Basabe impresses in losing effort
He may still be getting used to the weather in Iowa City, but incoming Iowa freshman Melsahn Basabe looked right at home Tuesday night for George Etre Inc./Culver’s in the Prime Time League opener against L.L. Pelling/Goodfellow Printing.
Pelling/Goodfellow rolled to a 100-84 victory, with Iowa sophomore Eric May pacing the team with a 27-point, eight-rebound effort in the North Liberty Community Center.
However, Basabe stole the show, posting 36 points and nine rebounds for Etre/Culver’s.
“I got the most [points],” he said. “But that is not impressive to me having a good performance if you do not win. I am a little out of shape, so I am trying to come back and rebound a little more.”
Etre/Culver’s led early, but it could not keep up on defense as Pelling/Goodfellow was able to pull away, led by May as well as Spanish professional player Dain Swetalla (18 points, five rebounds) and Northern Iowa’s Austin Pehl (16 points, eight rebounds).
Nonetheless, Basabe’s presence was most commanding on the court.
The 6-7 power forward wowed the crowd with dunks and several athletic plays. May and Basabe seemed to even exchange such plays throughout the game, much to the delight of the crowd.
Fellow Iowa incoming freshman forward Zach McCabe, who had an impressive night of his own with 12 points and six rebounds for Pelling/Goodfellow, noted Basabe’s presence on the floor.
“He played really well tonight,” McCabe said. “He is strong with the ball and really good inside with his moves.”
McCabe felt a lot of the game was dominated by a frantic pace stemming from the play of Basabe and May.
“I like running the floor, up and down like that a lot,” he said. “A lot of guys play good passing the ball a lot like that, and that showed with how we won.”
Basabe said he played well but still feels he has some fine-tuning left to do.
“I play aggressive, but obviously, I need to build more strength because the guys are bigger,” he said.
Iowa senior walk-on hopeful Andre Murphy also had a solid night for Etre/Culver’s with eight points and 10 boards.
McCabe admitted it took a little while for Pelling/Goodfellow to get going, largely because of the players’ unfamiliarity with each other.
Prime Time features 15 Northern Iowa players, 10 Upper Iowa players, five Kirkwood players, and six Division-I prospects, in addition to 13 Hawkeyes.
“We had to figure each other out there for a little bit,” McCabe said. “Once we did, we were able to get going and started playing really good. It is just a new experience with bigger and stronger guys all over the floor.”
Tyler Junior College forward Malcolm Moore had 17 points and 10 rebounds in the losing effort for Etre/Culver’s.
Basabe, who has been in Iowa City a little more than a week now, said he was getting used to things.
“The weather here is a little strange to me. It rains, and then next thing you know, it is sunny,” the Glen Cove, N.Y., native said. “But one thing is the people are really humble, and I really enjoy that.”
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