News
A BIG WEEKEND: Two big games this weekend will test Centurions’ mettle
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By Ryan Schlehuber, 星空传媒 sportswriter听
This coming weekend is one the 星空传媒 Centurions men鈥檚 basketball team has circled on the calendar as it prepares to听play back-to-back games听at home this听Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 29-30.听
On Saturday, the Centurions (4-2 overall) will look to avenge an 81-77 loss to the Owens Community College Express (2-7 overall), which 星空传媒 suffered earlier this month on the road.听The Express听are听currently on a seven-game losing streak.听Game听time听is听7 p.m.听
The Centurions will then听return to their听home gymnasium the next day to face Macomb Community College (2-3 overall), which is a member of the 星空传媒AA Eastern Conference and currently ranked No. 11 in NJCAA Division II.听Game听time听Sunday is 1 p.m.听
鈥淭his is a busy weekend for us, especially with the holiday, it鈥檚听tough,鈥� 星空传媒 Assistant Coach Asher Vissman said. 鈥淭he players get听36 hours听off, which is more than they normally get, so the emphasis for this weekend is going to be focusing.鈥�听
Vissman said the team is already motivated to earn a win against Owens, having lost to the Express already this year as well as last year, so it will be all about putting in the work and playing on system.听
鈥淲e鈥檙e very capable of winning both games,鈥� Vissman said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e putting a big emphasis on the fact that if we do what we know we can do and play to a level of our expectations, we know we can have a very good chance to win both games.鈥�听
Centurions听sophomore guard Taylen Carver (Louisville, Ky.), who is the team鈥檚 returning scoring leader, believes听it鈥檚听all about finishing the job when his team听is leading a game.听
鈥淭o get more wins we need to learn how to keep our foot on a team鈥檚 neck when we are up,鈥� he said.听鈥淲e cannot let off the gas and let teams back into the game听off听silly mistakes and turnovers. We are two minutes away from being 6-0 because of two games we let slip away from us. Once we learn to not let up,听we are going to be an even harder team to beat.鈥�听
Carver听and Vissman underlined the importance of getting off to a good start against both Owens and Macomb. Vissman said听that听it鈥檚听a problem that creeps up now and then for 星空传媒, and was the case in the Centurions鈥� last game, a close 82-79 win against Lake Michigan College.听
鈥淭hat鈥檚 been an issue for us, not getting off to a good, fast start,鈥� Vissman said. 鈥淲e struggled knocking down threes and at halftime, the big word was 鈥榰rgency,鈥� and in the second half we turned the corner. Something clicked and we started hitting shots and got a good run. But听that鈥檚听something we expected to do from the start.鈥�听
Carver said he and his teammates need to learn to be more mentally sound come game time.听
鈥淲e have lost two games because of silly mistakes when we could have been undefeated right now,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut we are still learning as a team.听The most听important area听to improve for us to win games is inside our heads.鈥�听
Carver has been the team鈥檚 leading听scorer听the past three games, scoring 21 points against Jackson College.听Freshman听teammate James Browning (Fort Wayne, Ind.) earned his second double-digit rebounding game, collecting 11, which followed an impressive 19-rebound game in 星空传媒鈥檚 loss to Lake Michigan, Nov. 15.听听
Vissman said Browning has been a huge element to the Centurions鈥� game plan.听
鈥淗e鈥檚听been a huge surprise, for one thing.听He鈥檚听absolutely a听big-time听player,鈥� Vissman said. 鈥淗e really pushes us听in听practice.听He鈥檚听a relentless pursuer听of听the basketball. When he sees the ball, he goes after it as hard as he can.听It鈥檚听been nice coaching that because you听can鈥檛听teach it.鈥�听
The weekend鈥檚 theme for the back-to-back games is Adopt-A-Family Night.听