Men's basketball season preview

by: shawna o'hara
Staff Writer

When St. Ambrose University men’s basketball fans head out to catch their team in action this winter, they shouldn’t expect a team down about a loss in last year’s final game.

Instead, they should be just as excited about this year’s squad as head coach Ray Shovlain is.

Despite SAU’s season-ending loss in last year’s NAIA playoffs, coach Shovlain expects a successful season. According to Shovlain, last year the men’s team had a great sense of teamwork, a big part of what he strives to build his team on each year.

The final game loss was a quick end to a year in which the team had won their fourth consecutive conference title and come out on top with a 22-13 record. Regardless, Coach Shovlain focuses more on the successful season than the last loss.

"It was a really outstanding season for us," Shovlain said. "Probably the most memorable season since we’ve been here."

This year will mark the 23^rd men’s basketball season for SAU, with Shovlain celebrating his 23^rd season in coaching as well. It took him those 23 years to develop a strong sense of what is needed for his team to achieve success - pure strength, in both teamwork and in character.

Returning junior Chris Washington sne that Shovlain says is a leader "both on and off the floor."

But this season may not see a whole lot of Washington, as an arm broken during a scrimmage may have him out nearly six weeks.

"We’ll see when he gets back and go from there, but in the long run this may help us," Shovlain said. "[This] may hold an opportunity for our other players to become better leaders."

Shovlain stresses the importance of having both quality players and quality people on his court at all times, and says he is grateful for the effort shown by all of his players every year, regardless of playing time or team rank.

This year, four new transfer players are slated to join the team, and Coach Shovlain hopes everyone blends together as flawlessly as teams of the past, noting this year’s loss of two key players, Ryan Johnson and Nick Ferreira.

"It will be difficult to replace the quality of people that they were," Shovlain explained. "They were both Academic All-Americans and they were well received on campus."

Hoping for another Conference title, Shovlain made it clear that SAU isn’t afraid of a challenge in the 2005-2006 season, stating that the non-conference schedule will be just as difficult this season as it was last year. But when it comes to rivalry, Shovlain understands the added excitement of both having rivals and being one to other.

"We have a good rivalry with just about everybody we play. Everyone wants to play us, and we look to play the best teams we can find," Shovlain said.

Ambrose consistently plays better at home, and both the team and coaching staff, including assistant coaches Tom Linnell and John Doyle, love a good crowd.

"The players really appreciate [good community support] from the student body," Shovlain said. "This year we will be an exciting team to watch. Many of the players will contribute to the success of the team. There won’t be just one player out there scoring 50 points a game."

Shovlain is also very vocal in supporting SAU’s women’s team, year in and year out. In fact, this year for both teams Shovlain guarantees "outstanding and exciting basketball."