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The results don’t exactly scream all-world, but Emmanuel Addo is making positive contributions to Missouri State’s basketball team of late.
Since going to the bench three games ago, the post-graduate transfer has 10 points in 30 minutes. Included was a 3-point dagger with about six minutes left in Wednesday’s victory at Evansville that pretty well clinched the outcome.
“A lot of people may have looked at him and said, ‘He’s done,’ but that’s not him,” teammate and roommate Christian Kirk said. “He didn’t get his head down.”
Next up for Addo and the Bears is tonight’s game at Southern Illinois in a match of surging teams. The Bears have won four of five and the Salukis three in a row.
Missouri State again will be without freshman center Tyler McCullough, who’s entering week two of fighting concussion symptoms. That means coach Paul Lusk again will turn to Addo in search of a spark as Kirk’s backup.
“He’s got to be consistent with his effort,” Lusk said, “but he has the tools that can help us. I don’t think he’s a high-minute guy just because he gets gassed out there, but we need him to be productive.”
Addo was seen as a possible impact player after transferring from Northern Colorado, where he averaged 9.6 points as a sophomore and 4.9 as a junior. That hasn’t happened.
Instead, Addo has found foul trouble at an incredible rate (averaging a foul every 4.4 minutes) while fighting conditioning and a step up in competition.
“The intensity, I don’t want to say I wasn’t ready for it but … it’s a lot different than what I was used to,” Addo said, comparing the Missouri Valley Conference to the Big Sky, where Northern Colorado resides.
“I think I finally have got out of my comfort zone a little bit,” Addo added. “Being disciplined with what I eat means I have more energy. I just feel better physically and mentally. I think those are the two biggest elements of why I’ve been playing better.”
The 6-8, 230-pound Addo has the body to take up space in the lane and the offensive skill set to be a mismatch for opponents. He has a nice left-handed jump hook and good touch on the 3-pointer when left alone.
But Lusk was on the doorstep of abandoning Addo as a meaningful contributor, playing him only three minutes in an earlier win over Southern Illinois and not at all against Wichita State.
McCullough’s concussion opened the door for another opportunity. McCullough is out indefinitely.
“I faced a tough stretch, a slump if you will,” Addo said. “But coach Lusk told me he still had faith in me, just to keep playing hard. That’s what I did.
“Coach Lusk and the coaching staff have given me a second chance here, so I want to play well for them and help this team win.”
Added Lusk: “Last game, Christian gave us something and Emmanuel gave us something. That’s what we’ve got to have. It’s a committee thing. There for a couple of weeks, we were getting nothing from any of them” in the post.
Strong post play will be a key against the resurgent Salukis, who count a 19-point home victory over second-place Indiana State in their winning streak. Freshman center Bola Olaniyan is averaging 10.5 rebounds over the last four games as a starter.
Senior Desmar Jackson averages 20 points with sophomore Anthony Beane averaging 23 over the last three games.
SIU is celebrating its all-century team tonight with several of the school’s past playing greats, along with long-time coach Rich Herrin, expected to be in attendance.
Lusk, himself a former SIU standout (along with assistants Derrick Tilmon and Brad Korn) said the Bears shouldn’t be affected by the hoopla.
“It’ll be a wild atmosphere, I would imagine,” Lusk said. “But we’re more concerned with how they’ve been playing. They’ve been playing with a lot of energy. Some very good basketball.”
Bears at Southern Illinois
When: 6 p.m. today
Where: SIU Arena in
Records: MSU 16-7 overall, 6-5 Missouri Valley
Conference; SIU 9-15, 5-6
Midwest; KTXR 101.3 FM
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