It is hard not to be discouraged after losing three in a row and six out of eight games, but Wright State head coach Billy Donlon is not letting his team get itself down given the situation.
The Raiders return to action Monday evening at Detroit looking to break a three-game skid that has sent the Raiders to the bottom three of the Horizon League standings at 2-4.
“My job as a coach is to see if we’re making strides,” WSU head coach Billy Donlon said. “You can’t make it, with young people, just about the scoreboard. It is about the process.”
And while the results might not show it, Donlon is pleased with how his team’s defense has progressed this season.
“I think we have done some really positive things that have not been reflective in terms of wins or losses,” Donlon said.
Wright State is coming off a 67-41 loss at Milwaukee last Tuesday where it was outrebounded by a 47-19 margin.
“We missed a lot of baskets and when that happens, the score gets away from you,” Donlon said. “But I thought they did some really positive things in the game.”
WSU spent most of the contest versus Milwaukee without senior guard Kendall Griffin who banged the back of his head against a chair two minutes into the game. After sitting out the rest of the contest, Griffin is said to be ready to play according to Donlon.
Griffin has had four concussions since the start of last year.
“The right choice was made not to play him and we did not know (he was okay) until he was going to see the doctors whether he would play beyond Milwaukee,” Donlon said. “We were fortunate to learn the next day he was okay.”
After scoring six points against Milwaukee, senior point guard Reggie Arceneaux is 24 away from scoring his 1,000th career point.
Between Arceneaux and fellow senior guard Chrishawn Hopkins, the duo has struggled to score of late. Hopkins has only been in double figures once since November, and Arceneaux has not scored over 10 points in the last eight games.
Arceneaux has been battling a broken bone in his foot in recent weeks. The injury is not something Donlon and Arceneaux discuss.
“He is playing below (100 percent), he definitely doesn’t have his change of direction, he doesn’t have his certain things he normally has,” Donlon said. “He is being a senior and try to survive it and manage it and do the best he can with it.”
While WSU forward JT Yoho will continue to sit after severely bruising his knee, Steven Davis could possibly play during the Detroit-area road trip. Davis had a bone bruise in his foot after taking a collision in WSU’s loss at Ohio State on Dec. 27.
“I feel bad Steven because he was the one guy who played well at Ohio State and I thought he was getting read to turn the corner,” Donlon said. “I would love to see him be able to play.”
Led by Juwan Howard Jr. after Detroit lost the conference opener at Wright State, four of their last six. The Titans are coming off a tight 70-66 loss at Cleveland State Saturday night.
