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December 06, 2005
Mens basketball is off to a rocky start, but nothing is set in stone
Thus far this season Piper mens basketball has dropped three of its first four games. In their season opener against the North Dakota State University (NDSU) Bison they shot 40 percent from the floor, nearly ten percentage points behind their opponent and fell 90-76. They were able to best Martin Luther College in their next game, but would go on to lose a heartbreaker to Northwestern College just four days later.
Last Wednesday they came up short again, this time against Gustavus, their first conference opponent of the year.
To the casual observer these stats may not look like the beginnings of a promising season, but the future of this team is anything but set in stone. The group only lost two members from last year and picked up some strong new recruits who have integrated into the team well.
“Right now we’re excited about the possibilities this team has,” said head coach Barry Wohler.
In basketball, there is always more to tell than simple box scores and highlights. Only one of the Piper’s first four games has been out of reach. For example, NDSU is a Div. I team that lost to the University of
Minnesota Golden Gophers by just 13. That means the Pipers were going up against a team that plays two divisions up, one that has certain inherent advantages such as recruiting. Though Hamline wasn’t able to pull off the win, they certainly put up a fight. They were down by just five points with less than twelve minutes left in the game, but slipped as the Bison went on an 8-0 run.
At one point against Northwestern, Hamline was down by 16, but was able to narrow the gap to one point in the last eight minutes of the game. Again, they weren’t able to snare the victory, but they gave Northwestern something to think about.
Last year the team finished 10-15, a lackluster performance for the amount of talent on the team, but this year they’re more experienced and much faster.
“We’re gonna be a team that’s fun to watch,” said Wohler. “I think we’ll be the quickest team in the conference.”
Speed will be important to this Piper squad. They’ve lost some height this year but will be able to run the floor more effectively. Wohler and the team will use primarily motion offense, and will work hardest at playing strong pressure defense and pushing the ball into transition. They have already improved their passing in practice, but whether they will be able to continue this throughout the season, and against some really tough MIAC opponents has yet to be seen.
If the team can move the ball more effectively this year than last, and can make quick transitions, they’ll be able to put up a lot of points, and in case you didn’t know, the team with the most points at the end of the game usually wins. Their whole style of play will depend on tight defense and quick transition. That said, the team has five members over 6’5” and no one under 5’9”, so they’re not exactly tiny. The combination of height and speed will indeed make this team fun to watch.
Posted by msveum at December 6, 2005 11:58 AM
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