Ex-Douglass player Dorsey, Memphis rising to occasion

Alumni Report

By Bill Free | Sun reporter

February 7, 2008

Joey Dorsey can never relax as long as Memphis basketball coach John Calipari is around to keep driving the powerful 6-foot-9, 265-pound senior forward.

"Coach keeps pushing me to focus on what I do best, and that is to rebound the ball and blocking shots," said Dorsey, a Douglass alumnus who had a career-high 22 rebounds against Houston on Jan. 30 for the No. 1-ranked Tigers, who entered last night 21-0.

Said Calipari: "The biggest thing we need for Joey is for him to be an absolute monster on the boards, and we have seen that in some games this year, Tulsa [19 rebounds] and Houston [22]. In those games, he was unbelievable, and people were talking about him being the best big man in the nation."

The Memphis coach believes Dorsey can "be that Ben Wallace-type player. He needs to come every day and give incredible effort."

Dorsey said the 21-0 run has been "crazy" and that he and his teammates have enjoyed "being No. 1 and all" but that the team's goal is to be prepared for next month's NCAA tournament and "get to the Final Four."

The former Ducks standout led Memphis in rebounding, field-goal percentage and blocked shots in his sophomore and junior seasons.

He is almost certain to repeat the show again, leading in rebounding at 10.8 a game, field-goal percentage at .694 and blocked shots with 47. Dorsey also has 23 steals and averaged 7.4 points through Tuesday's games.

Fields paces Gettysburg

Senior Gettysburg forward Courtney Fields (St. Paul's) is averaging 10.3 points a game, second in scoring for the 12-7 Bullets women's team. Sophomore guard Allie Drechsler (Winters Mill) is right behind at 9.2.

Kell helps William and Mary

William and Mary junior swingman Dani Kell (Roland Park) is averaging 20 minutes a game, 4.2 points and 2.9 rebounds, and has started eight games this season for the Tribe women. The Tribe was 4-5 in the Colonial Athletic Association through Sunday's games.

Contact Bill Free at bfree7066@hotmail.com or 410-833-5349.