With a 12-day break for final exams before playing host to unbeaten Auburn, Navy enjoyed a 90-62 tuneup at the expense of Coast Guard last night.
The Midshipmen (6-1) are off to their best start since 1983-84, when a gifted freshman named David Robinson led Navy to eight straight victories.
Incidentally, the Mids' first loss that year came against Don DeVoe, the current Navy coach who was then coaching at Tennessee.
DeVoe's major problem last night was directing the bench traffic as he did his best to keep from embarrassing the Division III Bears (2-4).
Navy raced out to an 18-2 lead in the first six minutes, ending any suspense for the sparse Alumni Hall crowd of 1,735.
Another 16-0 run early in the second half ballooned the Mids' advantage to 70-31, giving DeVoe a chance to play his seldom-used reserves in the last 11 minutes.
Muscular junior forward Sitapha Savane, 6 feet 8, scored 22 points in 21 minutes, converting nine of 11 field-goal attempts and adding a team-high six rebounds.
The Senegal native, who missed the first two games of the season for Academy violations, also drew the toughest defensive assignment in senior center Kerry McKeever, who seemed intent on beating Savane one-on-one every time he had the ball on the right wing.
"I think he thought I was some big stiff he could walk around," said Savane, who blocked four shots.
McKeever finished with a team-high 16 points, but hit only five of 14 shots and scored mostly against Navy's second-string.
Said DeVoe, "I thought Savane showed a lot of discipline on defense. It's tough to defend a man who is looking to score almost every time he has the ball."
Offensively, Savane had plenty of help. Sophomore forward Chris Williams (11 points) was 5-for-5 from the field, including an electrifying 360-degree breakaway jam. Senior captain Skip Victor also scored 11 and forward Robert Reeder chipped in with 10 points.
Navy out-rebounded the undersized Bears, 48-26. But DeVoe found positives in playing this mismatch.
"We had an opportunity to play against a team that spread the floor on offense," he said, "and it also gave us a chance to develop our depth. I like our balanced scoring so far this season."
Women
Delaware 74, Navy 67: The Blue Hens (4-3) broke a three-game losing streak by defeating the Midshipmen (4-5) in Newark, Del.
Delaware was led by Danielle Leyfert, who scored 25, and Cindy Johnson, who scored a career-high 24 and had eight rebounds.
Navy shot 96 percent (24-for-25) from the free-throw line, a Bob Carpenter Center record.
Pub Date: 12/08/98