With the first basketball game of the season set to occur Saturday, Nov. 8th, the basketball teams are well underway with preparation for their seasons. Both the men’s and women’s team began practicing Oct. 15th.
The men’s basketball team has been practicing two hours a week since the beginning of the school year but recently started their allowed 20 hours per week on Oct. 15th.
This year the men’s basketball team returns seven players from last year’s team.
Senior guard Pedro Faller, an economics major, has shown signs early on of being a leader for the Bulldogs according to head coach, David Niven.
“Pedro has done a remarkable job of being the voice of our practices. We place a lot of emphasis on communication in everything we do. At practice, communication should be early, constant and loud. Pedro is constantly talking at practice and doing a really good job of setting the tone for our other guys,” said Niven.
In preparation for the season, the men’s team has been lifting weights in the mornings three times a week on top of getting in the gym and playing.
“This year we tried something different and wanted the guys to focus on getting in shape by playing,” said Niven. “It actually worked out really well. Besides placing an emphasis on preparing for season in the gym, we did two different boot camps during the preseason with our graduate assistant coach, David Minaya.
“The boot camps went really well as our guys were challenged both physically and mentally. We got to see who the guys were that communicated despite how they felt and who the guys were that want to be leaders this year,” added Niven.
Niven is excited for the season to start as the Bulldogs will play six non-conference games before starting conference play in December.
“Four of the six non-conference games we are playing are other Division II teams in our region. These games will be good challenges early on that will help prepare us for conference play.”
The women’s team hopes to make another impact in the Gulf South Conference as they are finally eligible to compete for a conference championship. Last season the team finished the regular season third in conference despite being ineligible for postseason play.
Head coach for the women’s team, Mark Campbell says that practices are going as they normally do this time of the year.
“Basketball practices are going as usual, our new players are overwhelmed with everything they are thinking about, but to me that is normal,” said Campbell. “We want players to be uncomfortable now so that when their knowledge starts to catch up with their feet and their abilities they can have some freedom. It is crucial for them to be attentive to details now that are going to be important later on.”
“The important thing is to have a picture and a vision of what it is going to look like later so that you are willing to endure some of the ways it looks now when it doesn’t look really good,” Campbell added.
Senior guard Amy Philamlee, an exercise science major, agreed with Campbell that practices are tough right now but it is always like that this time of the year.
“Practices always start off rocky just because Coach is a very detail oriented coach, and a lot of players are not used to that. Right now it is a lot of thinking and playing, versus just playing. Once we get over the mountain of this point in the season, we will start playing with flow, where you don’t have to think so much you can just play,” said Philamlee.
Campbell is very confident in the group of girls he has this year because of the character that is composed on his team.
“We have a core group that understands what Union is, and what our mission is as a school and that kinda brings it to what our team is. When you have a core group of people that are mature and understand what their purpose is on earth, that translates in practice and into everything they do. Once we start school, new players are quickly introduced to a new culture, and so as a coach there is confidence found in the fact that the people who are leading your team are people of character.
“When you go on a journey with a group of people and you trust their hearts, there is a peace in that that no matter what we may go through, we will be able to get out the other side of it.”
