'He just wants to be able to play': Romelo Burrell continues productive season through positive attitude, work ethic
Romelo Burrell underneath the basket during Central Michigan's 68-67 Jan. 7 win over Northern Illinois in McGuirk Arena.
When senior forward Rob Montgomery slipped into the depths of foul trouble, coach Keno Davis was forced to give extended minutes to his bench.
Montgomery averages 11.3 points per game in 26 minutes, a hole not easily filled.
As a result of Montgomery's foul trouble, Davis turned to junior forward Romelo Burrell, a 6-foot-7-inch native of Chicago, Illinois to play the center position.
Though undersized for his role in both height and weight, Burrell has seen an uptick in minutes this season due to his effort underneath the basket on both ends of the floor.
Tuesday night against Northern Illinois was no different.
Burrell played a career-high 21 minutes in the Chippewas' thrilling 68-67 win over the Huskies, scoring four points and grabbing four rebounds. He also had two blocks, an assist and a steal.
Though small efforts in various categories often go unnoticed, in a one-possession game Burrell's impact cannot be overstated.
“I think he’s playing great," Davis said. "He’s one of those guys coming off the bench and continues to work."
Burrell cracked the box score when he was fouled scrapping for an offensive rebound, something he's gained a reputation for. When he's on the floor, rarely does a rebound go uncontested.
On Tuesday, Burrell grabbed one offensive rebound and contended for several more, including a fortunate bounce that led to a foul and his two free throws in the first half, both of which he sank.
In the second half, Burrell was relied upon to contribute in crunch time as Montgomery was whistled for his third and fourth fouls.
After the Huskies pushed their lead to eight, Burrell cut hard to the basket and got a solid pass from senior guard Kevin McKay. Burrell caught the pass and slammed it through, keeping the Chippewas close.
Burrell would keep the deficit at six later in the second half, swatting away a shot attempt by NIU's Gairges Daow. He'd add another block exactly 30 seconds later, rejecting an attempt by Trendon Hankerson after Hankerson outdueled him for the offensive rebound.
"He understands where he needs to improve as a player and those weaknesses that he has, he usually doesn’t go to those," Davis said. "Those, he knows, will get him off the court."
Despite having played in each of the Chippewas' 15 games this season, Burrell's minutes usually hover around 10 per contest.
When given the opportunity for an increase, he shouldered the load vacated by Montgomery's foul trouble. Spurred by his efforts, Central Michigan outrebounded the Huskies 8 to 7 on the offensive glass and 35 to 32 overall.
When Burrell contributes efficient efforts as he did against NIU, it helps the Chippewas from a depth and production standpoint. He gives Davis a reliable big man option to take some minutes off Montgomery's shoulders.
The fight in Burrell cannot be understated. Despite being undersized in every category, Burrell battles with the biggest and best of them, night in and night out.
"It’s a great player for us to be able to put in there because he can guard inside," Davis said. "Even though he’s got a slender build he’ll fight you inside and fight you to rebound. He’s a pretty good defender out on the perimeter. (He's a) nice piece for us to be able to have."
Should he continue to build from a rebounding and effort standpoint, the Chippewas could take another step toward being a competitor in an ultracompetitive Mid-American Conference.
A season ago, Burrell played in all 35 contests but averaged only 11 minutes per game. This year, he's up to 14. He came to Central Michigan after spending his freshman season at John A. Logan College, a junior college located near Chicago. He's become a viable and valuable piece of the Chippewa bench.
Despite averaging just 3.3 points per game, Burrell continues to earn more minutes.
Because when the ball goes up, he's going to do everything he can to bring it down with him. That's the effort Davis is looking for to fill out his rotation.
"We got guys that are dying to play that are sitting on the bench and not getting as much opportunity as they would like," Davis said. "So when they get that chance to go in, they know that the way to get more minutes on this year’s team is to play defense and to rebound the ball. So when we come to practice, those guys are trying to get minutes in practice and that makes us better."
Burrell's effort and impact wasn't always a sure thing. However, it seems that in year two, Burrell has unlocked another gear of effort, one that is shining through for his squad that is off to a 2-0 start in conference play.
"We recruited him late, and so I wasn’t sure what we were getting out of him," Davis said. "I was told by several people that had coached him when he was younger about his great attitude, his great work ethic, that I wouldn’t be disappointed if I had him on the team."
"They were right, 100 percent."
