As the men’s basketball team is preparing to begin the rigors of the regular season, coach Vince Alexander has simple goals for this season: play smart, hard and together each and every game. Coming off of a 12-19 season, there should be optimism in the air as the Lions had eight wins against Sunshine State Conference teams.
After a very convincing 101-51 victory Nov. 3 during Homecoming against Pasco Hernando State College, coach Alexander still has some areas that the Lions need to improve before the games begin to count.
“[Homecoming] taught me some good and bad things. I think that we need to be a better rebounding team; we need to contain penetration defensively, and we need to do a better job at making free throws,” said Alexander.
Those things will straighten themselves out as the season begins and the team begins to face adversity against other opponents. Last season, the team gave up 76.7 points per game, almost five points higher than they produced; rebounding could be the extra effort to fix that as the Lions were outrebounded by almost four a night; with size in the frontcourt entering the season, this could be a problem the staff has fixed. The Lions had some difficulties at the free throw line, only shooting 67 percent during the 2017 season. There were some positive things that Alexander picked out as well.
“I think we do a good job of playing together and sharing the ball. We have multiple guys that can score, and we are a pretty good shooting team. Overall, we have a lot of work to do, but we have guys that are willing to do the work,” said Alexander.
Unselfish passing could create better shot opportunities for the team throughout the season. The Lions had 429 assists last season, and with an increase in that number this year, close losses can become victories. The team has played unselfishly in the past, so it should not be an issue for this year’s team.
It appears the bulk of the scoring will come from senior forward Junior Searcy and junior guard Isaiah Hill, who both averaged over 12 points a game last season to lead the Lions. One big thing coming into the season will be rim protection since that could lead to turnovers and easy, fast break baskets to begin or extend runs. Hill convincingly led the team with 52 steals last year and was averaging two a game. Both Searcy and junior Pape Ngom averaged just under one block a game to continue a defensive approach.
This will be Alexander’s fourth season as the head coach of the men’s basketball program, meaning all of the players have had him as coach in their Saint Leo athletic careers. “This has allowed us to implement our culture and teach our expectations we have for them both on and off the court.” The student-athletes are also excelling in the classroom as six players were placed on the Sunshine State Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll for the Spring 2018 semester.
The Lions begin their official season Nov. 10 against Alabama-Huntsville in Tampa during the GSC vs. SSC Challenge. Their first home game is Nov. 16 against Auburn-Montgomery. Make sure to go support the Lions as they begin another season with high expectations.
