West proving himself as Saint Joseph's other threat

Saint Joseph's point guard Jameer Nelson is the preseason All-American. But Delonte West may be the more efficient offensive player.

Together, the two comprise one of the most formidable backcourt tandems in the nation and, despite an upset scare from Old Dominion last week, have catapulted the No. 12 Hawks to a 4-0 record.

At the shooting guard spot, the 6'4", 180-pound junior is an explosive slasher whose smooth stroke from behind the three-point arc has been deadly in St. Joseph's first four victories of the young season.

The Greenbelt, Md., native, who shot just 37.4 percent last season from beyond the arc, has made 50 percent of his three-point shots so far. Nelson, however, is shooting 27.8 percent from three point range.

West leads head coach Phil Martelli's squad in field goals and is second in scoring, averaging 18 points per game.

What is more, the athletic junior is hardly taking wide-open layups. His offensive repertoire includes difficult turnaround jump shots and often acrobatic moves to the basket.

Despite his scoring mentality, West has demonstrated his versatility in the first three games of the season. The guard is averaging 4.3 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.8 steals per contest.

"I think the thing that people haven't seen yet is that he's a tremendous passer and a great, great defender," Martelli said. "That has a lot to do with his overall game, which is more stunning that just his scoring ability."

In his sophomore season, West used a potent mid-range game to average 17.3 points per game.

Before suffering a stress fracture last year -- which forced him to miss three of the final eight games of the season and rarely play in the other five-- West made his presence felt.

During a four-game stretch before the injury, West averaged 28.5 points per game and shot 56.7 percent in that span -- numbers that may have been a preview of what was to come during his junior season.

Despite the injury, West was still a first-team All-Atlantic 10 Conference and All-Philadelphia Big 5 selection and was named the Most Improved Player by both leagues.

Containing a vastly improved West will be crucial to Penn's upset aspirations on Saturday.

In last season's 66-48 loss, Penn held West to 15 points on just 6-of-17 shooting. The guard made only 1-of-6 from behind the arc.

Yet it appears that West has expanded his offensive arsenal and has become a more complete player than he was last winter in the Hawks' win over Penn.

"When he came to school here I knew that he certainly had the ability to be a special player," Martelli said.

The Quakers will not have the luxury of focusing on stopping West from getting into the paint.

Now a proven three-point threat, West has exhibited his ability to hit long-range jump shots, drive and score.

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