STAFF WRITER
PHIL GALLETTO

In recent years, most of the incoming freshmen on the St. John Fisher basketball team were expected to spend their first year in the program getting to know the system, improving their skills and transitioning to the up-tempo pace of the college game. For freshman point guard Matt Newman, those expectations are just the beginning.

Newman has played a major role for the Cardinals this year, dishing out 40 assists (second on the team) and averaging 5.7 points per game in his inaugural year. He is often inserted by head coach Rob Kornaker into the starting lineup.

And that is where expectations seem to multiply for Newman. Handling the ball and finding open teammates are just a couple requirements that Coach Kornaker requires out of point guards on a nightly basis.

“The point guard is expected to be like the quarterbackon the court. He calls the offenses and defenses and has to be a leader.” Kornaker said. He also prefers to have his point guard be a scoring threat.

“In our offense, all five players on the court need to be a threat to score. When you have a point guard that can only look to pass, your offense can become one dimensional and is easier to stop.”

Kornaker is not concerned at all with Newman’s skills, calling him a “great talent” and saying that any bumps along the road this year can be attributed to him being a freshman.

Newman, from Campbell-Sovona High School, understands that his ability to adjust and produce will have a great effect on his team’s chances of winning their fifth consecutive Empire 8 championship and advancing to the NCAA playoffs again. He feels as though he has already grown as a player not only because of the level of talent that he faces each night but because of the great talent that he is surrounded with on his own team. Competing with proven players and having four solid options to look to on each possession is somewhat of an adjustment from his high school days where he was depended on more as a scorer.

Newman, noted for his quiet personality by his teammates, describes his team as a “great group” of guys on and off the court. He attributes some of their closeness and bonding to how well he has adjusted to the collegiate level of play.

Although he is excited about the youth on the team this year, and the potential that they have for future improvement, he remains fully focused on this year’s season. He labeled Utica as Fisher’s top competition within the Empire 8 conference but is confident that they have the talent to beat them.

The Cardinals, who expect to win their conference each year, will be tested by Utica once more  before the Empire 8 tournament begins on Feb. 23. Throw another expectation on the fire. Solid play at the point guard position will definitely have a strong influence on the outcome of that contest. At this point in the season, expectations are nothing new for Newman.