With Men’s basketball win against Peru State on Feb. 21, they finish the regular season with back-to-back twenty-win seasons and a record of 20-8. With the win they also landed the number two seed in the Heart Conference tournament.
Coach Sean Dooley was nothing but proud of his team, as they dealt with adversity both on and off the court throughout the season.
“There was definitely a lot of adversity that this team had faced; with illnesses, injures and others off the court but only made us stronger,” Dooley said.
Dooley saw the first sign of this team being another contender in the Heart of America Conference after seeing the competition that they put up against Georgetown just three games into the season.
“We had a chance to win late in the second half and just seeing how our guys compete with a team that has been there [NAIA final four]. Even though it wasn’t the result we wanted I could tell that this group had a chance,” Dooley said.
Coming into the year the team saw some changes to the roster. The team lost three seniors due to graduation and Dooley knew that guys were going to have to step up along with a couple of transfers to fill the roles of those graduating.
Junior Korey Jones and Junior Braden Griffiths were the two who took the opportunity to have an impact both on and off the court.
“[Korey Jones] is kind of like the heart and soul of our team as he might not be our leading scorer, but his energy is infectious,” Dooley said. “Braden Griffiths is another guy that really stepped up and had a great year,”
As the team went 11-3 at home Dooley contributes a portion of their success to the student section that shows up every game and brings electricity throughout Collins Gymnasium.
“I think it is an outstanding environment to be in, and a great atmosphere that helps motivate the guys throughout the game,” Dooley said.
Senior center Brock Burling discusses the game plan heading into the Heart Conference tournament and potential games after that.
“We are taking the postseason one game at a time, and we understand it only takes one off night for us to be eliminated therefore preparing as much as possible,” Burling said.
With the nail-biting win against Park on Feb. 27, which saw Park come back down 16, the men’s team hosts another playoff game on March 1 against the three-seed Graceland in the Heart Conference semifinals.
