pride in being a lifelong Astros fan.

He all but bragged about his time as an assistant coach at Tulane, when he snaked his way out of New Orleans to catch a game in the Astrodome. Roccaforte swears he never gave up on that team, which spent decades getting it all wrong before it reached the World Series last year.

Perhaps that was why Roccaforte asked the Cardinals' faithful for just a little more patience with this team. Or perhaps Roccaforte was simply buying time.

During the first month of the season, he needed it.

"I hope our (Lamar) fans are good fans," Roccaforte said last week. "See, I'm a good fan. I'm an Astro. I've been a 'Lastro,' a 'Disastro' ... I've been through it all. I'm a fan. So I hope our fans are fans, and they just care about the team."

Rest assured, if the Cardinals keep doing what they've done lately - in other words, if they play with passion and win - Roccaforte won't have to worry much about attendance.

The large, red gaps in the Montagne Center will soon fill up, and by the time Lamar opens its Southland Conference schedule Jan. 6, fans will be there.

In fact, if the Cardinals can stay in the rhythm they've found over the last two weeks, they might resemble a few of the Astros teams from recent memory - those 2004 and 2005 teams, who famously staggered out of the gate, only to rebound with strong runs into the postseason.

That's a far cry from where Lamar started in early November, when the Cards - sporting five junior-college transfers and a true freshman - looked inconsistent at best.

There were some games when they played like seasoned veterans who'd been together for years. There were other games when, suffice it to say, they didn't.

Something has changed over the last three games, and it's a change Roccaforte has been looking for since Day 1: defense.

A few examples:

During that three-game losing streak on the road, Lamar was out-rebounded in all three games by Tulsa, Oral Roberts and Rice. In the three games since then, the Cardinals have owned a 125-109 advantage on the glass and over that same span, each of their opponents has shot 40 percent from the floor.

James Davis, the meaty 7-foot-1 center, had nine blocked shots in the Cardinals' first 11 games. In last Wednesday's 74-53 win against Northern Illinois, Davis had four blocked shots.

Through the first nine games of the season, the Cardinals gave up an average of 77 points. Over their last three games, they have given up an average of 66.3 points.

Think about that. Lamar's last three opponents scored almost 11 fewer points per game than its first nine opponents.

No one on the LU roster is listed as an accounting major, but don't worry: The players all understand that if their opponents score fewer points, the Cardinals' chances of winning increase dramatically.

Perhaps it's no surprise, then, that Lamar won two of those games and narrowly lost the other (the Cardinals blew a second-half lead and fell at Wyoming, 69-64).

So what does all this mean? Does it mean, then, that the worst is behind them? Does it mean that Lamar has turned the corner in Roccaforte's first year and - shhh - is on the verge of something special?

Maybe.

Lest anyone forget, the Cardinals face No. 22 Memphis at 7 p.m. Thursday, a game that's more likely to be ugly than entertaining.

Then there's the Southland Conference race.

Sam Houston State still has Ryan Bright and Jejuan Plair, a pair of all-conference candidates, and the Bearkats lost by a mere 14 points at UCLA.

Southeastern Louisiana, for its part, has a pair of quality road wins at Penn State and Oregon State. And by the way, Northwestern State is still in the conference. All it did last season was advance to the NCAA Tournament's round of 32 - becoming the first SLC team to do so in 21 years.

So for now, Lamar fans might be better off to wait and see.

The Cardinals may have indeed turned the corner.

But as any Astros fan might tell you, it's wise not to get your hopes up too quickly.

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