By Mark Simon
D3hoops.com

It’s not about the wins and losses yet, at Ursinus, and it’s nice to be able to say that when you’re 20-2, 15-0 in Centennial Conference play, and ranked 19th in the D3hoops.com Top 25.

Nick Shattuck and Ursinus are rolling. Ursinus photo by Drew Hallowell

“What’s important to us is to get better,” said assistant coach Brian McEvily, filling in on a conversation earlier this week, while head coach Kevin Small battled the flu. “We want to be peaking at the end of the season.”

Last season, the Bears didn’t peak at this time. They valleyed. Ursinus was 16-6 a year ago this week, but then dropped four consecutive games to close the season, all by single digits, including a loss to Haverford in the league semifinals. This season’s team, one that switched its starting lineup to include four guards instead of three, has put itself into pretty good position with the way it has played so far.

“We never, in a million years thought we’d be where we would be today,” said assistant coach, Brian McEvily, filling in while head coach Kevin Small battled a nasty flu.

In a year in which the Mid-Atlantic region doesn’t have a lot of standout teams, Ursinus has one, and has a standout player as well, 6-5 senior guard Nick Shattuck, who has followed up winning player of the year honors last season by averaging better than 22 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, shooting 55 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range.

“We tried to find a way to rebuild our team around Nick,” McEvily said “The way that the season ended last year, losing our last three games and than losing in the conference semis, there was a sour taste, especially for Nick. He knew this was his team and he’s been a great leader.”

Shattuck follows a pretty good line of players who have preceded him, including assistant coach Dennis Stanton, whom we’ve previously profiled here. What sets Shattuck apart is his unselfish play. McEvily noted there are times they’re surprised when they see he put up 20-plus points in the box score, because he gets it done with efficiency.

“Nick gives us the flexibility to play four guards, but still guard a two-forward set,” said McEvily, a former Shattuck teammate for two seasons as well. “He’s at his best offensively when he allows the game to come to him. His wingspan and length allow him to cover posts that outweigh him and are taller than him. At the same time, it allows him to take advantage of his quickness on the offensive end.”

Ursinus has the luxury of being able to play four guards because it starts a 6-11 center, Michael Shema, from Switzerland, who alters his share of shots just by his presence, which may explain why opponents are shooting under 40 percent from the field and 30 percent from 3-point range. “He’s played beyond our expectations,” McEvily said.

The three other guards in the lineup are point guard Remy Cousart, sharpshooting Matt Hilton, a transfer from James Madison, and John Noonan, the latter two of whom have aided this team’s cause significantly with their shooting.

“Without (Matt and John), this whole season would be completely different,” Shattuck said. “They take a lot of the pressure off me and allow me to get better looks.”

Ursinus’ season turned when it went to Florida for winter break and came back with two wins, including one over Middlebury. The Bears then returned home to get a non-league win over Trinity, giving them two good measuring-stick victories against some of the top teams in the NESCAC. They haven’t lost since.

“We had a couple of really good defensive games in Florida and felt that if we could play at that level, we could play at a very high level this year,” Shattuck said. “Once we came home and beat Trinity, I think our guys started believing we had a good team.”

So with the improvement being on just getting better, what is Ursinus focusing on heading into the stretch run. “Just a few kinks in the chain,” said Shattuck, noting the team’s continuous focus on defense. There’s no concern that last year’s struggles will surface again.

“Those (games at the end) were games we should have won,” Shattuck said. “Guys got complacent when it was a given that we weren’t going to be the league’s No. 1 seed and we eased off too much. That’s not at all (a worry). These guys are focused.”

WORTH WATCHING: No bad weekends from here on out, as we get closer to Selection Sunday.

Saturday
Men
No. 6 Rochester at No. 10 Brandeis: The last time these teams met, it started a three-game losing streak for the Judges, including two games at home. While it seems Brandeis may have righted the ship, their last four wins come at the expense of the bottom two teams in the UAA. Remember that last time, however, Terrell Hollins and Stephen Hill each missed extended periods with early foul trouble and combined for just 11 points. Brandeis collapsed on big men Jon Onyiriuka and Uche Ndubizu, but Onyiruka in particular made them pay by dishing out five assists. At the time it seemed like Brandeis could turn around its narrow margin of defeat when it got Rochester at home.

Women's
Bowdoin at No. 21 Tufts: Big day for the Jumbos and the NESCAC because there are all sorts of scenarios that could shake out regarding playoff positioning, in a league in which five teams are competing for the top spot. Tufts hasn’t beaten Bowdoin in more than a decade and needs to shake off the struggles it had in a surprising loss to Williams. The matchup figures to be one in which Tufts has the edge in terms of height and shooting ability, but Bowdoin is the better ballhandling team. A win for Tufts would be a school-record 20th. A win for Bowdoin would put them in position to clinch the NESCAC’s top spot with a win at Bates on Saturday.

Saturday
Men's
No. 2 UW-Whitewater at No. 9 UW-Stevens Point: If you live anywhere near UW-Stevens Point, this is a game to be at, and we imagine it will be a tough ticket, even in a 2,800-seat gym. Two great shooting teams (both of whom hit better than 50 percent from the field) go head-to-head in a much-anticipated matchup that has been looming for more than two months. The teams last met in December, and one player key to UW-Whitewater’s 83-77 probably won’t be playing. The Warhawks will need to play big inside without Rob Perry (broken foot), who scored 23 points in that victory.

No. 21 Puget Sound at Whitworth: The NWC’s regular-season champ may end up with more losses than any other league titlist, and with seven of nine teams at .500 or better, that tells you something about league parity. Both these teams enter the weekend sputtering a bit. This is the second straight weekend on the road for the Loggers, who have dropped two of three. Whitworth is thrilled to be home, having dropped three straight.

No. 23 Virginia Wesleyan at Randolph-Macon: Both teams are chasing Guilford for the top seed in the ODAC. Both teams are outscoring their opponents by about 12 points a game this season, but are holding opponents to 66 points or less a game. VWC will hope to repeat its defensive effort last time they faced RMC, keeping the Yellow Jackets to 38 points in RMC's worst loss of the season. Michael Rhoades’ teams are known for aggressive perimeter defense and held the Marlins to 56 points, though they were 5-for-11 from downtown. VWC has dangerous weapons in Ton Ton Balenga and Tyler Fantin, while Randolph-Macon has Justin Short's hot hand from the outside to complement Jeremy Dixon on the inside. And there is a lot at stake, since the No. 2 seed avoids potential top seed Guilford as long as possible.

Women’s 
No. 3 UW-Whitewater at UW-Stevens Point: While UW-Whitewater is playing to try to salt away the top spot in the WIAC, there’s also significant Pool C implications for UW-Stevens Point, the No. 6 seed in the always-loaded Central Region. The Pointers probably can’t afford much more damage in the loss column, and a win to supplement the one they got earlier this week against UW-Eau Claire would probably help their standing significantly.

No. 22 Marymount at No. 4 Mary Washington: First place in the CAC is at stake, as well as the No. 2 ranking in the Atlantic Region, with the two teams each entering 20-2, 12-1. Marymount is the hot team, while Mary Washington stumbled slightly with a loss at St. Mary’s (Md.) on Wednesday. Player to watch is Marymount sophomore star Kathleen Brown who is developing into a star, averaging 19.7 points and 7.6 rebounds. Mary Washington dominated for stretches in the team’s first meeting before coasting to a 12-point win.

Sunday
No. 7 Washington U. at Emory: Emory’s 22-point road loss in mid-January was part of an eminently forgettable weekend for the Eagles, who lost by 26 at Chicago two days later. Since then, Emory has gone 2-4, though the only potentially surprising result in that lot was a home 78-71 loss to NYU.  Wash U won’t come in unprepared considering Rochester lost at Emory earlier in the season, and has to expect the Eagles to shoot better than their 5-for-16 from three-point range in the earlier meeting. Emory was outrebounded 41-28 and probably doesn’t have the size to win that battle, so will have to compensate by hitting more shots and forcing turnovers.

Women's
No. 23 Washington U. at Emory: When on its game, Emory is pretty impressive, and the Eagles are 4-5 in the UAA after having won five league games just once in the previous five years. Zoe Unruh presents a potential matchup problem as a 6-0 small forward, while freshman post player Kathryn Berger is a little more seasoned than she was in shooting 4-for-10 in the first meeting. Unruh, Berger and Janice Evans (5-10) combined for 13 offensive rebounds the last time around, though it’s to Emory’s credit that they allowed just nine second-chance points. Emory forward Lora Turner was held below her scoring average the last time around, as the starting five shot 10-for-27 aside from LeShonda Lillard’s 7-for-14 performance.