 Senior Omar Carter leads the Mountaineers in scoring and is second in rebounding. Paul Heckert | The Appalachian
As cliché as it sounds, the best-laid plans of Omar Carter went awry this season.
Carter, the preseason SoCon player of the year was supposed to be the man for ASU this season. But a shaky start saw him looking like more of a mouse.
“This season has been bumpy,” Carter said. “My numbers have showed it. My accolades haven’t been what they wanted to be.”
Carter, a second-year Mountaineer and Charleston Southern transfer, scored over 16 points per game in his debut season at ASU. His strong performance, paired with fellow volume-shooter Donald Simms, left many thinking that more space for Carter on the offense could result in a stronger 2011-2012 season.
But Carter struggled out of the gate and saw his points, shooting percentages and minutes fall from the 2010-11 season.
In the Southern Conference, though, it’s not about how you start. The SoCon, as a mid-major conference, typically only receives its automatic conference tournament bid. Carter and the rest of the Mountaineers know they only need a four-game win streak to claim the conference’s top prize.
Carter thinks that finally, both he and his teammates are ready to go on a run. His experience in the senior day game against Winthrop helped revive him.
“That senior game kept it all up for me, honestly...that was the best game of my career,” Carter said. “We kind of actually put it together. Even late in this season, we can always get better.”
Although Appalachian has received contributions from several unexpected sources to supplement Carter, the Mountaineers will need him to play consistently. ASU has a winning record when Carter scores in double-figures.
“He’s a big offensive threat, huge,” fellow senior Andre Williamson said. “For a lot of teams, you have to draw up different defenders to guard him.”
Carter’s scoring has fluctuated, but factors like rebounding have made him instrumental in every game. He currently sits second on the team in rebounds with 5.9 per game.
“He’s a good rebounder,” center Isaac Butts said. “For a big man, when we box out, it’s great to see somebody who can run in and get it.”
No matter how the Mountaineers finish in the SoCon tournament, Carter will leave the team with lessons learned about himself.
“First, from a mental standpoint, I feel like I’ve had a lot of diversity here. The first day of practice, I broke my finger,” Carter said. “I have stayed strong and I’ve come closer with my teammates. I don’t know why it happened, but I feel like down the road, I feel if this adversity happened again, I’d know how to handle it.”
ASU will take on Western Carolina Saturday afternoon in the final game of the regular season. The SoCon bracket will be released following the weekend’s action.
Story: JAKE AMBERG, Sports Editor
Photo: PAUL HECKERT, Intern Photographer
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