He made mental and written notes on every player. For Eric Castro, Tubbs wanted the 6-8, 260- pound senior center to play tougher inside and improve his skills. If Castro did that, Tubbs said he'd push the player to do more. And Castro's doing more.
He's eighth nationally in field goal percentage and is averaging career highs in minutes played (31.9), field goal percentage (.644), rebounds (7.7) and points per game (13.
. He is also second all-time at SMU in field goal percentage. Castro, a native of Oklahoma City, is doing the dirty work inside for the Mustangs (6-4, 1-1 WAC), who play Fresno State (8-3, 2-0) at 7 tonight at Moody Coliseum.
"The main thing is Eric bought into what we're trying to do," Tubbs said. "He's such a nice young man, he gives you his best effort."
In an overtime victory over Tulsa on New Year's Day, Castro scored a career-high 28 points and set career highs at the free throw line in makes (10) and attempts (16). On Nov. 22 against Montana State, he scored on a driving layup with five seconds left to force overtime. Visiting SMU won, 69-61.
"Just solid, solid," teammate and roommate Patrick Simpson said of Castro. "He's playing with senior leadership and he's playing with confidence. We're getting the ball inside to him and making sure he's one of our first options."
It appears as if Castro doesn't have a care in the world, judging by his facial expressions. On the court, he gets knocked down, pushed around and slapped on the arms and hands in the lane. When the referee doesn't give him a foul call or he misses a scoop shot or reverse layup, Castro smiles.
"You have to smile or you will go crazy," he said. "In my freshman and sophomore years, I was frustrated because I didn't get the ball enough. I decided to change that."
In his freshman season, Castro started 11 of 22 games and averaged 5.8 points. The next season, he started 23 of 30 games and pushed his scoring average to nine. Last season, Castro started every game and averaged 9.9 points and shot 50.9 percent. Yet Castro wasn't considered a threat on offense. Guard Bryan Hopkins and Simpson were considered the main scoring threats last season.
This season, Tubbs has decided to push the ball inside to Castro or Simpson. With Simpson, he gets a finesse player who makes short-range jumpers. Castro gives the Mustangs a player who gets position in the paint and receives entry passes for shorter shot attempts.
SMU is averaging 7.1 more points and 2.1 more assists per game this season. The increased efficiency could be attributed to Castro making more baskets.
"Last year, I thought he was a talent inside, but I thought he could do more," Tubbs said. "I challenged Eric, and I think he's given a lot. But I expect more from him. Does he outjump anybody? I doubt it. I look for him to be cerebral with his game."
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