INSIDE COVERAGE: EFFICIENT NEWCOMER LEADS SECOND-HALF SURGE By Corey Adams Junior guard Terrell Thompson literally couldn't miss. Throughout a second-half surge at Troy, Saturday, Austin Peay elevated its play to earn an 80-71 victory over the Trojans. No Governor was more-efficient than Thompson in the half, totaling 11 points, which included a layup and three-pointer, and making all six of his free throw attempts. One-hundred percent. After previously going 3-of-10 from the charity stripe this season, Thompson was cool and collective in crunch time, knocking down all six attempts under the four-minute mark to halt any miracle comeback by the opposition. "Basically, it was just the confidence I had in myself," Thompson said. "Being able to take the right shots I could make. Free-throw wise, it was just confidence. Every time I went to the line, I told myself I was going to make them. After you make the first two, the rest come easy. "That was a very big (win), because it was a good road test for us. It was a pretty good team that we beat, and the way we played in the second half was big for us." Thompson, a native of Indianapolis, is one of three JUCO transfers to join the Govs this season. In his two seasons at Wabash Valley CC, the 6-1 point guard earned all-conference and all-region accolades, averaging 11 points and six assists per game as a sophomore. Thompson nearly recorded a double-double on numerous occasions as the team's floor general, a trait which caught the eye of APSU coaches who desired a distributor. After coming off the bench at Vanderbilt in the season-opener, Thompson has since captured the starting point guard role with starts in each of the last eight games. Although the transition to Division I was difficult at first, Thompson now views himself as a more-relaxed, self-assured player. "I feel like I've adjusted a lot, because coming in everything was new," he said. "It's different from where I came from in JUCO. I'm playing against better players, and running a system to become a true point guard was the biggest change for me. I feel after the success we've had lately, my confidence has grown in order to do that." With dynamic playmakers around him – Chris Horton and Kenny Jones down low, Khalil Davis and Josh Robinson on the wings – Thompson is in a prime position. With an unselfish style to his game, Thompson has served as the facilitator for Austin Peay, a player who creates open scoring chances for his teammates. Flashes of his offensive game has been showcased – just watch the highlight clip of a breakaway dunk against Sewanee – but he remains concentrated on fulfilling the role head coach David Loos has given him. "I'm more of a pass-first point guard," Thompson said. "I look to get everyone involved and make everybody stay happy, because that's going to better our chances of winning. I believe me doing that is better, focusing on getting everyone involved first and go with the flow of the game." Statistically, things are trending in the right direction for the newcomer. Thompson is averaging 32.3 minutes over his last three games, his turnover count remains low and he has dished out five assists in two of the team's previous three games. But the only trend Thompson is tracking is the win total as the Governors seek to chalk up another win streak. "We want to build off the momentum we've had these past couple of games," he said. "We've won our last four out of five, so just building on that momentum and carrying that into the future." | 
