Improving post duo gives Winthrop hope against ACC and SEC foes

The continually improved play of Winthrop duo Duby Okeke and Zach Price gives the Eagles hope of pulling an upset against Georgia Tuesday night.

Winthrop’s two biggest players had their best combined game of the season Saturday against Presbyterian. And while the Bulldogs (3-3) will offer stiffer competition than the Blue Hose, it was an encouraging performance from 6-foot-8 Okeke and 6-foot-10 Price, one that Winthrop (6-1) coach Pat Kelsey deemed decisive in the game.

“They were great tonight,” junior guard Keon Johnson said after the win Saturday. “Zach played his butt off; he gave us some energy and Duby gave us some great blocks and he came through for us on the offensive end.”

Okeke scored a late bucket to pad Winthrop’s lead with two minutes left in the contest, then ripped down a rebound of a missed Presbyterian shot, getting the ball quickly to the Eagles’ best foul shooter Johnson so he could ice the win. Okeke finished with 12 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots. Price added 11 points - his first double-digit scoring effort of the season - and looked confident with his post moves around the basket.

“Those guys, I don’t think get the credit they deserve,” said Kelsey. “Even early on when it was taking a while to get them going and there was a lot of foul trouble, just their presence out there is a big piece for us. When you look at the production they’re having, they deserve a ton of credit.”

Clutching the light-saber he snagged from the Winthrop Coliseum bleachers after Star Wars Day, Okeke said Saturday that he realizes the value he brings to the team isn’t on the offensive end of the court. But he is improving there too. The redshirt sophomore is averaging 6.1 points per game - to go with six boards - and has reached double figures in three games this season, including both of last week’s Big South contests. Okeke is shooting 57 percent from the field. He and Price benefit from Johnson’s innate ability to blow by defenders and draw help, before dishing off to big guys loitering around the rim for an easy slam.

Price appears to finally be knocking off some of the rust that accrued from not playing for over two years. He transferred from Louisville to Missouri, sitting out the NCAA-mandated year, before leaving the Tigers program without ever playing a game and coming to Rock Hill. He sat out all of last season, and is just now starting to round into decent form.

Kelsey was full of praise for Price after the Presbyterian game. The former top-100 national recruit didn’t join the Winthrop program with any traces of superiority.

“He’s a willing learner, he’s working very, very hard,” said Kelsey. “Always the guy, before you even have to ask him, to come in and watch film. He’s being proactive. I love coaching him and I love his attitude. Because he has that, he’s gonna continue to get better and better.”

The first week of Big South play made it obvious that Price and Okeke will make a difference for Winthrop. But their increasing effectiveness as a pair boosts Winthrop’s belief against teams like N.C. State - a hard-fought eight-point loss after Thanksgiving - and Georgia Tuesday, and Alabama next week after final exams conclude.

“Going in there with those kind of big physical guys, you feel you can negate some of that overwhelming that you get when go to a high-major school,” said Kelsey.

This story was originally published December 7, 2015 at 7:40 PM with the headline "Improving post duo gives Winthrop hope against ACC and SEC foes."