It’s not Joe DiMaggio’s revered hitting streak, but Wolfpack guard Luke Zumo’s got something respectable of his own cooking.
After scoring 15 points on a methodical five-for-five three-point shooting performance in a 73-52 loss to LSU-Shreveport on Jan. 28, the psychology junior eclipsed the double-figure barrier for the 16th straight game.
“Luke is playing exceptionally well. He’s really taking his job to the Nth degree,” head coach Michael Giorlando said. “He’s a guy that’s catch and shoot, he’s a guy that likes to fight to get into the paint.”
While there’s been games Zumo tallies the majority of his points by relentlessly driving the lane and drawing shooting fouls, he treated The Den’s stands to a field goal clinic.
He buried Loyola’s first three points by the near sideline with 17:29 left to play in the opening period but found his space limited on the perimeter after that. He waited patiently until 5:28 for another three-point opportunity to open up, and when it did, Zumo pile-drove another one in.
Unfortunately, because LSU-Shreveport’s Jamon Morris scored 10 points in the first 6:53 of the game and Loyola allowed two Pilots to get into double-figures by halftime, Loyola faced a 40-24 deficit at halftime.
“It’s very disappointing that guys like him, and really everyone our team, aren’t experiencing success right now,” Giorlando added.
But on top of his scoring come game time, Giorlando emphasized that he’s maturing in his leadership role in practice. “He’s putting himself in a position where he’s getting more vocal. He knows guys look up to him – it’s his third season here.”
Zumo then treated a crowd that braved a steep 51-29 deficit to a circus-like acrobatics, when he executed a behind-the-back crossover dribble that unbalanced his defender as he drove. Zumo paused, drop-stepped behind the three-point line and coolly hit his third three-point attempt.
With 2:26 left in the game, when it looked like LSU-Shreveport would collect a rout and halt Zumo’s streak in its tracks, he executed a catch-and-shoot and buried a kilometric bomb that secured his 12th point and 16th game in a row in double-figures.
His fifth three-pointer bore the fruits of a hustle play, when general business freshman Nick Tuszynski slid across the floor at half-court for a loose ball. From the seat of his shorts, Tuszynski found a wheeling Torry Beaulieu, history sophomore, who then prolonged the play to Zumo on the near sideline.
In front of Loyola’s bench, he dropped his fifth and final three-pointer.
“It’s a total team effort. My teammates are getting me the shots and I’ve just put in the practice to rise to the occasion,” Zumo said. “Tonight was a bit of a confidence booster as far as how my shot feels.”
The practice Zumo’s put in for the smooth stroke he’s brandished in his time at Loyola isn’t for the feint of heart.
In the summer months, those close to him indicate that he fires anywhere from 300 to 500 jumpers at a time, five days a week. In his trip to Chicago earlier this season, Loyola-Chicago’s radio announcers fawned over Zumo’s stroke.
Because they were from the Chicago area and Zumo’s a Catholic High Baton Rouge product, they’d never seen him play.
“That young man Zumo looks like a very confident, refined shooter,” the play-by-play announcer said.
Compliments like those, Zumo feels, “definitely” make the strenuous training worthwhile. “You put the preparation in during the offseason so that you can rise to the occasion when it counts.
“We all work hard in the offseason, and now we’re working hard here,” he said, before turning his mind to what the ‘Pack needs to do to free itself from the losing streak it’s mired in.
“And that’s what our team needs to do. Rise to the occasion and come together, not as individuals, but as a team.”
Ramon Vargas can be reached at [email protected].
