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Miller looking for more from UD guards

Position that once seemed stable manned by 2 struggling players.

By Doug Harris, Staff Writer Updated 11:20 PM Friday, February 3, 2012

Archie Miller, the University of Dayton men’s basketball coach, knew he’d have trouble with a limited roster plugging the hole left by injured forward Josh Benson.

Miller, though, didn’t think he’d be looking for the right fit at shooting guard this late in the season.

Senior Paul Williams, a three-year starter, is in the midst of the worst shooting slump of his career. He finished fifth in the Atlantic 10 last season in 3-point accuracy at 41.8 percent. But lately, he hasn’t been able to connect much from long range or even from shorter distances.

In eight A-10 games, he’s made just 15-of-70 shots (21.4 percent) and 8-of-31 3s (25.8). In his last three games, he’s been as cold as an Iditarod racer, going 2-for-23 overall.

He was replaced in the starting lineup against Duquesne on Wednesday by senior Josh Parker, but the two were a combined 1-for-10 from the field.

“We have to get more,” Miller said. “Every night you play in this conference, one thing you notice is there’s terrific guards. There are guards that can really score the ball. In our best moments, I think Josh and Paul have always combined for a nice balance between them. We’ve got to get those guys going in the right direction again.”

Williams has always had a flat trajectory on his jumper, which is a fundamental flaw. He was able to overcome that with repetition and confidence, but the latter seems to be eluding him now.

“Paul is struggling with his shot, but I do think Paul played a lot harder (against Duquesne) than he had played in a while,” Miller said. “I think Paul’s whole deal for me is evaluating him on a day-to-day basis on his effort. Once he experiences great effort in practice, he’ll get good results.”

As for Parker, who is just 5-for-17 from the field in his last three games, Miller said: “Josh was hot there for a while. Everyone goes through their slumps a little bit, and he’s had a couple (bad) games here. But he’ll get back. He’s a great kid, a great competitor, works hard every day. For us to be at our best, we definitely need those two guys to be playing better.”

Today’s game:

Who: Dayton (14-8, 4-4) at Saint Louis (17-5, 5-3)

When: 5 p.m.

TV: Fox Sports Ohio

Radio: WHIO-AM (1290), WHIO-FM (95.7)

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