Coach Dwight Dickinson is excited about the approaching basketball season.
“I think it’s going to be an exciting year, and when we are playing well and the ball’s moving it’s great to see, its really good basketball,” he said.
The men’s basketball team played a few of their pre-season games in the U.S. against U of Maine Presque Isle, U of Maine Fort Kent and the CanAM Tournament. The men’s team ended up beating Presque Isles 95-70.
“We played pretty well, offense was able to operate under the pressure they put on us,” Dickinson said.
The team wasn’t so lucky when they took on U of Maine Fort Kent, which they lost to with a score of 79-51.
“The difficulty the team encountered was the running of our offense,” Dickinson said. “When the pressure defense come at us, when the double teams come at us, we get a little panicky and we rush the passes.”
He said it’s something the team just needs to go through, and in recent games they have been more patient with passing.
Dickinson said he is concerned with UNBSJ’s level of play coming into the regular season.
UNBSJ played and were able to beat a team that ended up beating STU by 18 points, but Dickinson said his team is ready to start their regular season.
He’s hoping that his team can avoid sickness throughout the long season.
He predicts that Holland College will be a top-three team this year, and will be a definite challenge for the team to overcome.
The team has had a great recruiting season, welcoming many new players to the team including first-year player Corey DeLong, Steven Cordy, Matt Payne – a 6-foot-3 guard forward – point guard Mackenzie Washburn, and Tristan Russell.
Danny Carson and John Bartlett are both red shirts.
When asked about his veteran players, Dickinson said they need to lead us.”
Last year, Matt Robertson was an ACAA all-star and went through a lot of sacrifices to help his teammates.
The team was one game short of making playoffs last year with a 6 – 15 record, and they’re hoping it’s in the cards this time around.
The team is also happy to have Andrew Holmes back for his fourth season. He plays a point guard and a two-guard shooting guard, so he’s a multi-purpose player.
Dickinson said he’s the hardest working player on the team, and he leads through example because he gets up and puts the pressure on.
Matt McGrath is back for his third season with the Tommies, and he’s a good shooter and rebounder, while Brad LeBritton guards bigs, perimeter, on top of rebounding and shooting well.
