Fernitz emergence sparks DPU win streak

Tuesday, January 7, 2014
DePauw junior Tommy Fernitz attempts a layup during a game earlier this seaon. The forward has been named the North Coast Athletic Conference player of the week following a stretch of four straight double-doubles that have sparked four Tiger victories. (Banner Graphic/GRANT WIEMAN)

After knocking off a few of the country's best Division III teams, starting 4-0 and climbing as high as the No. 24 ranking, the DePauw men's basketball team entered its brief winter break at a low point.

They'd lost three of four, occasionally looked lost and couldn't find much two-way consistent play and their stars weren't playing like it.

Now, after an 18-day break and some phenomenal play from junior forward Tommy Fernitz, the team is off to another four-game win streak, including two in overtime.

Fernitz recorded a double-double of points and rebounds in each game of that stretch, averaging 18.3 and 15.3, and was named the North Coast Athletic Conference player of the week for his efforts.

"It's very nice to be recognized like that," Fernitz said. "It shows that the hard work is playing off. I've still got some hard work to do and some other goals I'd like to accomplish this year, individually and as a team."

Prior to the season, DPU coach Bill Fenlon said Fernitz had made one of the biggest one-year improvements of anyone he has ever coached, but before the team played its first game Fernitz injured his ankle and missed nearly a month of practice.

He started working his way back a few games into the season, and the coaches leaned on his post-ups early in games, but he played limited minutes and lost time to several other players.

The Tigers are deep at the bigs and others were playing well, Fenlon said.

"He was really good in the preseason and you could just really see him coming," Fenlon said. "In the last couple weeks he's starting to get back to where he was before he got hurt."

Improved health has given Fernitz a chance to play more minutes, and prove he deserves them. He played 40 minutes a double-overtime win against Kalamazoo College and 38 minutes in another double-overtime win Sunday at Hiram.

It hasn't been Fernitz alone. The overall team defense and rebounding has improved dramatically since the break, Fenlon said.

"I feel like we're pretty good defensively and we're rebounding really well," Fenlon said. "I still feel like our team in general is not really clicking on all cylinders."

Offensively the team hasn't been especially sharp. The Tigers shot just 39 percent in the win at Allegheny on Saturday and 40 percent in the Tampa Bay Shootout championship game against K-College.

Their defense and rebounding has made up for those deficiencies.

"Once we get our offense firing on all cylinders I think that will really help us," Fernitz said. "If we keep up the defensive intensity and the rebounding I think the offense will just naturally come."

They'll need it. While the opponents during the ongoing winning streak have been challenging, the next five games will truly be a test.

DePauw, now 9-3 and in third place in the NCAC at 4-1, will face No. 11 Wittenberg, No. 22 Ohio Wesleyan, No. 2 Wooster, Kenyon and rival Wabash in its next stretch.

"That's what conference play is all about," Fenlon said. "The league is really good and you're going to have to break through in some of those games. ... I think the next two weeks we'll be able to tell if we're a team that can compete for first place or if we're a team that can compete for seeding in the conference tournament."

Picking up a few wins during this next stretch, which includes three home games, will be vital for the Tigers to set themselves up to compete for the NCAC championship in February.

Fernitz said his team is confident, which comes from a group that's gaining experience and coming off a pair of overtime wins away from home.

"I was talking to guys in the locker room," Fernitz said. "Those were games that we would probably lose last year and this year we're more experience and we know how to handle the situations better."

That belief, and Fernitz's progression into star, has helped turn DePauw into a conference contender and creep closer to getting back into the national rankings.

There's a way to go, but the potential is there for both. Fenlon said the team still has plenty of room to grow and Fernitz has the talent to make stretches like this turn into expectations.

"As soon as (Fernitz) thinks he can be as good as I think he can be, then we're really going to be something," Fenlon said. "I've felt all along that he had tremendous potential to be not just a really good player at this level, but quite a bit more than that."

DePauw's next game is Saturday at Kenyon at 3 p.m. Its next home game is Wednesday, Jan. 15 against Wittenberg at 6 p.m. The No. 1 women's team is home on Wednesday to face Denison at 7 p.m.

Fernitz was the first DPU player to be named NCAC player of the week since Barry Flynn in February last season. He is now the conference leader in rebounds per game at 9.8 per game.

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