By: Andrew Gavin (@GBGavin)
GreenBayPhoenix.com

GREEN BAY, Wis. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) - A noun meaning, "one that pesters or annoys, a nuisance." That is how the Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the word "pest."

If the first 15 combined games of the their careers are any indication, pictures of Keifer Sykes (Chicago, Ill.) and Megan Lukan (Barrie, Ontario) might be found adjacent to that word in the dictionary by the spring of 2015.

As freshmen, Sykes and Lukan are very early in their careers on their respective Phoenix teams, and both are balancing the ups and downs of the stressful life on the court as Division I point guards. While learning the intricacies of an offense and memorizing scouting reports can be a work in progress, one thing is a noticeable constant for the two young signal callers, their defensive effort.

One of the reasons that the young guards are strong defenders is they place a lot of importance on their performance on that end of the floor.

"She values defense," head women's coach Matt Bollant said of Lukan. She thinks it's important and she takes a lot of pride in it."

"Keifer is a nard-nosed young man who takes a lot of pride in his defense," head men's coach Brian Wardle. "He came here as a good defender and he has really bought into our philosophy on that end of the floor."

Sykes and Lukan have already shown a proclivity for annoying opposing point guards. Both regularly start guarding 90-94 feet away from the basket, making it challenging for the offense to get into their offense.

In the men's team's win over Loyola Saturday, Sykes had a steal and also forced a five-second call in the opening half. His defensive pressure set the tone as Green Bay went into halftime leading 32-12.

"His ball pressure really set the tone against Loyola and made things difficult on them," Wardle said. "He picked up full court and kept the ball in front extremely well while also forcing a couple of turnovers."

Lukan has 16 steals on the season for the Phoenix women. In wins over Marquette and Northern Iowa last weekend, she contributed four steals as Green Bay forced 49 turnovers.

"She's our best on-ball defender, and that's saying something because we have a lot of good on-ball defenders," Bollant said. "She makes things tough for our opponent, is really good at the Buzz defense and our full-court pressure. She really forces a lot of turnovers for us."

Both point guards also took important steps on the offensive end as both Green Bay teams won two important home games. Sykes had eight points, four rebounds and four assists while playing 33 minutes in the win over Loyola to help the Phoenix move to 2-0 in Horizon League play. Lukan averaged 12.5 points for the women's team in hard-fought victories over Marquette and Northern Iowa.

Sykes, a 5-foot-10 guard, is the first true freshman to start at point guard for Green Bay since Rahmon Fletcher in 2007-08. He is averaging 5.9 points and two assists per game and is second on the Phoenix in minutes per game (24.6). He has started all eight games at point guard for Wardle.

Lukan, a 5-foot-7 guard who sat out as a redshirt in 2010-11, learned from practicing against Phoenix standout Celeste Hoewisch. Through her first seven college games, Lukan is averaging 7.7 points per game and is shooting an impressive 55.9 percent off Bollant's bench.

Both teams return to the road this week for challenging non-conference tilts. The men's team plays at Wisconsin at 7 p.m. on Wednesday in a contest that will be broadcast on ESPN3. The women will play at Toledo on Thursday at 7 p.m. in a rematch of an 84-68 Phoenix victory over the Rockets on Nov. 16.

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