Men’s and women’s basketball overviews

By Jett Johnson

Sports Editor

Men’s basketball

Men’s Basketball has had a great turnaround season and is heading into tournament season with a strong record of 15-10.

Men’s Basketball head coach Kevin Carroll is pleased with the team’s success. 

“It’s very gratifying. I don’t go into seasons predicting records and things of that nature. I’m more of a take-it day-by-day kind of guy, and I’m really grateful for the way our guys have come together. We’ve had a really good record at home and that’s been a big part of our overall success,” said Carroll. 

The men’s team has four players averaging double figures in scoring, and according to Carroll, this is their preferred style of offense. 

“That’s really just our style of play. I think it makes us more difficult to play against. If you only have one guy, then teams can gameplan for, but we have a lot of different weapons,” said Carroll.

Peter Lambesis, graduate student men’s basketball player, is also a fan of the current style of play. 

“The offensive style we play is very high-paced. One day it’s gonna be Jalen other days it’ll be Tommy or me. Seeing different guys bring it every day is a lot harder to guard,” said Lambesis.

This success has caused the team’s comradery to flourish according to Carroll.

“Honestly that was probably the thing I was most concerned about coming in, and it’s the thing I’ve been most pleased with going through the season. You never really know how a new team is going to mesh. A lot of credit goes to the previous coaching staff in terms of the type of young men they have in the program,” said Carroll. 

Adaptability is a part of the game that according to Carroll is crucial to success. 

“It’s very important. The game is always changing, and there’s a certain way the game has evolved that I don’t know will ever really go back. It will continue to evolve more, but I don’t think it’ll evolve backward. That’s something we pride ourselves on which is staying on the forefront of all that,” said Carroll. 

As tournament time comes around Lambesis thinks it’s the best time of the year. 

“People forget this but your goal should be to be playing your best basketball in February. I do think we’re headed in the right direction to where we want to be. At my old school, we won two conference finals so we got to play in the tournament. It’s the best time of the year and you’re playing your best basketball,” said Lambesis. 

Carroll is ready for tournament play and is confident his team knows the challenge at hand.

“This time of the year it’s really a lot more mental than anything. You want to keep your players engaged and fresh mentally. I think this time of the year, we know what we need to do; it’s just making sure that we’re locked into the particular game plan for that day,” said Carroll. 

The Great Midwest Championship begins March 5. 

Women’s basketball

Women’s basketball has had a strong year so far with a record of 16-8.

Karen Booker, women’s basketball head coach, thinks there are multiple parts to the teams’ success.

“We have eight new players and the team is different in some ways. There’s really good energy and a lot of the returning players have been key in the success. It’s been great to have senior leadership; they’ve been coaches on the floor,” said Booker. 

While they had success last year, Booker thinks team chemistry has improved. 

“It’s been wonderful. The players enjoy each other and there’s such great comradery. I think that goes a long way in how they play because they have fun together, and they’re enjoying this journey together,” said Booker. 

Kor Fornesa Liu, senior women’s basketball player, also has noticed a change in team chemistry. 

“This year, I’ve been really close with my teammates. It’s the closest I’ve ever been with them,” said Liu.

Booker takes pride in feeding the hot hand as four players are averaging double figures in points. 

“The players do a really good job of sharing the ball. We do a good job as a team of looking for each other. Part of what we want to do as a team is have balance in scoring, and I think we’re doing a good job of that,” said Booker. 

Liu thinks this has helped her improve her game offensively. 

“I think mostly offensively because I’ve been taking more shots this year. I’ve had more confidence this year, confidence has played a huge part for me,” said Liu. 

Liu sees that winning has brought more fans in to watch the team play. 

“It’s great seeing there’s more fans coming compared to my first year here,” said Liu.

Liu has gained more motivation since tournament time is upon the team. 

“I’m definitely ready for it. It gives me more hope and more motivation to go harder in practice,” said Liu. 

Booker acknowledges that the tournament will be a battle. 

“We’re hopeful, like last year, that we can get a home game for the tournament. It’s gonna be a battle. We have six games left and every game will be a battle. We’ll just take it a game at a time and would love to be able to repeat some of the success we had last year,” said Booker.

The Great Midwest Championship begins March 5th.