Reggie Proctor had been a practice player all season long but Saturday afternoon in Goodman Gymnasium, the 6-7 freshman from Hampton Va. proved something to the crowd, his coach, his teammates and to Newberry College.
Practice makes perfect.
With 6-6 Terrence Hamilton out for the season after breaking a leg, with 6-10 starter Alex Luyk out with a knee injury and with forward Tevon Raikes out due to his grandfather’s funeral, Proctor, who was expected to be a redshirt, suddenly became a red-hot fan favorite.
Along with Charlotte sophomore Chris “Chief” Everett and and 6-8 muscleman Jacob Parks, Proctor helped fill the void inside and lead Catawba to a resounding 84-58 victory.
The win kept the Indians (13-2, 4-1) tied for first place in the South Atlantic Conference. And it had all of the Indians singing a Gloria Gaynor hit from the 70s: We will survive.
“Hopefully, it sent a message that we can still play a little bit,” smiled a happy Catawba coach Jim Baker.
The message is clear. The Indians still have enough big bodies to win, especially Proctor. When Hamilton went down Wednesday at Wingate, Baker asked him if he wanted to give up his redshirt status. Proctor did, of course. And his debut was dandy.
“There was a little pressure,” said Proctor, who wowed the crowd with his leaping ability and one slam dunk that brought the down the house. “But just because those guys are out doesn’t mean we have to stop playing.”
Proctor saw 19 minutes in his first college game, finishing with 11 points, five rebounds and four blocked shots.
Everett, who stands 6-4, threw his 210 pounds around in 15 minutes and Parks played 18 minutes, scoring nine points, snatching four rebounds and hitting all five of his free throws.
The performance had all three — and their coach — beaming.
“What I was impressed with, was that they played like they had been doing it for two years,” Baker praised. “They weren’t fighting it. They let the game come to them.”
“We all decided we’d make a statement in this game,” said Parks, a junior, who started his Catawba career on the football team. “Losing Terrence was a big blow. You can’t say enough about missing a player like him. But we’re going to keep going.”
Catawba actually took control from the outset but not with offense. It was defense that held Newberry to 21 percent shooting (7-for-32) in a first half that saw the Indians leading 41-21 at halftime.
“As much effort as we put in defensively at the beginning of the game, I felt we were going to win,” Baker said. “They were having trouble getting a shot off.”
With the score knotted at 13, Parks hit two free throws to start a 14-1 run. Ultra-quick guards Duke Phipps and Kevin Petty hit two buckets apiece. When Proctor and Parks scored inside, Catawba led 29-14 and Newberry (5-10, 2-3) never challenged again.
Parks made a pretty move for a 3-point play that gave Catawba its first 30-point lead early in the second half.
“This was the most comfortable I’ve felt in a game,” said Parks. “I was real confident.”
The second half was a repeat of the first. Everett wheeled in the lane on a pretty move for two. And when Proctor threw down his rebound dunk with authority, Catawba had its biggest lead at 77-42.
“I hadn’t played college competition,” admitted Proctor, “but once I started running, I saw I could play with them.”
The New Kids Down on the Block were so impressive that it was easy to overlook the usual mainstays like junior leaper Brian Carter (15 points) and senior Ned Gusic (14). Gusic, by the way, joined Catawba’s Thousand Island Club when he hit a jumper at the 17:17 mark of the second half. He then sat, cheering on guys like Proctor.
“I had no doubts about Proctor,” Gusic said. “He has worked hard in practice and I knew once he got a feel for the game, he’d do fine.He has a great future.”
And so does Catawba. The Indians bounced back from a 36-point loss at Wingate with a vengeance.
“A lot of people thought we’d be down, especially since we didn’t have Terrence, Alex and Tevon,” said Parks. “But we’re a really deep team and we’re really talented. We’ve got a lot left in us.”
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NOTES: Petty nailed his first four shots and finished with 14. The 5-6 whirling dervish had seven rebounds and three assists. ... Carter has hit double figures in 7 of his last 8 games. ... Catawba shot 60 percent in the first half and 53 percent for the game. ... In 7 years, Baker is 126-60. ... It is the fourth straight season Catawba has had a player go over the 1,000-point mark in his career. ... Catawba now goes to Presbyterian (10-5, 3-1) Wednesday.
NEWBERRY (58) — Durham 22, Carter 11, Graves 4, Nance 4, Fair 4, Chandler 4, Garrett 3, Reese 3, Stackhouse 2, Cheeks 1.
CATAWBA (84) — Carter 15, Gusic 14, Petty 14, Proctor 11, Parks 9, Phipps 9, Jernigan 6, Everett 3, Whitehead 2, Parker 1.
Newberry 21 37 — 58
Catawba 41 43 — 84
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