It has been a wild ride so far this season for the Notre Dame College Falcons men's basketball team. It all started when NDC upset Cleveland State in an exhibition at the end of October. To say a lot has happened since would be an understatement. The Falcons have battled injuries- they have dealt with a lot.
Coach Mark Richmond gave his thoughts:
"We have been through the ringer this season. We have dealt with a lot both on and off the court."Richmond stated.
A handful of players from that team that pulled off the upset at the Wolstein Center are no longer with the program or will not see action again this season. It was a tumultuous start to the year as NDC would start 1-7. Things have definitely improved since then. One major contributor who has really made an impact since his return from injury is DeAnthony Owens. The senior transfer from Edinboro is second on the team in scoring at 16.5 points a game- and- is leading the team in rebounding at 6.2 rebounds per night. Levi Frankland put in a ton of work last season in his redshirt season. You could often find him after games had been completed shooting hundreds of shots from the shooting gun. It is showing up in Frankland's numbers this season as he is leading the team in scoring at 17.3 points per game. Drew Scarberry got off to a slow start and was one of those guys who was not available for a four game stretch at the beginning of the season. The redshirt season has really come on late in the season, including a game in which he scored 31 points against Fairmont State in a narrow loss. Bruce Hodges- Dan Lott- and- Larenz Thurman were all members of last season's MEC Championship team so they know what it takes to get it done down the stretch.
Hodges talked about the end of the season:
" We are down to two games left in the regular season now- and- we are a lot better team than we were at the beginning of the year."Hodges explained.
Coach Mark Richmond agreed:
" Like I said before we have been thru a lot both on and off the court. Basketball in March is usually won at the defensive end. We need to gang rebound- get stops- and- take care of the ball. You never know what can happen."Richmond mentioned.
The Falcons will face a tough test in the home finale on Wednesday when they take on #16 West Liberty. The Hilltoppers clinched a share of the MEC title with their 109-88 drubbing of Fairmont State on Sunday.
Richmond talked about the atmosphere and what a difference it makes to be at home for a team that is 8-5 at Murphy Gym this season:
" We always have a great atmosphere and good crowds for our home games. It does not matter the level you are talking about winning on the road is really difficult. We need our fans to come out and give us a chance."
The Falcons are not guaranteed to get into the MEC tournmanent but with a win against either West Liberty or Urbana or a loss in either of the last two games the Falcons will get a chance to defend the MEC title they won a season ago.
Richmond talked leadership:
" One thing we have going for us is that we have very good senior leadership on this team."
It has been a wild ride but with this team you never know what to expect. The one thing you know for sure is that this team will keep it interesting. Everybody will be at the edge of their seat and we all look forward to seeing what may happen down the stretch.
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