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PRINT THIS PAGE | E-MAIL THIS PAGE Friday, November 27, 1998 North Texas building with lots of new faces DENTON (AP) - If the North Texas Eagles start wearing their basketball jerseys with the names on the front, it'll be more about function than fashion. These guys need all the help they can to get to know each other. In a season-opening 80-59 loss to Texas A&M, the Eagles had only player who'd ever played for the school before and just one more who had ever played in a Division I game. They used five freshmen, including one in the starting lineup. Nine players were in for at least 10 minutes. "After we looked at the film, we were just over anxious and didn't know how to handle it," second-year coach Vic Trilli. "Everything we worked on we forgot. I expect you will see a lot more movement and a lot more execution." Things improved in the second game, although they lost again. Texas Tech went to Denton and left with an 84-75 victory. Charles Washington, the lone senior and only returning letterman, said he knew there would be an adjustment period for the team when he arrived at the first preseason workout in August. "I looked around and out of 13, 14 guys, I only recognized two or three faces," said Washington. "At first I kind of got scared because so many young guys - and with this being my last, I'm ready to win." But Washington thinks things might work out. "I'm not scared anymore," he said. "I know I've got a lot of players with me right now that are ready to go." UNT has three players who redshirted last year while the team went 5-21, finishing last in the Eastern Division of the Big West. The incoming recruiting class was ranked No. 1 in the Southwest by The Sporting News and 21st in the country by Hoop Scoop Magazine. "If these guys buy into the system and do what coach Trilli asks of them, with the talent that we have we can win this conference," Washington said. "Everybody that has been brought in is an athlete. They all can shoot, jump, run. Last year, we didn't have that." December could be rough on the Eagles. They open the month at TCU and travel to Iowa State, Tulsa, Louisana Tech, Maryland and Arkansas. Williams led UNT with 21 points and 15 rebounds against Texas A&M. Dominic Hardie scored a team-high 19 points against Tech, while Chris Davis added 13 and Brandon Gilbert had 10. Other players to watch include Deginald Erskin (five points, six rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot against A&M) and 6-foot-11 Graeme Anstey, the younger brother of Dallas Mavericks forward Chris Anstey. Anstey had eight points, seven rebounds and a blocked shot against the Aggies. "I'm not going to talk about how young we are anymore," said Trilli, a longtime assistant to Tom Penders at Texas. "It wears me out. It's going to be rocky and bumpy for a while. We're still trying to find out how hard we have to work to win. It's like putting a fourth grader with an eighth grader in a gym. Who do you think is going to win?" Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story Send the URL (Address) of This Story to A Friend: Enter their email address below: texnews.com Reporter OnLine Local Sports Texas Sports Copyright ©1998, Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications Send the URL (Address) of This Story to A Friend: Enter their email address below:

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