AMHERST — It’s been rare that Djery Baptiste has looked comfortable on offense since first donning a UMass uniform.
The graduate transfer from Vanderbilt was recruited to UMass for his defense, especially protection around the rim, and there have been plenty of moments over the past year when Baptiste’s unpolished offensive game has been on full display. He looks awkward when he gets the ball in the post and there have been several times he’s fumbled around trying to secure the ball.
Through the first 19 games of this season, Baptiste scored just 29 points on 12 of 31 shooting. He was used mainly to give freshman Tre Mitchell a breather, so his playing time fluctuated significantly game to game. But since coach Matt McCall has started to use Baptiste and Mitchell on the floor together, Baptiste has found himself in an offensive rhythm.
He’s scored 26 points on 12 of 16 shooting over the past five games, including 10 points in Sunday’s 69-67 win over George Mason, a career high for him at UMass.
“I’m so proud of D.J. for finally getting his confidence up a little bit,” Mitchell said after Sunday’s win. “I don’t think people understand, D.J. actually is a very good basketball player, he just overthinks a lot of situations. I battle with this dude every single day, so unbelievable props to that dude for starting to let that translate to the court.”
McCall said something similar Sunday, mentioning that assistant coach Tony Bergeron has worked hard on trying to get Baptiste out of his own head. It has worked recently with Baptiste finding comfort on both ends of the floor, and McCall said Thursday that he wants to keep the messages positive and motivational for Baptiste to help him overcome the overthinking.
“You can constantly talk to him about it and build him up – no need to tear him down – and continue to give him confidence,” McCall said. “Talk to him about how hard he works and deserves to play well and deserves to play well offensively, put those types of thoughts into his head.”
Baptiste’s explanation for his offensive resurgence starts with his fundamentals of defense and rebounding. He said he’s worked hard to track down offensive rebounds when he’s in the game and use those extra possessions to his advantage. He secured four offensive rebounds against George Mason, two of which he converted into layups for himself and another of which turned into free throws for Dibaji Walker. He also scored on a possession after the third of his three steals against the Patriots.
With his focus mainly on defense, Baptiste said he expends a lot of his energy on that end of the floor, and he’s moving quickly within the structure of the UMass defense. However, he said it has taken him a bit to slow down and execute simple plays on offense and not rush through the details that lead to missed layups and dropped passes.
“It starts on defense for me,” Baptiste said. “Defensively, I try to go as hard as I can and talking and things like that, and going back offensively, it’s about trying to slow down. It’s a different end of the floor so I need to calm down. I’ve gotten better the more I’ve played and the more comfortable I’ve gotten.”
Baptiste’s offensive improvement has also coincided with being able to find some chemistry with Mitchell on the floor. The duo are normally working against each other every practice, giving the Minutemen (10-14, 4-7 Atlantic 10) limited time to work on a lineup with the two of them playing next to each other. McCall’s use of zone defenses to throw off opponents has also helped give the coach more confidence in his two-center lineup.
The issue has always been finding the right offensive spacing, and Baptiste admits it’s still a lot of work. However, UMass has made a lot of strides in that regard heading into Saturday’s 12:30 p.m. matinee at the Mullins Center against No. 6 Dayton (22-2, 11-0).
“It’s a matter of finding the right way to use both of us,” Baptiste said. “Obviously, Tre can shoot from 3 and he’s very skilled, so for us, the more we can find that (chemistry), the better it will be for our team.”
TALL TASK — UMass has lost its last eight games against top-10 opponents – only one of which came at home. The Minutemen haven’t beaten a top-10 team since defeating then-No. 7 Connecticut 61-59 on Dec. 9, 2004 at home, and haven’t beaten a ranked foe since an 81-65 win over No. 19 New Mexico in Charleston, South Carolina, on Nov. 22, 2013.
McCall said for UMass to spring the upset Saturday against Dayton, it will take the obvious necessities – energy and limiting turnovers – but the full operation from the starting five to the last people on and behind the bench must be on their A+ game.
“You’re going to need everyone in this program,” McCall said. “Our trainer needs to be good, our strength coach needs to be good, I have to be good, our assistant coaches have to be good, our managers have to be good. … This is all-hands on deck. In order for us to have a chance in a game like this, you need everybody in the program to be at their best, whatever their job may be.”