Dante Harvey and DeAntre Jefferson knelt in front of the scorer’s table less than four minutes into the game.
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga reserve post players checked in and starters Ridge McKeither and Jeremy Saffore took seats before they could break a good sweat.
About 30 seconds later, guards Jasper Williams and Josh Odem repeated the routine with Keegan Bell and Ricky Taylor getting breaks.
And the pattern of rotating players at nearly every official timeout continued through the Mocs’ 85-80 Southern Conference win over Appalachian State on Saturday.
“Everybody is seeing their role and playing their role,” Bell said. “Playing less minutes, some say I may be fresher, but I don’t take that into account. The changing of minutes doesn’t change how I’m playing.”
For the first time this season, the Mocs have a defined rotation and substitution pattern.
“When you’re not playing as many minutes, you just go as hard as you can,” Jefferson said. “It helps knowing that you’re going to come in early, do your part. It’s like everybody gets a chance.”
The rotation is designed to get the most from each player during his time on the floor, whether it’s three minutes from Sam Watson or 27 minutes from Taylor, with those having the best games playing down the stretch.
“We’re getting a rotation,” said coach John Shulman, who was given a distinguished citizen’s award by Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield and County Mayor Claude Ramsey on Tuesday afternoon before General Sessions Court Judge Bob Moon addressed the team.
“I told Coach (Dave) Conrady that I wanted to play more people. We’re not going to be held hostage by guys on the floor, and I want to play guys early,” Shulman said. “How hard I want to play, 26 or 27 minutes is probably the max.”
The rotation has a tag-team approach to the post.
McKeither and Saffore start. Harvey and Jefferson are next, followed by Watson and Chris Early.
“It’s like every four minutes Coach puts in a new two,” Harvey said. “Me and Big D, then it’s Early and Sam. It all goes hand in hand.
“We can’t afford to have a guy out there fatigued, because if you’re fatigued you make mistakes.”
In last week’s victories against Western Carolina and Appalachian State, every available UTC player — except for Troy Cage, who has missed all but two minutes of the season due to injury — played during critical junctures.
Senior Ty Patterson, who was named Southern Conference player of the week Tuesday, is the only UTC player to average more than 30 minutes per game in SoCon contests.
Patterson is the Mocs’ first player of the week this season, although he was the player of the month for December. Patterson averaged 18.5 points and nine rebounds against WCU and ASU.
“We have more players playing, and we need that because it’s part of our identity — everybody contributing,” Shulman said. “Dontay (Hampton) has played fantastic the last two nights, and he wasn’t playing before. Jasper has played well and made a big shot for us.
“Surely out of 13, 14, 15 guys, we can find five that want to play every night.”