St. Joseph grad Jimmy Giannetta helps give Carlow men's basketball more depth as it faces AMCC slate

When Carlow men’s basketball coach Tim Keefer began to speak with St. Joseph’s Jimmy Giannetta, one of the first questions he asked was a curious one.

Are you left-handed or right-handed?

In watching St. Joseph’s games, Keefer had observed Giannetta shooting with his left hand on jumpers and free throws. But when he would drive to the basket, Giannetta had a propensity for shooting floaters with his right hand. And doing it well.

So which is it, Jimmy?

The freshman guard’s answer is, at best, nebulous. He said he is left-hand dominant, preferring to shoot from longer range with that hand. But, during his youth as a football player, he would throw right-handed.

“It’s something that just happened,” he said. “I started to realize it in third grade.”

Keefer isn’t concerned with which hand Giannetta is using on the basketball court. He is more interested in watching Giannetta continue on his current trajectory.

Through Carlow’s 11 games before the holiday break, the 6-foot guard had appeared in every game, starting twice. He was averaging 6.5 points and shooting 42.3%, 39% from 3-point range.

In only three of the 11 games did Giannetta shoot below 50% from the floor, and, against defending Presidents’ Athletic Conference champion Chatham, he had a season-high 14 points on 4-of-8 shooting, making both of his 3-point attempts. He also went 4 of 4 from the free-throw line.

He was averaging 19.5 minutes per game. All of it is a little beyond what Giannetta said he expected from his first year of college basketball.

“To try to fight for my minutes, be a nice energy guy on the team,” Giannetta said about what he hoped to accomplish this season. “Be able to push the upperclassmen at practices, be able to provide a spark if I was able to get any minutes.”

Minutes haven’t been an issue. Still, there have been adjustments.

At St. Joseph, Giannetta would get many of his points by driving to the basket. Keefer, however, has asked him to be more confident in shooting from the outside.

“What he has to understand is there are times to have faith in his jump shot,” Keefer said. “He was used to getting to the hole, but I always tell him, ‘When you go in with the trees, you get hit with branches.’ ”

Keefer never doubted Giannetta’s ability to score, but that wasn’t necessarily what Carlow would need from him. The Celtics would get plenty of offense from the likes of Byron Gaskins, Galen Waters and Nehemiah Brazil.

Keefer envisioned Giannetta running the point in the Celtics’ three-guard system and being more of a distributor. The coach said he has been pleased with Giannetta’s development in that area, noting his ability to see and connect with the open man.

“When he was at St. Joseph, they asked him to score,” Keefer said. “That was his job, to keep them in games. He has learned that he doesn’t have to do that at the college level.”

Added Giannetta: “I’ve always prioritized shooting a high percentage and being a guy they can give it to who they know is going to be able to have a good chance of making it.

“But scoring points right now is not a big deal. I’m more worried about affecting my team, essentially. I’m fine with the points I am averaging right now. Sometimes I don’t even look at that.”

Like most college newcomers, Giannetta has had to improve his defensive skills. For Carlow as a whole, defense has been an issue in recent seasons. It will be a priority this season if the Celtics hope to be competitive in their first full slate in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference.

Through December, the Celtics (3-8, 1-3 AMCC) were giving up 72 points per game.

“That’s something I’m still working on, but (Keefer) has been able to increase my defensive efficiency a lot,” Giannetta said. “I wasn’t the best (defender), but coach Keefer has made me a good defensive player.

“More of the IQ, like where to rotate off passes and where to play my position, how to rebound efficiently. Just overall IQ aspects of the game.”

As the Celtics enter the meat of conference play, Giannetta said he is ready to attack it head-on. Gone are the freshman nerves — he said he was more nervous than he had ever been when he stepped on the court for his college debut against Saint Vincent — replaced by the confidence that he can play at this level.

There also is a confidence that the team can be competitive in its new conference. After playing in the River States Conference against NAIA schools that can give scholarships, little Carlow is on a more level playing field in the AMCC.

The Celtics already have won as many conference games this season (one) as they did the last three seasons combined in the RSC.

“We’ve been competitive,” Keefer said. “In the NAIA, usually the problem is depth. When (opponents) bring in their second five, they’re as good as our first five. We’ve been more competitive this year, and our first and second units are doing real well.”

Giannetta has played a role in providing more depth, and he said the AMCC is in store for a surprise when the Celtics show up.

“We are definitely a very underrated team,” he said. “People don’t take us seriously. But we have a lot of new guys contributing, and I think our chemistry is very good.

“We are able to defensively get stops if we need to, and, offensively, we’re not worried about that because we have a very good offense. We have a ton of guys who can score the ball and shoot the ball. We’re still cooking, so we’re going to keep grinding.”