Whenever Marcus Johnson Jr. has a rough game, he'll usually hear from one of his parents.
On Saturday, it was his father calling from Charlotte, N.C., after Johnson was held to 2-of-10 shooting in UALR's victory over Louisiana-Monroe.
"He told me, 'you played a good game, don't get down on yourself. I don't care if you're not making shots, as long as you won, you'll be all right,'" he said.
Johnson, a senior guard, said encouraging words are nice to hear as he struggles through the worst three-game shooting stretch of his UALR career but he doesn't necessarily need them.
"I would like to see the ball go in more," he said. "But as long as we're winning, I'm fine with that. Coach and my teammates, they want me to shoot if it's going in or if it's not going in. So, I'm going to keep shooting."
Johnson said he will try improve of the 5-for-25 stretch when the Trojans (10-4, 1-0 Sun Belt) host Louisiana-Lafayette (10-4, 0-1) at 8 p.m. tonight in a game televised nationally by ESPN2.
He still leads the Trojans in scoring with 13.6 points per game, despite scoring 17 points combined over the past three games. Included in the slump is a 1-for-10 mark on three-point attempts.
UALR Coach Wes Flanigan said he wants to see Johnson's shot improve as much as anybody, but Flanigan said he understands the reasons surrounding the funk.
Defenses have been more aware of Johnson on the perimeter after he shot 46.6 percent from three point range last season. Plus, on a team without as much guard depth as a year ago, Johnson is having to play more minutes, while regularly guarding the opposing teams' best player.
Perhaps the biggest reason for Johnson's shooting woes, Flanigan said, is that Johnson is having to play as the Trojans' primary point guard.
Johnson found open spaces along the three-point line while being set up by Josh Hagins a year ago, but those opportunities have decreased with the ball in his hands more often this year.
"It's a lot," Flanigan said. "It can affect your shot at times."
Johnson's load isn't likely to decrease after last week's announcement that Dayshawn Watkins would miss the entire season with a broken bone in his foot.
He played 42 minutes in Saturday's 79-75 overtime victory and is averaging 33.9 minutes per game, second most of any Sun Belt player.
Flanigan said he still thinks he can be the team's top scorer, but just in a different way. Rather than spotting up for threes, Flanigan would like him to drive to the basket for layups or trips to the free-throw line
. Flanigan's confidence in Johnson playing that role comes from watching Johnson play at Hill (Texas) College two years ago against Holmes (Miss.) Community College, coached by Flanigan's brother, Jason.
"He's getting better as a facilitator," Flanigan said. "I saw that last night. He made some great plays off the ball-screen action. He's starting to become more of a downhill driver for us to get people involved."
Johnson said he thinks he can do it, too. He was a point guard his entire career until getting to UALR last year, where he played alongside Hagins. He was prepared to make the adjustment back once Hagins departed, but it's been more difficult adjustment than anticipated.
His field-goal percentage has waned from 47.3 percent last year to 38.7 this year, but his confidence has not.
"I'm not worried at all," he said. "It's a mental thing. It's nothing to do with mechanics. I shoot the same way every time. But I will tell you: I will get it together."
Sports on 01/02/2017