This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
There's no doubt that Brockeith Pane has established himself as one of the best scoring point guards in the Western Athletic Conference.
There's also no doubt that the position remains the biggest and most un-settled issue on the team.
Stew Morrill, without having said it, doesn't seem to trust either of his back-up point guards, freshman James Walker and sophomore E.J. Farris.
Both have taken multiple turns as Pane's primary back-up. But on Wednesday, in the Aggies loss to Idaho, Pane played the entire second half. It's the only time this season Pane's played an entire 20 minutes without a break. Jared Quayle, with Jaxon Myaer as his back-up last season, played an entire half once as well.
But in a game where Pane turned his ankle mid-way through the second half, Morrill still never went to his bench to sub for the junior. That speaks to a growing issue. Morrill hasn't been happy with the decision-making of Walker or Farris. Both players have talent. Walker, just a freshman, has a ton of upside. But neither have seemed to develop into someone Morrill trust's with the game on the line.
So what's the solution?
Morrill's tried Brian Green as a back-up, but Green clearly isn't a point guard, plus he's such a good shooter that playing him in that spot takes away from what he does best.
The logical solution is for one of the two to step up and play well enough and consistently enough to justify playing time. Because Pane was clearly spent by the end of the Idaho game, and he clearly needs at least a few minutes of rest each half.
Tony Jones