Junior college transfer helps Cincinnati make leap

Sporting News, The, Dec 21, 1998 by Mike DeCourcy

Everything you needed to learn about Pete Mickeal was evident that first night. In his Division I debut for Cincinnati, Mickeal was assigned the task of disarming the game s latest miracle, Rhode Island sophomore Lamar Odom. By the end of the game, Odom was lucky to still have his arms.

Mickeal finished with a double-double--15 points and 10 rebounds--in a 17-point Cincinnati win. Odom, a 6-10 forward many consider the top NBA prospect in college, wound up with eight misses, four turnovers, two assists, eight points and the memory of an entire evening in the close company of Mickeal.

Junior college products are not supposed to be this ready to play in Division I. Usually, there is an adjustment period. But Mickeal is an exceptional member of an exceptional group.

Several are scoring in double figures for winning teams: forwards Marquise Gainous of TCU, Chris Porter of Auburn, Marcus Hicks of Mississippi and Shawn Marion of UNLV, and guards Michael Nurse of Iowa State and Bootsy Thornton of St. John's. Maryland guard Steve Francis, a spectacular talent, is among the most talked-about college players and has Terps fans planning for their first Final Four.

Mickeal is not the most publicized, but it would not be a stretch to suggest he's the most valuable. As uncommon as it is to have so many junior college recruits producing so much so quickly, it is more unusual to have one who serves as the glue that binds a team.

He arrived at Cincinnati riding a 72-game winning streak from two years at Iowa's Indian Hills C.C., which won consecutive NJCAA titles.

Within a month, he helped Cincinnati climb into TSN's weekly top five and earn a victory over Duke, then ranked No. 1, in the championship game of the Great Alaska Shootout.

Mickeal is the first of a number of reasons the Bearcats surprised poll voters who ranked them preseason No. 15 and numerous magazines that predicted a finish outside the top 20:

* Center Kenyon Martin has not been as statistically productive, "but I think teams still know I'm out there," he says. Always a dominant shotblocker, he improved his ball skills and only needs the comfort to shoot often to become a significant offensive weapon.

* High-flying senior Melvin Levett improved his ability to shoot off the dribble, which helped him break down defenders in an 11-of-14, 25-point effort in the Duke game.

* Frontcourt muscle is suddenly in vogue, and the Bearcats have six players who are 6-8 or 235 pounds--or both. Ryan Fletcher, a 265-pound redshirt junior, held Duke's Elton Brand to seven shots, one offensive rebound and 12 points.

* The point guard committee of freshman Steve Logan, JC transfer Alvin Mitchell and senior Michael Horton, still working his way back after a foot injury, was averaging a combined 19.8 points, 7.6 assists and 2.0 turnovers while shooting .413 from 3-point range.

It is well known Cincinnati has tried for years to recover from a point-guard drought that began when Nick Van Exel concluded his career in 1993. In the past two seasons, the regular point guard failed to make a 3-point shot.

The Bearcats have had similar luck at small forward. They've used role players (Keith Gregor, Curt Bostic) and a converted shooting guard (Darnell Burton). The closest they came to a true three-man was the wondrously talented but wholly unreliable Ruben Patterson.

Cincinnati averaged healthy scoring numbers--no fewer than 76 points in the last five seasons--but sometimes struggled in a half-court game.

A playmaking forward can make a difference when it becomes tougher to find a basket. Mickeal can roll in a hook with either hand--he's virtually ambidextrous--and handles the ball well enough to drive into a defense. Against Duke, he posted up six or seven feet from the goal, then beat his man with spin-dribbles down the left side.

Mickeal is a lot like Kentucky senior Heshimu Evans; he's not really a shooter, except when he needs to be. Mickeal has an odd-looking motion and flat arc to his shot, but he still was hitting .522 from the field through five games.

The only problem for Mickeal is becoming comfortable enough to put a stir into the Bearcats' veterans if he perceives a malaise--such as the one that got the entire starting lineup benched against Southern Utah in the Shootout's first round. Huggins delivered a message to Mickeal.

"He said, `Pete, I need you to be a leader. I need you to step up. You've got a chance to be really special here.' These are things that motivate me," Mickeal says.

TSN's Power Poll Women

Rk.   Team (last week)           W-L

1.    Connecticut (1)            7-0
2.    Tennessee (2)              6-1
3.    Purdue (3)                 6-1
4.    Louisiana Tech (4)         6-1
5.    Georgia (5)                7-0
6.    Notre Dame (7)             7-1
7.    North Carolina (9)        10-1
8.    UCLA (8)                   6-2
9.    Old Dominion (10)          6-1
10.   Texas Tech (12)            7-1
11.   Alabama (6)                7-2
12.   Colorado State (11)       10-0
13.   Florida (16)               9-2
14.   Rutgers (13)               7-2
15.   Iowa State (14)            6-1
16.   Clemson (19)               7-0
17.   Geo. Washington (18)       6-2
18.   Penn State (25)            6-1
19.   Duke (15)                  7-4
20.   Virginia (21)              5-2
21.   Nebraska (20)              9-1
22.   Virginia Tech (--)         8-0
23.   Kansas (22)                7-3
24.   Memphis (23)               7-1
25.   Arkansas (17)              6-4

Rk.                          Comment

1.    Top-scoring team in the nation averaging 102.2 ppg.
2.    Shooting 56.4 percent as a team from the field.
3.    Ukari Figgs 30-for-33 from the free-throw line this season.
4.    Home for the holidays, including big game with UConn Jan.
        18.
5.    Second in NCAA in scoring behind UConn at 93.8 ppg.
6.    Won't get another shot at UConn until the Big East tourney.
7.    Shooting 40 percent from the field and 25 percent of 3s.
8.    Longest win streak since 1992-93's seven-straight stretch.
9.    Have yet to be seen as elite team this season, but still
        strong.
10.   Senior G Julie Lake out four weeks with broken elbow.
11.   Chance to redeem itself Sunday against ranked opponent UNC.
12.   Owns best winning percentage in the nation.
13.   Freshman Brandi McCain comes up big (20 pts.) vs. Alabama.
14.   C Tammy Sutton-Brown in double figures last four games.
15.   F Desiree Francis has posted four straight double-doubles.
16.   Leads nation in scoring defense, allowing just 50.1 ppg.
17.   Entering a stretch with 5-of-7 at home, including Virginia
        Tech.
18.   Soph. sub Lisa Shepherd averaging 21.0 pts. in three games.
19.   Huge game for Blue Devils looms December 28 at UCLA.
20.   Monick Foote's hamstring injury keeping her out of the
        lineup.
21.   Five wins in a row, including 21 straight at home.
22.   Next ranked opponent: January 10 vs. George Washington.
23.   Has scored more than 75 points only once this season.
24.   Flu-stricken Tamika Whitmore scores 27 pts. vs. Miss. St.
25.   Karyn Karlin's injury will keep her out until after
        Christmas.