01:37 AM CST on Wednesday, December 8, 2004
By C. ANTHONY MOSSER / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News

GARLAND – When a 3-point shot goes up early in a Plano possession, a shout of "Don't settle for that!" usually follows from coach Tom Inman.

Eric Zastoupil is the second-leading scorer for Plano, which has started 8-1. He's also one of three big men who can play inside or outside. 'I like it. I like it a lot,' coach Tom Inman says. But that hasn't been the case too often during Plano's 8-1 start. The Wildcats are getting the ball inside, usually with results that soothe Inman, not make him seethe.

A frontline that includes 6-8 junior Eric Zastoupil, 6-6 junior Joseph Fulce and 6-4 senior Travis Vance is causing matchup problems for opponents.

"The thing about it is, we have three guys who can all play with their back to the basket, and all three can turn and face up, too," Inman said. "I like it. I like it a lot."

Fulce (19.3 points per game), Zastoupil (12.1) and Vance (11.5) are major reasons Plano is shooting nearly 53 percent from the field entering tonight's game at South Garland.

Each has been Plano's leading scorer in a game, and all three have scored in double figures in the same game four times. Two of three have scored in double figures in seven games.

"We like to run a high-low offense, and all of those guys are all versatile enough to be the one to pop out high or be the low guy on the block," Inman said.

While Plano will continue to try to punch the ball inside, Inman foresees his guards becoming more involved in the offense. Point guard Brandon Ware, off-guard Mark Foster and sixth-man Ryan Manack each average about seven points per game and can knock down a jump shot.

"We're not taking too many bad shots," Inman said. "I think as we go along, you'll see our inside game set up the 3-point shot more."

Briefly ...
Plano coach Tom Inman, now in his sixth season, collected his 100th career win when the Wildcats defeated the Jewish Community Center, 80-33, on Thursday in the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Tournament. He is 102-62. ... Ryan Manack made his first start of the season in a 58-52 loss to Irving in the tournament final Saturday. ... Plano entered the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 5A state rankings at No. 19 last week. The Wildcats play at South Garland today and return there this weekend for the South Garland Shootout. Plano will play Pine Bluff (Ark.) High at 7:30 p.m. Friday and North Garland at 1:30 p.m. Saturday.

Plano at South Garland, boys basketball, 7:30 p.m. today

BIG 'CATS

Plano's starting frontcourt of Joseph Fulce, Eric Zastoupil and Travis Vance averages 42.9 points per game, or 62.8 percent of the team's 68.3 scoring average.

Player	Class	Height	Points/Game
Joseph Fulce	Junior	6-6	19.3
Eric Zastoupil	Junior	6-8	12.1
Travis Vance	Senior	6-4	11.5