Lipscomb men’s basketball players Rob Marberry and Garrison Mathews go together like peanut butter and jelly. Like bacon and eggs. Well, you get the idea.
Marberry is more verbal and outgoing. Mathews is quieter and makes his statements by example. Those different approaches might be expected to mix like oil and water, but while they both like to give each other a tough time on the court there is never any lasting discord.
“They are extremely close, “Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “When all of the kidding, poking and prodding have been done they know they can count on each other.
“Everything short of that is a game to them. Trying to get under each other’s skin is a lot of silliness as much as anything.”
Marberry played at Franklin Road Academy before moving on and playing a season at Western Kentucky University. Mathews played football and basketball for Franklin High. Despite their proximities they never crossed paths.
All that has changed at Lipscomb. Once unfamiliar to each other, Marberry and Mathews have developed into a formidable double threat on the court.
“Rob has become one of my best friends,” Mathews said. “We hang out all of the time. We both came to Lipscomb pretty chunky. We sat down together and we both said if we were going to be the best players we could be we had to work hard.
“Everything is a competition between us. We are always talking trash to each other. I love it. He pushes me. I push him. We have both taken our games to another level. If you can’t handle the trash talk, you can’t be out there.”
Marberry traces the competition to the fact both he and Mathews want to be the best. Period.
“We both want to win at everything,” Marberry said. “When we are playing on separate teams in practice we try to go against each other as much as possible. At the end of practice we always see who did better.
“It brings out a competitive nature that is sometimes hard for most people to bring out. We overstep the boundaries sometimes, but we know not to go too far when we get after each other on the court. At the end of the day we love each other so it is all fine.”
Having such strong dynamics on a team can sometimes be troubling for a coaching staff, but such is not the case for Alexander and his assistants.
“They both have alpha dog personalities,” Alexander said. “Sometimes that can create real conflict on a team. You have two guys at difference positions and if they don’t have the interests of the team first it can really create a divide.
“They have done nothing but support each other. They understand the value of their relationship. That is what you want as a coach.”
THE OFFENSE BEGINS
Lipscomb’s offense begins with Marberry, a 6-foot-7 forward. More often than not ends with a shot from Mathews, a guard, or Marberry.
After an outstanding high school career Alexander admits Marberry enjoyed a less than successful year at Western Kentucky. Based on what he knew about Marberry, he didn’t hesitate to take the plunge and sign him.
“After his year off we knew he would be an asset for us,” Alexander said. “The low post is the focal point of our offense. People think you need to have some big stud in there.
“That would be nice, but really what we have to have is someone who is skilled and can put the ball in the basket. Rob is undersized by Division I standards, but he has a great touch, great natural instincts and great skills. He is a really good…understated…passer from the post.”
Marberry is second overall in points per game in the ASUN Conference with 20.1. Mathews leads with 21.5. Marberry is second overall in field goal percentage in the ASUN at 61.9 and second in conference games only at 64.6.
Marberry is second in total points in conference games only with 282. Mathews is first with 301.
Mathews leads the ASUN with 22.1 points per game. Marberry is sixth with 16 per game overall.
Both were named to the ASUN All-Conference First Team.
“Rob is not the prototype, but we can try to feed him the ball every possession,” Alexander said. “Defenses have to start their plan with Rob. If they don’t front him he is a really good scorer. If they do front him, other players have to help and that opens things up for other people.
“If he doesn’t demand that type of attention then nothing works as well for us as it could on offense. That is why he so valuable for us.”
Both have been instrumental in leading the Bisons to their first ever ASUN Championship and their first visit to the NCAA Tournament.
“Based on ASUN statistics only he had a case for being the ASUN Player of the Year. Stats in ASUN games are what I base my postseason selections on since they are the most consistent stats we have.”
AND THEN THERE WERE FOUR
Mathews and Eli Pepper were the original members of the junior class. Marberry had to sit out a season as a transfer and became part of the junior group. Nathan Moran was a year ahead of them but has been sitting out this season due to an injury.
“They are all going to leave a significant mark on our program,” Alexander said. “Garrison is on pace to be our leading scorer of all time in the NCAA era. Rob is most likely going to be a three-time ASUN All-Conference player and will also maybe be a 1,500-point scorer in just three seasons here. Eli is on pace to be our leading rebounder of all time. Nathan is 10-or-12 points away from being a 1,000-point scorer.
“The culmination of those guys being seniors together next season is going to be pretty phenomenal to witness. It has been a three-man show this year. Next year it is going to be a four-man show. It is also going to be pretty scary to replace them.”
