RICHMOND, Va. — By David Driver
sports@newsandtribune.com
RICHMOND, Va. — The Saint Joseph's men's basketball team, after a recent weeknight game, returned to their hotel in Richmond and then began a bus ride north to their Philadelphia campus.
Some five hours later, the Hawks arrived at their urban campus around 2 a.m. and after nearly five hours of sleep Evan Maschmeyer, a freshman guard, was awake and ready for a day that included weightlifting, a class on Nature in America and a practice session.
Such is life at the Division I level for Maschmeyer, a former Jeffersonville standout who is making the adjustment to the college ranks in the Atlantic 10, one of the top-rated conferences in the nation for men's hoops.
“I have been really surprised how good the league really is,” said Maschmeyer, a three-time all-Hoosier Hills Conference player at Jeffersonville. “I don't think the Atlantic 10 gets enough credit. I knew about the Atlantic 10, but it is not one of the bigger conferences.”
A 6-foot-3 reserve guard, Maschmeyer has seen limited playing time for Saint Joseph's. He scored a season-high six points against city rival Temple, played a season-long 14 minutes in a loss at Xavier and had the chance to defend standout Tu Holloway, one of the top guards in the country.
“It was exciting. It felt good to be out there and try to help my team and try to make a difference. I thought I played pretty well,” said Maschmeyer, who remembers watching on Holloway on television when he was still in high school.
He saw more action in that Jan. 18 game because Saint Joseph's was without starting guard Carl Jones due to an injury.
“He competed. That is the No. 1 thing,” Saint Joe's head coach Phil Martelli said of Maschmeyer's play against Xavier. “He has a very, very high IQ. He has a unique work ethic.”
Jones had a team-high 16 points in a 70-60 win at Richmond on Feb. 1 as the Hawks improved to 14-9 overall and 4-4 in the Atlantic 10. The Hawks play La Salle on Saturday (Feb. 4) in a clash of Philly schools.
Maschmeyer, who played four minutes against Richmond, came off the bench in 16 of the team’s first 23 games and averaged 4.0 minutes and 1.2 points per contest. In his first 64 minutes of action for the Hawks, he made 5-of-12 shots from the field, including 1-of-4 from 3-point range, and had five rebounds, five assists, two steals and 19 points.
“From a personal standpoint, I try to come in and get better every day,” said Maschmeyer, a finance major who took 15 credit hours last semester and has 12 this semester. “I know some games I will get more minutes than others.”
Maschmeyer made a visit to Eastern Illinois prior to his senior season at Jeffersonville. He also drew interest from others schools in the Ohio Valley and Missouri Valley conferences, but he was plagued by injuries during this senior year, even though he averaged 15.2 points, 3.1 rebounds and a team-high 6.7 assists as a senior. He averaged 14.7 points per game as a junior at Jeffersonville made it to the state semifinals.
He appeared headed to New Hampton Prep in New Hampshire before he got a call from Saint Joseph's and veteran head coach Phil Martelli, who took the school to the East Regional final in 2004 with future NBA players Jameer Nelson and Delonte West.
“He was off the radar,” Martelli said of the Jeffersonville resident.
The Hawks heard about Maschmeyer from Butler coach Brad Stevens and John Gallagher, the head coach at Hartford in Connecticut. The Hawks were looking for a guard and Martelli said it was a credit to the family of Maschmeyer that he made a visit to Saint Joseph's without any ties to the region.
“I really liked what they were doing. I thought it would be a good fit,” said Maschmeyer, who had not been to the school until he made a visit last summer.
He is the son of Mike and Cindy Maschmeyer and has played in front of family members this season in games at Western Kentucky and Xavier in Cincinnati. His family has also seen him play home games at Saint Joseph's.
Maschmeyer plans to take some classes this summer at Saint Joseph's while preparing for his sophomore season. He has seen action at point guard, shooting guard and small forward, and figures to gain experience as the team will play games during a tour of Italy this summer, according to Martelli.
“We have talked about it some. I can play the one or two and played some three. That is the goal this summer — to figure out where I will fit in,” Maschmeyer said.
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David Driver, a Virginia native, is a freelance writer and can be reached at www.davidsdriver.com
